Day 2 - Madison WI to Boscobel WI

I never knew such hills existed in Wisconsin.

The day started easily enough. Left Hoyt Park in Madison at 6:40 a.m. It was a sunny day with strong winds out of the west, and would eventually climb to the mid 80s. After winding out of Madison and heading to Old Sauk Rd, there was a climb to Timberline that was to be the first of many for the day. It immediately screamed downhill at 36.5 mph. Yikes! I passed through Cross Plains & Black Earth, beautiful towns in the valley. Then things got insane.

Up and down through the Blue Mounds area, increasing heat & plenty of headwind. Always stay away from roads with names like "High Point," especially when they're connected to roads having "Valley" or "Hollow" in them. There was a 1-1/2 mile climb on High Point Road, during which the odors from my jersey must have been enough to alert a nearby pair of turkey buzzards who watched my slow but steady progress.

At Tower Hill State Park, I was joined by Mike Sauer who biked the remainder of the day with me. From there we passed by Frank Lloyd Wright's Taliesin on our way to flatter territory. Maynard Staskal from south of Boscobel met us on a motorcycle in Blue River and recommended a different route. Mike rejoined his uncle in Boscobel & I continued south several miles to the Staskal's.

I had biked 94 miles, my longest solo day ever (although Day 4 was around the corner), consuming 30 oz of Gatorade and 6 liters of water. Sleep came easy.

Donna's 3 Rules of Hills:

1. Hills, when viewed from a distance, always look worse than they are.
2. Hills, when viewed up close from the bottom, always look worse than they are.
3. Hills are always worse than they look.

Donna's Cresting Guidelines:

You know you have crested a particularly high hill when you reach one of the following (listed in order of altitude):

1. A church.
2. A scenic view pullout.
3. A weather recording station.
4. A farmhouse with an untethered dog.
5. A robed guy with a sickle.

Go to Day 3

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