Day #76 - 5/27/2011 Decorah, IA to Prairie du Chien, WI - 43 miles

The 43 miles from Decorah, Iowa to Prairie du Chien, Wisconsin took us this way, across the Mississippi River.

Up at 4am and oatmeal consumed, we were on our bikes by 5am.  At this latitude, even at 5am, the sunrise was near enough that our visibility was pretty good.  It was cold, 45F and windy, but under clear skies.   The first two miles were a steady uphill into a 10-15mph headwind.  Actually, the whole morning was into a headwind with constant rollers.  Some of the uphills were steep and I used all 27 gears, at times going only 4mph on the uphill with a nasty enough wind to have to pedal on the downhills.  

After nearly four hours of steady pedaling with no PB&J break (but with a Clif bar in my hand), we arrived at the Effigy Mounds National Monument which followed the mother of all downhills.  My speed peaked at just 27mph only because I was afraid to just let it all go: the road was only in fair condition, there was no shoulder and there was traffic behind me. Splat. Certainly didn't need that. The Mississippi River and our destination for the day, Prairie du Chien was just a little ways off, so we took in some local culture.

This was a great example of one of the cool features of the bike trip: a little
destination surprise along the way.  Or, it's a good example of poor planning, not
knowing what was ahead of us.  I like surprise.  A highly clickable photo, IMHO.

Located on the eastern edge of Iowa, the EMNM borders the Mississippi River.

The visitor center contains museum exhibits highlighting archaeological and natural specimens,
books and a spotting 'scope for nature viewing.  See Lani view nature.

The park has 14 miles of hiking trail...we took off on a 1-mile loop.  Call us lame.

Not much is known about the Mount Builders.  The Effigy Mound Culture extends from Dubuque,
Iowa, north into southeast Minnesota, across southern Wisconsin from the Mississippi to Lake Michigan,
and along the Wisconsin-Illinois boundary. 

The trail climbed from the visitor center into the forest overlooking the Mississippi.  

Effigy mounds were primarily built during the Late Woodland Period (AD 350-1300). Effigy mounds were constructed in many Native American cultures. Scholars believe they were primarily for religious purposes, although some also fulfilled a burial mound function.

After about 15 minutes of climbing, we reached a high point with a commanding view of the Mississippi River

Hey...it's the Mississippi River, two months from when we crossed it on March 27th as we entered New Orleans.  Did that really happen? As the crow flies, we were now about 1000 miles north of New Orleans.  As Lani and Bob actually traveled,  we had covered about 5600 miles from New Orleans to here.  Damn...it sure looked muddy.

The first Western settlers did not pay attention to the mounds until they decided to level some of them to help in the farming of their land.  The mounds were found to contain grave goods and burial items along with human remains. Some found items include pottery, weapons, tools, and other valuable items...like a skeleton.  These items were placed with the dead to make their journey and new life in the afterlife more familiar and comfortable.

President Thomas Jefferson is possibly the most famous contributor to our current knowledge on effigy mounds. Mounds were present on his Monticello property, and he excavated one of these mounds to conclude that effigy mounds were built by local Native American groups.

While some of the mounds were just that...mounds, some have shapes.  Common shapes for effigy mounds include birds, bear, deer, bison, lynx, panther, and turtles  likely chosen for their particular religious or spiritual significance to the people who built each mound. 

It was a little trippy to think of the mounds as a sacred Indian burial site...which is what they were.

After walking through the Effigy Mounds and reflecting on the Native American Indians who roamed there and whose descendants are scattered throughout the West, we moved on.

It was a short 3-miles from the Effigy Mounds to our crossing of the Mighty Mississippi.  Mighty. Why is the Mississippi always mighty?  Is it the alliteration?  Is someone compensating?

We paused on the bridge as it crossed from Marquette, Iowa to Prairie du Chien, Wisconsin.

And that would be the Lady Luck Casino Marquette, home to gambling, dining and entertainment.

Back on our bikes, and crossing the Mississippi, Lani stopped to check her bike and tire pressures.

