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dreamsharkRichard and I took the bikes down to Cannon Falls for a little trail ride, partly because in an excess of enthusiasm we had bought season passes for that trail when we went in May. This time it was just a day trip: Cannon Falls to Welch, then back (about 20 miles total). It turned out to be a real scorcher of a day. The weather sites all insisted that it never got above the mid-80's, but the thermometer in my new bike computer read in the 90's even in the shade, and went as high as 103 when parked in the sun. Fortunately, that end of the trail is well-shaded, so we had an enjoyable ride. But by the time we reached the Welch Station rest stop we were really hot. Richard was tired and needed a rest, so I pedaled the 1/2 mile to the village of Welch to see if the Trout Scream Cafe was open. (It was, although nearly out of ice cream). Welch is a totally charming little flyspeck of a town, comprising a picturesque bridge over the Cannon River, the afore-mentioned cafe, a tiny post office, and an old feed mill converted to... well look at that! Canoe and tube rental!
Suddenly, floating down a river on an inflated truck tube sounded like a great idea. I considered abandoning the bikes and just tubing back to Cannon Falls, but the river was flowing the wrong direction. Then I noticed that in addition to the usual 5-mile, 4-hour trip they had a short one-mile offering advertised as taking "about 45 minutes." That sounded like just the thing. I pedaled back to the way station and retrieved my husband, we peeled off extra clothing, wallets, cell phones, and shoes and hopped on the shuttle bus. The shuttle was driven by a friendly older guy who turns out to be the father of the owner. We were the only ones on the bus. He dropped us off at an uninhabited clearing on the riverbank with a path that had clearly been created by feral children some time in the distant past. All remarkably quiet and informal compared to the zoo on the Apple River. We gingerly picked our barefoot way down to the surprisingly fast-flowing river, managed to get into our tubes without losing them, and had a perfectly lovely little trip back to the launch site. What a wonderful refresher on a hot day!
This seems like the germ of a great idea for the kind of triathlon that more people could get behind. Bike half of an easy off-road trail, float down the river in a tube for the water part, and for the land event ... maybe walk across the road to the ice-cream shop?
Suddenly, floating down a river on an inflated truck tube sounded like a great idea. I considered abandoning the bikes and just tubing back to Cannon Falls, but the river was flowing the wrong direction. Then I noticed that in addition to the usual 5-mile, 4-hour trip they had a short one-mile offering advertised as taking "about 45 minutes." That sounded like just the thing. I pedaled back to the way station and retrieved my husband, we peeled off extra clothing, wallets, cell phones, and shoes and hopped on the shuttle bus. The shuttle was driven by a friendly older guy who turns out to be the father of the owner. We were the only ones on the bus. He dropped us off at an uninhabited clearing on the riverbank with a path that had clearly been created by feral children some time in the distant past. All remarkably quiet and informal compared to the zoo on the Apple River. We gingerly picked our barefoot way down to the surprisingly fast-flowing river, managed to get into our tubes without losing them, and had a perfectly lovely little trip back to the launch site. What a wonderful refresher on a hot day!
This seems like the germ of a great idea for the kind of triathlon that more people could get behind. Bike half of an easy off-road trail, float down the river in a tube for the water part, and for the land event ... maybe walk across the road to the ice-cream shop?
