Day 33 - Wabasha to Sparta 89 miles

First thing in the morning we retreated under the park shelter to get out of the downpour that had continued through the night. As we were getting ready to depart, Daniel came over for some parting words and a couple of pictures. We exchanged details to follow each other then left.

We crossed the Misissippi under an overcast sky with a fair wind, reminding me of crossing the Bristol Channel to Wales in training. We followed the river South through a few small towns, picking up a disused railway line which we would follow for the rest of the day.

Lunch was at a local inn on the river we passed, which served good food but not enough of it, and we were not too full by the end. This would bite us later on. We decided, as there was a 24 hour Walmart in Sparta, we would push on for a late finish and eat there. Our energy levels crashed on route, but luckily we had enough snacks to fuel us on to the end.

We met another group of tourers, older than us, doing a five day tour of the trails. We were keen to get to dinner though, and only stopped for a brief chat.

At Walmart I was looking to see if they had a Wisconsin sew on patch to add to my collection from other states. An employee approached me and said he had something better, but he would post it. Joe Mathews, a member of a local National Guard unit (32nd, but I cannot recall the full title), offered to send me a flash of his unit, which would be unique as opposed to a patch bought from a supermarket. He also gave us a Challenge Coin, with the National Guard and US Army cast on either side. These unexpected mementoes of the trip were very much appreciated, and certainly perked up morale after the long day into the wind we just had.

We demolished a foot long Subway each and a cheesecake between us, the found our campsite. Owen and I have now swapped our tyres over, as the rear one was wearing much faster with the weight of our panniers. I also received another puncture, another small staple of metal, which we now know comes from the blown out tyres spread along the highways. An early night now, and only 3 or 4 more days to Chicago.