It’s here! The last day of RAGBRAI! We made it this far, and after today’s 62.6 miles with 1,725 feet of climb, we will finally be able to dip our front tire into the Mississippi!
We’re up again at 5:15 and cycling away from the camper at 6:35. Lynn and I touch base with each other in Middletown, the first pass-through town, and decide to just continue on to Denmark.
Denmark
I had never heard of Chris Cakes until doing RAGBRAI. Today they’re here at the Denmark fire department, so we go in and enjoy a pancake breakfast.
I don’t know how many thousands of pancakes they must be cooking up this morning, but this gadget is what makes it all possible.
Can you spot the flying pancake? It’s a blast watching some of the riders catch the hot cake on their plate when the cook flips it across the room to them.
With 17.5 miles behind us, we leave Denmark to ride another 11.5 miles to Westpoint. I’ve been able to maintain a pretty good pace for me so far this morning. Now I’m starting to fade. I can tell it’s the last day of the ride, because I haven’t felt this tired while riding on any of the previous days.
Westpoint
I’m glad to reach Westpoint and get off the bike for a while. Westpoint is a fun stop, too! They have a really nice park with a Veteran’s Memorial and a freedom rock.
Further back in the park we take advantage of this fun photo op with a giant ear of corn.
Look at this amazing bike tower that’s set up right in the middle of the main street through town.
Here’s what it looks like on the other side of the bike tower.
Riders carry their bikes up the stairs and raise them up above their heads at the top for a photo. I SO want to do this, but I’m nervous that I won’t be physically able to do it. So I actually go into an alley with my bike and practice carrying it and raising it up. I’m able to do both, but when I think about doing it with all those people watching and at that height, I chicken out.
Instead Lynn and I just go up without our bikes and have this picture taken. No guts, no glory, right?
Franklin
About another 6 miles down the road, I touch base with Lynn in Franklin. My sodium levels must be getting low, because I’m craving a dill pickle. There were no dill pickles to be had in Franklin. We just ride on through and continue on to the next town.
On the way, at one point the site of another hill coming up causes me to pull over.
I drink some water and rest for a couple of minutes. I enjoy this scenery while I’m getting my mind right about pedaling over yet another hill.
Donnellson
Thankfully it’s a fairly short ride from Franklin to Donnellson – about 4.5 miles. All of their festivities are at the Lee County Fairgrounds. There’s plenty of seating out of the sun, so we spend some time there. And Donnellson must know I need salt in my body, because their theme is “Small Town, Big Dill”. Not only do they have dill pickles, but they have dill pickle sandwiches!
It’s pretty dang good, too! But I’m still hungry after finishing it. Lynn gives me directions to the booth where she got her amazing-looking piece of pizza, so I scurry down there and get myself one. Delicious! Now my belly’s full, but I’m wanting something cold, and I could still use a little more salt. So I buy a pickle popscicle, and it does the job for me.
I stock up on water and Gatorade before getting back on the road for the next stretch.
Montrose
It’s 13 long miles to the pass-through town of Montrose. I finally had an ear of corn there.
We don’t stay long in Montrose, because by the time we get there it’s 3:00, closing time for that town. Each of the pass-through towns is assigned a closing time, and a sheriff’s unit is there to enforce it. So I again fill up my hydration bottles and we say goody-bye to Montrose with this parting shot.
Keokuk
Well, here it is. Our final stretch of the ride to the endpoint, Keokuk. It’ll take about an hour, since it’s a little over 10 miles away. I don’t know who told me it would be a nice and flat ride along the Mississippi. And I don’t know why I believed them. It’s TOTALLY untrue! The ride is EXTRA hilly along the river. And the powers-that-be save the worst hill of the week for last.
I read signs posted along the roadside that say I’m finally in Keokuk, and I’m finally going to be able to dip my front tire in the Mississippi. But it’s a false sense of relief those signs are giving me, because now I read a sign that says, “…but first you have to…”. And as I go around a curve, the next sign says, “…get over this damn hill!” Suddenly I feel totally deflated, but I’m determined to make it up this hill from Hell.
I do make it up the hill, but by golly, it truly is the most I’ve struggled this whole week. Sad to say, I’m not in the best of spirits when I meet up with Lynn at the site of the tire dip. I may have gotten over the hill physically, but I’m still not over it mentally or emotionally.
As we’re waiting in line to get our turn down near the river, I work on getting a handle on myself. This should be a moment of rejoicing for us. Fortunately, I retrieve my positive spirit and am able to enjoy the river experience.
A week ago, we dipped our back tire in the Missouri on the west side of the state. Now we’re dipping our front tire in the Mississippi on the east side of the state!
Yay! We rode the whole 427 miles and then some! It’s been a GREAT experience!
We had planned to spend the night in Keokuk, but Mike hadn’t been able to find a place to park the camper. So instead we headed back to Lynn’s brother’s house, about 4 hours away. It was around 10:30 that night when we got there. They were so gracious to welcome us again at the last minute like that.
Thank you, Grason and Jeanne, for everything the two of you did to help us accomplish our goal.
So it’s done! Back to normal life again. If you’ve been reading along on all of these posts, thank you!