Northwoods Day 10 - Vee's star campsite to Veterans Memorial Park , Crandon Wi

Miles 57

Total time about 7 hours

Ride time 5:45

Last night I set my tent up on the green lawn near a beautiful maple strutting its fall finery. Not long after the sun sets on my sunny Day (hubba hubba hubba hubba hubba), it then begins to rain last night, and not a little. Rained for hours, dusk to after midnight. It serenaded me sleep, at least when it was between the many strong and heavy waves.

No one likes a wet tent and fixing breakfast and packing when everything is wet. Neither do I, so I moved my tent under the pavilion last night at storms start. It was a nice spot to cook, work on my blog, charge my devices. Here is my tent and stuff, all nice and dry this morning!

I get out early which is good as I have 55+ miles to ride.

While it is nice and sunny, here is a stiff breeze out of the north, the direction I am heading. It slows me down by 1.5 to 2 mph. I second guess my destination early on; do I want to fight this the whole way?. I have a decision point about 20 miles in. I plug on. The wind changes from the west more. I leave the farm lands behind and enter the forest, heading more NE. Wind is much more tolerable now, and the trees are getting more colorful. My average mph starts climbing again!!

I pass through a variety of small towns: Matoon, Lily, Phlox, Polar, Nashville.

Some bigger the others, some just a cluster of houses, some a bit more, others are little commercial burgs. All graced by nature's autumnal bounty.

I pass by another thin, forlorn cyclist. I hope I don't lose that much weight, even my spandex would fall off.

My camp spot tonight is Veterans Memorial County park. Sparsely inhabited other than a row of empty seasonal rentals by big RVs, quite the thing up in these parts. I snag a tent site right on the lake and watch mother natures bedtime rituals from the shore.

Windy, but cool. Wind dies down as I cook water for dinner.