Day 18 - Down the Mississippi into Iowa

The wind pushed us ALL day down the Mississippi into Lansing, Iowa - our 7th state of the trip.  The upper Mississippi valley is beautiful, green & lush - in spite of what they say about a dry year in the upper Midwest.  We followed Minnesota Hwy 61, the Great River Road, even though the ACA route suggested different roads at various places.  I was sad to leave Minnesota - the 4 days we cycled in the state were beautiful & had the best biking roads & bike paths to date.  Thoughts for the day:

1. Was so fun to watch for eagles soaring in the 20 mph NW winds aloft. 
2. Today's ride had all the ingredients for a perfect ride:
• Tailwinds 99% of the ride (usually on a loop ride, or out & back ride, you have to face the headwinds at some point), I never did.
• Low traffic, and when it increased near larger cities the road had an 8 foot shoulder.
• Great scenery - 60 % of the ride I could watch the Mississippi roll by, 40% of the time I had views of green foliage & all kinds of trees.
• Wildlife - I saw roughly 30 eagles, actually more eagles than cows
• Cloudy to partly cloudy, 70 degrees - perfect temperature to ride
• Level to slightly downhill; Lansing, IA is 75 feet lower than Red Wing, MN.  The Mississippi drops 75 feet over the 125 miles.