All of the Harleys that had taken over the parking lot at the hotel in Davenport were gone when we woke up on Sunday morning. Smart bikers know that the cool morning hours are the time to get in your serious miles. For van travelers, the first half of the day is used for exploration and exercise before the heat of the day sets in. Air conditioning has its advantages. On this morning's agenda: a bike ride along the shore of the Mississippi River.
We pulled into a public parking area near the middle of the trail and unloaded our bicycles for the first time on the trip.
The kids' bikes don't have removable front wheels, but they sit atop the cabinets in the van with plenty of room to spare. Towels were drying from the day before, way back on the eastern shore of Lake Huron.
Davenport is working hard to upgrade its waterfront and one of the main features is a long Riverwalk multi-use trail that will eventually include pavilions and other attractions. The section that we rode brought us past one yacht club, one sailing club, a small waterfront restaurant/bar, a huge levee and some bridges. The terminus of the ride was an elevated air-conditioned observation platform that was free and open to the public for river viewing. I would guess that the vote to approve a budget for what seems to be a bridge to nowhere was rather close, but as with many civic projects, they are done for people like us (visitors) rather than for the residents.
It was completely flat, but felt like we were riding uphill thanks to a strong headwind.
I would guess that the vote to approve a budget for what seems to be a bridge to nowhere was rather close, but as with many civic projects, they are done for people like us so we could put nice photos like this on the web.
After taking some photos from the bridge, we turned around and rode easily downwind (and upstream) back to the van. Kellan and Julia stopped to count cars on a train on nearby tracks. I don't remember the exact number but it was in the hundreds.
One hundred one, one hundred two....
If dad's going to take pictures backwards while riding, I'm going to ride with no hands.
We reloaded the bikes, had some water and turned the van west, heading across Iowa and into Nebraska. We watched the temperature climb as the day wore on. It peaked at 100 degrees in Omaha, which triggered the Slurpee/Icee clause. Our fuel stop included three cups of radioactive looking semi-frozen fluid.
There is nothing better for a quick cool off even if they are rather disgusting. And sticky.
Julia and Kellan spend some time every day in the van writing in their journals. They make lists of funny things they see and head-scratchers from the road. If they are quick enough, they document these mysteries with photos as well.
"Hey Julia, make it look like you're thinking while I take your picture!"
No other markings on this truck. What could be in there?
We could use one of these in Vermont. Weighing the cats in our house is an inexact science.
Pretty much the most accurate sign we have seen all trip. Taken in the middle of Nebraska.
The weather stepped in to provide the entertainment in the late afternoon in western Nebraska. We could see huge thunderstorms developing to the north that just seemed to build and build. When the horizon started to dance a little bit, we could see what the sky was thinking:
Time to hoover the plains?
We kept moving west and the storms kept coming. We could see that we were just on the edge of a big one and as we passed, the van started rocking in the gusts. Had we come through a few minutes later, it could have been a fairly violent episode.
That was close. Julia, take a picture of the dark sky behind us!
We knew that we needed to find a camping spot pretty soon and the sky ahead looked clear, so Julia did some research on her iPod to find state campgrounds near North Platte, NE. This is not your grandfather's road trip! Her research was fruitful. The Buffalo Bill State Recreation Area is a tidy and beautiful self-service campground with few amenities and even fewer people. We put our money in the box and set up camp for the night just a few hundred yards from the river.
