Northern Tier Day #33 Lake Bemidji State Park, MN to Round Lake, MN
Northern Tier Day #33
June 22, 2019
Lake Bemidji State Park, MN to Round Lake, MN 81 Miles
Ride Time 6:38
Tour Total 2639 Miles
details at: https://cyclemeter.com/058ffe3224dd3702/Cycle-20190622-0928-22622
I slept great last night at campsite 91 in Lake Bemidji State Park. I awoke to the sound of loons. I retrieved my charged power pack from the bathroom where I had left it plugged in.
It was a delightful ride back into Bemidji on the Paul Bunyan Bike Trail. I spotted three mallard ducks swimming in the lake. At one point a gopher ran across the road, right in front of me, and I almost flattened it. I was later startled by a large deer standing on the side of the trail.
There was a strong wind from the south, and I was pedaling right into it. The sky was sunny and clear to the east, and overcast to the west. I was wearing my long-sleeve jersey and cycling pants. The rain forecast keeps getting pushed back. Now it’s not supposed to rain until this evening, and I’m no longer worried about a big storm.
I raised my seat post a quarter of an inch yesterday, and have been enjoying the extra reach. The angle still isn’t right since it went loose and I had to tighten it. I was really sad to see the Paul Bunyan State Bike Trail end. It was so easy to navigate, and was flat and smooth. I enjoyed being away from motorized traffic. It was absolutely fantastic!
I crossed over the Mississippi river coming out of Lake Bemidji, and mistakenly thought that this was the headwater but I was wrong. I crossed the river again on my way to Becida. I was on the National Great River Road and also on the Mississippi River Trail Bike Route. There was an ATV trail in the grass to the right of the highway. I was stair-stepping west and south. I took County Road 7 to County Road 3 to County Road 9.
I stopped at the Becida Bar & Grill where I had a bacon cheeseburger and fries, along with two Bemidji Brewery German Blondes. The bartender was curious about my trip. We talked about how unseasonably cool it was. I would rather have this then blistering hot sun. The current weather forecast, if I could believe it, was calling for rain tonight. Things look good for tomorrow and the next few days.
The wind was favorable heading west out of Becida. The sun had disappeared, and it was chillier so I put my sweater on. When I crossed into Clearwater County the highway number changed to 40.
In Lake Itasca I went to the Rock Creek General store to get a Gatorade. Many people were inside getting fishing licenses. The liquor store was in the same building but customers had to use a different door and one couldn’t go through the store from side to the other. The liquor laws in Minnesota are peculiar.
I rode through Lake Itasca State Park which is the true headwater of the Mississippi River. I took Main Park Drive through the park. Motorized vehicles had to pay a fee but I didn’t. There were numerous tourists at the visitor center and many people in bathing suits were enjoying the water. I had a photo taken of me at the source, and many people asked me about my trip. I finally reached the end of the National Great River road. I had been following the Mississippi off and on since Muscatine, Iowa ten days ago. It was less than twenty feet across when I crossed it for the last time. As I was leaving the park I met a nice lady hiking, who was a cycling enthusiast. She mentioned that she had toured over 40 states. She had recently ridden the Adventure Cycling Natchez Trace supported ride.
There were so many lakes in this part of the state, both big and small. They’re all over my map and all along the road. Tomorrow I'll be in North Dakota and I sent out a couple of requests for a Warmshowers host in Fargo. I heard back from one of them.
I was on Highway 71 going south for 7 miles. It had a lot of traffic, and I had a 4 foot shoulder with a rumble strip to the left. After the intersection of County Highway 44, I would be headed west all the way to North Dakota. No more stair-stepping.
I now had a crosswind instead of a headwind. It was cloudy and starting to get dark. It was 3:30 in the afternoon, and I was worried that it would rain. I stopped at Two Inlets Country Store for some Gatorade and cashews. There was a line of people getting fishing permits. I asked how the fishing was with this cold weather, and the clerk replied that it was really really good. I was told that St. Mary’s Catholic church across the street had a famous grotto. I swapped my sunglasses for my clear goggles.
