Carol:
From Marshalltown, we headed southeast towards Iowa City. We began on state highway 30. While the traffic wasn't as busy as other highways we've been on, the narrow shoulder persuaded us to take a county road when possible. We discovered that eastern Iowa is where all the hills are hidden. However, fueled by Little Debbie snacks and legs that have conquered multiple mountain passes, we made it to Chelsea for lunch and Belle Plains for groceries. The welcome signs to the smaller towns have been really interesting to me, as they say "Welcome" in different languages, including German, Swedish and Czech, to celebrate the town's immigrant origins.
We cruised into Iowa City and scrambled to find a Chipotle. After scarfing down an early dinner (Thanks Bill B!), we started on the 15 miles to the evening's campground. The first warning sign was when Colin told me it'd be 10 miles of gravel road to the site. Having defeated Old Stage Coach Road, I was ready to show the road what I was made of. However, the need to prove myself greatly diminished after nearly spinning out at mile 2. At mile 3, the real fun began when Colin's front rack snapped. Colin cleverly fashioned a backpack using his left front pannier and rope and soldiered on. However, the remaining gravel road was unappealing to say the least. Using directions from a P&G security guard, we rerouted through 2 other towns before getting to our campground on paved roads. Needless to say, we earned our icecream for the day. Now if only the campground weren't so buggy.
111 miles
2170 total miles.
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