Council Bluff, Iowa

Council Bluff, Iowa

For those of you who think that we are whimps, we cycled 88 miles today. Yes, it was a lot of miles but we feel fine. No, we still have not camped, so maybe we are a little whimpy. We planned a layover day so we can rest, make repairs to our bikes, and enjoy the sites.

Our morning in Tarkio started out with breakfast at a framers’ café. We socialized and HP learned all about American farm size and farming methods. Joe and Jeff wondered if he planned to purchase a few acres and give up biking. When it was time to leave, the waitress told us that one of the farmers paid for our breakfast before he left. Wow, what a wonderful start to a great day.

Leaving Tarkio we experienced rollers and cool weather. Soon the terrain flattened out and the weather got warmer. When we got to Westboro we were ready for our second coffee of the day. Despite the guide book saying that the town had no café, Jeff asked a local and we were directed to KJ’s Café. The café is in a building that was built as a bank, later used as the town’s post office, and is now the town’s only café. The bank vault is still there and serves as a pantry. The owner and operator, Karla, told us that the door still locks and provides the most secure panty in the county. She served us good coffee and great pie. Yes, Joe and Jeff both had 2 slices but HP had only one. Joe was so enamored by the café that he took lots of pictures. One of the pictures is of the bicycling motif in the bath room.

For much of the day we cycled on the Wabash Trail. The rail line dates back to 1878 when it was part of the Council Bluffs and St. Louis Railroad. It later became the Wabash Railroad. The right-a-way was purchased for a rail trail in 1989. The trail surface varied. When the trail was soft we went slowly and when it was packed we went fast. On the trail we had 1 percent grades which were much gentler than the rollers on the roads. HP was the social one today and talked to a man picking mushrooms. He carried a golf club that he swung to chase the snakes away. HP also talked to a trail volunteer who was mowing a section that we passed through. He told HP that much of the trial maintenance is done by volunteers. There are 75 bridges along the trail and they are in constant need of repairs. Last year the trail had extensive flood damage which took lots of work to get it back into shape. We were surprised with the minimal usage of the trail. During our time on the trail we saw just a few cyclists and walkers.

Our layover day was full of relaxation. HP spent his day returning his 6th I pod at Wal-Mart. His problem was not the I-pod but rather its charger. Mid-west Wal-Mart stores now have his photo posted as a habitual returner. Joe and Jeff left early to go to the bike shop and were there when it opened at 10 a.m. Jeff's bike took only minutes to repair but Joe's took hours. Steve Batten, the owner of the True Wheel Bicycle Co, took charge of Joe's bike and as soon as one problem was fixed another was revealed. It was taking so long that they sent us to a nearby café for lunch. Joe was thrilled with Steve’s diagnostic and repair skills. By 2 p.m. Joe’s bike was running like new and he was looking to mortgage his home (sorry Nancy). When they finally got out of the bike shop it started to rain so they gave up seeing the tourists’ sites.



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