ashland, wisconsin

 Looks like Florida . . . but it's Wisconsin.

Yep, we are in Wisconsin and will be again tomorrow for part of the ride. Right now, we are in Ashland, Historic Mural Capital of Wisconsin. There are over twenty of these murals in the eight block center of the city. This mural not only recognizes the branches of the military but each person depicted is a veteran or active duty from the city. Names, ranks, branch of service, and wars or conflicts are painted on the wall as well. I love military things and this mural is over the top. Way to go, Ashland. Very patriotic.

OK, how about the ride today? We pedaled 63.17 miles with a crazy wind behind us! That's a tailwind . . . and it was moving. At time I noticed we were going twenty-two miles an hour and not pedaling. It was ferocious! But what a ride! The roads weren't bad but we did have some narrow shoulders and construction. One flagger told us we had to wait until all the vehicles going our direction were gone. When she gave us the ok to go, we had the road completely to ourselves. She did warn us of a downhill along the way. With the tailwind and the downhill, we cruised over thirty miles an hour through the whole construction zone. When we passed the flagger at the other end, we were still cruising and she called out, "Ya done good!" That was a ride to remember. Fun! Because of the tailwind we arrived in Ashland with time to spare. We had enough time to visit the North Shore National Lake Shore so Margaret and Gale could get their Passport Books stamped. They are very happy campers, now.

On the way, we noticed to the left of Route 2, Grizz Works. Grizz Works has to be the work shop or art studio of two very talented and creative chainsaw artists, Justin Howland and Jared Nelson. The workshop is outside but looks like it would be a great place to hang out and talk with Justin and Jared. There are many wood creations about the property. There was also some piles of huge timbers waiting to become something really impressive, unusual, and fun. I could just see that huge bear on our deck at home. Of course, every time I went outside, it would probably give me a scare. (The bear is the one on the right.)

In Ashland, we also visited Bay City Cycles, another super good bike shop. We left there with decals from the shop, a pair of cycling shoes (Phil), and a Bay City Cycles t-shirt (me). Every time we go into a bike shop, someone asks, "Where ya headed?" Well, that usually leads to a fun conversation about the ride and roads ahead. One of the cyclists in the shop overheard our conversation and said, "I rode twenty-six miles yesterday and thought I was doing good." We meet some of the neatest people in bike shops and restaurants.

We ate supper at Ashland Family Restaurant. It just re-opened on Tuesday and lots of folks obviously heard about it. One man, paying his bill, was overhead saying, "Thanks for opening again." We sure did agree. The food was really good and too much of it, but we still managed to eat most of it. Piggies.

Tomorrow we head for Ironwood, Michigan. We will be in the Upper Peninsula. (U. P.) We don't have many miles to pedal tomorrow so we might tack on a few extra to make the following days across the U. P. a bit easier. If we have a tailwind like today, tomorrow will literally be a breeze!

Riding across America gives us a real look at this country and its people. These are real people, hard-working, friendly, and patriotic. We see many American flags flying in these rural and agricultural areas. The one thing that tops my list of this ride is people. We meet all kinds of people but they make the ride so special. They love this country and work hard to keep it strong and free. Of course, we also see small buildings where people worship. The Founding Fathers of the United States of America were strong in their faith and determined to keep America committed to the wisdom and commands of Almighty God. They knew where our liberty and strength came from. 

"Blessed is the nation whose God is the LORD." -Psalm 33:12