Ride from the Park

Wisconsin is blessed with great State Parks.  It's also blessed with wonderful Bike Trails.

But, as far as I know, Peninsula State Park is the only one to combine the two.

The park in Door County, just off highway 42 between Fish Creek and Ephraim, is where I started my second vacation ride.

The Sunset Trail is suitable for regular street bikes and starts near the Fish Creek park entrance.

I got on after unloading my bike near the Ranger Station and rode the 10 mile looping path along the water, past the Eagle Bluff Lighthouse, and elevated through the beautiful forest and its flower covered floor.  Those little blue flowers are Dwarf Lake Iris.

After the ride around the Sunset, I rode the perimeter of the park.  It was a challenge going up and down hills before exiting onto highway 42 towards Ephraim.

Ephraim was only accessible by boat before roads (and bikes) came along.  Now the picturesque town is a sleepy until this time of year when thousands of work-weary people show up.

I was riding before most of the masses arrived, so cycling along a state highway was no problem.  It was slow-going up the hill out of Ephraim with a quick descent before a climb followed by another downhill into Sister Bay.

The second largest town in the county behind Sturgeon Bay; it's named for twin (sister) islands in Green Bay.

On my ride through Sister Bay, I enjoyed the view of the boats in the marina; then found myself laughing when a deer appeared on the side of the street... looked both ways and crossed in front of me for a drink at the water's edge.

My goal for the day was Ellison Bay.  And in Door County, it's easy to forget the space is a small piece of land bordered on three sides by water - so my target for lunch was just 5 miles north.


Just in case you think I'm kidding; I'm not.  The business district, which includes a tourist information stand; a couple of stores; a cafe; and resort branch out from the four corners which comprise downtown.

On the northwest corner is the Viking Grill.

The Viking Grill  is best known for their Fish Boil (a Door County tradition I didn't get in on so far), but also serves breakfast and lunch.  Their Ham and Cheese sandwich was the right fuel for a cool day and the remainder of my ride.

After lunch, it was back up hill out of Ellison Bay and toward Sister Bay where the road forks and with the wind at my back for the sprint down highway 57.

Other than a steady procession of dump trucks up and down the road, it was pretty quiet and the truck drivers were most courteous.

43 miles from where it began, I pedaled into Baileys Harbor (home!) a second ride complete and the satisfaction of exploring new territory.

Sight-seeing from a bike is a great way to visit new territory and feel a connection to the land.  It also creates questions, like, why isn't there an apostrophe in Baileys Harbor?