RAGBRAI 2015

Another Year of RAGBRAI down! This year was more of a challenge than I originally thought. This year was a total of almost 500 miles, excluding the two loops. There was a lot more climb this year than last year, which was somewhat expected.

We packed the truck on Friday evening and it headed off to Sioux City. We hopped on the Trailways bus and departed around 6:30 on Saturday, stopping at the Iowa Machine Shed for breakfast. Arriving in Sioux City, we found the park in which we were to camp that night. All of our gear was already unloaded from the truck so we could start setting up camp. I decided to go with my new shelter setup which I was rather impressed with. I left it in porch mode for the night which allowed for a nice breeze to sweep through. The weather was fairly hot when we set up camp, so the porch mode worked well for shade. After setting up camp, we went to the expo where we acquired a few free things. Near the expo was a Hard Rock casino, so we decided to eat at the restaurant there, which was quite good. Huey Lewis and the News played this night, but I decided to turn in early to be well rested for the ride. The night stayed pretty warm, so the fan got some use.

The first day Was from Sioux City to Storm Lake, a total of 76.5 miles. We rode through Leeds, Kingsley, Washta, Quimby, and Hanover, ending in Storm Lake. It was almost 4,000 feet of climb this day, however, was a gradual climb which made it not so bad. We did have a couple good hills. I only had 150 miles in before RAGBRAI so it took a while to "find my legs". I have to say that this was probably the hardest day. The first day was somewhat hot, with occasional cloud cover. Breakfast and Lunch we got from local vendors. This year, we decided to try to support local organisations and churches, so ate mostly at these places. We did make an exception: Beekman's homemade ice cream. When we arrived at Storm Lake, we found our camp. We set up camp on a grassy stretch between the downtown sidewalk and the lake. Since we were on the lake, setting up camp was a challenge because of the wind. We were under some trees so we had plenty of shade. For dinner, we went to a local place for pasta. As we talked about showers, we figured that we would save money by taking a bath in the lake. Next to our camp was a small sand bank and a dip in the lake felt good after a hot day. Three of us jumped in with our clothes on to wash them as well and had a nice bath and cool-down. We used the extra paracord from my ridgeline I put up under my tarp to make a clothesline. For the rest of the week, we made a clothesline using my ridgeline. During the night, we had a some rain so I closed in the tarp. I was quite impressed with how well it held up to the wind and rain. In fact, the whole ground under my tarp was dry.

Day two started out a little cool. We had some dew on the tents which made it a pain to roll up my tarp. We rode through Newell, Fonda, Manson, and Clare before arriving at our overnight town Fort Dodge. This day's ride was 68.7 miles with 1300 feet of climb. This was a somewhat easy day. Monday was also the gravel loop day through Pomeroy. This year was the first where they had an extra loop of gravel road. Needless to say, with my road bike, I was not about to do this loop. Camp was at a school and it was probably one of the hotter days when we set up camp. The shade certainly felt good. Since it was Monday night, we had a our group get-together. This is where our club sits in a circle, passes around snacks, and introduces each other. We showered and ate at the school that night. We used my ridgline and strung it to the top of my buddy's tent to make a clothesline. I had to use my fan this night as well because the heat didn't really let up. In fact, I didn't even get my sleeping bag out.

Day three was to Eldora. Eldora was the only overnight town this year that I had never been to before. We had a long day of 72.9 miles through Duncombe, Webster City, Boondock, Williams, Alden, and Buckeyes. There was also the Karras loop through Radcliffe. I was satisfied with having rode it last year so I skipped it this year. I'm glad I did because this day felt long enough. We had a little bit a hang up finding our campsite which was in an industrial park area near a ball diamond. This day was hot as well setting up. As soon as I got in, I sat in the back of the truck and enjoyed a couple cans of Root Beer (which became a habit after the long rides). I found that most evenings, the wind came from the perfect direction that I could set up my tarp against the sun for optimum shade and the breeze would blow right into the porch or one of the ends. We spent a lot of time under the porch this night.

The fourth day was the shortest with 58.4 miles through Steamboat Rock, Cleves, Ackley, Austinville, Aplington, Parksburg, New Hartford, and ending in Cedar Falls. Some of the cities were quite small, especially Cleves. We rode through it without even realizing. We actually rode through some towns with only a quick stop to rest our legs. We napped each day to this point in the trip, but spent a little longer time napping on this day. Some of the towns were themed such as a barnyard theme and pirate theme. Along the way, we stopped at a church to refill our water and they had a Frozen theme where we got free cookies and bananas. We seemed to gotten a lot of free bananas, snacks, water, and popsicles. Camp was at a UNI campground. 

Our 70.9 ride to Hiawatha on day five was probably the easiest. Along the way, we went through Hudson, LePorte City, Mount Auburn, Vinton, Shellsburg, and Pallo. We had a tailwind most of the ride which made it easier. However, coming into Hiawatha was quite hilly. We were ready to be in. Our camp was in the main campground (an old trailer park). After dinner at Dairy Queen, I got my badly needed shoulder massage. Our campsite happened to have some good trees so I slept in a hammock that night. 

The ride to Coralville was 65.6 miles and seemed not too bad of ride. It actually seemed to be one of the easiest rides. We rode through Whittier, Springville, Mount Vernon, Lisbon, Sutliff Cider, Solon, over the Coralville Dam, and into Coralville. Mount Vernon was, I thought, the coolest town we rode through. It just had a cool atmosphere with lots of entertainment and things to do. We even saw bagpipers. Actually, there was quite a few bagpipers on this trip. I also stopped in Solon as well for a short break. After eating lunch, it started to rain so I decided to go in one of the churches for pie and a nap until the storm was over. After the storm, we still had a headwind, but I continued on. It wasn't too bad of a ride until we reached the Coralville Dam. That was the hilliest part of day and quite a few people ended up walking the hills. As I came into Coralville, I easily found our camp which was near an athletic facility where we took showers. Cheap Trick was playing this night but I decided to head to bed early instead to be well rested for the next day. It was supposed to rain overnight so I camped in my bivy under the truck.

