We had a great stay at the 140 year old Decker Hotel. We rode a few blocks down the street to a diner and had a great breakfast. One of the nice things about going off the official RAGBRAI route is the absence of the crowds and the hoards of thousands and thousands of riders standing in line for food and drinks ! We were able to sit down, take our time, and enjoy a nice breakfast.
We rejoined the official RAGBRAI route about 5 miles south of Maquoke on Hwy 136. We ran into Team Sprint rider Tom in Delmar. He was already 40 miles into his ride, while we were only about 6 miles into ours. We enjoyed a great 25 cent lemonade from two cute little girls.
We passes thru Charlotte, and then stopped in a bar in the last town on RAGBRAI, Goose Lake. It was a fun stop, but I was a little sad since all the RAGBRAI shenanigans would be ending in about 15 miles, boo hoo !!
We finished up RAGBRAI 2012 in Clinton, after miles and miles of great fun and good times. I had to re-pack everything, to give Doc a big bag of dirty clothes to take home to Bev, and I put everything else into my bicycle bags for the next part of my trip.
I said goodbye to everyone (waa-waa) and put my bicycle in Mike's truck. He drove me to Mike's parents house, Jerry & Joan. I spent the night in their basement, after a wonderful pizza dinner with Mike & His parents, Kendra & her parents, and Mike's brother David. Mike's Dad and Mom and I played guitar and sang songs in the basement before I went to bed. It was a magic day !!
