Our first day of this ride started in a state park and included almost 20 miles of country roads, a town, and then trails in the woods/fields of Northern Minnesota. By contrast, the last day was going to be all urban riding. We left the hotel and wove our way through Coon Rapids, a suburb on the north side of Minneapolis. We connected to a fantastic set of trails that ran along the river through the heart of Minneapolis and St Paul. It was wonderful riding, bridges, dams, historical sites, shaded trails, trains, barges, and cool architecture. Our pace was slow so we could enjoy the scenery. There were a couple places where we saw the impact of the recent heavy rains and flooding. On one section, part of the trail had washed away so we walked it. At the confluence of the Minnesota and Mississippi Rivers, the water was still very high. There were dozens of barges all along the banks.

At mile 35 we were just about to St Paul and needed a break and food. We found a Brazilian sandwich shop/market and stopped to check it out. Such a cool place. Lots of grocery items from Brazil, several guys watching soccer, and some traditional Brazilian sandwiches. I tried the cachorro quente prensado (panini pressed hotdog) and Mel had the misto quente (ham and cheese sandwich). We split a coke, got some Oreo-like cookies and refilled the water bottles.

From here we headed down river and the heat started to build. This was our hottest and most humid day. We took multiple breaks in the shade and also picked up a 15-20 mph headwind. But, with only 20 miles to go we pushed forward and made it to our endpoint in Hastings, MN a little ahead of schedule.

Our friends, Josh and Kelly, had ridden with us for the first two days and then dropped a car for us at the finish spot. They also left us snacks and water in our car, which was a great surprise and blessing, as we ended our 55 mile day.

I’ll do a trip summary tomorrow…then it’s time to start planning for 2025!