Day 32: Monday, June 22
The Pedalers have arrived. After 32 days and several thousand miles on a bike seat, hunched over and exposed to all the elements that could be thrown at them, the Pedalers for Progress arrived in Portland Oregon. Click here to see their location.
Day 31: Sunday, Part II
The Pedalers for Progress continued towards their goal on Sunday traveling 56 very tough miles. As the P4P’s approached the Columbia River, they started experiencing the winds that they had been warned about. They boys are getting close to their destination, but it could be days before they reach it as the same obstacles that befell the pioneers on the Oregon Trail have been plaguing the Pedalers. Switch backs, up and down grades and now high winds. So close and yet so far. But they boys will persevere and figure a way into Portland which will hopefully allow them a soft bed and a hot shower at which time the world will seem much better.
Go HERE to see the Pedalers for Progress journey on Sunday.
Day 31: Sunday, June 21 (A Fathers Day Update)
As posted yesterday, the P4P’s bedded down at Heppner Or. last night. The location is a city campground. Michael tweeted yesterday, “Long days in the mountains. 23 miles to go. 50 miles no food or water.”
As a sort of Father’s Day present, Jake called last night at 12:30 our time and chatted for the longest amount of time we’ve talked so far. He told me of many tribulations the group has had along the way. Many times they run out of water and or food and there is still miles and miles to go before relief. Jake said after the 100 mile day with no food only to find their destination was a ghost town with no food, he no longer sets his days goal as food, but instead just makes it a destination.
He also said that group is getting pretty tired of being wet and cold a lot of the time. They have seen a lot of wild life just no bears or cougars. Jake did have 2 elk jump out in front of him yesterday when they were riding. He said they shot right across the road and “they were huge”. The Pedalers have seen a lot of the left overs of many animals. They are getting to know the droppings of bear, elk and other animals quite well. They have slept in many an area that is full grisly bear. Sometimes, if they are staying in a campground they will have food boxes for the campers but most of the time not. He said he personally has spent more than one night sleeping restlessly because the area where they were staying was so densely populated with bear, not just grizzlies but black bear as well. They often have to move their food a good 100 yards from the campsite which means leaving panniers there as well which they are not found of doing — they try to hide them from people as well.
There are also stories of small cities where they went to get water and the townspeople told the P4P’s not to drink the water because it was contaminated. He said their have been times when they will travel 40 miles and never see a tree or a person that isn’t in a car but will have a steer in the middle of the road that they will have to gently coax out of the way so they can get by.
He also said that Oregon has been very disappointing to the boys saying you can’t get anywhere in the state that’s a straight shot. On top of that its constant up and down. Whereas other states would have a long climb up and a long descent down, Oregon is switch back after switch back with constant ups and down’s. According to Jake, it seems as if you’re always climbing 7% grades. In his words, “It’s exhausting!”
The Pedalers for Progress are about to enter Columbia River in the next day. They will continue to head north and travel though the canyon that is one of key destinations in the US if you’re a wind surfer. Meaning of course that there are constant winds in the canyon and it’s not abnormal for those winds to reach 50 mph. They Pedalers will be heading dead into those winds which could cause more delays in their arrival in Portland. They have been told to cross the river at City of the Dalles where the Washington State side has better roads for them to travel on. They will be back on Lewis and Clark Hwy. 14 when they to get to the Evergreen State. The biggest issue will be finding service roads for a good 50 miles as they travel along side I-84. This might become a problem at the many bridges that cross inlet rivers that find their way into the Columbia. So the route could still need to be altered radically. Go here for a map of their plan for getting to Portland.
Day 28-30: Thursday, Friday and Saturday, June 18-20
Again, spot GPS reports have been intermittent but a bit better the last 24 hours. The guys have been checking in but not necessary at night so it’s hard to know where they’ve been staying over night. For these reports I will just give you the Spot check locations and you can follow along at home. In other words, connect the dots. Wednesday morning the boys were here. Thursday they did not check in at all. Friday they checked in 3 times, in the morning they were here. At 2:00 PST they were here, and last night they checked in at 6:16 PST from here. This afternoon, Saturday, they checked in from here. There final check in of the day put them in Heppner Or.
Jake texted me on Thursday at Baker City and said the Pedalers for Progess have now traveled 1,875 miles.
According to Google Maps, the P4P’s have less then 200 miles to Portland. ETA, Tuesday evening.
Day 27: Wednesday, June 17
I received a phone call from Jacob today, the first in 2 weeks. He has developed the same numbness in his fingers and feet that Michael had experienced earlier in the trip. He said it started off with a lot of pain and eventually just went numb. Others who have experienced this say it sometimes takes a couple of months to get the feeling back.