The area seemed emptier than previous parts of Minnesota. I rode by acres of pine trees and fields full of grass and wildflowers. There was no agricultural production or lakes with marinas and resorts. It was very quiet, and there were numerous stealth camping options that I was considering.
It started to drizzle so I pulled over to put on my rain pants and jacket. I removed my sweater so that I wouldn’t bake. I turned on my new rear red blinking light. I was riding through the White Earth Indian Reservation.
At the intersection of County Highway 44 the pavement ended. I stopped and looked at my maps, and I had no choice. I continued down the crappy cruel and brutal gravel. The only benefit of the sucky gravel road was that it was raining and there was no dust. I was riding in the middle of the road where the smoothest path was, but there was traffic and I had to be careful. I stopped to turn on my front light put on my rain hood and phone cover. I lost my balance and couldn’t get my right foot out of the clip. I fell over into the dirty sandy gravel.
The gravel finally ended and I got the asphalt surface back. My front panniers were covered in dirt. I saw a giant crane lift off and fly over a corn field. It was raining harder and I should have put on my shoe covers because my feet were getting wet and cold.
On the last stretch to my destination, I met eastbound Northern Tier Cyclist Dave, who had left the Pacific Coast Memorial Day weekend. He had ridden 1900 miles, and said that North Dakota was brutal. He got caught in a bad rain storm yesterday and had to spend it in a ditch, because there was no other cover. He mentioned that there were two westbound female cyclists ahead of me and a number of east-bounders behind him.
The rain eased up a little bit to allow the mosquitoes to come out. I’m staying at the Tamarac Resort Campground and stopped for dinner at their restaurant for fried walleye and fries, with a couple of Blue Moon Belgian White Ales. The cook told me that the local fishing here has been incredible because of the cool weather. They’ve had far fewer visitors, though. He told me that once I crossed over into North Dakota I wouldn’t see another tree until I got to Montana.
June 22, 2019
Lake Bemidji State Park, MN to Round Lake, MN 81 Miles
Ride Time 6:38
Tour Total 2639 Miles
details at: https://cyclemeter.com/058ffe3224dd3702/Cycle-20190622-0928-22622
I slept great last night at campsite 91 in Lake Bemidji State Park. I awoke to the sound of loons. I retrieved my charged power pack from the bathroom where I had left it plugged in.
It was a delightful ride back into Bemidji on the Paul Bunyan Bike Trail. I spotted three mallard ducks swimming in the lake. At one point a gopher ran across the road, right in front of me, and I almost flattened it. I was later startled by a large deer standing on the side of the trail.
There was a strong wind from the south, and I was pedaling right into it. The sky was sunny and clear to the east, and overcast to the west. I was wearing my long-sleeve jersey and cycling pants. The rain forecast keeps getting pushed back. Now it’s not supposed to rain until this evening, and I’m no longer worried about a big storm.
I raised my seat post a quarter of an inch yesterday, and have been enjoying the extra reach. The angle still isn’t right since it went loose and I had to tighten it. I was really sad to see the Paul Bunyan State Bike Trail end. It was so easy to navigate, and was flat and smooth. I enjoyed being away from motorized traffic. It was absolutely fantastic!
I crossed over the Mississippi river coming out of Lake Bemidji, and mistakenly thought that this was the headwater but I was wrong. I crossed the river again on my way to Becida. I was on the National Great River Road and also on the Mississippi River Trail Bike Route. There was an ATV trail in the grass to the right of the highway. I was stair-stepping west and south. I took County Road 7 to County Road 3 to County Road 9.
I stopped at the Becida Bar & Grill where I had a bacon cheeseburger and fries, along with two Bemidji Brewery German Blondes. The bartender was curious about my trip. We talked about how unseasonably cool it was. I would rather have this then blistering hot sun. The current weather forecast, if I could believe it, was calling for rain tonight. Things look good for tomorrow and the next few days.
