Trail Day

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[Ben riding along the Central Lakes Trail]

[Ben and I DID take time to stop and smell the roses]

[Visual proof that in some places the Mississippi is a clean, clear river]

[Guido is right at home amongst the trees and mushrooms]

We spent nearly the entire day today riding along the Central Lakes trail. We jumped on it right outside our campground and followed it to St. Joseph - a mere 10 miles from our destination. It is a beatiful converted rail trail that winds through lake country paralleling interstate 94. The sun was shining, the birds were chirping, and the flowers along the trail made today very enjoyable. It did get quite hot - flirting with 90 - but with a breeze in the face it didn't feel quite that bad. We reached St. Cloud after a thrilling ride along highway 75, and then highway 23 where we had lots of traffic and no shoulder. Arriving at Ben's brother-in-law's parents house we were greeted with waves and cheers from Lyndsay, Ben's sister, Shantrel, Ben's sister's friend, and Diana, Ben's mother-in-law. Ben's inlaws were kind enough to invite us to spend the night at their beautiful air conditioned house. After a delectable dinner that included some amazing burgers and refreshing fruit salad, we headed out for some ice cream. Before indulging in desert, we decided to walk off some calories in Munsinger Gardens. The gardens included some pretty amazing flowers and were nestled along the bluffs of the peaceful Mississippi river. After many pictures and quite enough walking we buzzed over to the Dairy Queen for some "cool treats". Ben was very excited...almost as excited as his sister. We are looking forward to a peaceful rest in an air conditioned house without the constant noise of cars or trains. Tomorrow we head for the big Twin Cities!