Waterville to Faribault, MN

 Day 65: July 27, 2021

We bike to Faribault, and later, visit an OD friend

I’m not gonna lie. I hit a wall like I’ve never hit a wall on our bike ride to Faribault and back to our campsite. It was a rails-to-trails, and not that steep but it was 14 miles one way. The longest ride I’ve done with my new bike was 13 (although Dan claims it was 17…I can go back on the blog to verify!) and I had already used some of the battery power, so I didn’t want to use anything other than the eco setting. I got up at 6, ate my protein bar (200 calories) and was ready to go before 7. Dan didn’t want to leave that early (it’s so hot and HUMID) that I DID want to beat as much of the heat and humidity as I could, so I sacrificed sleep for comfort on the bike. We left about 8:15.

Almost as soon as we set out, I dropped one bar of power on my battery assist. Two bars left. We made it to the DQ at Faribault and I looked forward to a Buster Bar. That, however was not to be. When you leave early in the morning, the DQ doesn’t open until the lunch crowd wants to be fed, so there were no treats for us. We drank some water and headed back to Waterville, at the Saketah Lake State Park campgrounds (a really beautiful park with plenty of room between the tree-shaded sites). About a third of the way home, I was in trouble. Just hard to peddle, especially if there was any incline or headwind. I am a lazy person when it comes to exercise, but this was different. I just couldn’t seem to summon any “oomph”. About 1/3 of the way more and my two bars of power were gone and I was on a very heavy “manual” bike now and I had waning resources. 

This would be a good time to introduce some of the sights along the trail. There were a couple more wildflower shots I wanted to get but was afraid that if I stopped, I might not be able to get going again, so I rode by….

I’ve never seen this flower (Iris domestica: leopard flower) before and there was but one patch of them that I saw —only a couple of plants. The blooms are small—about 1.75 inches in diameter—but so colorful! I took several photos but only this one and the one of the twisted bud “took” and were saved. (Bah.)

A LOT of the trail was like this. There were a ton of bikers, all our age, and a few walkers out. 

I call these the “happy flowers”. Tiny little flowers like you draw in the margins of your school notes.

When we finally got back to the RoadHouse, I hydrated and ate lunch. I was so out of it at the end of the ride that I decided to walk and at one point, Dan took my bike and walked both of them. I could barely find the energy to just walk. Probably low blood sugar, possibly a bit dehydrated. Lesson learned. Also: be sure to charge the battery fully before heading on a long ride. (And keep the rides to 15 miles or less… I just threw that in!) (Of course, April, this only applies to me, not to you and Frank!)

I’ve never seen bee balm in the wild before and there was a ton of it on this bike trail. What I didn’t realize until I confirm the ID was, bee balm is the same as bergamot…one of my favorite essential oils. I would’ve stripped a handful of leaves for my road trip collection had I known then what I know now!

From the cone flower family

After lunch and a nap, we drove over to Madelia, a tiny little town on the plains of Minnesota, where my friend Vikki has her optometry practice. I was excited to meet her kids, both teenagers, and learn from them first-hand about their lives. It was hot and humid in Madelia too!

Tomorrow: we head to Minneapolis for a Twins vs Tigers baseball game! Stay tuned!