DALMAC day 3 is done, and we’re more than halfway to the bridge! Today at 54 miles was much shorter than the previous two 75 mile days, but the hills were a force to be reckoned with. I logged 1800 ft of ascent, and most of it was during the second half of the ride. I was cruising this morning only to run out of steam mid-day in the hills. I took some breaks and got back on track, reaching Kalkaska around 3pm.
This afternoon is the first time I’ve felt sore at the end of the day on this tour. Trying to do some stretches and feel better by tomorrow morning. While Thursday (day 2) was the longest day with respect to number of miles, tomorrow is almost as far and over 2400 ft of ascent, so I suspect it will be the toughest day of the week. It’s also going to be the most beautiful day though while we ride along Torch Lake, so I’m looking forward to it!
As always, more comments in the photos…
These fans in the gym last night were amazing, and put to good use. After the really wet day yesterday, I managed to dry my shoes and a pair of shorts in time to start today.I woke up at 5:15am and noticed that rain was pretty close. Instead of going back to sleep I decided to get up and break camp. I got all my gear put away by 7, and it was good thing I did because a thunderstorm popped up around 7:45. I took a short nap in the school while it was raining and left at 8:45 to get going for the day.Sunrise had some amazing colors before the storm.Leaving late, the rain had stopped. Just had to deal with the wet roads. It was really nice being back in shorts and a short sleeved shirt though.About 20 miles in I came across a farm with some goats.The second rest stop had these ginormous cookies. This peanut butter one was delicious.The hills during the middle of the day were both a blessing and a curse. The bigger ones like this one were really fun to fly down at 30+ mph (my top speed today was 36 mph). The drawback was the uphills were just as steep. One ascent was a 10% grade, and it was a killer.The purple in this field was really nice.This is the famous pie stop on the tour. It was about 45 miles in and a great reward after most of the hills were done.I had a slice of apple pie and a soda. Love being able to eat like this without worrying about gaining weight! ?The last 5 miles into Kalkaska was on highway 131. We had a 6-7 foot bike lane, so there was a ton of space, but on the Friday of Labor Day weekend, half the cars in Michigan are driving up this road to go camping/boating.Hello Kalkaska!From Lansing to Mackinaw City, and more than halfway there. Kind of crazy to think about it. These next two days are supposed to have perfect weather and riding through some of the prettiest areas of the state. It should be amazing…
