92.6 miles, 1892′ of climbing (1209.6 tot) – to read from the beginning, click here.
We left Paul’s knowing we were heading Northwest, but we didn’t know how far or exactly to where we were going. Our planned goal was Osakis at about 80 miles, but there were no campgrounds that accepted tents and one expensive hotel. So, the day was left to Providence, knowing that something would come through somehow.
It was an easy day on the Lake Wobegon Regional Trail once we got to St. Cloud. It’s a 65 mile paved trail and we were able to keep up speed without a lot of effort. Some sections, especially the bridges were rather rough with lots of bumps, but others were pristine blacktop — smooth and easy. All in the context of a beautiful & bright sunny day with high clouds in a bright blue sky contrasting with the deep greens and yellows of the farmlands we passed. And the lakes, of course, too numerous to count.
We did make a couple of stops to refresh our water and continue the search for a campground. Dana came through on this one and called Don’s Lakeside RV Park in Alexandria — only to be told they didn’t allow tent camping because they didn’t have space for the cars. “Well, we’re on bikes!” “Oh, then you can stay — plenty of room for bikes.” So, we set our GPS at 4 PM to add the 35 miles it’d take to get there. We told Sandy, the park owner, that we’d be there in a few hours.
At mile 90 we passed the Depot Smokehouse and Tap Room, and it being in the high 80s that afternoon, we craved a beer so we stopped and turned around for a couple cold PBRs. When we got to the campground, the office was locked and there was no bell so Dana started to call Sandy. That’s when Don himself showed up on a e-trike. Don and Sandy bought the property in 1978 and have been running it ever since. Don showed us around, pointing out a space by the lake, the shower and bathroom, and the pavilion behind them that was complete with a microwave, refrigerator, fans (for the heat and fending off the mosquitoes). We paid our $15 fee for the night and began our nightly ritual — getting a shower, getting something to eat, a little wine, and long discussions on where to put the tent.
Dana won that battle and we put the tent in the yard beside the pavilion. I scored a partial victory in keeping it close enough to dash under the shelter if the forecast storms started in the middle of the night. Which we did about 6 AM when the first drops started to hit the tent. We picked it up and moved it into the shelter just before the torrents started. High winds, lightning and thunder, too. We climbed back in and snoozed until the rain abated around 8 AM.
As we were heating water for coffee, Don and Sandy showed up with coffee and raspberry filled donuts. We chatted for a while and then finished packing up for our next adventure.
