Good tidings of solstice, and a happy new year

"Forest Festivities" by Jahna Vasht

The winter solstice is my favorite day because the days are going to start getting longer, and I am grateful for this. 

I'm also grateful for the fact that although I didn't go for as many long bike rides this year, I got out on my bike more frequently, and put in more miles this year than I did either of the past two years. (I think my decreased mileage those years was attributable to my lack of self-motivation when my riding partner Matt was on some international trips.) I'm also grateful that I got to do a long, masked-up ride with Steve and with Deb (separately), and that gravel-y fat bike ride with Matt that I mentioned in my last post as being - hands down - my favorite ride of the year.

Most recently, I took a week off in early December and got in some rides, including a longer-than-planned ride down to Grey Cloud Island one last time for 2020, and a hillier-than-planned ride back through South St. Paul.

I rode to Grey Cloud Island many times
this year. The last time, there were still
leaves on the trees and dead cornfields,
which have since been cut down.

These past two months, now that it has gotten colder and distanced patio happy hours in friends' backyards have gone by the wayside, I have been skipping biking when I can instead get in a masked-up walk with a friend outdoors. I'm grateful that people are willing to walk with me, despite my apparent reputation for tricking people into walking farther than they intended.

Although the fact that we all have Zoom fatigue, I am also grateful for being able to do a post-Thanksgiving Zoom Girl Craft Day (which actually worked really well!) and a couple of other Zoom get togethers with friends. 

In general, I'm very grateful for friends this year. Like my friend Jen, who dropped off a full-size DQ ice cream cake; Matt, who made me a biking-themed card; and Marcy, who made me some goodies, including a very decorative jar of sweet and spicy nuts.

I am also grateful for my friends' senses of humors. Oddly, I got two sausage-themed cards for my birthday this year! 

I'm grateful for my siblings (all of whom I really like), happy memories of my dad, getting to safely see Beth (my stepmom) a few times this year, being able to help my mom after her surgery (before COVID shut everything down), being able to visit my mom and Terry (my stepdad), and my mom having good post-chemo scans. I'm grateful that my husband and I still get along despite seeing much more of each other than we usually do, yet am equally as grateful that I have the luxury of being able to escape and do jigsaw puzzles while listening to audio books. 

This weekend's puzzle.

As we hunker down for the winter (Where did all the snow go? At least the ice skaters are happy about being able to move across all the lakes, unfettered), I am comforted by the fact that the first bike ride that I've signed up for in 2021 (https://mssociety.donordrive.com/participant/Maggie-MahoneyTC) is less than 20 weeks away. In COVID-math, that can feel like either 5 and/or 40 weeks, all at the same time. Here's hoping I can do some of these events next year! In the meantime, I'm reflecting on this interesting swag from the Ride Across Minnesota two years ago.... Ha! 

Cliff's Notes to the Fall

 Well, hi there. The more-than-two-month hiatus I've taken from posting means that there's too much that's been going on for me to get lazy and rely on the too frequently lately, lazy book report-style "blog" post. 

I can say this: 

• Shortly after my last post, I took two days off work and went on two of the hottest bike rides I have ever taken.

One of those days, I rode to the wildlife
refuge and went for a hike.

• This year, although my bike rides haven't been as long as in years past, I've been riding more frequently. So far (knock on wood that I will keep riding one bike or another through the end of the year), I've ridden more miles than I did last year or the year before. It seems unlikely that I'll get another 700 miles in and tie my mileage for 2016 or 2017, which were remarkably similar. 
• This year, I did a lot of rides to Grey Cloud Island, and got to see the farm fields as they thawed, as they were being planted, as the corn and soybeans sprouted, as the corn reached knee high (before the 4th of July), as the plants were harvested, and as the fields were turned over. It was kind of nice to see the progression over the season(s). 
• I also did a lot of early weekday morning riding over the Minnesota and Mississippi Rivers. One day I purposely shifted my route to see the Mississippi in its fall glory.

Looking upstream, from near my house.

• I got some rides and long walks in just before we found out snow was coming. I'm trying to find beauty in my surroundings, despite the fact that there are no leaves on the trees and it has been cold and windy. I'm trying to get my head in the right place before winter. Living in the north during the COVID era is going to be hard to navigate because you can't just sit on a patio with people (or not for as long or as comfortably, anyhow!).

Downtown from by my house, the
night before we got 8 inches of snow.

