Day 8: Backroads Until You Die

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Mayforum 172011
 

Day 8 Rochester to Wisconsin DellsAll states are the same size. You open the map and there it is, every state fits the page. This is misleading. As it so happens, Wisconsin is a really big state.

It looks good on paper to wind your way winsomely across the wigglies. But damn, it takes a long time to get just a measly half-inch across the page. So … this “one day” trip from Rochester to La Porte will take two good days of riding.

Every stranger has a story to share. If they walk up and start a conversation with Spaceman Sam by his Starship Enterprise then there is something they really want to say. Look, I’m sure I don’t look very inviting in full riding gear and body armor. If someone says ‘hi’ then I really want to hear their story!

Stranger 1: Half drunk old dude with two teenage kids at the cold lonely Cody Wyoming KOA.

Story 1: He used to take his wife 2-up on an old Harley. She liked it but the tiny seat was uncomfortable. The moment she saw an old 83 Gold Wing, they simply had to buy it. He restored it and they love going for rides together. He’s 50-something and she’s 78.

Stranger 2: Sweet young thang waitress at the Viking Family Restaurant in Reedsport Wisconsin. She might weigh 120 pounds if she’s carrying seventeen pounds of food.

Story 2: She had a nice old custom Harley knucklehead, but it just didn’t have enough power to do wheelies with the boys. So she sold it and got a Suzuki. Later traded that for another bike. But had to sell that when she had kids. Now she wonders if you can carry children in a sidecar…

This is God’s country. And God’s neglected cattle. And God’s electric fence with God’s geodetic survey marker.

God's country   God's electric fence   God's sorry-looking cattle   God's geodetic survey marker

I love yardbirds and it’s rare to see them. So what a delightful find to discover a good collection!

IMG_3580   IMG_3581   IMG_3582   IMG_3582-2

What a contrast in cultures. I ride over the Mississippi River at La Crosse and am soon on the backroads of Wisconsin. I encounter several Amish people as I ride through this lush hilly country. IMG_3596 IMG_3597This feels very disconcerting to ride the best high-performance and comfortable motorcycle that technology has to offer, when passing a horse and buggy. Indeed, the Amish people are only using the reflective orange technology under protest.

I continue riding along for a very long time. The roads are nice and scenic when I’m off the interstate but it’s not exactly high-speed riding. My map shows me a KOA kampground in Wisconsin Dells and it looks nice enough.

Wisconsin Dells KOA Wisconsin Dells KOA Train

I wonder what genius decided to build a campground along a busy rail line. Funny, it wasn’t mentioned on the KOA web page.

 Posted by at 11:49 pm

Things I Never Knew About Midwest Farming

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Mayfeed 172011
 
  1. Continental Divide in Barry, Minnesota. My host farmer stopped the car at the end of his driveway. “See that field?” he says, pointing to the right. “It drains toward the right into the Red River of the North, backs up and overflows in Fargo, eventually ending up in Lake Winnipeg. Now see that field?” and he points to the left. “It drains southward, ending up in the Gulf of Mexico. As I see it, the north-south Continental Divide is in the middle of this road between us.”
  2. A new John Deere 9670 combine costs about $300K. Plus a header for the crop of your choice, about $90K each.
  3. A new John Deere crawler tractor costs about $200K. Plus whatever you want to pull behind it. However, it does include such farming necessities as satellite radio entertainment systems.
  4. Modern tractor navigation systems can let you drive once around the field’s border; then in fills in entire area automatically with perfectly straight rows. For a price. (Hillary, wasn’t this your summer Rose-Hulman project for a bedroom floor-cleaning system at Catapult?)
  5. John Deere 9670 has a 300 bushel bulk tank. It can unload on the move while still harvesting in three minutes.
  6. In the winter, be sure to park your classic 67 Pontiac next to a big Catepillar tractor. Then, when the barn roof is crushed by snow, it won’t trash the car as badly.
  7. Five years ago, farmland was $1300 an acre @ 12% interest. Today, farmland is $5000 an acre at 6% interest.
  8. This farmer will plant almost 1,000 acres of farmland in corn and soybean in three days. In the fall, he will harvest everything in about three days. His “crew” is himself and his two college-age boys.
  9. The rest of the year is full of other stuff, mostly paperwork and insurance and permits and machine maintenance. He runs a couple other businesses as well: a used car sales, and manufacturing a rock-picker machine.
 Posted by at 8:10 am