Uraling Three Rivers

Yesterday was good day for riding and put over 100 miles on the Ural and crossed three different rivers: the St. Croix, the Mississippi, and the Minnesota.

As promised from last time, I took some pictures. The day started out with a clear blue sky and lots of sun, but quickly turned overcast by 9am. It was also quite warm with the high temp at 29F! I thought of irondad and his “no heated gear” approach as I turned off all my electrics to avoid getting even more sweaty.

The first river I crossed was the St. Croix river on the border of Wisconsin and Minnesota. I road across the lift bridge below after coming down the bluff.

The St. Croix appears to be completely frozen, and there are some snowmobile tracks on criss-crossing the ice.

This is on the Minnesota side in the town of Stillwater, MN.

Stillwater is one of Minnesota’s oldest towns (incorporated in 1854 on the same day as St. Paul). It started out as a logging town and now is mainly known for antiques and book stores.

downtown Stillwater

The old building above has been turned into an indoor rock climbing gym.

I found a bridge near the water and had some fun taking more pictures of the Ural. It’s just so shiny and clean.

on the way out of Stillwater and back to St. Paul, I stopped at the scenic wayside rest and took the panorama above of the St. Croix River.

After work, I left crossed the Mississippi and left St. Paul

I road along MN13 on an island in the middle of the Mississippi. It was really beautiful riding in the middle of the river with the snow cover bluffs on either side. Unfortunately, there was no shoulder and too many cars, so no photos. I’ll have to go back with a monkey in the hack to get the shots.

I took MN13 along the Mississippi river until it met up with the Minnesota river and then followed that for a few miles. I crossed the Minnesota on MN77 and continued to follow the Minnesota for another ten miles or so. It was completely dark at this point, so no photos. Some of the twisty river roads were much more interesting that I expected in the dark. Most of them didn’t even have a street light. If the SV HID upgrade goes well, I think the Ural will have to be next.

I ended the ride on the slab enjoying the fog that the warmer temps had brought.

Today is sunny and supposed to be in the mid thirties. I think I’ll have to go out riding again.