• In mid-October, just before it snowed, my good friend and riding partner for seven years - Matt - was in town to pick up some things. We went on a masked-up ride on fat tire bikes on gravel roads so we could ride side by side and then had a cold beer on a cold patio in the cold rain. It was my favorite ride of 2020. It was so not normal, yet so normal. 
• Speaking of "not normal," but kind of normal, Dan and I went to Iowa the weekend after the snow, and went to an outdoor concert, with our seats distanced from everyone else and masks required in common areas. Live music! What a treat. Since the temps were in the mid-30s, having a face covering was kind of nice.
• More speaking of "not normal," I have spent a lot of time lately making stupid videos as a way to entertain myself and maybe a couple other people - including pretend workout videos. I won't share them here because they are too dumb, but here's a sneak peak of the type of other videos I have been randomly sending people.

• The snow has melted and it has been windy. I have been riding in the cold (like, wind chills in the 20s) dark before work and am pretty much the only person out there! It is peaceful. I rode this weekend and even though it was a little warmer, I think the wind discouraged people. That's fine; more space for me! 

This big ol' willow came down
overnight. It will be interesting
to see how the landscape -
and the park board - respond.

• The second half of 2019 was a bad year for me, personally, and I kept on thinking, "I cannot wait for this year to be over." And then I realized (I think my sister pointed it out to me) that the change of a calendar page doesn't magically wipe the slate clean. In fact, the first day of 2020 itself was a bit of a whopper (not in a good way). I think things will get better for most people in 2021, but am worried about everyone being so focused on the stinkiness of 2020, that they'll have unreasonable expectations for January.
• Here's hoping that the rest of the fall will be nice and that the winter will be conducive to outdoor activities, including snowshoeing and walking with friends.

I didn't manage to fully escape my book report mode. I guess this is more the Cliff's Notes! 

Staying out of trouble, and maybe getting into good stuff.

I realized I haven't posted for a while. Since I did the Ride Across Minnesota Wisconsin, I have been riding most mornings before work, and then trying to find somewhere interesting to ride on weekends because I got in a riding rut. The weekend rides haven't been very long - in the 40-something mile range.

A few weeks ago, I finally joined the Major Taylor cycling club, which I've been meaning to do for a couple of years. About 10 days ago, I got an email from the club letting me know about the inaugural ride for the Ride4Reparations, which was a week ago today. I went for a ride to Swede Hollow and St. Paul and then hightailed it through Bloomington and up into Minneapolis with just a few minutes to spare until the start. I didn't know what to expect - the info was pretty limited.

In a nutshell, this super nice guy Hal and some friends formed a non-profit to use cycling as a tool to raise money for organizations that serve the African American community. Due to COVID, their plans for one big event got set aside, but they're doing a series of small rides to get people engaged and participants are invited to donate to one of the identified organizations. 

Here are some shots from the ride.

First African American-owned service station in South Mpls

George Floyd memorial site

This is the part that makes me tear up a lot whenever I visit the site -
the very long list of names of all the people killed.

I ride on that street you can see on the far side of this lot, but haven't
seen these markers representing tombstones of
African American/Black Americans killed. It is striking.

The plaza honoring former Mayor Sharon Sayles Belton - the
first African American and the first woman mayor in Mpls.
We are holding phones to show our donations to worthy local organizations.

I had no idea we would get shirts for the event. I was pretty toasty
wearing two shirts, but look forward to wearing it more and getting
questions from people.

It was an interesting ride of South Minneapolis African American history and landmarks, not unlike some of the sort of content that's been covered in the overnight rides I've done. I liked the fundraiser aspect, though. And, in typical Maggie fashion, after talking to the organizers, I volunteered to helping them with future rides and planning. I look forward to sharing more information with friends as things progress.

This year, I've been doing a lot of riding in Bloomington and Richfield. I took a couple of hours the morning after the Ride4Reparations to do some research on these roads - - which ones connect to what? I can now say, with authority, that crossing 494 at 12th Ave (purplish arrow) is better than at Nicollet, which is better than at Lyndale. I can also say, with authority, that crossing 66th and Hwy 62 at Nicollet (red arrow) is better than than at 12th, which is better than Lyndale. In fact, Lyndale, while prettily-re-laned south of 494 and all that jazz, is pretty annoying to ride on. There are too many partial roundabouts. However, there is a really nice, clean biffy just off Lyndale at the Richfield Historical Society Museum. I recommend it. (Blue arrow.)

The Minnesota River, August 16. Brown, eh? But so peaceful.

If you've seen any of my Facebook posts, you know that I've been riding with a face covering this year, particularly on any trails where I cannot stay far, far away from another person. I offer you this collection of assorted photos.

May and June: my lightweight wool buffs, which I fold over 2-3 times.
Very warm. Perhaps not very effective, given a recent article I read?
Although they didn't assess one made of this fabric or
one worn "in the Maggie way."

