Day 13 - The hard road to Valley City
Leaving Fargo:
Both Debra and Gary were exceptionally kind hosts. Parker eventually warmed up to me and let me give him belly rubs.
As I said before Debra had called around the previous night and contacted Mary Lee, a friend in Valley city, and so that was my objective, 67 miles over a mix of rural highways, gravel and dirt tracks, and a 16 mile stretch of interstate. I had planned out the route as she made calls.
I have done longish stretches before. One day I did 72 miles if I recall correctly. Eventually I'd like to build up to 80-90 miles, but after the 100 miles into Fargo my muscles were already feeling moderate fatigue that made me hesitate and consider a true rest day in the city. I’m certain Gary and Debra would have hosted me if I asked, but it made sense to continue, and I thought I could certainly make the miles, but it might be difficult. So I resolved to get out early enough to have more morning to ride through with breaks to ensure I could make the distance.
Debra was so kind as to cook me some delicious French toast with honey. After eating and packing up I said my goodbyes and rode out from their house. My only regret is that I didn’t remember to get them to sign my wheel.
I was happy to have found a temporary home with another set of UMC members from afar.
Early morning Fargo was abuzz with activity in the misty, overcast gloom. Leaving the city wasn’t particularly difficult as they have many dual use pathways that function like extra wide sidewalk and cycle paths.
Eventually the urban and suburban sprawl gave way to industrial operations. I covered my mouth with my jacket while riding through a plume of dust kicked up by some sort of aggregate operation. As an aside: Silicosis is a disease caused by prolonged exposure to silicate dust like that from cutting concrete or working around mines, aggregate, etc. I’m not saying one exposure causes the disease, but protect your lungs when you can. Wearing a mask when grinding, sanding, etc is so very important for your long-term lung health, so forgive me if I’m a bit paranoid.
Eventually even these industrial zones gave way to the rural asphalt track of highway 10. Most of us probably take for granted the scale of just how many of our roads are fully asphalt, especially in my home of Rural NC. Out of Fargo, and into Valley city there were extremely few options in terms of asphalt. Most of the grid style roads are hard packed dirt and crushed gravel. My bike is certainly capable of these roads, but they are a menace to energy conservation both of my battery and my legs.
To Casselton:
In the overcast cool of the morning I rode in basically a straight line towards a small town called Casselton. The area between it and Fargo is as flat as any land I’ve ever seen. Only a few low, undulating hills. The land extending out into farms in every direction around. Spring Wheat, Soy and Corn are the predominate crops, though I would later learn that Canola (rape seed) and edible beans such as Navy were also grown in these expansive fields.
Everpresent was the song of redwing blackbirds, swifts and a host of other birds I have no idea. To my ear it was like being on a different planet, their song so vastly unlike the song of birds in my home of rural NC. The one commonality were the yip yip of killdeer which would scrample across the road as I rode by, frantically trying to draw me away from their nests.
Eventually I made it to Casselton after a 20 mile stretch and there I found a memorial park with electric access. So I took advantage of a two hour charge in order to prep for the 40+ miles to come. At this point I can trust that my bike will make approximately 40 miles per charge on the lowest assist level, assuming no headwinds.
I passed the time wandering around the town, editing pictures and taking new ones. I ate a breakfast burrito in the only “restaurant” that was open on a Friday (really?)… a Cenex gas station. If you’re wondering, it wasn’t very good, but calories are calories.
North Dakota has extremely active train lines, and I learned from Debra that pretty much every town and city is based around these vital lines. I believe only two towns in ND don’t have a train line through the middle. Why? Simply because the railroad established many of these towns. Presumably as vital collection points for the riches of the surrounding farmlands. Grain silos of immense size dot the land next the rail lines.
Onward to Buffalo City:
I left Casselton around noon and continued to follow highway 10 onwards towards Buffalo City another 20 or so miles ahead.
There were planned stretches of dirt track because the highway takes an awkward jink away from the east-west axis that would have required a significant detour.
Over the next nearly 10 miles, I would be riding over mostly flat, but occasionally undulating track. Quite frankly it was pleasant and offered a beautiful slice of what it is like for most of the non-highway travel in ND.