The wind was favorable heading west out of Becida. The sun had disappeared, and it was chillier so I put my sweater on. When I crossed into Clearwater County the highway number changed to 40.
In Lake Itasca I went to the Rock Creek General store to get a Gatorade. Many people were inside getting fishing licenses. The liquor store was in the same building but customers had to use a different door and one couldn’t go through the store from side to the other. The liquor laws in Minnesota are peculiar.
I rode through Lake Itasca State Park which is the true headwater of the Mississippi River. I took Main Park Drive through the park. Motorized vehicles had to pay a fee but I didn’t. There were numerous tourists at the visitor center and many people in bathing suits were enjoying the water. I had a photo taken of me at the source, and many people asked me about my trip. I finally reached the end of the National Great River road. I had been following the Mississippi off and on since Muscatine, Iowa ten days ago. It was less than twenty feet across when I crossed it for the last time. As I was leaving the park I met a nice lady hiking, who was a cycling enthusiast. She mentioned that she had toured over 40 states. She had recently ridden the Adventure Cycling Natchez Trace supported ride.
There were so many lakes in this part of the state, both big and small. They’re all over my map and all along the road. Tomorrow I'll be in North Dakota and I sent out a couple of requests for a Warmshowers host in Fargo. I heard back from one of them.
I was on Highway 71 going south for 7 miles. It had a lot of traffic, and I had a 4 foot shoulder with a rumble strip to the left. After the intersection of County Highway 44, I would be headed west all the way to North Dakota. No more stair-stepping.
I now had a crosswind instead of a headwind. It was cloudy and starting to get dark. It was 3:30 in the afternoon, and I was worried that it would rain. I stopped at Two Inlets Country Store for some Gatorade and cashews. There was a line of people getting fishing permits. I asked how the fishing was with this cold weather, and the clerk replied that it was really really good. I was told that St. Mary’s Catholic church across the street had a famous grotto. I swapped my sunglasses for my clear goggles.
The area seemed emptier than previous parts of Minnesota. I rode by acres of pine trees and fields full of grass and wildflowers. There was no agricultural production or lakes with marinas and resorts. It was very quiet, and there were numerous stealth camping options that I was considering.
It started to drizzle so I pulled over to put on my rain pants and jacket. I removed my sweater so that I wouldn’t bake. I turned on my new rear red blinking light. I was riding through the White Earth Indian Reservation.
At the intersection of County Highway 44 the pavement ended. I stopped and looked at my maps, and I had no choice. I continued down the crappy cruel and brutal gravel. The only benefit of the sucky gravel road was that it was raining and there was no dust. I was riding in the middle of the road where the smoothest path was, but there was traffic and I had to be careful. I stopped to turn on my front light put on my rain hood and phone cover. I lost my balance and couldn’t get my right foot out of the clip. I fell over into the dirty sandy gravel.
The gravel finally ended and I got the asphalt surface back. My front panniers were covered in dirt. I saw a giant crane lift off and fly over a corn field. It was raining harder and I should have put on my shoe covers because my feet were getting wet and cold.
On the last stretch to my destination, I met eastbound Northern Tier Cyclist Dave, who had left the Pacific Coast Memorial Day weekend. He had ridden 1900 miles, and said that North Dakota was brutal. He got caught in a bad rain storm yesterday and had to spend it in a ditch, because there was no other cover. He mentioned that there were two westbound female cyclists ahead of me and a number of east-bounders behind him.
The rain eased up a little bit to allow the mosquitoes to come out. I’m staying at the Tamarac Resort Campground and stopped for dinner at their restaurant for fried walleye and fries, with a couple of Blue Moon Belgian White Ales. The cook told me that the local fishing here has been incredible because of the cool weather. They’ve had far fewer visitors, though. He told me that once I crossed over into North Dakota I wouldn’t see another tree until I got to Montana.
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