An Adventure in Toting Home Fabric on My Bicycle

[emily_in_nc]

I had to look up New Hope, kajero -- I'm not very familiar with Minnesota other than the few places we've been in the western part of the state. I'm afraid we aren't going to get any closer to the Twin Cities than where we are now; we're traveling in our motor home and are sticking to smaller towns. We're heading north from here on Tuesday to ride some of the Paul Bunyan and Heartland trails, then west into North Dakota, and on a pretty tight schedule since we had to go ahead and get reservations for the next two weeks as we were finding most parks booking up fast!

There are so many trails here! I'm afraid we won't be riding any of the ones on your list this time around, so we'll just have to come back. :-)

[kajero]

Well, if you come back be sure to let me know. I will make dinner for you and show you the neat trails. I won't ride with you though. I am just too slow!

There is a trail in Bismarck, North Dakota that borders along a private wildlife area. It was so funny to see a camel next to to the trail. I mean, since when did camels start living in North Dakota???



It is a very short trail but very interesting!

[emily_in_nc]

Well, if you come back be sure to let me know. I will make dinner for you and show you the neat trails. I won't ride with you though. I am just too slow!

There is a trail in Bismarck, North Dakota that borders along a private wildlife area. It was so funny to see a camel next to to the trail. I mean, since when did camels start living in North Dakota???



It is a very short trail but very interesting!

Do you remember the name of the trail? We have two nights scheduled in Bismarck! A camel along the trail would be fun to see.

And thank you for the invitation; that's really nice! I am slow too, but DH is not, so I usually push to keep up with him as best I can. Often I'll fall back and then he'll loop back around and pick me up later. Seriously, on utilitarian rides on my Bike Friday I only average 11.5-13 mph, and just a little higher on my road bike. Of course it depends on terrain, too.

[kajero]

I don't remember the trail, but it is along a river. Maybe that can you find it. We went to visit my daughter while she was a student at U of Mary. This was a little side trip.

[emily_in_nc]

I don't remember the trail, but it is along a river. Maybe that can you find it. We went to visit my daughter while she was a student at U of Mary. This was a little side trip.

Thanks -- we'll be researching cycling opportunities there, and it seems like the campground where we have reservations is on a river, so we might be right there! We'll only have one day to ride, but we'll certainly take advantage of it, weather permitting. :-)

[DonnaS]

If you'd like some trail suggestions in Bismarck, let me know. The two nearest campgrounds are General Sibley in SW Bismarck and Ft. Abraham Lincoln State Park south of Mandan... both are on or close to the Missouri River. Lincoln has some good single-track trails, but both have easy access to the area's MUP system.

Donna S

[emily_in_nc]

If you'd like some trail suggestions in Bismarck, let me know. The two nearest campgrounds are General Sibley in SW Bismarck and Ft. Abraham Lincoln State Park south of Mandan... both are on or close to the Missouri River. Lincoln has some good single-track trails, but both have easy access to the area's MUP system.

Donna S

Thanks, Donna! We have reservations at General Sibley Campground for two nights, so will have one day to ride. I'd be happy for any trail suggestions that we could access from there. We ride on roads too, so long as they aren't terribly full of traffic and bike-unfriendly. We'll get single-track in Teddy Roosevelt NP so don't need to ride that in Bismarck; would prefer paved trails or roads. My DH is really good at doing internet research to find trails and roads we can ride, but if you have any particular suggestions, I'd be happy to take them!

[DonnaS]

Easy to get on the MUP from Sibley... just bike north on Washington Street to Burleigh Avenue, where the trail starts. Two fun options, or you can combine into one ride with a little backtracking.
1. Ride the trail north, hitting Sertoma Park, Riverboat Park, Keelboat Park, and ending in Pioneer Park. A great option from the trail end at Pioneer is to cross River Road and get back on the trail and climb the hill... tough 1/2 mile climb but totally worth it for the view of the Missouri River from the bluff. Backtrack down the hill and retrace your route. The camels can be found along the Sertoma Park loop. Total round trip mileage is under 20 miles.
2. Ride across the river to Ft. Abraham Lincoln State Park. Both the Expressway Bridge and Memorial Highway Bridge have paved MUP paths. Round trip is about 25 miles. Great things to do at Ft. Lincoln... museum, Indian village, Custer Home tours.

Maps of Bismarck and Mandan trails can be found on the Bismarck Parks and Rec web site and the Mandan Parks site. For the Ft. Lincoln trail, check the TrailLink web site.