Trail: Cannon Valley Trail in Minnesota
Start: Cannon Falls Trailhead in Cannon Falls.
Route: Ride east to the town of Red Wing and back.
Distance 47 miles round trip.
Weather: Partly Sunny. Temp: 50-70 degrees.
Low Elev 700, Hi Elev 845. Feet Ascended: 850
Trail Material: Asphalt.
Rating: Thumbs Up.
Trail Pass: $4 Daily.
What a shame. Minneapolis is suppose to be the most bike-friendly city in the country but I was intimidated by the huge City of Minneapolis. Finding a trail in Minneapolis to ride and a place to park was seemingly impossible. Never had any problem finding trailheads on other trails in other states. Michigan trail maps made it extremely easy to find parking. Most Minnesota websites did not give parking info. Some said parking is a premium in downtown Minneapolis and that you have to pay to park or have a parking permit sticker. Dunno. I know nothing about taking a bicycle on a commuter bus or train to get downtown Minneapolis. It was the weekend and the trail was likely going to be real busy. I don't care to dodge people on a busy trail, so, I decided to do a half day ride on the Cannon Valley trail that someone recommended before quickly leaving Minnesota.
First bad thing about the Cannon Valley ride was more bumps. My ass still hurt from all the trail bumps yesterday. To make things worse I had to buy a trail pass which cost 4 dollars just to ride on the recreational trail. Luckily the Cannon trail smoothed out fairly quickly which is why I still give it a thumbs up rating. Was not as impressed by the trail as I hoped it would be because it was another one of those trails where it felt like riding in a tunnel of trees. The good thing of a densely covered trail is it keeps the temperature about 10 degrees cooler.
Highlights of this trip: Wildflowers and the number of the people kayaking, tubing, and canoeing down Cannon River which was occasionally visible from the trail.
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