We weren’t far from Eagan when city ways were left behind,
Hmm.We passed many huge arrays of solar panels.Coates is one of the tiny towns on US 52 South.
Four-lane US 52 is much noisier and busier than the country roads that brought us there. But it was the shortest route to the day’s destination, and the wide smooth shoulder kept motor traffic at a safe distance.
Uh-oh.
Sgt. Troy Siems, Minnesota State Patrol
Sgt. Siems looks all business, but he was as friendly as he could be. He understands why we chose to bike on US 52. Alas, he said, it is illegal for non-motor traffic to use that road, and at least one motorist had reported us to the police.
He asked where we got on the highway. We did not enter via a ramp, but after turning right at a stop sign at an ordinary intersection south of Eagan. We wouldn’t have turned if there were a sign prohibiting it. The sergeant said nearby on-ramps (35 miles into our 84 mile journey) have such signs.
The two humans had a long friendly chat about cycling, America, and human rights. The sergeant is intelligent, sensible, humane. He gets it.
L to R: Jeffrey, Joey, Sgt. Siems. He followed us on the shoulder to guard our rear for 1 ½ miles to the next exit. (Selfie courtesy of Sgt. Siems.)(Note to Sgt. Siems: At the on-ramp where we left US 52, we saw no sign banning cyclists.)
Our GPS trooper-mandated bicycle route was quiet and very lightly traveled. But the shoulder was impassable. We had to ride on the motor lane.
Soft shoulder. And how!
The bad aspect of the cyclist route is that 6 miles of it was on hilly gravel roads. Gravel cuts our speed in half and adds to our effort. Passing vehicles kicked up clouds of suffocating dust.
Truck goes by . . .. . . and dust billows up .Lucky me, I don’t breathe and I travel in a bag. Jeffrey had to stop, cover his eyes, hold his breath, and the dust washed over him—every time.
The good aspect was that scenic paved recreational paths were part of the route.
Covered bridge.Greenery provided occasional relief from the all-day 25 mph headwind.
And we met nice people.
Elizabeth, a photographer (note the camera on her shoulder) and journalist, and Carl, recently retired from IBM, gave us route advice. They invited us to pedal alongside and chat as they walked the path. They are enthusiastic about protecting migrants and refugees.
Elizabeth kindly shared her professional photo of Jeffrey. I was in my bag.
Mike, Julie, Terry, and Linda, are from northern Minnesota. Terry affirmed Jeffrey’s debunking of some disparaging myths about migrants.Our kindred spirits! Louise, a semi-retired microbiologist; and Alan, who planned, built, and installed infrastructure for an electric utility; do local 20-mile trike treks. Louise shared her thrill at visiting Abraham Lincoln’s home in Springfield, Illinois, in happier political times. We all had a spirited, and sometimes mournful, discussion about the state of American education, politics, and human rights.Minnesotans Jeanne and Dave are our kindred spirits too. They saw the sign on our rig and offered blessings that we gratefully received. They handed Jeffrey a generous donation to Human Rights First.
Ride for Human Rights 
Interesting day. Good they didn’t haul you off to jail.
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