Got off a pretty nice 24-hour Amtrak journey in Columbus WI (about 15 miles from Madison) and proceeded to bike to Beaver Dam, about 1.5 hrs up the road.
Sun. 7/7: 50 miles north to Oshkosh. The reward, frozen custard at Leon's, a branch (sort-of) of Leon's in Milwaukee, but without their best flavor (butter pecan). Can't have everything.
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| Leon's looking good in neon at night |
7/10 ride to Evart. A small non-descript town about 60 miles east of Ludington.
7/11 Picked up the Pere Marquette Rail-Trail just east of Evart. This is one of the few Rail-Trail routes that's 100% paved. Flat, straight, quiet and smooth.
Took the trail to Clare, MI, home of yet another Donut Mecca : "Cops & Donuts", which is a now-famous donut shop in Clare that was going out of business, so the local police force bought it out in 2009, breathing new life into it. I was there before in 2013. It's now 30% larger, and they have expanded to 5 branch stores. An interesting engine of economic development... with some kick-ass baked goods
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| A really good sticky bun |
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| Maple frosted cinnamon roll with bacon |
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| Doin' Donut Time! |
The 2nd half of the ride was the other half of the Pere Marquette Rail-Trail into Midland, which is home to Dow Chemical's headquarters, a huge complex that dominates the southwestern part of the town. My hotel, "The H Hotel" was also really nice. Lots of Dow people stay here.
In contrast, there's Flint, where I'm staying tonight (Friday 7/12). The closer you get to Flint, the more rundown the roads and buildings become. Even though the water here in many places is OK now, trust in public officials is so low, that most restaurants still serve bottles of water at dinner.
SAD.
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