Claire and I went on our 2nd annual Bike camping trip with the neighbors, John and his daughter. The picture above is Claire behind John's 1984 Trek 520.
After morning soccer games, we loaded up and drove west on 394/12 to the Glacial Lakes Trail head in Willmar,MN. A PDF link can be found here.
We followed the Glacial Lakes Trail for about 11 miles through Spicer to the town of New London. Just before the Highway 23 bridge, we split off the trail on to 9, riding through downtown New London a couple of miles. From 9 we went west on 148 for about 6 miles to Sibley State Park. All roads had wide shoulders and low traffic, so it wasn't stressful riding with the girls on them.
Sibley State Park is one of Minnesota's larger state parks on the shores of Lake Andrew. We camped near the lake in one of the last available campsites in the Lakeview campground. We were very close to the lake, sandy swimming beach and fishing pier. The down side is the campsite lacked any seclusion or character.
Next time, I'll reserve a site in the Oak Ridge Campground, also in the park. I'll trade the 1/4 mile bike ride for a wooded campsite anytime.
All of our bikes did well carrying a fairly heavy load that included fishing gear.
Claire and I both road mid-90's Trek mountain bikes converted to tourers. Her's is a 930 while mine is a 950. The neighbor girl rode a late 80's Schwinn Sprint with a rack and fenders. A nice little bike, but could have used a few more gears in the hills and wind. Notice the plastic bags. We feared rain, but stayed dry.
Claire at the end of the ride. She found the bike key hanging on the back of the car where she left it the day before.
A tree frog we chanced to see along side the trail
John and Claire are having a conversation about a woodtick.
A handful of red gooseberries we picked along the trail.
Great trip. I'd be glad to travel the route again.
1 comment:
Thanks for the write up. I look forward to joining you in the future.
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