August 15, 2013 Cadillac --> Midland, MI - 84 miles
The condition of highway 115 for the first 15 miles or so was the least desirable to date. Heavy traffic and in many places in need of repair. Did see some nice wind turbines in the distance.
After approximately 20 miles, we veered off onto a county highway for 10 miles where we planned to pick up the Pere Marquette Rail Trail to Clare, our destination town for the day. At the point where we were to access the trail, we once again ran into the antics of the Google lady. She instructed us to turn right for approximately .5 of a mile, then go down a dirt road for .3 of a mile. At this point, she said "turn left onto the Pere Marquette trail." The only problem was that the trail was some 30 feet or more below us down an embankment with no obvious on-ramp. Just as we were about to back track and find our own way somewhere up the road to access the trail, I noticed a little clearing further down the dirt road. There was a small steep winding path down to the trail. Randy and I carried each bike together down the path - no small feat and a pretty good workout for him since he was on the back end carrying the bikes. However, our efforts were rewarded as we successfully navigated the embankment and got on the trail.
After riding on the trail for a couple of miles, we came upon an intersection of the trail with the road we had originally been on and realized the Google lady had once again played a cruel joke on us, as there was no need for the whole dirt road/hike down the embankment episode. We could have easily biked on at this point had we known about it. We are doubting Google lady's veracity more and more.
For the next 17 miles or so, we cruised along one of the best bike trails we have ever ridden. Flat, wide, smooth asphalt and with a little tailwind to boot. The surrounding terrain was pretty marshy at first, but gradually evolved into farmland. We saw many old interesting- looking barns and fields of corn and other crops. It was also nice to see a number of bikers out for day rides.
Originally we had planned to stop after 50 miles in Clare, MI. However, we arrived so early in the day and the riding conditions were so perfect that we decided to continue on the Pere Marquette trail another 30 miles to Midland. While there were some clouds, the sun was quite bright and it warmed up to probably the high 70's. Simply, a beautiful day with perfect bike riding. Because there were no traffic concerns, you could just drift along with your thoughts and the scenery.
A couple of miles before Midland, Randy and I were talking about how we had not seen hardly any other touring bikers and had had very few real interactions with people during this ride, which was very different from last years' ride. Not five minutes later, we came upon a gentleman with a loaded touring bike coming from the other direction. We stopped to chat, and he told us his name was Larry. He was on his way back to Ludington, MI after biking across Michigan primarily on the Pere Marquette. It appears that Larry is retired and just really started getting into the bike touring gig. He was very enthusiastic and told us about a couple of other riders a couple of hours ahead of us that are touring. We told Larry a little about our rides, and as we prepared to leave I gave him one of my bike ride "business cards" with the blog cite. Larry then gave me $5 towards the ALS cause, saying that it came out of some money his wife had given him to spend on the trip. I was touched to say the least.
We found a nice motel in Midland and after checking in Randy biked to a convenience store for some purchases. When he returned to the motel, he was met in the lobby by a man who said he had seen Randy on his bike at the convenience store. After asking a few questions about the ride, this man told Randy that he did not have to be anywhere for a while and offered Randy the use of his car for a few hours if he wanted. Randy declined, but this was just another example of the kindness of strangers. I never quite get over how amazing and kind people are to us.
Tomorrow we push on. Unfortunately, I believe we have run out of the Pere Marquette Trail. However, at least the forecast is for continued good weather.
