Elroy - Ephraim, WI

I have had a lot of very nice bike trips in the past, but this one was special. The crushed limestone trail from Reedsburg (C35) - Elroy - Sparta was nice and perhaps smoother overall than Ohio paved trails. The Elroy - Sparta trail is the oldest rail to trail bike path in the country and was commissioned in 1967. I passed thru many villages, tunnels and bridges and camped in public camping areas for FREE. A couple of them also had free showers. The total cost for lodging for three days on this trail = $0, so I spent my money on food so I can get fat again. I felt like I needed some more riding but all the state parks further north were booked but I remembered Ephraim (3D2) from last year said they had camping on the airport, so I flew there. Yep, camping was available. Overnight tie downs are $16 so I paid that and made an extra donation to the airport for the hospitality. They made me feel right at home and 3 locals stop by to ask if I needed anything. It doesn't get any better than that. Ephraim is neat and clean, they have free bikes to use, and everything works. Since the winds were gusting to 20, I spent the two days there mostly on the part wooded trails but did venture south to Egg Harbor and had some pie on the way. The flights there and back were mostly broken/overcast but smooth. I passed over Chicago on the way home to Cincy at 12.5K. I believe Wisconsin is the best biking state within 500 miles of Cincy and perhaps the best biking state in the USA. It doesn't get much better than this trip. I broke a mirror, replaced a mirror. Lost a pair of sunglasses, found a pair of sunglasses. It all evens out, just relax and don't rush for anything. Don't let a minor delay bother you. She wanted me to take a picture of her with her dog. Later, I was told a fallen tree across the trail wasn't there 10 minutes ago. The RV airplane makes trips like this possible. You can really reach out to places. Too many photos.