Occasionally the wind brake tree lines would open up and interesting vistas would present themselves.
You might have a misconception that this area is semi-dry, but it is anything but. Frequently I’m riding beside marshy lowlands directly next to fields that are a riot of reeds filled with ducks and many other birds. Water is everywhere, some pumped, some natural, but I would consider uncommon not to be near some body of water for a long stretch. While its less common in this part of the state to have the sort of glacially formed lakes, it is still quite wet.
I joked to a friend that this is the US version of the fields of Ukraine. Dark sandy top soil over darker loam and clay form the strata upon which these farmlands rest. It is of no surprise that many Russian and Ukranian immigrants also find their way out to the Fargo area. The harsh winters and vast plains must seem much like their ancestral homelands.
From afar I spotted a shockingly bright yellow in the distance. It took literal miles to get close enough to understand what I was seeing. An explosion of yellow blooms in what I assumed was mustard plants in a single field surrounded by wheat and corn was what I was seeing miles off. I would later learn that this was likely Canola, grown for the oil rich seeds. But I also wasn’t entirely wrong, because it is in the same family as mustard — which if you’re not privy, many of the veggies we enjoy are actually variants of the mustard plant: Broccoli, Brussel sprouts, Kohlrabi, Kale, Cabbage, and Cauliflower are all variants along with Rapeseed (Canola). They represent a monumental human project of selecting different traits from the same plant, and I use them as a frequent example to my students of how agriculture is a complex, multi-generation project of genetic manipulation for our benefit.
Eventually I met asphalt again, and took a Northerly turn for a short stretch to Buffalo City. It was time for a late lunch, and I thought the last 22 miles would go much like the 40 before, so I stopped at the Local bar and ordered my bog standard BLT — a bacon, lettuce, and tomato sandwich, where the bacon is nice and lean and the tomato is ripe. They're so perky. I love that.
While I enjoyed this needed rest I had placed the bike at another park shelter and it was charging while I ate. Overall I gained another 45 minute charge out of this stop.
When I was entering Buffalo City I noted the road I was supposed to turn onto had a closure sign up. So I asked the waitress what the deal was. She informed me that the bridge was being replaced and she wasn’t sure the best way to detour. So I assumed if I just followed the grid structure I could take the asphalt most of the way and then detour around just the grid the bridge bisected.
So when I left I ignored the closure sign and proceeded towards the out of commission bridge. 2.5 miles of tarmac scrolled by without event. Eventually it was time to make my Northern turn to detour…
Moments before I took a picture I had to cross a sodden section. What looked like a one inch deep puddle turned out to be a five inch deep puddle… I didn’t lose the bike in it, but I nearly did. The tires were flinging thick goopy mud everywhere. Even when this sodden mess ended the detour consisted of large uncrushed river stones. Like half the size of your fist. Thank God I had my 4in tires because otherwise this would have been a horrible portage, walking the bike through the difficult areas.
Eventually this gave way to hard packed ruts with tall grass growing between. That was better, except for the trailer bumping around like crazy.
This bête noir eventually rejoined the tarmac and I was off down the road to Tower City.
Tower City to Valley City:
I can’t say much about Tower City because at that point my muscles and body were nearing fatigue. The sun was now beating down through a cloudless sky and I stopped into the local Cenex and grabbed two powerades to replace the gobs of lost fluid over the last 20 miles.
I had been texting with Jeffrey from earlier in the trip (Louisville) and he called me up to talk which lead to a needed 30 minute rest on the sidewalk while rehydrating. I’m glad we’ve kept up because he left me with some much needed humor and good cheer. Which I would soon need to pull up on.
The last stretch to Valley City was entirely on Interstate 94. Interstate. I’d been on US highways in ND and MN, and they have ample shoulders, but this fresh hell had higher speeds, and smaller paved shoulders with a significant drop off should I skirt the edge. Pile on top of this traffic that was going 10-20mph faster. Even as an experienced cyclist who isn’t bothered by close, fast moving vehicles, this was not my favorite thing in the world. Then there was the fact that my muscles felt like mush, and the heat of the sun was baking me. I had made sure to put on copious sun-screen while talking with Jeffrey, but apparently that wouldn’t matter. My face would later feel burnt. I’m not sure if it was because the harsh reflection from the concrete or what.
