day 24: la crosse to red wing, minnesota 101 miles

the penultimate day.  the ultimate century.  the last supper.  it's nearly over.

just came back from a farewell dinner with the riders and crew.  instead of the usual buffet affair, tonight we ate together in a private room at a local italian restaurant here in red wing.  after a summation of the tour from the ride leader (including the perfunctory "no, i'm not kidding.  you guys were the best group i've ever had the pleasure of leading.") and our usual evening instructions for the final day's ride tomorrow, we each were given a turn to say a few words.  we told stories and very funny and poignant anecdotes from the past three and a half weeks.  we were all presented with certificates of completion.  we laughed.  we hugged.  and we recognized the special experience we all had just shared.

i'll save the "what i learned along the way" for another day or so.

early morning on wisconsin highway 35 in the shadows of the bluffs

bluffs on the minnesota side at the river bend by bay city, 15 miles before today's finish

today's ride, with the exception of a nasty two-mile climb starting at mile 87 and an equally daunting headwind that popped up for the last five miles, was a relatively easy century.  mostly flat as we rode along the mississippi in and out of a dozen small towns, none with a population greater than 1000.  i actually rode through one town, fountain city, that i'd ridden through some 13 years ago during the twin cities to chicago aids ride.  was amazed as we came upon the town that i remembered it from the very brief time i was there so many years ago.

sondra "assisting" a turtle across the road.  hope she got the correct direction.

it was another beautiful day to see the bluffs along both sides of the river.  and, as has been the case ever since illinois, the local fauna has changed from armadillo road kill to live turtles.  and, thank goodness, most of them have been able to make it across the road without incident (and sometimes with our help -- hoping, of course, that we've placed them on the side of the road that they intended to cross).

a bald eagle in hiding in the branches.  wish i had telephoto on my smartphone.

we've also had a fair share of bird experiences.  i don't think i mentioned the flock of vultures that followed us out of st. louis the morning we were on the levee for many miles.  i thought it was fascinating as they stayed with us for at least five of those miles.  in the past few days, we've had several run-in's with local flocks of red-winged blackbirds.  according to those in the know, it's currently their nesting season.  as we ride near a nesting site, a sentinel blackbird will seemingly jump out of the brush along the roadside and signal to some of the males in the flock who then proceed to attack us.  seriously, there have been at least five incidents of these birds swooping down and hitting the helmets of some of the riders.  it's probably very serious to them, but it's both a bit funny and scary to the riders who see these birds coming at them in dive bomber formation.  also, as this particular area of wisconsin is raptor territory, we have been watching out for eagles.  once in a great while, we actually catch sight of one.

tomorrow's the big day.  starting to sort out how i'll get my bike back to the east coast and how i'll feel when this is all over.  for now, i'll settle for trying to get some sleep.