Matt and I packed up our stealth camp with the decision to ride to the corner store for water and coffee. We were getting low on water and cycling back on the sand trap forest road without it would make it more challenging. At this point our caffeine intake was zero for the morning. We walked our loaded touring bikes for a bit and gave it our best effort to keep our bikes upright. We had success!!

At times, the hardest packed dirt was in the center of the road. Sand traps and washboard on both sides. At one point I found myself climbing a hill in the center of the dirt road and glanced in my mirror to see two cars on each side of me coming in hot. Startled the Shasta out me. I managed to pedal to the side of the road and keep going without dumping my bike into the sand. Matt watched from a far distance with no way to warn me.  When we arrived at the corner store, we recounted the near misses along the way.

Both of us hot and needing a cold coffee and water. The store was limited on their supply of things we desired, so we shared a can of Java Monster and continued onto US Bike Route 35 into Manistee. We had a minor tailwind and rolled into town late morning. Parched and in need of more coffee and a bite to eat, we rolled over to Goody’s Juice and Java. Their iced coffee was great! Just what we needed. I need to keep in mind that most people are portion conscientious. While others are watching the calorie intake and portion sizes, Matt and I require are a bit the opposite when resupplying our bodies with energy to move these bikes on down the road. So when our breakfast wraps came out we both knew it was sadly not enough. We finished up our iced coffees and made our way across the street to Taco ’bout It.

https://www.tacoboutitmanistee.com/

While we were finishing up lunch and fielding questions about our tour, the clouds were rolling in. The weather soon changed to dark gloomy rain clouds. Matt decided we needed a night out of the elements and booked a room at the Super 8 without any arguments from me. I needed a shower, laundry, clean sheets, a good bed, a long nap and some snuggles. We rolled over to the Super 8 and got in just before the sky broke loose.

The next day, we made a quick stop at the local Diner 31 for breakfast before we got on the road. Small diner, good coffee, very busy with good portions and good food. We both had the Diner 31 Big Breakfast. It was very filling which fuels me. Matt on the other hand goes into let’s go back bed mode. He pressed forward in the right direction. We had a great tailwind today and needed to get a move on!

Our route today was Highway 31. Most satellite images showed a great shoulder. With the wind at our backs we sped along at a great clip! Cloudy skies and high humidity made us feel like we were in Key West. Our shirts were never dry. Drenched in sweat we were loving the tailwinds! Just prior to the big hill outside of Beulah, a cyclist stopped his car to warn us of the big climb out of the town. It loomed in the distance. He gave us great directions to get around the hill. We took his advice and made the turn. He also mentioned a few campgrounds along the river. I still had energy to go the last leg into Traverse City.. Matt suggested we stop and camp at the Platte River State Campground for the night. It was close by and we were both done being drenched in sweat.

I picked the first available campsite that would accommodate our hammocks and be somewhat close to the pit toilets. Next time I will do my due diligence and get a more secluded site with less traffic. We set up camp then walked down the trail to the water for a swim.

It was just beautiful! Brisk clear water awaited us and the salmon. They hadn’t come upstream yet. Getting close, but soon. We enjoyed the refreshing brisk water and rinsed off the sweat from the day. Finally some time to unwind and let the muscles cool down. We made our way back to camp and ordered a pizza delivered for dinner.

With our stomachs full and night falling. We made it to our hammocks and called it a night.