The last day seemed to have the worst hills as we rode into Davenport. The last ride was 68.5 miles through Iowa City, West Liberty, Atalissa, Moscow, Wilton, Durant, and Walcott. We had planned to reach the truck by 2:30, so we tried to rush to get there, though, we did make some stops. We made a last stop at Beekman's and in Wilton. We took a nap almost every day but tried not to take one on the last day. It wasn't too hard to find the truck where we cooled down before loading our bikes and baggage.

It was a fun trip and I continue to learn as I go. My biggest focus on this trip was my shelter and ways to set it up. I would say it was a success. I pretty well mastered the shelter system of which I will do a tutorial on. This was also my first RAGBRAI on an upright bike and learned the differences between upright and recumbent on long rides (i.e. needing Butt Glide). I hope to ride next year with the goal of self-containing.

Day hike "get away"

I often write posts on packing techniques, camping, and others related to backpacking. However, a majority of people in my area aren't backpackers, but enjoy simple day hikes to get away. I have posted pictures of some of my day hikes, but never really posted on how take one of these trips. 

The joy of a day hike is the lack of planning. You can plan ahead where you're going to go, what you will take, and maybe even construct an itinerary. Or you may decide at the last minute "it's nice out, let's go for a hike". I often store all my stuff in my backpacking pack and if I decide to go for a day hike, I just pull out what I need, throw it in a day pack, and take off. But regardless if it's an hour long hike and all-day hike, make sure some knows where you're going in case of emergency. 

There's no set list of things to take with you. You can simply just take a water bottle or bladder and be happy with that. You may decide to toss in some snacks, maybe some navigation tools. I like to take my hammock so when it's time for a rest or if I find a beautiful spot, I can put it up quickly and just hang out (no pun intended :) ). I like to take a small meal and some snacks. If I bring my hammock, I'll often bring a book so I can read when hanging. And as always, if I'm by myself, I'll bring my iPod to listen to on the hike. If you're hiking with someone, leave it at home. The best part of hiking is the time you can spend with a person. If you decide to take your phone, turn it off! Nothing irritates me more than taking a hike and someone is texting. Smart phones are the biggest distraction and takes the point out of hiking. 

If you are taking some gear along, get a decent backpack. You can use a "school" backpack, but I recommend something a little better with hip straps. The hip straps help to keep all the weight off your shoulders. Osprey, Kelty, Camelback, Black Diamond, and Teton make some great day packs. But if you want to minimize how much you buy for day hike, at least get some good shoes. You want some sturdy hiking shoes. If you don't, you won't enjoy the hike. Some good brands are GTX, Columbia, and Patagonia. I'll do a future post on choosing footwear. You want make sure to wear something comfortable and appropriate to the weather. 

There are many parks out there for hiking. Since this is an Iowa blog by nature, I'll give you some good parks in Iowa to hike at: Yellow River State Forrest, Geode Stare Park, Shimmek State Forrest, Pikes Peak State Park, Wilson Lake, Rodeo Park Fort Madison, Nelson Park, Backbone State Park, Mines of Spain Recreation, Eagle Point Park, Maquoketa State Park, Pictured Rock, Carmack Park, Rathbun, Pleasant Creek, Stars Cave, and Volga River to name a few. 

If you live close by a state or national park. You have an advantage! Start researching your area and see what's available. You may only have a park with a 5 mile trail. Great! If you hurry through, it won't take long to reach the end. However, shorter trails allow you to slow down and simply enjoy the hike without worrying about time. It's nice if you have multiple parks in your area so it doesn't become monotonous. You can chose which park to hike at based on the length and difficulty you're feeling. 

Many parks have picnic areas. It's nice when you can hike for an hour, and stop at a picnic area to eat and enjoy the scenery. Say you're hiking at Geoge. You can park in the parking lot, hike the trails, then come back and eat at a picnic spot. This kind of day hiking is ideal for taking young kids and for family hikes. Many of these places also have fishing opportunities. 

In addition to fishing, you can do many things while hiking; it doesn't have to just be walking the trail. Some people like to bring binoculars and bird watch. If you have kids, you can give them scavenger hunts to find certain leaves, bark, etc. Some people like to bring outdoor guides and identify different plants and trees. If it's the right season, mushroom hunting is popular. Some trails are also set up for biking. When I was younger, I used to practice survival skills such as making shelters, constructing snares, etc. This is a great idea for kids. Some of these places have caves that you can explore. I've always had a thing for confined space and exploring caves. 

The biggest thing you should do in hikes is bring a camera. I take hundreds of pictures while I'm out on the trail. It's fun to look back on old pictures and have the memories of those trips. I recommend keeping a journal as well. I do this on all trips. Pictures are great for reliving memories, but puting a journal in your own words really captures the moment. I can go back 5 years in my journal and remember exactly what I was feeling and every detail of the event. It really is worth while. 

Day hikes can be just as rewarding, if not more, as backpacking. So many opportunities to get out there and enjoy nature and the company of who you're hiking with. Please comment any suggestions you would also have for day hikes. If you would like to inquire about places in your area to hike at, please comment or send us a message via Facebook.