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62.4 miles today and 2291.3 overall

As Colin noted yesterday. We batten down the hatches before heading off to bed. Turns out that was the right thing to do as a thunderstorm came through Lincoln giving us a good soaking, a little bit of thunder and lightning but nothing our tents couldn’t handle. Colin missed the light show and the thunder because he fell asleep so fast.

We began the today in the land of Lincoln. Nebraska that is, big sky, large grain silos, a tall state capital building and a substantial network of bike paths.

Our camping spot was right next to a freeway cloverleaf, which was convenient and got us where we needed to go, but wasn’t the most quiet place to wake up to.

We left in the morning to resupply which required navigating the suburban roads, read four lane non-divided highways. Fortunately because of the good network of bike paths it wasn’t too much stress. We got what we needed and were able to hit the trail.

When you’re checking out a bike path, you want to look for one that has a crushed limestone surface which the city trails have as does the Homestead trail. The Homestead Trail goes south from Lincoln to Beatrice 30 miles It’s a beautifully built and maintained trail. The trail sits atop an old railroad grade. Along long stretches the forest has closed in over the years creating a cool and lovely path.

After heading down the trail a bit Colin was able to sniff out at Costco and we made a run for more energy bars and jerky. Costco‘s are our “go to” resupply for those two items because the prices they charge at convenience stores are high highway robbery without a gun. We did indulge in some sweets and maybe a overdid it but we got back on the trail and headed down toward Beatrice.

We had some adverse winds in the morning but after lunch an unexpected shift gave us a lift. In Beatrice we checked out the local brewery that made a fine IPA, Scotch ale and marionberry cider. We capped the day with dinner at Zo’s Soul Food Mississippi Burning The food was great, some highlights: Cajun chicken, fried catfish, frog legs, bean stew, fried okra and key lime pie. We’re fat and happy now heading for bed.

#1. Surprise, I was awarded the golden stake, for consulting on dinner prep (it was a complex operation, they executed perfectly while I was off in the shower). 

#2. These come in two sizes!!!

Also a surprise, to me at least.  The smaller one belongs to a ‘standard’ dandelion.  I don’t know what produces the larger one.  Steve and Bob suggested a bigger dandelion, specifically genus dandelioness humongousnesses.  I kinda doubt it. 

52.6 miles today, 2239 miles overall.

We got off to a good start today.  😁  Not too long after we woke in Grant’s back yard, he appeared and offered to provide some scrambled eggs (the unscramble version of the eggs, produced by his backyard chickens).  They were great. 

Before we left, one of the cats came back to visit me (my cat allergy didn’t kick this time). 

Only 11 miles out from David City, we were in Brainard, and at the beginning of the Oak Creek Rail Trail.  It’s a truly fantastic trail; we were disappointed that it is only 13 miles long.  The surface was great and we enjoyed it thoroughly.

We stopped briefly at Loma, another town left behind by the railroad.  St Luke’s Czech Catholic Shrine can be found there.  It looked interesting but was closed.

The trail continued to be beautiful, providing at times, ample shade on this > 90F day.

The trail terminated in Valparaiso where Steve and I were troubled by the signage on this seat.

After a very thorough examination by Steve, I wish I had that on video), Steve and I executed first class naps on the same bench while Bob attended to some important business (mailing unneeded items home, and calling a VIP on her birthday (Happy Birthday Shirley!!)).

Then it was back on the road to Lincoln.  Bob took the busy road with a shoulder.  Steve and I made a wiser choice, and took this quiet road without a shoulder. 

Alas, our ‘wisdom’ only held for the first 10 miles, after which the road got busy.  Bob arrived at the campsite earlier  and significantly less frazzled than us.  He left soon after our arrival and returned with beer and ice cream.  We recovered quickly. 

We have now eaten, and were cheerfully thinking about another meal…

…until the wind picked up and we looked at the weather app.

It’s time to baton down the hatches!

50.24 Miles, 2187.4 miles total so far. 

We would like some northwesterly winds some day soon.  While 10 mph headwinds are nothing to complain about (and I will not), I do miss the good luck that brought great tail winds not so long ago. Our day progressed pretty much as it should for a day with a modest goal of about 47 miles. We had set the goal a bit low because the combination of wind, temperature, hills (yes, in Nebraska) and rural highway fatigue had us in need of a bit more recovery time. 

