On Tuesday morning, we got on the trail early, stopping for breakfast at Java John’s Coffee downtown, then riding out past the fish hatchery to milepost 6, where the Trout Run Trail begins to climb more steeply, making a fast return through the city for a 25.6km ride.

We left the campground after our ride and headed east to continue our tour of the Mississippi River Valley into Minnesota, where the nearly deserted two-lane scenic road turned into a 4-lane highway, US 61, connecting La Crosse, Wisconsin to Duluth, Minnesota, following the Mississippi to Minneapolis. We stopped at the Winona visitor center and were directed to the city campground, on Prairie Island. Unlike the well-groomed city tourist campground in Decorah, Prairie Island is a frequently-flooded riverfront camp with a fair complement of semi-permanent residents. Nevertheless, we had a pleasant evening, with the nearly-deserted tent camping area lit by a full moon.