He also spoke of a young biker from the Virginia’s, who was biking from Portland back home with a program that was underwritten by his high school. Jake said he was a really cool kid and the Pedalers for Progress bought him breakfast.
He also said that the P4P’s could have taken a faster way to Portland but decided on the scenic route. It also sounds as if Idaho has been the highlight of their trip with some incredible sites. He also relayed that he is totally addicted to the rush one receives when flying down a mountain road at 40 plus miles per hour plus, the wind rushing against your face, keeping up with the car traffic as they are surrounded by the beauty that lies all around them. He said it’s almost indescribable.
Despite an earlier report, Jake says they don’t think they will be making it into Portland for another 8 days which would put them right on target for the 25th which is the date they had estimated they would be in Portland for meetings.
Make sure to check the Twitter feeds on the sidebar as Jake, Michael and Tommy all have been checking in.
Day 26: Tuesday, June 16
I did receive another GPS locater ping this morning and it puts the Pedalers HERE at White Bird, Idaho which is only a few miles east of the boarder. But the P4P’s will need to log in another 80 miles almost due south before they cross into Oregon. Perhaps tomorrow? They are currently pedaling through some incredibly beautiful terrain as the pass through the White Bird Canyon and the Nez Perce National Monument.
ADDED WEDNESDAY: The Pedalers for Progress sent out another GPS ping on Wednesday morning from the spot where they bunked down on Tuesday evening. It’s not real glamorous or as beautiful as some of the places they have been passing by and staying at. However, it did allow them some contact with home as everyone seemed to have good cell phone reception. Go HERE to see the city park where the boys stayed. You can spin the view around and see what it looked like. Tommy tweeted on Jakes Twitter account and said they had neon lights blinking on and off all night along with a store alarm going off. Not exactly peaceful like the rainforest they slept in a few nights ago. Overall the boys traveled 64 miles yesterday. Go HERE to see their path.
Day 25: Monday, June 15
No GPS ping from the boys today. I’m getting less communication than I was previously. I know the boys have been in some pretty remote areas, but I also get the feeling they are getting eager to arrive at their destination sometime by the end of the week and are pushing pretty hard right now. Jake did Tweet that they slept in a rain forest on Sunday night which is Clearwater National Forest I had mentioned in Sunday’s entry. He also texted me late last night and said he was in Grangerville waiting for the other three bikers to arrive. Perhaps my impatient son is getting more antsy to get to the Portland than the others. ADD runs in the family. 
So assuming the boys stayed at Grangeville Idaho last night, I think the tracking map should look like THIS and it would put the boys at logging in 47 miles yesterday.
Day 24 & 25: Saturday and Sunday, June 13-14
There were no check-ins by the Pedalers for Progress on Saturday. Jake did twitter which can be seen in the sidebar and I also received an email from Judy Schlaefer, Tommy’s mother. Judy said she talked to Tommy on Friday and the group was upbeat and expected to be in Idaho on Saturday. According to Judy, everyone was in good shape and the P4P’s were hoping to be in Portland in 8 days which would have them riding into Portland next Friday or Saturday. She said the Pedalers really wanted to try to attend the Critical Mass event being held in Portland next Friday.
Jake twittered that he woke up to wildlife around his tent on Saturday morning and that 3 of the 4 Pedalers got into a 9 mile race with a another biker.
Sunday evening was the first GPS ping of the weekend. It shows the boys deep into Idaho and now making their way west again. They are in the lush and dense Clearwater National Forest and bedded down in a small campground along the road and next to a stream. Go HERE to see what it looks like looking down from the road to were the boys set up camp last night by the water. This is interactive so make sure you spin around to take a look at all the terrain. Overall the boys have traveled 156 miles the last 2 days which is an average of 78 miles a day through some very tough terrain. Go HERE to see where the boys have pedaled the last two days.
Day 23: Friday, June 12
The P4P’s bunked down in Charlos MT on Friday evening after 83 miles of mountains terrain. They are still heading north Through Montana even though they crossed into Idaho and back out into Montana, all in a 2 mile stretch. You can see their full days travels by going HERE. To the best of my knowledge, it looks as if the Pedalers have now logged 1,465 miles.
Day 22: Thursday, June 11
There wasn’t a lot of correspondence from the Pedalers for Progress yesterday except for Michael’s and Jacob’s tweets which were pretty funny. Michael informed us that they were eating at Twin Bridges at the Blue Anchor Cafe. Jake tweeted that the Pedalers had a 1st. They were asked by their waitress to move to a larger table due to the excessive amounts of food they ordered at breakfast. Michael stated, “It’s concerning how much food we’re consuming.” I for one am glad to hear that they are eating well and am not at all concerned. Wow, they must really be burning the calaories.
