in the middle

hibiscus punch.

the trip to the middle west already feels like it happened a lifetime ago. that's the thing about travel. sometimes you can come home and ease back into "real" life. other times you just have to dive right in. the latter seems to have happened this time around. vacation, though, was fantastic. the weather gods [mostly] smiled upon us and we had [mostly] cool, [mostly] sunny weather. more on the cool side than on the sunny side, though. we spent a couple of mornings in sweatshirts, and one evening even headed in from the dock because it was getting almost uncomfortably chilly. i'll take that in july, any time.

after landing in minneapolis and collecting bags and bikes, we hopped in our rented subaru forester (which got better gas mileage and had more punch than my outback) and started out on a short tour of the city. we drove past the first house where my parents lived and learned just why they moved out - airplanes flying so low overhead you can wave to people in the windows. we followed minnehaha parkway's curves (a rare road luxury in the middle west) until we hit lake harriet, and gawked at the huge homes lining the streets around the lake. we made it to lake calhoun and by then our minds and stomachs were in serious need of sustinence. i'd found a listing for cafe barbette and it sounded like something both rotten and i would enjoy - he the nice beer list, me the plethora of dishes including eggs. and of course, with the tour taking place it was only fitting to hit a french-ish bistro for eats. it didn't disappoint. i nursed a hibiscus punch - quite possibly the most tasty drink i've had in recent memory, brewed from hibiscus flowers and having a faint taste of chai. rotten went with a mn-raised lamb burger and i stuck to my guns with a buckwheat crepe and scrambled eggs with fresh herbs, brie, and homemade garlic sausage. ridiculous. i wish i could go have that same meal again today. for dessert we had french fries. and with that, obviously, it was time to move on.

rotten enjoys a snack.

we did our part to boost the local economy and shopped around a bit before heading further north to the walker art museum, which we didn't do a good job of fully enjoying because the sun had come through the clouds by then and we were just about melting in the sun. it was time to get out of town. with a quick stop to have a coffee and catch up with an aunt and uncle, we were on the road to the lake. i hoped we'd make it before sunset, and as we walked onto the dock the sun was just setting over the trees to the west side of the lake. perfect timing. let the real vacationing begin.

five loons came out to watch the sunset with us on thursday night.

a delicious serving of spotted cow.

on friday we drove two hours north to duluth for a ride along the north shore of lake superior. the week's training schedule called for a 50-miler on sunday, but the weather looked like it was going to be best on friday. the north shore is one of my most favorite places in the world, so the long ride came a couple days earlier in the rotation than usual but had better views than most rides i've done so far this summer. i did, however, learn that i really do still, deep down, love the rolling hills of southeastern pa, even though i have to ride them at a snail's pace (on a good day). the flat did get boring and the only real excitement was when we turned around and the wind that had been across us on the way out came around, too, right in our faces the whole ride back to our parking spot at brighton beach. the lake does a great job of keeping things mainly cool and even though we rode in the middle of the day it wasn't unbearable as far as the heat goes, and at the end of the ride we had the world's largest cold water bath awaiting to help purge the lactic acid from our legs. the combination of a dip in the lake and then warming on the huge rocks was heavenly. add some iced coffee and chai and a molasses cookie and it was a stellar afternoon.

rotten leads the way along old hwy 61.

refreshing-ish. really freaking cold, for sure.

friday night's sunset just got better...

and better...

and better.

saturday brought clouds and drizzle, and i have to admit, lots of laziness - er, relaxation - on our parts. we did go out in the canoe for a little paddle around the islands, where we finally saw the bald eagles that i had been looking for since we arrived. one of the huge birds was perched in a tree above our heads as we paddled around the far side of the big island. we stopped and floated below him, watching him watch us, until he finally got too nervous and took off for another perch. he flew close enough for us to hear the wind passing over his huge wings. i could see these birds every day and be amazed every time.

later in the day we went to town to check out "lucky days", the annual summer event-to-see in the bustling town of luck, wisconsin. fortunately for us, we arrived just as the parade was getting underway - free candy! unfortunately for us, the parade was called off just ten minutes later due to a thunderstorm rumbling in. we rode out the first raindrops under a store awning, eating a very unneccessary helping of very delicious mini donuts before going back to the car and driving through a deluge to the cabin. time to do some more reading. or card playing. or crosswords. you get the picture. relaxing.

i don't think these help fight cancer, but when in rome...

sunday evening at the lake.

sunday brought some more rain despite having cleared up on saturday night. we busied ourselves with a puzzle, completing a picasso in record time. finally the sun came out and things warmed up and dried out. some sitting in the backyard was in order before a bike ride and canoe trip out to the island to do some swimming.

you can see how tough life is while at the lake.

coming home to reality is kind of like ripping a very big band-aid off. you have to do it, it hurts like crazy, you spend some time scrubbing the sticky stuff off your arm, but then you're back at it again.

i can't wait for another vacation.