Paul and Babe. As they say here in MN: "Oh fer cute!"

This mask likely is totally ineffective in most
circumstances, which is a bummer because
it fits nicely.

I've gotten on a lot of compliments on this one.
Fits well; hard to breathe when biking,
so probably effective. As they say here in MN,
"Oh fer funny."

Today, I needed something new to do. So, I finally got the nerve to try something I've been mulling over for a while - - find a route to my brother's house in Lakeville. (I already have a good route to my other brother's house in Richfield. I'm lucky that two of my brothers moved to the area, like me, during their college-ish years. I'm the oldest of the three of us. I'm happy to report that no one in Apple Valley got close to hitting me (that I know of), which is remarkable because Apple Valley is horrible for bike riding. But Eagan and Lakeville were nice! I took a route back that would get me close to the river, and allow me to ride through the state park. Beautiful!

As noted on FB, the orange mask is reversible and is also the green mask that I wore
on the Ride4Reparations. It is a great mask for biking. My work mask, from
Katmai Government Services (the federal contractor I work for, who assigns
me to CDC) is comfortable, but seems unlikely to be the most effective for 
breathing heavily on a bike.

So this concludes Chapter 5 of the cliffhanger, "What Maggie Did This Summer." I betchya can't wait for the fall to see what delights await you! 

Ta-da! Duh-dada-dah!

In mid-July, I haphazardly said that since I would be in Wisconsin this week, visiting my Mom and Terry, I'd set a goal of riding at least 600 miles this month and do at least five 60-mile rides. I also promised some good stories and more photos. I didn't actually calculate the feasibility and it required a lot of riding since mid-July, but I managed to pull it off! 

I typed those sentences from the deck overlooking the lake, watching a recently-pregnant black squirrel assess the bird feeder situation and a baby woodpecker learn about gravity, feeling a different sense of accomplishment than in other years. 

I typed that while Terry made me a special treat of a dinner - Wisconsin-style fish fry. (I love a good fish fry! And walleye to boot. Mhm.)

I rode 614 miles this month. About 2/3 of that was done in the last two weeks, and 1/3 of that was done these past five days in the Northwoods. 

Where I've been all week.

While it wasn't my normal 300-mile trek that I do this week every year, I had to get creative with my routes, and 45 of the 200 miles were done on a fat bike. (Contrary to my proposal from the other day, I didn't double-count my fat bike miles. I feel so virtuous! Bow before me, please.) 

Today wasn't necessarily creative, but I rode to Phelps - - a place I've never ridden to this indirectly and via 100% pavement. (You can get there by going through the part of the map without visible roads - they're sand and gravel.) And most my riding in that area has been on a fun trail at a resort just north of Phelps, in the snow.

Considering how much lake area there
was on this route, I actually didn't
see much water.

But the water I saw was very pretty!

I found a sheltered area for what they annoyingly
call at meetings a "bio break." Why isn't it just a break?

I need a stone entryway to our driveway so that I can
stick a squirrel on it. It probably wouldn't look as good
in our Mpls alley, I suppose.

After dinner, I went for a walk and found some wild blueberries (now in my belly), saw a few deer, and watched three foxes hanging out by what appears to be a den on the edge of where my parents' and two neighbors' property lines meet. Thankfully, I saw no bears, although I was keeping an eye out when I was eating those berries! I sat on the dock and finished my audiobook, and then broke into the ice cream. Today's caloric input exceeded the output, I believe, but it was a good day to celebrate. 

I still need about $379 ("about" that - ha! It is kind of a firm number, no?) to meet my goal for the year, and will keep on trying. It isn't the best year for fundraising and my goal is modest compared to years past, but I am extra grateful for donations this year, due to the circumstances. Thank you for helping me support the MS Society! 

I will drive back home tomorrow. I'm looking forward to aspects of being home, but am a little nervous about how my neck will feel for the drive. It still hurts from when I fell off my bike and hit my head two days ago. Thankfully, all I have to "show" for that slo-mo comical crash are two bruises on my knee. I also am feeling some slight anticipatory melancholy: I'm not sure when I'll be able to see my Mom and Terry again. Hopefully we can all keep on staying safely isolated in our little environments (I got a COVID test before coming here, just to be safe) and I can visit again in the fall.

Once I get back home it will be a challenge to keep on discovering new things by bike. I just will need to remember that a day of biking is always a good day. 

https://mssociety.donordrive.com/participant/GoMaggieGo

Getting my bearings - literally

Nah, I'm not talking about ball bearings. 

