Day 36

Miles: 88

Mileage from start: 3,160

Not the longest day, but not the shortest. It was another humid one and we spent a bit of time waiting for thunderstorms to pass.

It didn’t take long before we were covered in sand and road grime. Sweat plus sunscreen plus humidity plus rain all work well together to make anything that touches you, stick to you.

We got to Traverse City midmorning and grabbed a package at the post office and ate pasties.

We actually spent a good bit of time today talking with people. One guy rode into Traverse with us. Another lady talked with us under a tent at the Cherry Festival while the rain passed.

We talked to a couple while we chose our hotel and another family who needed to borrow our bike tool to adjust something on their rented bikes.

Once we got to our hotel, we talked to four couples who were curious about our bikes. They watched us hose off and relube the bikes which were as filthy as we were.

My favorite part of the day was watching the air dog competition at the Cherry Festival. The dogs ran off a platform, jumped for a plastic tube with their mouths, then landed in an above-ground pool. They were judged on how far they jumped. Some dogs were going over 20 feet to grab the tube, which was hung above the water at further and further distances as the dogs advanced rounds. It was so fun to watch these dogs. They were having a great time.

The weather should be nice the next few days. And I hope the humidity will calm down, too.