7/15/14

DAY 18 - COLLEGE DINING

We woke up and got on the road early this morning wearing almost all of our layers. The "polar votex" we are hearing about on the weather channel is in full effect. Our first stop was in Fertile, IA - just 11 miles from camp. At Downtown Cafe, we had a huge and amazing Amish style breakfast with pancakes, eggs, bacon, and coffee. All was fresh and amazingly delicious. The owner only charged us $5 each and even threw in a free (delicious) loaf of homemade banana bread for the road. Amazing. 




We biked fast to stay warm, but the wind today was whipping from the northwest and kept us cold. We dove into a convenience store for warm coffee. 

 And stopped again to warm up at one of the many Casey's Convenience stores. We typically just hang out in the middle and chat it up with some locals. 




Kept on biking, passing heavy farm machinery and foul smelling pig farms. Eventually, we were excited to find a bike path that got us off the busy road with semi-trucks. 



But then it led us astray and we ended up on another crap gravel road. :(


At the end of the day, we arrived in Decorah, IA where we tuned up our bikes in the awesome Oneota Bike Shop. Richard, the owner charged us nothing. 


We biked to Luther College around the corner from the bike shop to attack their dining hall. The charge was $9.95 a person for amazing all-you-can-eat food. There were salad bars with locally grown greens, BBQ chicken, made to order pastas, and a huge dessert bar! We ate like kings. 


Now off to the local campground, Pulpit Rock State Park, for a good nights sleep. It will be in the low 50s tonight, so we will have to bundle up.


 
Here's Don chatting on the phone and Justin texting before bed.




10 comments:

  1. Melanie L Daglian7/15/2014

    I just love the friendly locals and all that great food! Keep warm guys!

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  2. Ryan Smith7/15/2014

    I'm torn between wanting you guys back in Boston, and you biking forever so I can keep reading these amazing posts.

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    Replies
    1. Ryan: We're similarly torn between wanting to have the ride over and be back in Boston immediately, and wanting to keep riding!

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  3. Stay warm! I guess being cozy in the tent isn't as bad during a polar vortex! Have fun crossing the Mississippi tomorrow into the land of cheese. Praying for tailwinds!

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  4. I'm with Ryan. I'm totally addicted to this blog.

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  5. Also addicted....great travelogue. Hoping you manage to continue avoiding the, um, precipitation issues we are having in New England this week. I'm afraid to speak the word aloud.
    I have my big swim in 3 days and I am very inspired by this blog.

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    Replies
    1. Thanks for following and good luck on the swim!

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  6. Anonymous7/17/2014

    John and I are loving these posts and are impressed by your journey! Keep up the smiles.

    Best,
    Louisa

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    Replies
    1. Thanks for the comment Louisa. We're still smiling. : )

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