The P4P’s will need another big breakfast this morning as they traveled 75 miles yesterday and stayed the night in Jackson MT. They are now only 10 miles from the Idaho boarder which is due west and runs along the top of a mountain range but are actually over 40 miles from arriving in the Potato State as they will need to continue riding north on Hwy. 278 and then west on Hwy. 43. Go HERE to see the map.
Day 21: Wednesday, June 10
The Pedalers made it to Twin Bridges, Montana yesterday. According to the travelers it’s a bike friendly city. Jake Tweeted yesterday that they saw other touring cyclist for the first time the whole trip. Michael Tweeted as well that the guys ate a 3X breakfast after not eating much the previous day and logging in a century. Go HERE to see yesterdays 68 miles traveled through the high country of Montana.
Day 20: Tuesday, June 9
I just received a ping from the Spot GPS. Good to know the boys are OK. Go HERE to see the Pedalers for Progress location. It looks as if they stayed in a campground next to a rangers station in the heart of the park. It also looks as if the Pedalers traveled 55 miles yesterday. Temperature at the park this morning, 35°F. Little did they know they would be winter camping.
ADDED LATE TUESDAY Night
I received several pings from the boys today. The last one was from Montana about 5:30 p.m. Mountain time. At that point the P4P’s had already traveled 74 miles. Go HERE to see the map. Evidently they weren’t done with their travels. Jake tweeted sometime after 9 last night that they had ridden over 100 miles on Tuesday and hadn’t eaten a meal, they had only snacked on power-bars. He said they made it to their destination (they didn’t activate the GPS so I don’t know exactly where they are) and found out that everything but the post office has been deserted.
“We had 2-potatoes and garlic, so I sliced them up thinly and made hashbrowns,” said Jake. “Nate made 3 pancakes.” He said the group split the food up amongst the four of them. A meager meal at the end of a marathon day.
Day 19: Monday, June 8
Again, no GPS pings from the boys. It’s been two days since there has been any communication from the Pedalers for Progress. Judy Schlaefer had a call on her caller ID from a lodge a mile or two out from the entrance of Yellowstone Park. I called the number and they said the boys had stayed their overnight on Sunday evening but had checked out on Monday morning. They also told me that the snow had all melted and that Yellowstone Park was open once again. So one can only assume they are trying to stay on schedule and are making their way through the park. Lets hope we hear from them on Tuesday. Here is the lodge they stayed at, just feet from the entrance to Yellowstone. Here are some photos of the area where the boys stayed and the cabins. Just imagine snow on the ground instead of grass.
Day 18: Sunday, June 6
No Spot GPS pings today so I have no idea where the boys are exactly. We do know a few sketchy details from Jake’s tweet and from Judy Schlaefer (Tommy’s mother). According to Jake the Pedalers have run into an impasse. They woke up to 8″ of snow on Sunday morning before entering Yellowstone National Park. I have no idea how they got out of wherever they were camped but they did and according to Judy the boys have found a cabin to stay in. So they are safe but are temporarily snowed in and Yellowstone is closed down according to Jake. The 5 day forecast for the area shows temps in the mid 30′s slowly rising during the week and snow, rain or thunderstorms predicted each day. I think there are some life lessons being learned here and the reality of the unpredictability and awesomeness of the Rocky Mountains.
Day 17: Saturday, June 5
No tweets or other info yesterday except that Jake texted saying his bike was being repaired. CLICK HERE for a map of the 63 miles the Pedalers for Progress traveled yesterday.
Day 16: Friday, June 5
From what I gather from Jacob’s and Micheal’s tweets yesterday, the Pedalers for Progress must have had quite a day. Check out their tweets that mention a 3,600ft descent in 14 miles. The had to deal with Thunderstorms rolling through the mountains and some bike breakdowns. Yet they still managed to travel 65 miles! I don’t even want to know how fast they were going down those mountain roads on their descent. CLICK HERE for a map of yesterdays travels.
Day 15: Thursday, June 4
The Pedalers for Progress started the day off in a mist and rain as they set out from Ranchington Wy. to take on the Big Horn Mountains. The boys made it up and onto the high plains of the mountains traveling 40 miles today. They had a very scenic trip up and they navigated switchbacks on hwy. 14. CLICK HERE to see the boys journey today. I also included some photos in the link. Make sure to click on those to see some of what the P4P’s may have seen today as they ascended into the Big Horns.
