We started our second day in Walker with a planned 63 mile day. We were riding paved bike paths the entire day. These trails (Paul Bunyan and Shin-Go-Bee) are considered part of the national Rails to Trails project. Our morning started with a quick coffee stop, our lunch was at a local burger place and we finished in Baxter, MN about 4:45 pm. With the exception of a few overpasses and small rises on the trail we were going slightly downhill the entire ride. Normally that sounds amazing, but after 60 miles of mostly straight and flat we welcomed some differing terrain. Don’t get me wrong, there were spots with beautiful lakes, bogs and fields. We also were blessed with lots of flowers along the way so that helped a lot too.

To me the most interesting thing about riding Rails to Trails routes is the glimpse of the past you get when riding along. I imagine steam engines chugging along the same place we were. I look at the train stations and sidings that remain in the small towns along the way. It’s cool to see how these industrial corridors have often been turned into parks and city centers. I doubt the men who carved the land, laid the track and built the transportation infrastructure would ever have conceived of their work being used by pleasure bikes. Along the route you see the remnants of towns that disappeared with the loss of the railway and others that flourished.

Interestingly enough we ended our day at a restarting in Brainerd that was located in a rehabilitated Northern Pacific rail-yard where they used to build and fix trains. It was a huge facility that was repurposed with restaurants, shops and even a wedding venue. I’m CERTAIN the people who were working there never thought that would happen!

Overall another good day of riding. Day 3 becomes all road riding along the Mississippi as we head downstream towards St Cloud.