Day 37 Northfield, MN to Pepin, WI

Today was an almost perfect riding day.

We left Northfield and rode several miles along quiet country roads to the little town of Cannon Falls, which is where Cycle America has its world headquarters.  Our first water stop was there.

Not long after we left Cycle America Ground Zero, we got on the Cannon Valley Bike Trail, a nearly 20-mile trail from Cannon Falls to Red Wing.  It was quiet, shaded, away from cars, and in many places, it followed the Cannon River.

Hilary found a good book at a little Free Library along the trail.

This is the old train depot in Welch, at about the halfway point in the trail.

This is Welch's ski resort.  To Northwesterners, it doesn't seem like much of a mountain.

Our lunch stop was at a park along the Mississippi River in Red Wing.

I like this little statue in the park.

Did you know that Red Wing shoes are made in Red Wing, MN?  I think I might be able to find shoes to fit me there.

I like this mural in the downtown area.

After we left Red Wing, we crossed the Mississippi River and entered Wisconsin, our seventh state.

Most of the rest of the day we were on Wisconsin Highway 35, a nice quiet road with wide shoulders and lots of great scenery.

It was getting warm, so Barb, Hilary, and I decided to stop and have something cool to drink.  This place, in tiny Bay City, was great and the owner was really nice.  I had my usual.

The last 20 miles of so were spent riding along Lake Pepin, which is not technically a lake, but it's a really wide spot in the Mississippi River.  It is huge and very pretty.  I enjoyed riding along it this afternoon.

Just as we entered Pepin (population 837), Barb saw a winery on the left, so the three of us (Barb, Hilary, and I) went in and did some wine-tasting.  When you've been riding a long time and you're tired and dehydrated, a little wine goes a long way.

Hilary bought a bottle of wine, then we stopped at a store and I bought cheese and cherries, and Barb bought crackers.  We had a little pre-dinner snack.  It was lots of fun.

FYI:  Laura Ingalls Wilder was born just outside Pepin (in a Little House in the Big Woods) and they have a big celebration here the second full weekend in September.