Day 14: Wednesday, June 3
The end of the second week found the boys in Ranchester, Wyoming. It was a short day of wet travel yesterday with 45 miles covered. The Augsburg Pedalers for Progress stayed at the Town Hall in Ranchester. Evidently, Ruth Salvatore, who helped the Pedalers the previous day, also helped them by calling the mayor of Ranchester and giving the A-OK for the boys to stay in a gymnasium like area in that town hall. There, the boys dried out their tents and sleeping bags as it had been raining for two straight days. They also ventured to the town library where they were able to juice up their electronic devices and jump on a computer with internet to make journal entries on the blog. Jake said the weather is scheduled to be wet and cold for some time. Checking the weather map this morning confirms a prediction of a week of rain in that area. CLICK HERE to see the boys’ latest travels.
The boys will start the day out having traveled a total distance so far of 865 miles. As the crow flies, Minneapolis to Portland is 1430 miles. So the P4P’s are now over halfway to their destination as they will enter their first real Mountain Range today.
Day 13: Tuesday, June 2
Nearly two weeks have passed and the Pedaler’s for Progress found themselves deep in the heart of Wyoming yesterday. Speaking to Jake on Monday evening, the group wanted to get off the very harrowing freeway system. Although it might have sped things up with flatter surfaces and straighter roads, there were too many close calls and navigating the entrance and exit ramps proved to be to more than risky. So the boys are back on Hwy. 14 and headed north yesterday through Spotted Horse and Leiter where they were located at 3:45 CST yesterday afternoon. I thought that was a good day’s work, but then they headed south through Clearmont and west once again. They ended their day late rolling a mile to the north down a dirt road called Coal Creek Road where they set up camp in the yard of a woman named Ruth Salvatore from the Ucross Foundation. She and her husband Ed let the Pedalers stay in their yard. Jake has Twittered that it’s cold and rainy. The weather forecast shows 46°F.
The scenery must have been pretty amazing yesterday as Hwy 14 is relatively flat with small mountains lining the highway on either side. The P4P’s traveled an incredible 80 miles yesterday. The are now headed towards the Big Horn Mountains and Yellowstone Park. Click HERE to see yesterdays journey.
Please note, the Google maps are interactive and you can zoom in to see specifically where the boys bedded down last night.
Day 12: Monday, June 1
The distance traveled today, 65 miles. Here we are in Gillette, Wyoming.
Day 10 & 11: Saturday and Sunday, May 30, 31
There were no check-ins from the boys on Saturday the 30th. One can only imagine what pedaling through the Black Hills was like. Jake’s Twitter said it was beautiful but I’m sure it was challenging as well. At some point on Saturday or Sunday, the Pedalers for Progress crossed over the state line and headed into Wyoming, the third state of 5 the boys will experience.
According to that same tweet, Jake says the boys are camping by a stream near a cliff and endured a “hefty” storm. The young men are now traveling on Interstate 90 which apparently is legal in the state of Wyoming. They are staying in Sundance, Wyoming and have traveled a distance the last two days of 80 miles.
Day 9: Friday, May 29
The 9th day of the Pedalers for Progress journey saw them make their way through South Dakota and arrive at what could be called the gateway to the west in the northern plains, Rapid City, South Dakota. The Pedalers didn’t make it into the city until late and were very thankful to Breadroot Cooperative. Breadroot stayed open late for the boys, allowed them to use the bathroom to freshen up and even granted them permission to stay in their back parking lot. Jacob Quarstad explained by phone last night (using Nate’s phone — his iPhone was out of power) that the group couldn’t find anywhere to stay and were told the police actively patrol the area as there are a lot of homeless people in Rapid City. Breadroot was kind enough to let the team bunker down for the night in their pea gravel parking lot. Jake said they didn’t know how they where going to stake the tents down but were confident they would figure something out.
Jake also reported running into a couple of interesting fellow college students who were from the Philadelphia area. He said the duo were taking a random road trip in on old van that only had a couple of cylinders working. A mechanic told them they wouldn’t make it to Chicago, but here they were in Rapid City. They are hoping to get the van all the way to Alaska on their summer journey.
Total distance traveled today, 60 miles. Go Here to see the latest route and where the boys ended up.
Thanks again to the kindness and generosity of Breadroot Co-op.
Day 8: Thursday May 28
It was a hilly day for the young men according to Jake Quarstad’s tweets. He said, “Hills, hills, hills, rattle snakes, cactus, dust devils, heat and little other human existence.”
