Day 14 Return to the River: Dixon to Fulton 50mi

Wendy and I enjoyed our time with Mom (Emily) and Dad(Jim) but it was time to get back to our trek down the Mississippi.  There was still the possibility of more rain later in the afternoon so we decided to take a more direct westerly route to reach the Mississippi.  Our destination for the day would be the city of Fulton, IL.

It would be a slightly shorter number of miles to both give our legs a rest and give us more time to explore the river towns of Fulton, IL and Clinton, IA.

But first we took a few shots on our way out of Dixon.  

Dixon IL is the county seat of Lee County situated along the Rock River.  One of its more famous citizens was our President Ronald Reagan who grew up in Dixon.  Supposedly, as a lifeguard, he rescued 20+ persons from a smimming area upstream.  As he was a reportedly handsome guy, I never heard the stats on how many actually needed rescuing and how many faked it just to get up close and personal.  I'm in front of statue of a younger Ronald Reagan on horseback that resides along the banks of the Rock River that flows through town.

Another of Dixon's famous visitors was another president you may have heard of, Abe Lincoln.   This is the Land of Lincoln so it's anyone's guess on how many Lincoln statues there are in Illinois.  And if you're counting Lincoln pennies the numbers are astronomical.

Dixon's riverfront park.

This is one of the more interactive Dixon building murals to strike a pose in front of.

It was time to get down the road.  Here, Wendy is paused in front of a soybean field turning golden brown in preparation for harvesting.

Corn loves to grow tall in the IL soil, rainfall, and sun.

A railside snack stop over a country creek.  Time to down some Cuties before the last stretch into Fulton.

We arrived in Fulton at about 1pm in the afternoon.  There was a diner (Jenny's Diner) in Clinton (across the river by bridge) that we decided to go to.  This is the combined welcome sign to Clinton and to Iowa.  

After lunch we recrossed the river back into Fulton where we would be staying for the night.   Fulton is named after Robert Fulton.  One of Fulton's attractions well worth the visit is an authentic Netherlands operational windmill on the banks of the Mississippi.

It was built in the Netherlands, disassembled with all beams numbered, shipped by boat to Chicago, then trucked to Fulton and reassembled by a team of craftsman from Netherlands.

Here is a look at some of the inner workings of the mill that is used to grind corn, wheat, rye, buckwheat, and flax into flours. John is the volunteer who explained how the parts of the windmill all connect. He is standing next to the very heavy grinding stone mechanism. We also learned that the windmill operators in Europe during WWII created a way to use the normal sail material that can cover the blades to signal if the German army was in the area or if all was clear.

Tomorrow we head down the river on the Illinois side via a levy trail. 

Day 13 Detoured to Dixon IL 60mi

Expected rainy weather for the coming overnight lasting into the next morning and proximity to our parents home had Wendy and I detour from the Mississippi and reroute to Dixon IL.   This was always in our alternative plans for this trip. Cindy and Doug would be heading south towards Rock Island, IL to stay overnight with bicycling friends they knew then finish their Mississippi trek the next day a little further down stream.  We said our goodbyes then headed east over the causeway and bridge that connects Sabula and Savanna IL.   We were able to immediately jump onto a bike path that supposedly goes as far south as Moline and Rock Island, IL.  At Thomson we dropped off the bike path and began our eastward trek toward Dixon IL.

Thomson was the last stronghold of civilization before venturing out into the cornfield wilderness that covers most of this part of IL. We had a good 40+ mi to cross to get to Dixon so we provisioned up at the Thompson Casey's with a few bottles of , you guessed it, chocolate milk to add to our staples of Cuties, bananas, and apples.

Fortunately the wind was with us and we landed on our parents front steps by the early afternoon ahead of any rain.  

It was time to enjoy family,  provision up, drop off some items that we didn't think we would need for the remainder of the trip, and do some maintenance on our bicycles and ourselves.    Tomorrow, we would be heading back to the big river.

Day 12 Sherrill IA to Sabula IA 60mi

We all got up for another early start.  We woke up with dry tent flys so I was happy faced that I wouldn't have to carry any extra weight through another day of lesser hills.

We had a small breakfast prior to leaving Dave's home from mostly what was left of the food we carry.  The plan was to have a bigger breakfast in the city of Dubuque IA that was nearby.  

Wendy was familiar with the city and had a trendy spot picked out that was adjacent to the route.  We used a combination of city bikepaths like this and lighter used city streets to navigate to where we stopped to refuel prior to facing the hills south of town.

Dubuque's got three colleges and some iconic architecture like this clock tower in the downtown.  It's always a fun challenge to bicycle through large cities.  Many cities along the Mississippi River seem to have gone out of their way to accommodate bike traffic.

The route out of Dubuque took us through the Mines of Spain park which dates back to Dubuque's earliest days as a community. I made a wrong turn that sent Wendy and  I up a steep hill to the Dubuque memorial overlooking the Mississippi and the city that he founded. It was a great spot to view the river.

Wendy and I made two longer stops between Dubuque and Sabula. The first was in Bellevue IA along the banks of the Mississippi for lunch.

We stopped at a grocery store and filled up on a combination of citrus Cuties, bananas, and of course chocolate milk. We made a table and chairs out of plastic milk crates in the shade next to the store.  

