Day 41 – July 14 – Lansing, IA to Dyersville, IA – 100 Miles

What an interesting day!  We woke to wet tents from overnight rains.  We could hear thunder nearby but it was not raining at camp.  We had an ambitious goal today, Dyersville, IA at 100 miles.  Dyersville would put us in a position to cross into Illinois at Muscatine, IA on Monday.  We knew from our maps that today would be a challenge both in terms of mileage as well as terrain. The route would take us up and over a series of bluffs before climbing to the west a traversing the hilly Iowa countryside west of the Mississippi.

We stopped in Lansing at a local café for breakfast.  It was not busy and we sat in a booth adjacent to a couple.  As they were leaving, the gentleman asked about our ride.  We answered the typical questions about where we started, where we were going and where we were from.  When I mentioned Champaign, he smiled.    I asked if they had gone to the U of I.  He said he had grown up in Champaign-Urbana.  I asked his name, and the man replied Joel Shoemaker.   As I was asking if he was any relation to Steve Shoemaker (retired Presbyterian minister from McKinley Church), he raised his hand above his head, and said, “Yes, that’s my big brother.”  I know we are getting close to home but this is a small world.  The Shoemakers have a cabin along the Mississippi just south of Lansing where they are spending their summer.  Joe and I were so amazed by this “small world “event that we forgot to mention the Ride for Water and our reason for the ride….

Our ride today, met every expectation and challenge.  Over the series of climbs and descents, we met the amount of climb and descent going over the passes over the Rockies in Montana.  Today we added the humidity factor.  With storms in the area were granted relief from a baking in the sun and the temperatures were bearable.

At lunch we called ahead to Dyersville and made reservations for a hotel room, we still had 60 miles and several big climbs to go along with the rolling terrain.  As the day wore on, we wondered if we had made a mistake with such an ambitious goal.  With 30 miles to go, as we approached the town of Elkader, IA, we decided to check on the availability of rooms.  Unfortunately, there was a car and motorcycle event going on at the city park and everything was packed.   We were committed to Dyersville.

During the afternoon, we could see a thunderstorm, form far to our north.  First a small column of cloud built, and rose, forming the distinctive anvil shape.  Over the next two hours, it grew into a massive cloudbank that eventually covered the sky.  While we did not get rain, north of us it was storming.  This area of Iowa looks to have escaped the drought suffered by the rest of the Midwest, corn and soybeans look healthy and full, everything is a lush green.

We had anticipated the possibility of doing some riding in the dark, primarily for early morning starts to beat the heat of the day, not necessarily at the end of a long day.  We have rear flashers as well as helmet lights that provided very good lighting options.  This evening they were put to good use.  We were about 20 miles from our destination as the sun was setting.  Fortunately the roads were flat and lightly travelled, so we were able to make good time. It was dark as we arrive in Dyersville.  We made it through town and found the hotel.  My GPS indicated 100.1 miles.  The air conditioning and shower felt great.