Day 13: Sunday, 05/20/18, Cape Girardeau to St Genevieve, MO

Map of today's ride:



Distance of Today's Ride: 70.9 miles

Trip Total Distance: 902.9 miles

Elevation Gain:  2972 feet

Riding Time:  5:01 hrs:mins

Even though the roads in Missouri are smooth for bicycling, we concluded today that Missouri is a very difficult State for bicycling. This is due to all the hills and their steep grades. You come down one hill at high speed thinking you will coast half way up the next hill without pedaling, but instead, the hills are so steep you barely begin the climb and the bike quits rolling. The days become very tiring.

The weather continues to be almost ideal for bicycling. The temperatures at the start of our days have been in the high 70's and usually the highs are in the upper 80's. Overall, the winds have been very friendly, with no high wind days and any headwinds have been minor.  Rain has only impacted our travel once.  The forecast has called for afternoon thunderstorms this week, so each day we have left prepared for rain - should it arrive.

Today we crossed the half way point of the AbB ride to Minneapolis. In fact, tomorrow we arrive in St. Louis for our second day off on Tuesday. The trip is passing very quickly.

Our first SAG stop today was in front of the Hemman Winery in the quaint town of Brazeau, Missouri.  The winery makes its home in a former general store dating back approximately 150 years.  Sadly the winery was closed when we stopped.

This is a representation of some of the roads we traveled today.  The landscape was lush and green.  This doesn't represent the majority of the day but was a welcome distraction from the big hills!

We aren't sure if this is a house, apartment or store front but the unique objects and plants out front captured our interest.

This is an example of the muddy rivers we have encountered over the last few days.  Tonight we learned this is a result of excessive rain fall and soil runoff.  According to the locals, the  rivers are usually clear.

We reached the 1/2 way point today!!  When this picture was taken, the sky had dimmed and it looked like the rain was about to open up.  Off in the distance, where we were headed, we saw blue skies so we didn't stay long in hopes of avoiding a down pour.

This sign is at the entrance to every motel.  It provides the key details upon arrival each afternoon.  If you are in need of mechanical assistance, you can visit with Michael at 4:30PM. Each evening around 5:30PM we review the day and discuss the riding route for tomorrow.  The dinner location is also usually referenced.