Getting home was a great change of pace. It was wonderful to see Lisa Marie and the kids after being away for such a long time. I loved putting on some different clothes, sleeping in my own bed, and just relaxing in the familiar place of my own home. It was also fun to surprise some friends and neighbors who were unaware that I was flying home for the wedding. Lisa and I spent some time wine tasting and just relaxing together. After a fabulous time at the wedding, family barbecue, fireworks, and a day on the lake, It was time to pack up and get back on the road.
With all the traffic predicted from the holiday weekend Lisa and I took the northern route over the Mackinac Bridge and through Michigan’s Upper Peninsula. Michigan’s Upper Peninsula is just beautiful. It was such an enjoyable ride looking at the water and the trees. We knew we had a long day ahead of us because we wanted to get back to Colorado within two days. Traveling through Wisconsin Minnesota and Iowa was just as nice. I drive the first night and it just outside of Omaha Nebraska. After a quick bite to eat we fell into bed. Getting a little bit of a late start the next morning we headed off to finish the drive back to Colorado. At one point I pulled off the interstate to show Lisa Marie the small little alternate roads that I was traveling and a couple the small towns that I biked through. It’s amazing how many miles you can cover in a car. In less than a day we traveled more miles than it took me in two weeks on the bicycle. We stopped by to see my cousin again in Nebraska and had a fabulous visit. Unfortunately we couldn’t stay longer because I needed to get to Colorado to pick up my bike. My other two cousins who graciously held on to my bike and gear were packing up their house to move back to the East Coast the following day. Taking the time to acclimate Lisa Marie to what my writing was like and spending time with my cousins it was a good thing we drove extra long the day before. Arriving in the early evening in Colorado we sat for a final time with my cousins and had a quick bite to eat. We all had so much to do for our own unique journeys so we had to say goodbye and say we’ll meet again. Tomorrow I’ll plan a shorter day to Reacclimate to the bike and prepare for the hills ahead.
