August 17 & 18, 2024. Algonac to Farmington Hills, MIchigan
We awoke to drizzle but the rain had pretty much stopped when we left at 7:00 a.m. Although our destination was southwest of us, our biking app and advice from locals had recommended that we travel north to pick up a series of rail trails and other paths to take us through the southeastern Michigan metro area. This we decided to do even though it added about 14 miles to a day which was already on the long side. Some of the approximately 15 plus miles we took to get to the rail trail were less than ideal, even on a Saturday morning. However once on the paved Macomb Orchard Trail, it was very nice riding and we had a fun time spinning along. The beginning of the trail and the trail shelters had a barn theme and there was even a barn “covered bridge” to go through as we crossed over a highway!
Near Rochester, the rail trail changed names to the Clinton River Trail. Thanks to the local information, we knew that the very first part of the trail had been washed out by river flooding, and so were prepared for the detour.
On a road section before the next trail, we crossed Woodward Avenue south of Pontiac. By the corner, there were people sitting in lawn chairs under a canopy. After crossing the street, we asked a guy who crossed with us what was going on. There was some kind of old car show going on at the raceway located by that corner, and people who didn’t want to pay had set up spots along Woodward Ave to watch the cars as they drove by. Sure enough, we could see a number of people sitting along the avenue. As he was telling us this, he pointed out several old cars driving by. Later we learned there was some sort of “cruise Woodward Avenue” event that was also happening, so unsure if the cars going by were part of that as well. Seeing the people lined up along Woodward Ave reminded us of the times years ago when we had done the Turkey Trot 5K in downtown Detroit on Thanksgiving morning. Part of the course was on Woodward, and people were already sitting all along the street, having claimed their spots for the Thanksgiving Parade later in the day.
By the weather report and by the clouds, we were worried about rain and sure enough, a light rain began. Just as we were passing though the huge campus for UWM, and trying to figure out what this place was (United Wholesale Mortgage), it began to rain much harder. Jim suddenly stopped and yelled something, but Kay in the lead went on a short distance farther until she was under an enclosed walkway across the road. She then headed across the grass to a supporting pillar that blocked the wind. Jim had stopped out in the rain because the front pannier rack broke again, worse than it had before. After getting out of the rain and evaluating it, it wasn't patchable.
Jim removing the broken rack. Note the previous repair with twigs and hose clamps!
So he had to take the pannier from that side and strap it onto the back of the bike, then limp along with a pannier on one side of the front wheel but not on the other, making riding more challenging with the off-balance front wheel.
We were pleased to arrive about 6:00 p.m. at Kay’s sister and brother-in-law’s house, because it's one of our bigger days at 75 miles. Other relatives were there from out-of-state who had hoped to see us while they were in Michigan so we had that opportunity to visit with them too and enjoy a meal all together.
The next morning we all went to Ward Presbyterian Church, and worshipped with singing and heard a message called “The Horrible Truth About Our World and the Glorious Truth About Our God” from Romans 8.
God is good, our brother-in-law had a front pannier rack that would work for us, so we're all set to keep pedaling on our way. He also had a better idea for Kay’s rear fender than the one fashioned out of pieces of a plastic milk jug—a piece of roof gutter that he had. He and Jim also worked on that and now Kay has a new rear fender.
The question we had been debating was, do we head for Holland and later take public transportation to pick up our car in Peoria, Illinois, or do we bicycle directly to Peoria? Our car was in Peoria because our daughter from Panama used it after our family reunion to visit family and friends and left it at our son’s house as she could easily take public transportation to O’Hare to head back to Panama. This was the final point to make that decision anAs it would determine which direction we went from here. After weighing distances, timing, and schedules, we opted to bicycle to Peoria.
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