Group of bicyclists make Keokuk-to-New Albion trek

Wed June 06 2007
Posted Jun 6, 2007
5,433

By WILLIAM SMITH wsmith@thehawkeye.com They rolled into Fort Madison Saturday afternoon to eat lunch as Sorento's Pizza. They glided into Burlington about 5 p.m. for dinner at Big Muddy's, the first leg of their 255-mile trip across Iowa complete. They aren't riding hogs, though. They are pedaling their way across the state in the first-ever Iowa End-to-End ride, which started in Keokuk Saturday morning and will end in New Albion four days later. The first leg was 45 miles. Today, the riders will push themselves 85 miles to Bettendorf. In other words, they earned every bit of their appetite for food, beer and bloody marys. "This is just the most beautiful town," said Terry Eastin, executive director of the Mississippi River Trail Inc. "You ought to be selling your scenery here." Eastin rode in a car slightly ahead of the 35-plus riders that departed for Keokuk that morning, but she finally broke down and rode her bike into Burlington part way through the day. "It is just so beautiful out, I couldn't resist," the Arkansas native said. This week's ride is about more than just a romp across the state, though. The participants are taking the trail on a test ride to see what improvements can be made when linking it to the upcoming Mississippi River Trail. When complete, the Mississippi River Trail will link more than 2,000 miles of recreation trails from the Gulf of Mexico to Lake Itasca, the river's headwaters in Minnesota. In Iowa, the route will follow the Great River Road and other roadways. Work already is under way in this area, with signs up in Louisa County and in the towns of Fort Madison and Montrose. There is an off chance the National Park Service will designate the trail a "Centennial Project" leading into the service's 100th birthday in 2016. That would free up federal money for the effort. Mark Ackelson, president of the Iowa Natural Heritage Foundation and chair man of Mississippi River Trail Inc., is taking the entire ride on his bicycle. He and the other riders (he estimates between 15 and 17 riders are taking the entire trip) fill out evaluation sheets each day to designate what needs to be tweaked and what doesn't. So far, he said, the route between Keokuk and Burlington is looking pretty good. "This was a great day," he said shortly before heading inside Big Muddy's for some supper. "Montrose was especially hospitable." Ackelson lives in Des Moines and is getting to see a part of Iowa that he rarely gets to experience. He said the worst part of the trip is the few miles along U.S. 61. "The shoulder needs to be paved," he said. "We were a large enough group that motorists went around us, but it would be a lot harder for just a couple of people." Eastin's son, Josh Eastin, and his wife, Alley, are doing the ride for kicks and couldn't get over the river view along U.S. 61 and Montrose. Despite the lack of a paved shoulder, Josh wasn't too concerned about getting hit by a car. "Drivers are so nice over here," Josh Eastin said. "Over in Arkansas, they will just mow you down." The End-to-Enders aren't the only ones cycling across Iowa, though. Iowa City resident Mary Palmberg is biking with a group of about 25 women along the Mississippi from New Orleans to Lake Itasca, Minn., which was organized by Women's Tours. The group left May 11 and plan to reach Lake Itasca June 16. They arrived in Burlington Friday for a two-night stay and will be heading to Muscatine today. "I'm on this tour because, having grown up in Burlington, I love the Mississippi River," she said.