Today, given my neck tenderness after yesterday's slo-mo comical crash and the fact that I had 31 miles to ride before the end of the week to meet my goal, I did a short ride (14 miles; told you it was short!) on a gravel/sand road on my fat bike. I found the "bearing tree." I'm a little concerned as it appears to slowly be dying and falling apart.

I guess the USFS/USGS decided at some point
that a tree would be easier to find than a metal
disc on the ground.

I wonder what will be used for getting one bearings
after the tree falls down in a storm.

I should actually ride the circuit of trails
in this wilderness area. The deer flies
are very aggressive, however!

After my short ride, I was able to convince my Mom to go in the canoe with me and we had a nice paddle around the lake. I then read/took a nap in a hammock, ate dinner, and went for a short walk to the boat landing, during which I saw- - what - - at least 7? deer (and no bears, today).

Lil' cutie

After my walk, I continued to listen to my audiobook while eating cookies and settling in on the dock in the setting sun. The light was so pretty on the lake and the shore. I fell asleep. I'd say today was a success! And tomorrow my neck will be better and I can finish the last bit of riding I need to do to meet my July BikeMS goal before I head home on the 31st.

From top left: A heron, two docks down; Me, sporting my
💙Wilco shirt from our trip to Mexico in January
before COVID made everything insane; The only IPAs I like
are hazy IPAs and, while Bell's is decent, my husb's home brew
is better; The shoreline behind me.

Thanks for all of your support with my riding this week, this month, this year! I'm in the home stretch and think I'll wrap this puppy up tomorrow! Woo!

https://mssociety.donordrive.com/participant/GoMaggieGo

You came up from the ground - and apparently will end up back there

Because I'm visiting my Mom and Terry, I had decided not to do the full 300-mile ride this week. I thought I should actually see my parents while visiting them. So, this morning, I left for a "pretty short ride, exploring the roads around Carpenter Lake" but took two bottles of water just in case. I also packed two bars since I hadn't had any breakfast, and also grabbed that dang felted gnome lady that Anne made and gave to me years ago as a good luck charm. I figured I'd ride around 25 miles or so, taking photos of the gnome, and do a longer ride tomorrow. 

I had ridden down West Carpenter Lake Road yesterday. Apparently a tree blew down in last night's very brief, but windy, storm. I am no stranger to hiking with my bike, and maneuvered over/around it to the other side. I'm glad I noticed that I somehow put a big log part in between my spokes before riding. As I climbed over the log and then took a photo of the mischievous gnome that possibly was responsible for the mess, a deer just sat there, watching me.

Tree across the road? No problem.

I found a tennis court/basketball court that must have once been part of a resort property. I assume the tree growing out of the middle of the court means that it has been abandoned. I thought the gnome lady fit in with the scenery there, as well as the forest notification sign. It isn't entirely a welcome sign.

Always check your spokes after climbing
over a mess of broken branches, is the lesson, I guess.

So, I was still in the pretty low mileage territory and decided to cross over Highway 70. On West Bass Lake Road, I saw signs for the "Northern Wrights" and the "Wrights in the Middle," but not the lesser, or lower Wrights. I thought since I was over in the area, I should check the dirt/gravel road conditions on Nine Mile Lake Road, in case I wanted to ride there tomorrow.

The road was so pretty, I figured I should just keep riding on it, and go further east.

If a gravel road is this pretty, I will deal with it on a road bike.

I was hesitating stopping at the boat landing on Nine Mile Lake because I distinctly remember riding there in June 2019 and thinking of my Dad, who was still alive, and taking a picture just for him. Now, there's just a bittersweet memory. I decided to go, though, for him. As I was taking in the scenery, before taking the video below, Cloud Cult's "Everyone Here is a Cloud" was on my playlist. 

"If there ever was a time
Now would be the time to see your time here is limited. . . 

You came up from the ground
From a million little pieces. . ."

And, so, there I was filming the lake with tears streaming down my face, wishing that I could show my Dad this video.

That dang always-crooked helmet.

So, in for a penny, in for a pound. Since I'd gone that far and would have to ride on sand or gravel either way, why not just ride to my favorite lake? Confession: I can never remember if my favorite lake is Luna Lake or White Deer Lake. They are connected and share a trail system. I like the SE-oriented one, which I'm fairly confident is Luna. But I will never swear to that.

This required another short gravel stretch with one kind of fishtail-ish moment, but then I was on the scenic, smooth, beautiful, rolling blacktop roads of Divide Road. I stopped at the very-full-of-water, but not-a-soul-to-be-seen lake, and ate a bar, drank some water, and stretched out my starting-to-get-sore back. I also, remarkably, had a cell signal and texted my mom to let her know that although I had anticipated to be back by then, I still had many miles to go before I got home.

