Whoopee a Vampire

Claire and Harris donned their mom-made costumes for the first party of the Halloween season. Harris decided to be a Whoopee Cushion while Claire opted to be an immortal vampire. My children have become blood sucking little farts, and I love them.

More Photos from Bike Trip

Family portrait while pedaling, my fully loaded touring bike, and my mostly unloaded touring bike and tent set up comprise this post's photos.

Luce Line Oct. 18-19, 2008

I just finishes stowing away my gear after an outstanding trip along the Luce Line where the trail and trees were covered in colorful fall leaves.

We left from the trail head and rode west of Watertown, had a burger on the way. Upon arriving at out camp site, we put up our tents and built a nice fire. Dinner started with a tin of smoked oysters while our collected branches burned to coals. Later we cooked beans, sausages and thick slices of bacon over the fire. Mixed with a bag of baby carrots and strawberry Newtons the meat and beans made a fine dinner. Of course we failed to bring some utensils, but made do with whittled chopsticks after presenting one sausage as a burnt offering.

The ride home was easy. Me running over a snake and getting a flat tire (not from the snake) led to our longest stops.

Such a fall trip has been, and should continue to be, an annual event.

Ella's Zebra Along for the Ride.

Hi Ella,

Your Zebra is riding in style on a Brooks saddle. He enjoyed the nice weather.

Bike Camping

I started loading up my gear for a bike camping trip with some friends along the Luce Line. We will likely pitch our tents in a secluded spot just west of Watertown.

The anticipation, planning and bike prep extend the fun of such trips. I enjoy thinking about what gear I need to optimize comfort and minimize stuff. A fall night in the woods is wonderful, if you're prepared.

To Harris for Harris

We made our second annual road trip to Harris, Minnesota to have dinner at the Swedish cafe, Kafa Stuga. We decided to combine a fall color tour with celebrating Harris' birthday. We shared a clam and cod fish dinner with all of the fixings. This charming and inexpensive restaurant is only a couple miles of of I35 if you're close.

Cousins

A few photos of the first ever all cousin meeting of the anders(s)ons.

HikeaBike with Jared

Perfect fall day for a ride with intermittent forays into the woods. Finding turkey feathers, assorted poo, wild grapes and other curiosities, we biked, hiked and jumped a creek. I felt like a little kid exploring.

Jared's Salsa La Cruz shined and my old Fuji twinkled a bit too. Good weather, good bikes and good times. Baked squash, pea and beef barley soup for lunch felt right.