Day 8 saw the boys pedal nearly 80 miles despite the hills and a very southern route as the boys head towards the Black Hills of South Dakota. I never received a GPS spot from them today but Jake is tweeting that they made it to Quinn S.D. which is about 5 miles east of the famous Wall S.D.
The boys had a conversation with some motorcyclists from Roseau MN and finished their day up with a cold one at a cheap steak house before crashing for the night.
Do you want to see what highway 14 looks like at Quinn? Take a look here at this Google interactive map. Yup! Not much there pardner.
Day 7: Wednesday May 27 (One official week on the road)
The Pedalers for Progress spent most of the day in Pierre charging phones, making phone calls as well as setting up appointments for their time in Portland, Oregon. They are predicting they will be in Portland from June 24th through July 5th. Despite the phone calls and appointments the the boys still managed to pedal nearly 40 miles in chilly temperatures. They look to be bedding down just short of a very small town called Hayes, S.D. They are about .5 miles to the east of Hayes and close to Frozen Man Creek. Lets hope none of the boys freeze tonight in the unseasonably chilly temps.
The Pedalers for Progress have now traveled 540 miles.
Day 6: Tuesday May 26
According to Jacob Quarstad’s tweet, day 6 was a tough one. It was cold and the bikers are getting sore after 6 – 70 mile days. I spoke to Jacob for the first time Monday night and he told of a tough 5th day of wind and driving rain and at times tedium from the landscape that has now gone from rolling farmland to flat South Dakota range.
It was reported that the young men have been eating breakfast out and consuming huge quantities of food in that morning meal. They snack in between meals and then stop to make lunch. In the evenings, they usually stop at a store before dinner to purchase items to cook for their meal so they don’t have to carry it with them during the day.
Jake Quarstad said, “Memorial Day was bad because the restaurants weren’t open and the quick stops were out of bread”
He also relayed some fairly harrowing road experiences they have encountered the last few days. He said his back was starting to give him problems and Micheal’s hands were giving his some issues as well.
This father hopes the boys will give themselves a break tomorrow. Amazingly they are almost half way through South Dakota tonight as they have stopped in the State Capitol of Pierre South Dakota on the banks of the Missouri River.
Day 5: Monday May 25 – Memorial Day
Yes, day 5, really! It’s hard to believe the Pedalers have been gone that long already. This 5th day saw the P4P’s having to combat high winds and some rain storms. As Michael put it, our first “real” day. None the less, the bikers still managed to log nearly 80 miles and tonight they are in another city campground. This time in the little town of Miller, South Dakota, population 1,341. Zip code – 57362 . Median resident age – 49.2 years. Median house price – $79,656. Explore Miller by Google Street View.
Day 4: Sunday May 24
Day four saw the Augsburg foursome travel from Lake Benton, MN to De Smet, South Dakota. Total distance 70 miles. Jake gave us a few tweets. Check for them in the sidebar.
Day 3: Saturday May 23
The Pedalers for Progress didn’t check in until 3:30 p.m. today and had already traveled 40 miles making it to a little town in Minnesota called Balaton. Their last location put them right next to Lake Yankton. My estimates show them about 40 miles from the South Dakota border. I would guess that’s their goal today but it would be an 80 mile day which is 10 miles further than they’ve logged in the previous two days.
Their final check-in came at 8:15 p.m. They are staying the night a campground just west of Lake Benton which is only 5 miles from the South Dakota border. The P4P’s rolled through some serious farm country on Saturday. The last 10 miles of their trip should have been peppered with wind farms which I’m sure there were very interested in. Total distance for the day was 63 miles. The pedalers have now covered over 200 miles.
Day 2: Friday, May 22
The Pedalers for Progress checked in 4 times today. They got off to a slow start and were still in the campground at 9:30 a.m. They checked in again at 3:00 p.m. as they had arrived in the town of New Ulm, a city with a strong German history. Jake Tweeted that they were eating lunch in an environmental adventure park in New Ulm.
We received another check in at 5:00 p.m. as they rode through the historic town of Sleepy Eye and finally we received our last OK at 9:20 p.m. from the town of Sanborn. From the map it looks like the boys have started to head south for a while and if they stay on track should pass by the Little House on the Prairie in Walnut Grove by early tomorrow.
The P4P’s look as if they may be staying in another city park with a small river running next to their site.
Estimated millage:67 miles. Click HERE to see their route today and their current location.
Day 1: Thursday, May 21
The Pedalers for Progress checked in today at 12:20 CST from Hopkins. The group checked in again tonight at 7:35 from a city campground in St. Peter MN, right next to the Minnesota River. Estimate: 70 miles. Click HERE to see their location.
