Winter hangs on...

(and it's getting really tiresome!)

Corn shocks in an Amish neighbor's field

It's the 10th of March, 2013, and Wisconsin seems to be stuck in a February weather warp! Bike riding ranges between unpleasant and imposible. Take today's ride as an example...

I worked in the morning and watched the weather hoping for an afternoon ride after work. Rain was supposed to start around 5pm but on my drive home from work at 2:00 pm, the rain had already began. Undaunted, I dressed in normal 30 to 40 degree undergarments, but drug out my Sterns rain suit and slipt into my rubber barn boots. 

I was on the highway by 3:30 pm and chose a 12 mile route from my place to Lime Ridge, then out highway K where I turned onto Meyer Road. The southeast crosswind on Meyer Road was blowing my pant leg into the chain and sprocket, so I stopped to wrap a bungie cord around my right ankle. A truck stopped and asked me if I was alright... I guess I was as alright as any sane person riding bicycle on a thirty degree windy day in Wisconsin during a driving rain! 

I was doing O.K. until about 7 miles into the ride. I realized I had forgotten my cell phone, forgotten an energy bar, and I was going into a sugar crash! 

I couldn't call for help or I might have, but now I could only struggle through until I arrived home. I rode as easily as I could but still felt the familiar effects of low blood sugar. My world shrinks and when it's over it's like I've been somewhere else. 

I watch the water spraying off my front tire, curving into a four inch arch before it's blown horizontal to the highway in the crosswind. I stop thinking of anything except the next push on the peddle... the line on the edge of the highway... I breathe... in, out, in, out... At the last hill, I stop and get off and walk. My legs feel like they're made of concrete. Numb. Heavy. The rain that has been pelting my face like little ice bombs begin to let up a little and I feel myself coming back around as I enter the last mile of my journey.

Friday's ride on Frank Road

The driveway is too treturous, and I'm too tired to peddle up it, so I dismount and walk up to the house. I'm shaky. Blood sugar is in the 80's by now... but I've returned! 

Sandy makes me a bowl of tomato soup and Puff comes sits on my lap as I cuddle into dry clothes on the couch. 

A 12 mile ride today... 9 miles yesterday because I had to cut my ride short. Sandy picked me up so we could get into Reedsburg and sign our income taxes... 22 miles on Thursday for a total of 252 miles for the year. 

The winter miles are hard miles. I can't wait until spring and summer arrive! I can't wait to jump on my bike with a pair of shorts on, and nothing else, and ride...

A Thousand Miles

I achieved two milestones on the 22 of August. First, I passed a thousand miles of biking for the summer, and secondly, I rode over 60 miles in a day, 64 miles to be exact. My rides are seldom planned, so when I left on Wednesday, I had no plan of where to ride to. My blood sugar was high from the previous day's splurge on a family trip, so the one thing I did want to do was take a long ride and maybe travel the 32 miles I needed to complete one-thousand miles. As it turned out, I road twice the miles I needed to meet that milestone!

Carr Valley Cheese Factory

I started out by riding to Lime Ridge and then I peddled north on highway G passing the Carr Valley Cheese factory. I think Carr Valley makes the best cheese and the best cheese curds. My wife works there and that may skew my judgement slightly. She was on vacation this week, so I didn't stop. 

After passing the cheese factory, I rode past Easter's Bakery. This is another Amish enterprise that's open during the summer. The little building is another Amish telephone booth, I think. 

The weather on Wednesday was perfect for riding bicycle: blue sky, sunshine, but not too hot. I did wake up on Thursday with a slight sunburn, so maybe there was a little too much sun?

Amish Bakery. Sign. And phone booth

Me and my shadow...we ride solo!

Looking back on the Village of Cazenovia as I peddled up Cunningham hill. 

Be the time I rode past Easter's Bakery, I was beginning to develop a plan, a destination. Valton. I took a back road to Cazenovia and after riding through the park, I planned to head north toward the little village of Valton. I've ridden to Valton once this summer, but on Wednesday, I chose a different route. I like traveling roads that are less-traveled and many times this summer I've ridden roads that I've never traveled before though they are so close to where I live.

Amish along the highway. 

Neat store....

The back roads to Valton were beautiful, filled with hills and valleys and interesting farms. After arriving in Valton.... and since I had the day off... I decided I would continue riding north to the Village of Hillsboro. Someone had told me about a store there that sold spices in bulk, and I wanted to purchase some Turmeric. The name of the store was Whitaker's Farm Fresh Market. It turned out to be a fine health food store with bulk spices, grains, and Amish canned produce. I bought a large tub of Turmeric (.27 lbs for $2.88) but I also found Braggs Apple Cider by the gallon. The price was a full dollar cheaper than what I had been paying for it but I decided that a gallon of cider would be too heavy for the ride. I returned on Thursday and purchased the cider.

Hops... what makes beer as we know it

A difficult to find bike path

I had a burger and a couple of beers at a motel/bar called Beezer, and then I rode the bike trails from Hillsboro to Union Center, Wonewoc, LaValle, and finally Reedsburg. Along the way, I found wild Hops growing in several areas. I raise hops for homebrewing beer, so I'm familiar with when they are ready to harvest. The trail hops weren't ready for harvest yet, but in a week or two they may be? I'll be sure to return to the trails with a bag so I can collect enough for a batch of 'Bike Trail' beer!

A swamp filled with some kind of purple flowered plant.

