Day 32 – 33 Ironwood Back To Wakefield (Total Miles = 504)

So, we backtracked today. We knew what we were doing! Yes, we did!

Ironwood is the start of a paved bike route called the Iron Belle Trail. Man…if we could only have that to ride on for our entire journey! It is smooth, relatively flat, and pleasantly occupied by runners, walkers, and cyclists. It provides great shade, displays a myriad of wildflowers and berries, and, believe it or not, goes right by a Super Walmart! Alas, it is only 8 miles long as yet, although there are plans to expand it. We rode the trail into Bessemer, and then took Highway 2 into Wakefield. We have a warmshower hosting us this evening. Tom actually hosts because of his son, Michael, who lives in Minnesota. Michael took off on a 3 wheel bike, pulling a trailer, back in 2014. He made it all the way to California and made quite a name for himself along the way. The bike was cumbersome though, and at times, Michael had to detach the trailer, ride the bike to the top of the mountain, then come back and hand pull the trailer up to the top!! Uh, nooo. I would be putting my thumb out at that point!! Not surprisingly, Michael needed some down time, so his dad drove for 36 hours to California to get him. What a dad!! And, although Michael is now in Minnesota, Tom still enjoys hosting cyclists on his 30 acre home site. We are sorry to not have met Michael, but he is currently writing a book about his travels. I, for one, hope he finishes the book because I know it will be full of many interesting stories of bike travel. And he should mention his hero Dad, too!!

We had arrived at Tom’s place early in the day, expecting to have some internet service, but it was a dead zone there.  I was so behind on the blog, I really needed to get my posts published.  We decided, after much consternation, to get a hotel in Wakefield and spend a day on the blog.  So, here we are backtracking again!  Not planned!  I am ready to move on…but, apparently, God is not ready for us to move on…accepted!

We are at Indianhead Mountain Resort…in Wakefield!  It is home to both Indianhead and Blackjack Ski Resorts.  The views here are awesome at the top of the ski runs.  Boy, really makes me want to be skiing!!

We hope to be entering the Porcupine Mountains tomorrow! It is supposed to be beautiful!  We have nowhere to camp.  All the campgrounds are 100% full and have been since January.  We will be stealthing it and probably without internet.  We are expecting to spend 3-4 days riding through the park and seeing the sights.  So, we will check back in on the other side!!

Iron Belle Trail

Iron Belle Trail

Non-Biting (I think) Glowin Green Bug

Michael’s Tin Man

Tom, Michael’s Dad, And Our Warmshower Host

View From Atop Of Indianhead Ski Resort

One Lone Hummer