Luna (or White Deer) Lake: my favorite. Huge mushroom,
loon alert, gnome on a ring, and the pristine lake.

I rode along Highway 70 back to the house, and it was windy and I was hungry and thirsty. I ate my second bar, and drank my second bottle of water at an ATV trail parking spot. By the time I got back to Carpenter Lake Road, the tree had been removed. I decided that since I was close to my 60-mile goal, I'd stop at the house to get some food and water and just finish 'er up! 

My Mom, the BikeMS volunteer who fed me at Rest Stop #3!

I rode around "the neighborhood" to get to my 60 miles. I was at 59.5 at a curve where a sand road comes off a curve in the paved road. The sand always feels fairly packed there and there was grass growing through part of it, so I figured I could make it through upright and do a wide u-turn. Uhm, nope! It would have been very hilarious to watch me trying to stay upright, almost falling, staying up, and then finally, slowly falling. My shifter thing on the left handlebar got rearranged (although I was mostly able to bang it back into place after repeated hits with my fist). I have a bruise on my leg. I was covered in sand. Oh, and I did actually hit my head, despite it being a slow fall. Things feel better after I came back to the house, swam around in the lake (in shallow water, just in case!), took a shower, and ate some real food.

Darn sand! I'll be glad to get a new helmet, though.

I ended the night eating ice cream on the dock. What an unexpected day!

The ice cream in this mug did not last long.

Tomorrow, I think I will go for a short ride. Famous last words, I know, but I am hoping to get in the canoe on this trip!

https://mssociety.donordrive.com/participant/GoMaggieGo

Oy-vaay

For years, I've wanted to participate in the "SepTimber" cycling event sponsored by Tribute Brewery in Eagle River and the Three Lakes Winery in, well, Three Lakes. They have a few different route lengths. If you do the full metric century, you do a big loop, starting at the brewery with the winery at the halfway point. The ride is a fundraiser to help pay for bike trails in between these little resort towns.

I usually have conflicts with the event. This year, they're still doing it in September, but without real rest stops and the gathering afterwards. Since I wanted to ride at least 60 miles, I downloaded the metric century route and rode that today.

I started from my Mom & Terry's house, which is about one mile east of the NE corner,
rode clockwise, and skipped that little interior line to/from the brewery.

I've ridden the first half of this before, and then took a straight bike trail back. So, I knew what to expect before hitting Three Lakes - - like this pretty river on Dam Road.

It flows from this, Lower Ninemile Lake.

The first half consists of a lot of rolling hills in the woods until you get closer to Three Lakes, where there are more fields and more houses. After weaving through the town (and laughing at East School Road and West School Road - two roads that flanked the school on the, uh, east and west), I ended up on County Highway A - the stretch between Three Lakes and Sugar Camp. The speed limit is 55 mph. The shoulder, at its best, was 9 inches, with four feet of gravel to the side. At its worst, the shoulder was 4 inches, with an 8-inch drop to the four feet of gravel to the side. 

It would have been totally fine if I was riding it as part of an event. Solo? Not so fun. Plus there was a headwind (although that's better than the one brief glimpse I got of a side wind, given the lack of a shoulder). I ended up riding 40 miles before I took a break, which was not great considering that my sore back really appreciates a break at about mile 20.

But then I was on pretty decent roads from Sugar Camp up to Highway 70, including the very nice State Forest Road H. I knew I was getting close to to Highway 70 when I saw a "gentlemen's club" - gross. 

Photo taken from the bike. I think it was
County Road D.

With 15 miles to go, I took my second break to stretch my back, to put some more sunscreen on my face, and to use nature's facilities. (I need to update my illustrated guide; ferns make a great cover from the waist down!)

It is hard, with normal-length arms,
to get a selfie that shows your jersey.

I had a really nice tailwind for about 10 miles. I wasn't even working one bit while going about 20 mph. After I got back, Terry took this finish line photo of me. Like yesterday, I then jumped in the lake and swam around a little bit before taking a shower and putting on real clothes. The wind made it a little chilly, but I sure love swimming in a lake when it isn't freezing. I ate a snack and packed up a Bloody Mary to take to the neighbors' for a socially distanced happy hour, where I got to pet a cute little dog and threaten to take her home with me.

A good day.

Look at that face! I want to kiss her.
Her name is Lacy or Lacey (Laysee? Laci? Lacie?)

https://mssociety.donordrive.com/participant/GoMaggieGo