The Dakotas – Day 22 – STAMP!

52.7 miles, 1324′ of climbing (1,117 tot) – to read from the beginning, click here.

Robin’s place was great and we got all our laundry done, a good sleep, good coffee & breakfast in the morning. Chatting with Robin, we learned that she was one of the owners of a metal stamping company started by her father and her brother and her took over from him. It was pretty close to the route to our next stop, so we added it to the route and said we’d get there for a tour if possible. Robin wasn’t going to be available until after 11, but called her son and niece (who are taking over the biz) that we might be stopping by.

Before that, however, there were chores to do. We stopped at a grocery store and got stocked up for the days ahead. Dana also needed a lock as she left hers at a stop somewhere. Groceries for us that means tortillas, peanut butter, tuna salad packets, some fresh fruit and occasionally yogurt. Except for the fruit, they all pack easily and last for days. On the way to the store, Robin passed us on the highway and honked.

With the grocery stop, we didn’t get to Division Stampings until around 12:00. Robin greeted us, we donned safety glasses, and headed into the plant to see the operation which included many older stampers run by a person, but also modern CNC and laser cutting machines. We saw it (and heard it) all.

We said our thanks and good-byes to Robin and started on a relatively easy ride to our host near Clearwater, Paul. Paul’s an ER nurse, graduating from Chem Eng and a corporate rising star to a life of service that he loves instead of loathes. We had a short introduction and got a tour of his house and he went off to work the 7-7 shift and left us at the house with free reign. Only with Warmshowers! Dana cooked a nice dinner and I worked on the next day’s and weeks’ routing and sent a couple of requests for hosting near Fargo, ND which we should reach Saturday.