Ride 9 - What Goes Here!

A portion of the Military Ridge Trail. 5/30/26 dm

 A week after having my ride foiled by a few birds, I decided I was going to complete the round-trip from Verona to Dodgeville on the Military Ridge State Trail.

 

Over 14 years riding state operated bike trails, I've seen very few vehicles sharing the route. If they are out, it's usually to check if cyclists have the daily or season pass in hand or it's a crew cutting grass or trimming trees and bushes that might block part of the route.

 

So when I saw a black sedan driving toward me on a trail just east of the village of Klevenville, I thought it might be the Department of Natural Resources and I would need to get out my pass.

 

But the car didn't stop, it kept coming, being driven at a snail's pace. There wasn't room for me to ride toward the car while the car was on the trail, so I stopped on the side and waved for the driver to go a little faster.

 

The driver rolled down the window and stopped when he got to me. "Is it OK for me to drive here?" he asked. I told him it wasn't because he was driving on a bike path and he should take the next driveway, a short distance ahead, to get on a  real road. 

 

First stop. 5/30/26 dwm

 He wanted to turn around, but there wasn't much room with marshes on both sides of the path. I don't think the driver knew where he was driving and thought he was riding through a park. After our brief conversation, we headed our separate ways. I was so surprised by the whole thing I didn't even think of taking a quick picture of the car driving away. 

 

 The reason I've not done many rides on this trail is sand. I'm not sure if it was put on the trail by its care-takers or if it was washed on to the path when it rains. The sand is deep enough in places to grab the rear wheel which is disconcerting to begin with, at its worst, it can cause a crash. 

 

 It's been more than 10 years since I lost rode to Dodgeville, so this trip will tell if conditions are better or not.

 

 It just past 7:30 when I got on the bike and rode downtown to get on the Military Ridge trail where it intersects with Main Street and headed west. 

Barneveld's park and splash pad. 5/30/26 dwm

 

Either side of Mt Horeb there are spots with sand deep enough to get your attention fast if you run into it. The sand is difficult to see as it's the same color as the crushed limestone on the trail. When I hit sand, I get my feet on the ground immediately.

 

Most of the trail was fine, you have to pay attention and be ready to react.  

 

Barneveld put the finishing touches on their memorial park downtown, it looks nice with a playground and splash pad along with a pavilion where people can gather. 

 

The park and a nearby monument pay tribute to the nine Barneveld citizens who died in a tornado June 8, 1984. That's 42 years ago, but to many residents it likely still feels like yesterday.

 

Ridgeway's train depot. 5/30/2026 dwm

 Yesterday was my first trip back in ten years to Ridgeway. It's a small community half-way between Barneveld and Dodgeville.

 

 The railroad line was abandoned in 1982, leaving the depot built in 1913 waiting for its next purpose. The Friends of the Military Ridge Trail bought it in 2000 and their railroad museum opened in the depot in 2007.

 

 West of Ridgeway was the area I remembered for a broken asphalt path that made it difficult to get up and down some of the hills.

 

 That's improved quite a bit and new asphalt was poured down one hill and up another to improve conditions and the ride for cyclists.

 

Time for 2nd breakfast! 5/30/26 dwm

After the ups and downs of the hills west of Ridgeway, the trail ran along the ridge all the way to Dodgeville.

 

Less than a half-mile from the trail was one of my favorite restaurants. In a past life it was known as Country Kitchen, now it's called Cafe by Country Kitchen.

 

The turn-around was 44 miles into the ride. I was ready to eat; ordering French toast with 2 slices of bacon and chocolate milk.

On the return trip I learned the ride west was with wind at my back, thankfully there are lines of trees on either side of the bike trail which helped cut the wind.

 

New asphalt on a hill. 5/30/26 dwm

 If you remember the story about geese last week, here's another chapter. While I didn't see either goose family on the trip west, on the return trip as I headed down the trail where I saw them last, there they were, sauntering out of the grass as if they had seen me and wanted to see how I'd react. 

 This time I kept going, weaving around one goose that was hissing at me and around the last gosling trying to catch up with their mom. Everyone was fine and I was on my way home.

 According to the Bike Computer:

 Distance: 81 miles (longest this year)

 Average Speed: 14.9 mph

 Time in the Saddle: 5 hours, 25 minutes