Our last stop was just short of Sabula at an orchard along the route that Wendy had visited before.  We purchased a handful of the eating apples that were just ready for picking and a couple of fresh Bartlett pears.

Sabula is an island community accessible from both the IA and IL shore of the Mississippi.   There is actually an enclosed lake on the south end of the island that we would be camping at tonight. You can see the approximate center of the town by the water tower in the background.  Good night from the middle of the Mississippi.

Day 11 Lacrosse WI to Sherrill, IA 55mi

We crossed the Mississippi at Lacrosse WI into IA today.  We're heading into river bluff country where the roads on either side of the river will begin to have steep climbs and decents.  This photo was shot just after we crossed the river bridge into Marquette, IA.  Alot of the small towns along the way have made a strong attempt to maintain their old charm but still provide services that folks expect today.

We had several long steep hills  to ride up today.  I was usually first to reach the top so I photographed Wendy, Cindy, and Doug holding up the sign for the hill we just completed.

It was both strenuous but rewarding to know we could haul ourselves and gear up to the top without stopping.

We stopped for a lunch break in the town of Gutenberg, IA.  There we found another big fish to strike a pose next to.

The big fish was next to a cafe serving homemade pear and triple berry pies along with lunch items.  This was the second awsome pie stop of our trip.  

I liked the suggestive oven mitts they were selling as well.

The town also has one of the multiple lock and dam combinations that started With number 1 somewhere near Minneapolis.  I believe this was Lock #10.

I should be a spokesperson for Prairie Farms Dairy with all their chocolate milk I have drunk on these trips.  I was told its a great recovery drink for after the ride but have found it really helps drinking along the way with getting through some of the more demanding stretches of the road. Wendy and I have split up to a half gallon (800 cal each) at a convenience stop. We found this trailer parked along our hilly route today.

We eventually worked our way up to a high ridge road in the afternoon.

We passed through the town of Balltown where Wendy's son played baseball recently.

By this point Wendy was running low on drinking water. We saw these two young ladies on their porch and asked if they could fill up her water bottle - which they did.

The road eventually 

 lead to our destination for tonight - in the town of Sherrill.

We were invited to stay at Doug's 93 year old father in law's home overlooking the nearby farm community.

Dave was a generous host.  We had dinner down the street at a brother in laws home.  It was a great way to end a long day of climbing the Iowa bluff country.

Day 10 Lacrosse WI to Prairie Du Chien 61mi

Camping along the Mississippi at this time of year has recently meant waking up in a super saturated fog.  The tent fly is definitely soaked and its difficult keeping clothing and sleeping bags dry.   Wendy and I had a lunch break in the town of Ferryville along the river.  I took the opportunity to unpack my rain fly and dry it out over the rail of the scenic overlook while we snacked.   I didn't feel like lugging around the weight of the water soaked into the material.

The day was another fair weather day with views of the three R's: road, railroad, and river.  All three were running side by side most of the day.

We took an afternoon break at this riverfront access point mainly to use the facilities but got the bonus to see some eagles flying nearby.

This is Wendy settling in at what I called the Little House on the Prairie Du Chien.  

The folks at Sports Unlimited Campground gratuitously allowed us non RV tent campers to stay the night on this open area of their property.

Natalie, I think I found you a used vehicle to get you to those hard to reach locations.

The campground was a full feature facility with golf course, clubhouse, pool, and semi and permanent RV units looking like what I would call micro-homes.  We ate at a restaurant on site called The Barn serving delicious specials in a  post and beam barn structure.

Tomorrow we cross the river into Iowa and start traveling south on the west side of the Mississippi.

Day 9 Fountain City to Lacrosse WI 48 mi

Today's ride was a little bit shorter. We woke up to a foggy morning so took our time in camp before starting out on the road.  The Great River Road (WI 35) is in great condition but busier than I had expected.  The shoulders of the road are adequate and the vehicles on the road are giving us enough room.

As the map shows, we are mostly hugging the Wisconsin side of the Mississippi River.   Wendy discovered a serve yourself roadside sourdough bread stand (The Bread Hut) operated on the honor system that we purchased a loaf from.  

A bit further down the road we came across a fresh fruit stand.  We purchased some fresh raspberries that were devoured immediately and a 3lb bag of apples that was half devoured immediately.  The stand owner gave us an alternative route to the next town of Tempealeau that would keep us away from the busiest traffic.

Here we are in Trempealeau.  The River Monster show should come to Wisconsin because all the fish are man eater sized.

Wendy has been a great navigator.  We both have digital maps but I find I rely on her for some of the alternative rerouting we've had to do on the fly sometimes.

Speeking of large fish, here was another one welcoming us to Onalaska, Wi which was very close to our final destination for the day.

We rode into the riverfront park in Lacrosse a few miles later. Here is Wendy at the riverfront pointing to the bridge that would get us over to the RV campground situated on a large island in the river.

Some campsite shots at Pettibone Resort Campground.  We got a sunny site to dry out the tents that still were wet from the morning dew.

We walked back over the bridge after showering off to get a dose of pizza and some ice cream.

Here is a view of the hotel converted to old time ice cream parlor.  I liked the silouettes of various characters in the upstairs rooms.

It was getting dark by the time the ice cream ran dry. Goodnight from Lacrosse WI on the banks of the Mississippi.