 I passed swamps filled with beautiful purple flowers and stopped for Culver's Ice Cream In Reedsburg. The sun was setting by the time I approached Loganville and it was dark when I arrived home.

Wednesday's ride was the longest I've ridden so far. I wasn't particularly spent, although I was pleasantly tired. This spring when I started riding, I never imagined that I would go this far and I don't know how far I'll still travel before winter ends my riding adventures. I didn't ride today, but spent time instead in my little exercise room here at the house. I'm afraid I'll be banished to that when the cold arrives, so I'm experimenting now.

In all my rides, I ride solo. I've only seen one other person riding the roads and two or three people riding the trails. So much beauty... so few taking the opportunity to enjoy....

Sunday Ride

19 August 2012 - My blood sugar has been running high in the mornings lately, so I knew I had to go for a longer ride today. It was past 9:30 A.M. by the time I feed the ducks, guineas, and chickens and got dressed for the ride. The temperature was in the high sixties, so I wore light shorts and my stretchy runners shirt.

Lime Ridge is a mile and a half away and from there I turned south on highway G. I pulled over a few times along the way to 'Wards Corners' to photograph more Amish businesses. The Amish don't want to be photographed but I don't see how it could hurt to photograph their homes and businesses, so I did.

This place has piles of lumber.

We bought a double seated glider with center table from this place for Sandy's Birthday earlier this spring.

"Wards Corner's' used to be a country store, gas station, garage, and living quarters but now appears abandoned as a business or home, and not well kept.

I rode past Wards Corners and turned east at the Sandusky Church. It's about 7 miles to the Sandusky Church. I like that route as traffic is usually light if any.  After I pass the church, I head south to White Mound Lake.

I'm supposed to have some kind of pass to enter White Mound Lake Park at a cost of $20 a year or $4 a day but I haven't bought that yet. The Park is part of the Sauk County parks system and I've been a tax-paying resident of the county all my life. I feel that I've already done my part to foot the bill for White Mound park, why am I being charged a ridiculous fee for a park I've already bought and paid for? Upkeep? Sure, but collect that from non-county residents, let the people that have bought and paid for the park use it, or at least pass through the park on the road that I'm sure is still maintained with our tax dollars.

Anyway, White Mound Park is 12 miles into my morning ride and I have to use the restrooms.  I venture into the boat landing area and use the outdoor toilets that reek like most outdoor toilets do.  I'm thinking in my head what to do if the park 'Ranger'... ranger Smith or whoever, catches me. I don't have my wallet, identification, nor any money. I figure I'd lie and say my name was Chris L---. That's a guy I work with, love to pester, and always threaten to use his name if I ever do anything that I might have to answer for!

All went well and I left the park unmolested by ranger Smith.

As I peddled my way toward Hillpoint, I noticed time was slipping by quickly, and I needed to hurry to get home and ready for work. I chose the shortest route from Hillpoint to my home even though it involved some challenging hills. Along the way, I passed a dirt-bike track that is not Amish but a local business all the same. It's about 3 miles from my house and I barely hear the dirt bikes on the weekend but would hate to have something like this closer and have to listen to racing bikes every weekend during the summer.

The morning ride took about 2 hours and ended at 21 miles. My total for the year is 947 miles. I should pass 1,000 miles before next weekend, what then?

When I started, I didn't have a goal in mind other than to ride a little four-mile ride and lower my blood sugar. Now I want to see every obscure side-road and take-in all the sights, sounds, and smells that summer in Wisconsin has to offer and I'm really noticing all of those.

I'll dedicate some future postings especially to the smells and the sounds of the country. Till then, have a safe journey...

Amish Country

Western Sauk County, where I live and do most of my bike riding, has seen a tremendous increase in Amish residents in the last couple of decades. Three or four decades ago, there were no Amish in our area but they came and their communities continue to grow and expand.

They have established many businesses out in the country: greenhouses, bakeries, vegetable stands, carpentry and cabinet shops, selling eggs, doing metal work, masonry, building sheds, and more. As I rode a 12 mile route this morning, these are a few of the Amish businesses that I encountered.

Sign in front of the barn below.

The main office...

 At a spot close to the above horseshoeing and horse drawn wagon business and close to at least three other Amish farms, there was an "Amish telephone booth". At least that's what I think it is. The Amish want to keep their families and their lives separate from the outside world even while living and working in 'our' world. Therefore, telephones are not allowed in these Amish homes,  nor even in their businesses yet somewhere close, but separated, you will often find a small building with a telephone in it.

Amish Phone Booth

There was clearly telephone wires connected to this building, and as I passed, I could see papers and notes on the wall inside. Amish businesses, with items for sale or services offered, will often have a phone number listed where you can leave a message and they'll get back to you... when they get around to stopping by the little Amish phone booth!

Sign pointing to an Amish Bakery

I'm leery of some of the Amish businesses. This sign pointing to the Windy Ridge Bakery proclaiming that it's open on Saturday apparently means that it is only open on Saturday during the summer! I stopped by last winter on a Saturday, walked in (to the basement part of the Amish house), only to find that I was standing in someone's house! The bakery was apparently closed for the winter, but they had neglected to change or cover their signs. Embarrassing!

These are only a few of the many Amish enterprises that are within 5 or 6 miles of where I live and where I rode my bike this morning. Here are a couple more photos from my morning bike ride...

Looking down from a hilltop through a valley

I love the pretty blue flowers/weeds along the road.