Tire pressures matter...once the pressure drops, the tire becomes soft, mushy and rolls less well.    Trust us...we know, as described in the Debacle of Day 7.

I went to do the same and, at that moment, my chain broke at the quick-release link.  Lani, fortunately, had some spare chain pieces and was able to repair it.  Go Lani.

The day was finally warming up.  Layers were shed.

My bike chain reassembled, we identified a nearby bicycle shop in Prairie du Chien and made our way into Wisconsin, excited to be entering another state.

The French explorers Jacques Marquette and Louis Joliet arrived by canoe in 1673 leading to a trading outpost in 1685 and a busy fur trade.  The fur trade thrived through the mid-1800s.

It had not been since Texas that we were greeted upon entering such a small city with so much pride.

Clearly a founding father...would it be Marquette...or Joliet?  I remember learning about both of them, probably in grade school.

Born in France, Jacques Marquette became a Jesuit missionary and worked around the Great Lakes.  He joined Jolliet in 1673 exploring the local waterways and finally entered the Mississippi near Prairie du Chien.  He was gifted with learning the local Indian languages and, sadly, died young (38) after being weakened by dysentery.

Hey...guys...it's "Jacques", not "James."  Okay, sometimes he is known as "James", but I couldn't figure out why.

Considering that it is located right in the middle of the country, Wisconsin has an ethnically diverse background.  Following the French fur traders were the Cornish, "Yankees" from New England and upstate New York then Germans, Scandinavians and smaller groups of Belgians, Dutch, Swiss, Finns, Irish, Poles, and others. In the 20th century, large numbers of Mexicans and African Americans came, settling mainly in Milwaukee.  Following the Vietnam War came a new influx of Hmongs.

I love a good border crossing, especially when it comes with a larger-than-life monument.  Take that, Texas.  As someone who reconstructs memories in terms of photographs, this image is deeply etched.

Just beyond the ginormous "Wisconsin Welcomes You" was a visitor center. We stopped and received some advice on places to eat.

As for the name "Wisconsin", it sorta goes like this: when he and Joliet were exploring, Marquette recorded the name of a large river they were on as "Meskousing", as the Indians called it.  Joliet, for unknown reasons, used the name "Miskonsing" on a map he drew in 1674.  When the news of their voyage was later published in 1681, the book's author called it the "Mescousin."  A later explorer misread Marquette's original "M" as an "Ou", so it became "Ouisconsing".  Once the young American government became involved, "Wisconsin" appeared.  It all makes perfect sense.

Downtown was just a block away…we headed on over and found one of the recommended eateries right next to a cycle shop.  Marty at The Prairie Peddler checked out our bikes and we went next door for some lunch.

After my chain decomposed while crossing the Mighty Mississippi, we wisely decided to have both of our bikes looked at.  Marty had a nice shop and promptly turned his attention to our cycles.

Our cycles receiving a bit of attention, we walked next door and shared a sandwich.

The food at Simply wasn't too complicated.

Prairie du Chien looked friendly...and patriotic.   It has five National Historic Landmarks and nine sites on the National Register of Historic Places representing its significant history.  Pretty impressive for a city of 6000.

In 2001, Prairie du Chien gained brief national attention for its first annual New Year's Eve celebration, during which a carp from the Mississippi River was dropped from a crane over BlackHawk Avenue at midnight. The "Droppin' of the Carp" celebration has been held every New Year's Eve since.  I guess you have to live here to understand

Prairie du Chien is also famous for physician William Beaumont, notable for his studies on digestion. In 1822, an employee of a local fur company survived a shotgun wound to his stomach, leaving a hole through the skin right into his stomach.  Beaumont was able to directly observe digestion take place, sometimes tying food to a string and stuffing it through the hole.  Quel genius!

On the quest for a perfect dessert before finding our hotel.

Our cycles repaired, we made our way to the Prairie du Chien Super 8 and kicked back.

Side note: today’s news indicated flooding in Pierre SD where we had been days before from water released from the Oahe Dam.   Some people would be flooded from their homes for 1-2 months.