Day 6: Friday

Time in Motion: 5:41:55
Distance: 101.36 mi.
Average: 17.7 mph.
Maximum: 36.20 mph.
Temperature: 90°F
Wind: SE 10

The ride today was quite flat, fast, and uneventful. The steady southeast wind pushed us along at a good pace.

Near Wilton, the rising sun lit up the clouds nicely. I took a few snapshots and continued on my way. Before long, I arrived in Turtle Lake. It was still early morning by the time I arrived. And, as usual, Jesse was already there.

We located our luggage and bummed around the town for a while before unpacking. We visited "Rusty," Turtle Lake's giant metal turtle sculpture . We saw the "racetrack" where there was to be a turtle race later in the day. Apparently, Turtle Lake hosts the International Turtle Racing Championships and is known as the Turtle Race Capital.

Jesse and I decided that we were going to ride on to Garrison and finish the tour a day early. That would give me the entire weekend to lounge at home and recuperate before heading back to work. It was still early in the day, there was a perfect tailwind, it was only another 40 miles, and there was rumors of rain tonight. We estimated it would take another two hours to get to Fort Stevenson, where my truck was parked. Then we would drive back to Turtle Lake, pick up our luggage, and head home.

We ate lunch at a local restaurant, rested for a few minutes, and hopped back on our bikes. As Jesse and I pedaled out of town, the noon siren blew. Soon, Jesse pulled away from me and I lost sight of him over the horizon. But I still wasn't alone. Quite a few other bikers decided to take advantage of the tailwind and continue on. It was almost as if I was still with the tour.

The last twenty miles or so were very hot and tiring. The heat was quite uncomfortable, but we eventually made it back to my truck. Refreshed by the air conditioning in my pickup and some Powerade from the C-store, we headed down the highway to pick up our luggage.

That night while sleeping indoors, a terrible thunderstorm rolled through. I haven't heard for certain, but it looked like it was headed for Turtle Lake. I was happy to be indoors, but sad to be done with the tour.