UP Part 3

We had made plans the night before to go to a coffee shop prior to the day's ride.  I'm not a coffee drinker, but I enjoy the company and sometimes coffee shops surprise me with a good selection of loose leaf teas (The Black Cat Coffeehouse in Ashland, WI, for example).   I was feeling a little...off, but didn't think much of it.   We drove over to Houghton and stopped in a little coffee shop that was hiding between two buildings.   It wasn't fancy, but the cashier was friendly and what they did have looked okay.   Unfortunately, by this point my feeling a little off had morphed into nausea and the burgeoning signs of a migraine.   I tried to drink a smoothie of some sort, but probably only made if half way through before giving up.

Back at the hotel, I downed some drugs and prepared to saddle up.  I was feeling alternately hot and freezing as the migraine messed with my temperature regulation.  I had tried to eat some food, but it was sitting uneasily and every movement was making my skull pound.   I was, in a word, in trouble.    As I slowly pumped up my bike tires (trying very hard to keep my heartrate down), I tried to assess if it was going to be possible for me to ride.   I had warned Scott that I might need an assist, but I didn't want to slow Ann and the other riders down.   Still, I had come to ride and the first rest stop was only 15 miles out, so I decided to give it a go.  

The climb out of town was slow and painful, with every bump in the road echoing in my head and the increase of my blood pressure leading to a corresponding increase in the pressure in my skull.  I was nauseated and pretty much ready to give up as soon as we reached the rest stop.   On the way up the hill, we picked up Howie, who had decided to ride in the back with the girls for a while.   He and Ann stayed with me, even as I struggled to maintain any real speed.  (Thanks, guys!)

We passed a sign for the State Park that was our rest stop at about 10 miles out.   However, since we had been told the rest stop was 16 miles, we kept riding.  It turns out that was the rest stop, but we weren't the only ones who missed it.   Scott caught up with us and we had an impromptu pit stop on the side of the road.  I still couldn't eat, but I grabbed a banana in the hopes that I would be able to soon.   Again, I struggled with whether or not to keep going, but I decided to keep going, with reassurances that that rest of the route was flat.   

Outside of a town that I can't remember the name of, we ran into Scott who informed us that a few of the boys had made a stop at a local bar.   Naturally, we decided we would join them, so we rolled in and parked our bikes right under the "Bikers Welcome" sign.   It was a typical small town bar, dark and stale, with a disinterested bartender and locals who were more than a bit curious about the spandex wearing folks that had just invaded.    The others ordered their drinks of choice and I settled in, enjoying the dim surroundings.    Scanning the bar, I happened to see a rack of peanuts for sale and a light bulb went off.   Normally when I have a migraine I end up binging on something really salty.   The peanuts were calling to me, so I went with my gut and grabbed a bag.   I slammed those peanuts down and within a few moments I started to feel...better.  Not perfect, but closer to normal than I had been all day.

In fact, I was feeling so much better that when Ann headed out of town before everyone else, I rode out with her.   This was probably the best stretch of the ride, a lovely quiet, winding road and the simple joy of being out on the bikes in a beautiful day.   Eventually, as was inevitable, we were caught and passed, but it was fun being the leaders while it lasted.   The road took us along the shoreline,where we stopped to see the wave washing against a copper sand beach and then through a small town with a beautiful laminated wood bridge that we stopped to get pictures of.  

The bridge was really quite fantastic in person

Photo by Scott Duffus

Past the little town was the highlight stop of the day, the Jampot Bakery.   This little bakery is run by a monestary and had a fantastic array of jams, breads, and sweets.   Everyone got something, and there was a lot of sharing of huge muffins and cake pieces.   Sadly, by this time my migraine had returned to some degree, so I was not able to stuff myself with the truffles that were calling my name.   Next time, Jampot, next time.

We rode out of Jampot and had a fairly uneventful ride until we reached the rest of the group stopped on the side of the road.   We had reached a crossroads, of a kind, for how to get to our stop for the evening, Copper Harbor.   The planned route went along the Lake Superior shoreline in a winding route, while this new crossroad went straight up the most intimidating climb in the area, Brockway Mountain Drive.   The rest of the group decided to do the climb, Ann and I took the low route.

It was a beautiful route, and one that I wish I had felt better for.   The road took us right along the shoreline, where the waves crashed against huge boulders that littered the water's edge.   It would have been perfect for pictures, but I was tired and in pain and was a point where I really just wanted to get to the hotel and crash.   So, we rode, and before too long we reached Copper Harbor.

Because of taking the easier (though longer in mileage) route, we were among the first to arrive.   We sat down in the grass and just absorbed the sun for a while, before going to check in to our hotel rooms.   Of all the places we had stayed, I think Copper Harbor was the most impressive.   We had a view of the lake from the patio door in our hotel rooms and Brockway loomed over the town from the other side, trees just starting to blush to their autumn shades.

After the others arrived, I managed to talk myself into mountain biking despite feeling not so great.   Copper Harbor has made quite a name for itself with a network of well designed and maintained mountain bike trails that range from beginner to highly technical.   We ended up with six of us who wanted to brave Brockway, with a combination of mountain and cyclocross bikes.   The trail we took was "intermediate", a switchback route down the mountain called "The Flow".    The ride was great, though I encountered some features I wasn't quite sure how to handle.   Unfortunately the ride was not as fun for Kathy on her cyclocross bike, but she gamely stuck with it and everyone made it to the bottom more or less unharmed.  

After everyone cleaned up, we went to a German-themed restaurant that had a menu priced higher than I've probably ever been to.   We were told we had to split into groups of four, which was sort of a bummer, but when there are only two restaurants in town, you do what you gotta do.   I ordered a seafood platter, which was amazing, but also somewhat hilarious as it had crab and lobster which I had never eaten before.   Fortunately, my supper companions were able to tell me how to eat my meal.  We also shared a couple of delicious appetizers and a ridiculously tasty desert.

After we got back to the hotel, I crashed out and did my best to sleep off the remnants of my migraine.