Remember the cracked rim? It is still riding perfectly but it is an ever present worry if a spoke snaps through. I get an email tracking the delivery of the rim from California to Kentucky to Michigan and see that it will arrive today in Sault Ste. Marie.

As I awake a wee weary from a hot 166 km ride the day before and as the UPS Store is not open on Sunday when I plan to arrive in Sault Ste. Marie, I decide to rent a car and pick it up.

Of all days for Google Maps to fail me… It sent me to the car rental location on the wrong side of the city. East instead of west. A detour of some 17 km or so. The good news is that when I called the agency, Enterprise, and said there is no office here, they apologized and sent a car to pick me and my bicycle up.

After this delay and the drive to Sault Ste. Marie and back, there was hardly time for much riding. But I did want to try the new wheel.

So after assembly and an hour before sunset I head east once again and follow a newly paved bike trail along the shore of Lake Superior.

The trail markings note it continues for 12.8 miles so I decide to take it to the end and find a place to pitch the tent for the night. Unfortunately, after about five miles it turns into a gravel path on an old railway bed. I manage this for a few miles then start spinning out in areas where ATVs have made a mess of the path.

So I scramble and find a children’s playground in the dark and settle in for a good night sleep.

Stats – for Friday 13 July 2012

Start: Marquette, Michigan
Finish: Chocolay Tow ship
Distance: 28 km
Time on Bike: 1 hr 46 min
Average Speed: 15.7 km/hr
Distance to Date: 4,653 km