Hank – We left the campground around 7:30 am and made our way through Monroe. A guy riding a bike on the sidewalk let us know he had a bike shop and they’d fix us up if we needed anything. Our bikes are good but we thanked him.

Leaving town we headed south on Michigan State Route 125 to Toledo. For most of the ride we felt we never left the city. Toledo, being a large city, was a mad house. Our daughter, Steph, mailed our ballots to us via general delivery. Riding to that post office would have added another 10-12 miles. Instead, we parked at the hospital in Oregon, OH and I took an Uber to the post office and back. Our ballots are in the mail. Today felt like we worked all day. There was little joy of riding through quiet countryside.

After taking care of that we went to a Mexican restaurant. We hadn’t had a meal all day. We each had a margarita. They were very strong so I had a second one. Whew! I was feeling pretty good during that last 8 miles to Maumee Bay State Park where we had reservations for the night. We got our site, set up camp, and took showers. Everything is so much better when you’re cleaned up.

We couldn’t find an available campground or a reasonably affordable hotel in Sandusky, tomorrow’s destination, so I tried calling churches to see of they’d let us tent on the lawn. The first church I called, a United Methodist Church, said they’d open the building for us so we could shower and sleep inside. How awesome is that?

Kathy – It seemed like we rode longer than 43 miles today. Maybe it was because of all the traffic in Toledo, Ohio. The temps were in the high 80’s and a bit on the warm side. Our first 22 miles were on a road with a very narrow shoulder. There was a lot of traffic too so along with being extra careful we also but on our bright green reflective vests to ensure we were seen. We did not have much headwind and the ride had minimal elevation. Because of all the traffic and maneuvering about (including about an hour in a really sketchy Toledo neighborhood) today was not one of my more enjoyable rides. I guess they all can’t be great.

So 13 weeks on the road and today we hit Ohio, our 13th state! The way we are going we are hoping to get to Maine around Labor Day. Thank you to Steph for mailing our ballots to the Toledo post office. We did our civic duty today and hope our vote makes a difference. So tonight I am happy to be clean, tucked into our tent keeping those pesky mosquitoes at bay, and thankful for the cool evening.