Friday, Sept. 9…Here Comes The Rain Again (The Eurythmics)

     No campfire last night because the campground wasn’t allowed to sell us any firewood due to recent extreme heat/dryness and wind.  The owner said this is the third time this season that he’s had a ‘no fire’ directive.

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   Woke to evidence that it had rained overnight...and it started raining again about 8:30.  It had stopped for a bit but had started back up by the time we left at 11 a.m.  Planning a route was tricky because we wanted to make good time which meant heading east on I-90 but also wanted to avoid the big green cloud on the weather radar which meant avoiding I-90.  Like I said, tricky.   We still have over 850 miles until we’re home and only 2 ½ days to do it since we left late today. 

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   Today’s weather event was rain.  So thankful that yesterday’s wind had stopped because rain and extreme wind would have had me making a case for staying put. And that wouldn’t have gotten us any closer to home.

   We decided to start out riding the interstate and figured we’d reassess at every gas and rest area stop. We’ve been stopping every hour and a half or so because Larry’s bike has a smaller tank than ours…great time to keep track of the weather map and check our route.  The radar showed the green cloud was heading in a northeasterly direction between Mitchell and Sioux City so we should have been able to put the rain behind us eventually. 

   But we couldn’t outrun the rain because, as it turns out, the weather map wasn’t lining up with reality.  We rode in and out of the rain all day even though the radar showed our route as being in the clear. Not the first time the weather people got it wrong.  There was the occasional lighter patch of sky on the horizon but it was elusive and we just couldn’t catch it.  It’s interesting how in a dark sky, a slightly lighter shade of dark can be a beacon of hope.  

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   Despite using chapstick with an SPF of 30 many times a day, my lips took a hit from the sun and heat.  Didn’t really get sunburned but my bottom lip developed a crack.  Yesterday the wind tore it up. Couldn’t keep chapstick on it for long in the wind.  So the silver lining to this rainy day is that my lip stayed hydrated and happy all day long. 😎

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   The temperature had been hanging right near 60^o most of the day. As we descended down to the Mississippi River from the Minnesota side, the temperature actually rose.  It was 70^o when we cruised into LaCrosse, WI, at 8 o’clock.  Warmest the air had been all day.

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  No campfire tonight because we’re in a hotel and I think management would frown upon it. 😏

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   Minnesota has embraced it windiness in the form of wind turbines.  There are oodles (more than one hundred, less than one million) of turbines dotting the landscape along I-90.  Saw one in the process of being assembled using a very tall crane.  Wonder who benefits from the power they generate.    

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   We have about 500 miles to go in 2 days.  Forecast for tomorrow morning is rain but the radar shows it heading in a northeasterly direction, mostly staying clear of our route.  Now where have I seen that before? 

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Today’s miles: 362

Total miles: 2076