Day 39 - Birch Run to Port Huron, MI - To the Bridge...

Mom!

You've got to stop starting all your blogs with sunrises!

It gets boring!



Sorry, KC.

But I like sunrises...

A cloudless morning...

Looks to be a nice day for cycling.



But my derriere suggests we take it easy today.

So we start out in the van again...

We have crises to deal with...

One rider hits his brakes and the rider behind crashes into him.

Broken handlebars.

Abrasions.

Smashed wheel.

All is fixed.

But by the time we arrive at the first SAG stop...

...the first riders are hot on our heels.


And who is this coming to see me?

It's daughter Al!

I hardly see her anymore since she bikes now with the fast bikers.

But she rejoins her friends and I continue on.



The road is lined with wildflowers...

The same ones I know from home...

I love the cornflowers

This looks to be a happier day biking...

Barns with shiny new roofs...

Cows enjoying a full field of grass...

Cute little towns like Yale, Michigan, Bologna Capitol of the World!

I bump into Leo looking for the famous Bologna museum.


No museum.

But I find the King and Queen Bologna.


















I stop a local biker to ask directions...

but she is shy...

There's a house with Kitty windows.

Al always thought each of the dormer windows should have a kitty sitting in it looking out over the yard below.

Here's a farmer I'd like to know....

 ...and his contented cows.















Look at the headlines!

Michigan has an oil spill.

Know how we can cut down the risk of oil spills?

Eat local foods.

Your average American food travels 1500 miles to your plate.










When we eat the Michigan blueberries Al buys at a  local stand we save all that gas!

And the food in the grocery has been selected for tough skin for the long shipping and sitting on a shelf for weeks.

Your farmer's market can sell fruits selected for the sweet taste.

Tom and I even joined a csa this year - community supported agriculture.

We found them through Local Harvest.

So every week we get a basket of the freshest vegetables, fruits, eggs, etc... from this farm just five miles from home.

You can't beat that!

As I bike along I have to stop to take pics of the white birches.

These trees don't do well at home in Indiana - too warm.

I love the white peeling paper bark.

There goes New Jersey Mark!

(We have three Marks so we call them New Jersey Mark, Toronto Mark and Baltimore Mark.)

I have to thank him for saving my blog last week.

When we were getting on the ferry my batteries died!

No camera for the whole ferry trip?!

Seeing my plight, NJ Mark gave me his camera to use for the whole ferry ride to Michigan!

As I rush to catch up I catch my first glimpse of Lake Huron.

It's so blue!

The brilliant blue water flashes between the large homes to my left as I bike down the road.

Finally I find a beach where I can enjoy the view...

And I find my fellow bikers!

Sandy is practicing her bike lift for the Atlantic Ocean.

On down the road we see The Bridge!

Here is our route into Canada...

Tomorrow morning the port authority will actually close the whole bridge to traffic so we can safely bike across to Ontario!













There are kids jumping in the clear waters under the bridge.

They sound Canadian.

Nearby we find a lovely old restaurant for lunch...

Beautiful stained glass entrance...

Great dessert tray!

And a view of The Bridge!

Al and her friends opt to sit outside.

I hurry on to the hotel.

We have work to do...

Studying the map...

The daily Route Rap when they go over the next day's ride in detail...

And before you know it the sun is setting and it's time for bed.

See, KC - I like sunsets, too.