Wisconsin Bicycle Trip--Day 23

Wisconsin Bicycle Trip-Day 23, Monday, August 5, 2013

RAIN day in Boulder Junction

I woke at 5:30 and it was very dull and overcast. I put on my bicycle clothes, got up and turned on the TV on mute. The weather radar showed storms coming this way this morning. I waited until Al got up and we decided I should wait until 10 to see what  happens. Al went to his job at the golf course but at exactly 10 it poured and thundered and didn’t stop. Al also came home as no one was golfing. We watched several DVD's in a series Wide is the Gate-The Emerging New Christianity by the Berean Call organization--quite interesting!!He made  us grilled cheese and a smoothie of fruit and kale(for the eyes) for lunch. Then he let me use his vehicle to go to the post office to mail some postcards and check his mail and then to the library where I could get internet until 4 pm and I can’t get it at his house. But the photo process of the blog was slow and frustrating as they didn’t load in order. I went home and we watched one more DVD that he just received in the mail about evolution and creation. Later he made a berry pie in about 10 minutes. I couldn’t believe how easy he made it look. The main meal was boiled potatoes and fried hotdogs and leftover salad. Then he taught me how to play a card game Hand and Foot where you use 5 decks of cards. After many hands, we checked the weather which looks good until later tomorrow and went to bed. It rained most of the day today and it was cool so I’m thankful to the Lord for allowing Al and Lois to have me stay.

Wisconsin Bicycle Trip-Day 22

Wisconsin Bicycle Trip-Day22, Sunday, August 4,2013

First complete REST day-Boulder Junction

I went to worship meeting with Al, Lois, Rex and Ian in Lake Tomahawk at Lake Tomahawk Binble Church where their son-in-law, Marcus is the pastor. He and Al’s daughter Shelley have 5 children, 4 girls and a boy and also lost another child several years ago. Their oldest daughter, Emma , is away at culinary school. Al said she is a great hunter. Their second daughter, Beret just returned yesterday from England where she had a scholarship. Many visitors were there because it is tourist season. I spent a lot of time massaging Ian to help keep him quiet.It was a communion service this week. There was also a visiting missionary family from Greece who both spoke after. Then there was a potluck at the park down the road. Lois brought fruit and a very tasty coleslaw. There was lots of variety so I ate well. Lois and the boys left in her vehicle to meet her sister in Wausau who would accompany them to the airport in Chicago to see the boys off to Sweden. Al and I left, did some groceries and went back to his home. At 3 o.clock he went fishing with a friend. I typed out a couple of blogs and watched a movie and enjoyed the company of Oscar, the dachshund who I took for a walk. Al came home around 9 pm and said they caught over a 100 fish-mostly walleye and he had one musky on the line that swallowed his crappie. He uses his ipad to show the bottom contours of the lakes so he knows where to fish. We chatted for a while , checked the weather which did not sound good for the morning and went to bed around 10pm.

Wisconsin Bicycle Trip-Day 21

Wisconsin Bicycle Trip, Day 21,Saturday, August 3, 2013

Lac Vieux Desert National Forest Campground to Boulder Junction and home of Al and Lois Smith
53.26 km in 3 hr 7 min.

It was freezing COLD this morning. I couldn’t get warm even with arm and leg  warmers. I had sent most of my warm clothes to Ashland during the hot spell when my back rim cracked. I was told I could return by another way but couldn’t see it clearly on the GPS so I decided to retrace my ride back to E and then to Hwy 45. It wasn’t too busy. There was another plaque about the Wisconsin River where it crosses this highway. I also took photos of the river. I turned left at County Rd. B and came to the town of Land O’ Lakes which was quite busy this morning due to a community garage sale .There were parts of a paved bicycle path here and there along the road and even out into the country. When it followed the highway I followed it and when it veered away I didn’t except one place where I asked two bicyclists about a section they had just finished. Apparently it was brand new and would take me off the highway around some curves. It was in a lovely wooded area but it was up and down and curvy and did add to my distance. At one spot, 2 deer came bounding through the bush toward the path and when we saw each other , they stopped and looked and I said out loud, ”Don’t you 2 run in front of me!” and they ran off in the other direction. I guess that even if it was longer, it is still safer. That was the last one anyway. I had a stretching stop at 2 hrs. and also ate Half of a Power Bar. I surprised myself at reaching M fast even with some wind and hills! Well, I flew south down County M with the wind on my back. About 4 miles out of Boulder, they have started a new bicycle path. It is levelled and has the gravel and is waiting for paving. As I came into town , I looked for Ala dn Lois ‘ home and Taxidermy Store but went through town and didn’t see it. At one point, I heard a voice from across the street yell out “ How do you like Boulder Junction?” but I didn’t see the person as I was watching the traffic but I called out, ”I like it.” I reached the end of the street and thought I would ask at the Post Office but it was closed. Next door was a little flea market so I called out< Is there anyone here from Boulder Junction? And only 1 lady in the garage raised her hand. When I asked about the Smith’s ,she said I passed it when I came into town. Well on the way back , the man that had yelled out got my attention and guess who it was???? It was John Cooper and his family that I had met 2 days before at the Autobody shop. We had a happy reunion, talked for a while and took a photo. After I passed an Antique shop, and looked down the long driveway, I remembered that their house was set back AND WHEN A LITTLE BROWN Dachshund dog started barking , I knew this was the place for I had met Oscar in Ashland a couple of years ago. Then I also knew that someone was home and said a quick “Thank You, Lord” . Lois came to the door and I said hello and apologized that I hadn’t notified her in advance because she has changed her telephone number and email address.  She invited me in . Her grand children, Rex and Ian , from Sweden have  been here for a month and are flying home from Chicago tomorrow. It was Ian’s 6th birthday and Lois’ 3 sisters were coming to visit to celebrate. In the last few years ,Lois has opened an Antique store where Al used to have the taxidermy place. It is a storefront building and the house they live in is set way back from it. I showered and ate lunch watching Ian make his birthday Lego vehicles. Then I went to see Lois in her shop. It is very nice and she has everything nicely displayed. While there , her sisters Judy,73 , Karen,71, (Lois,69) and Susie,62,and single) came in. Later I went for a walk with Karen downtown which was very busy with tourists. She raised her children alone (husband -JW) and has helped with a brother who passed away and her father who lived until 97. It was her birthday yesterday so I bought her an ice cream cone before we returned. Later I went for a walk with Judy, the oldest. She does some bicycling and with her husband she motorcycles and snowmobiles. They volunteer at a ski hill and the local historical society. She is well travelled and has been to the Sault and Wawa and many places in Upper Michigan that I have been to. Al came home from his new work as a golf course monitor and we all sat down to supper and then had a birthday cake and ice cream and presents . After the sisters left, Al and Lois packed the suitcases , the boys went to bed and we cut some fruit for tomorrow.
     I will stay and go to worship meeting with them tomorrow and take a rest day.