Forgive me for not posting any pictures of this section, I was far more concerned with getting through the last 16 miles as quickly as possible.
If you look at the elevation profile for my route you’ll see that this section also included a near 500ft, gradual climb. Let me tell you I absolutely felt it. And so did my battery.
Five miles into the climb I shut off the motor entirely because I only had 20% more charge and I needed to conserve. I don’t know how, but I managed a 14mph pace with the motor dragging up that hill, and then 18mph down the other side.
I don’t know if I’ve gotten to a new level of muscle tone, or if it was just tailwinds, but I felt proud of myself because the last time I had to do a motorless jaunt I managed a pathetic 8mph. That said, I knew it was chewing me up and I would eventually hit full fatigue if I kept going day after day. This would advance my necessary rest day forward significantly.
I also felt somewhat foolish for conserving the battery as religiously as I did because the moment I pulled off the main interstate onto business 94 it was all downhill and then flat into Valley City.
Within a few minutes I pulled into the driveway of Mary Lee and Steven.
A needed rest… and a Tour.
Mary Lee quickly ushered me into the safety of her home. I was sweaty and beat and so I took a shower to return to some semblance of humanity. After my shower I had a brief talk with Steven about the ride, his work as a farmer, and other things. Dinner was ready and we all enjoyed a delicious roast with potatoes and carrots. Oh, and a chocolate chip cookie.
After dinner Mary Lee and Steven loaded me up into their SUV and took me on a tour of the seven different bridges of Valley City, which are beautiful and necessary as Valley City is divided by the Sheyenne (no, I didn’t misspell that). I couldn’t have asked for a better tour guide as Mary Lee has worked both as the tourism marketing head for the town as well as its Mayor. They showed me the many new improvements she’s helped to get passed through bonds for the city. Like flood walls and dykes to prevent the devastation that had occured in the later part of the 2000’s due to massive flooding. For us in NC this is quite understandable in light of the recent devastation caused by Helene in the appalachians.
After a jaunt around town seeing the bridges, we toured the Visitor center which included a vintage railcar that had been converted for use by the railway superintendent. The exhibit showed how it was used and what life was like for the superintendent, his secretary, and cook all who lived and worked from the confines of this cutting edge first RV as Mary Lee joked.
It has been meticulously restored by the staff to its original condition. She shared how one of the staff nailed an original style canvas roof and put in something like 11,000 nails in the process. They also repainted the car with original hues, but stopped at 4 coats rather than the original 40 (if memory serves).
From here we toured the park near their house that gave excellent views of the original Hi-Line railway bridge. Constructed in 1908 by the Northern Pacific rail company it spans over 3800ft at a height of 162ft from the valley floor. It is constructed of riveted steel over concrete pylons. Originally intended to be a dual track bridge, the second track was never installed. However due to its robust construction the bridge has never needed to be modernized to accommodate the heavier trains of today.
Finally Mary Lee shared that Valley City was an important training grounds and production site for WWII naval officers and munition precursor chemicals.
After the tour I excused myself with the intent of posting my day’s journey, but the exhaustion of the day hit me hard. After talking with my wife I was wiped out.
I’m sure you can see why this update was delayed.
Today I made it to Jamestown, and my intent is to take a rest day here on Sunday and return to the trail on Monday. I’ll be writing up the journey to Jamestown tomorrow… it was supposed to be an easy day, but the trail is what the trail is and it proved difficult, but not as difficult.
Are you interested in supporting my journey?
As I’ve described on previous days there are always unexpected expenses, and while I feel like I’ve hit a stride where equipment is finally working I would still be open to any financial help you might be willing to give. Mainly this is to offset the costs of future equipment I may need, or occasional hotel stays (like tonight) which are necessary from time to time. At the end of the trip I will try to donate any unused excess funds to charities like UMCOR to be used for disaster relief.
Here’s the link to my PayPal donation page: