Day 25, July 15
Miller, SD, to De Smet, SD
77 miles
Cumulative: 1697
Today as we passed through the center of Huron, SD, we completed half our adventure. Somehow it doesn't seem possible. Only yesterday we were ready to start; now we're already halfway home. Except for the brutal heat and wind of the last few days, and the tragic accident, it's been a great trip. We came together as strangers; now we're almost family.
Peter fixes a flat during a rest stop.
Since the weather forecast was for temperatures above 100 degrees and south winds of 20 to 30 miles per hour, most of us started about 5:30, before the sun was up. Breakfast was moved up to 5:15 so we could eat before we left. The early hours were relatively easy, except for a lack of shoulders and the big trucks with which we shared the single lane. Unlike Montana's truck drivers, the drivers here were as accommodating as they could be. Fortunately, we soon had a shoulder to ride on.
By mid-day, the heat was unrelenting, and the cross winds so strong they sometimes blew our bikes a couple of feet sideways. After lunch in Huron, where leader Ryan Kaplan provided ice cream for dessert, we pedaled from convenience store to convenience store where we cooled off and consumed great quantities of Gatorade before pushing off to the next stop. Local farmers were using the stores as well to dodge the heat. At one, there was a lively card game at a table in front of the cash register.
Tonight we are in De Smet, a pretty little town where Laura Ingalls Wilder, author of Little House on the Prairie and related books of historical fiction, lived for many years. In town one of her stories is being presented as a pageant. Local people say that tourism is second only to agriculture as a pillar of the economy.
Earl reclines in his new "deluxe" chair during a rest stop.
hello,
I posted a comment early in the ride, but when talking to brother in law, Martin Berndt, he said it apparently didn't make it through. First of all we are thoroughly enjoying your writings of the days events. We have traveled most of the routes thus far as we lived in Seattle and then eventually moved to KY and drove them again. Soon you will be in New Ulm and be close to a town we once lived in MN. by the name of Mountain Lake.
Safe travel to all
Joyce and Lee Berndt
Posted by: Joyce/Lee Berndt | July 16, 2006 at 09:28 AM
I, too, am thoroughly enjoying the account of your adventure. I am a "bike-journal junkie", having never ventured on such a trip, but I've been across America many times through the stories of others. Thanks for allowing us to dream through your words!
And someday.......!
Diana Wightman
Newark, OH
Hope the weather cools off for you soon.. though, it's not much better here in Ohio right now....
Posted by: Diana Wightman | July 16, 2006 at 10:38 AM
Bill:
We just got a postcard from Ann (how old fashioned can you get) with your blog details. Instead of working I spent a couple of hours reading them from the beginning. Fascinating. More interesting than the Tour-de-France which I aim trying to follow from our summer residence in France.
keep it and keep on blogging! Best also from Antoinette
Adriaan Verspoor
Posted by: Adriaan Verspoor | July 17, 2006 at 09:54 AM
The good news is, you've still got halfway to go. It sounds about as good as Huck Finn's trip down the Mississippi.
The bad news is that you're riding toward a place that's even hotter than where you've been.
Look forward to seeing you
Kim
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