Our lunch was from two competing Mexican food trucks in Schuyler, NE.   That wasn’t intended, but I went to the wrong truck and I wasn’t about to walk away from the nice lady at the window. They had Mexican Coke with real cane sugar, and since I drink only about two soft drinks in a typical year, this was pretty exciting. Everyone got great food, which we ate in neutral territory in a nearby park. 

Travel was uneventful, which is generally good, until we arrived at David City Campground.  I am not sure what David City Campground really is. It does have RVs parked there that look magnificent. Arriving folks are notified by way of signage that reservations are required, though there is no way to actually make a reservation at the designated web site, and there is no camp host. 

We moved on to the shade of a nearby tree up the street to ponder and discuss our dilemma. We decided to stealth camp not far from that tree, and in the meantime we would do laundry at the town laundromat. 

As it happens, the laundromat is accross the street from Subway.  While our filthy clothes flopped around in the wet machine, we ate. And while eating I asked a fellow customer if there was a campground in town.  She replied that camping was allowed in the city park (not the place we had just been). We gathered enough evidence on our phones to believe this was true, and changed our camping plans to something a bit more sanctioned.  

As we gathered our laundry from across the street, an interesting and interested group gathered around our bikes. We came to understand that one person in the group was the nice lady’s son, and the group was a mix of family and friends intersected by biking and teaching.  We were invited to come and enjoy beer, brownies, and ice cream around a fire, talk about biking, and camp in the yard. Thus, plans change again.  I tend to write this as I fall asleep.  This time it is from my tent in the big yard of new found friends. 

67 miles today and 2137 miles overall

We headed out this morning with clear skies and cool air, but knowing that the high would get up to 91° today and we would have winds from the south and the southeast making our day a little challenging because we’d be riding into the wind. The the first leg of our journey took us to the town of Norfolk, Nebraska population 24,000 a mid-sized farming community but much larger than the towns we’ve visited. It had a surprisingly familiar vibe with jazz music playing from lampposts as we cruised into a vibrant business district. Bob got a new chain for his bicycle. Colin shopped for tires briefly. We had lunch at a nearby Mexican restaurant. After a wonderful meal (see photo) and while we’re leaving the restaurant we noted that today was the “No Kings” protest day. About 200 people participated, in the middle of conservative eastern Nebraska. They were a happy bunch that didn’t mind being filmed by the local news channel. We picked up some supplies for the trail and for dinner and headed toward Leigh, Nebraska.

It was challenging on rural roads kind of up and down hills. We switched to some back roads, which shortened the route, but required contending with loose gravel surfaces.

We pulled into camp in the evening had a quick dinner, cleaned up a bit and went to bed with distant thunder storms providing a silent light show.

Some pictures from the day.

70.4 miles today, 2070.1 overall

Today’s story will be told mostly by pictures.

We separated after stocking up for the day, and took pictures of one another so we would have something to show the police if we got lost.

I set off on the trail, which was beautiful as usual.

Steve and Bob quickly caught up and passed me on the road. 

The trail remained beautiful.

We reunited in the strangely Irish Town of O’Neill (see Steve’s earlier post) and rewarded ourselves with ice cream from the Dairy Queen.

After lunch I got back on the trail

Steve and Bob return to the road.

After getting my second flat tire of the trip, I jumped onto the road to make up time

We reunited again in Ewing, where we had our second lunch, of bananas and tortillas This time Steve was the chef because I was fixing my tire once more!

After the second lunch, it was only eight more miles to Neligh where we enjoyed ribeye steak grilled by Bob, on a fire produced by Steve.

At some point today, Bob was abducted and replaced by a better version of himself, who bought Coors Light, twice!

Finally, here are some pictures of today’s trailside flowers.

Shoutout to the O’Neil’s on my mom’s side of the family who to the huge leap of returning to agriculture when they settled here in the 1870s. The current town is proud of its Irish heritage and combines shamrocks with cowboy hats and music as well as gigantic farm machinery.