Tuesday 31 August – Rochester to La Crosse

Distance: 101 miles.

When we looked at our pre-prepared route sheet last night, we were relieved to see that today’s ride was only 55miles long. So off we went to google maps to see what roads we could take. Unfortunately for us, Minnesota is a State where we were prohibited from riding on the Interstate. The result? A 55mile ride turned into a 101 mile ride. Damn.

We awoke a little disheartened but ready to roll. That was until we opened the curtains to pitch black clouds and thunder crackling overhead. Off we went to breakfast and fortunately the weather had cleared by the time we were ready to begin. We decided to risk riding on the Interstate because the recommended route was so much longer than the alternative (101miles vs 55miles). Typically however, the ‘rebels without a cause’ were pulled over by the local State trooper after 6miles on the Interstate and kindly told to get off the road at the next exit. So we jumped off at Eyota and bought a map to plot our course.

We followed Highway 14 from that point all the way to La Crosse. The ride itself was very very humid, we saw one reading of 90% humidity. And although the heat wasn’t stiffling, sweat was pouring from us because it was so muggy. It made it hard to breath at times, and we were literally pouring water into our bellies (Will’s having the largest capacity). During the ride we passed a few milestones: ; we crossed the Mississippi River; and we passed into the State of Wisconsin. Arriving into La Crosse we were delighted to arrive at the classy Bentley Wheeler B&B (http://www.bentley-wheeler.com) which is a beautiful period house that we had all to ourselves. That night we enjoyed a few shandies to celebrate our achievements but it was early to bed for the Team – such commitment!