2020: Is it Over Yet?

When the riding season began in early March the threat of Covid 19 was just beginning to come into focus. My first ride was on 7 March and within ten days the coronavirus axe had fallen. Within a few more weeks all summer plans and reservations were canceled. 

The specter of a summer without concerts, sporting events, and motorcycle trips blacked out the horizon and I felt like I was going to be living out an Edgar Allan Poe poem. The crows in the yard were tap, tap tapping louder than usual, or maybe it was just my darkened imagination.

Fox River Trail

The weather slowly warmed and my wife and I spent a lot more time in the yard and on the deck in back of the house. Our bicycles found their way down to the Fox River Trail more frequently and the miles piled up. Many of the things that never seemed to get done in the house were welcome activities. 

By the time June rolled around we knew which of our favorite restaurants could make a decent takeout meal and which could not. Some may have been able to put out a good meal, but they disdained mask wearing and were off the list. For a couple of weeks we tried dining in, but the virus became a raging bull in Wisconsin and we returned to avoiding the red capes that are restaurants and bars.

Door Headlands County Park

Any type of travel that involved an overnight stay we considered a virus risk, so we took a lot of day trips. Sometimes we took the grill and some meat and sometimes we picked up sandwiches on the way out of town. We visited Point Beach State Park, Governor Thompson State Park, Hartman Creek State Park and numerous State Forests and county parks. 

The county parks within 50 miles were a real surprise.  I discovered most of them on motorcycle rides and then my wife and I would go back a few weeks later for a picnic. If not for the virus we may never have had the pleasure of visiting them.

At the beginning of the riding season it did look like I would ride many miles. Health officials were discouraging people from taking any risks and filling up the hospital beds. But as the hospitals did not really begin to fill up until the fall, I put on more miles this summer than in any one previously. They were all on day trips except for one overnight that I spent at Fort McCoy in August. Somehow an afternoon trip to Holy Hill ended up the Harley Davidson Headquarters in Milwaukee.

My riding season ended last month as the weather got colder and the deer got bolder. My Harley Davidson is in storage at the local dealer and my BMW is in my garage. I had fresh services done on both near the end of the season so they will be ready when the weather is in spring. We are preparing for a quiet Christmas season and waiting patiently, or sort of patiently, for our turn to get the vaccine. The weather has been pleasant for December in Wisconsin and we can get out and walk every day. 

Juneau Avenue Site

My brother and I have made hotel reservations for the BMW National Rally in Great Fall, Montana, in June. It felt good to make them but at this point I do not have much confidence that the rally will happen. If it doesn't and 2021 looks a lot like 2020, the tap, tap, tapping of the crows will not sound quite as ominous after the great time I had visiting local sites this year. 

A Day in Door County

After 45 years of marriage one would think that describing a wallet would not be too difficult. But for me, it was a bridge too far. Somehow I communicated to my patient wife that I wanted a wallet smaller than the one I have used for the past fifteen years. She contacted The Hide Side, a premium leather store in Fish Creek, WI, and ordered a beautifully made piece. However, due to my limited communication skills, it needed to be exchanged.

Fortunately, Fish Creek is located in picturesque Door County, about a 45 mile ride from my house. After taking care of a few duties around the house I carefully packed the wallet in the swingarm bag on my Harley Davidson Lowrider S and headed up to the Door.

Door County is a vacation hotspot during the summer, but the kids are in school yet and the small bayside towns are still a little sleepy. I rolled through Sturgeon Bay and noted that there were a lot sailboats still in dry dock at Skipper Bud's. Riding over the bridge on the bypass I saw the gulls swooping down over the channel looking for a late breakfast.

That thought made me a little hungry, so I stopped in at the Chocolate Chicken in Egg Harbor. This is one of my favorite stops and it did not let me down. I ordered a blueberry muffin and a cup of their Indonesian Black Satin Blend coffee. The sun was shining on the little table in front of the shop and I enjoyed late morning breakfast while watching a few retirees amble around town.

A great stop for coffee and pastry.

Soon enough it was time to get back on Highway 42 and continue on up to Fish Creek. The two lane highway was not too busy, but the drivers out there were not too eager to get where they were going. I adapted to the leisurely pace and enjoyed the sites. I could not tell whether is was the beginning or the end of the cherry blossom season, but several of the orchards were in full bloom.

The road drops steeply into Fish Creek. It makes a sharp right instead of flowing into the waters of Green Bay, but my destination was at the bottom of the hill. There was a parking spot right in front of The Hide Side, and before long I was perusing the fine leather wallets inside. The experienced clerk helped me find just what I wanted. Fortunately, the young woman behind the counter found a couple of cards that I had left in the one my wife gave me. We had tried it out before deciding to return it.

Just what I wanted!

Door County is a couples type of place, so I did not hang around too long. I rode down to the dock to check out the big boats and take a picture of the bay.

The dock at Fish Creek.

Then I went back up the big hill and south toward Egg Harbor. I stopped for lunch at Shipwrecked. The brew pub has a colorful history including stories about Al Capone, Chief Tecumseh, and ghosts. You can read all about it on their website. Unfortunately, it burned to the ground almost two years ago and it is now a completely new building. The cheeseburger, potato salad and coffee were all tasty.

View from the deck of Shipwrecked.

After paying my bill I took a slow walk out to my bike and took my time getting my riding gear on. It had been an excellent day in Door County and I wanted to make it last a few more moments. The ride home was as enjoyable as the rest of the day. It is early in the season and I plan to make a few more trips to Door County with my wife this summer.