2,500 Miles!

Encouraging sign in North Dakota

Fixing a flat in Rugby, ND

Pelican Rapids, MN (Cool little town with a big pelican)

Pretty lake in western Minnesota

No offense to Mother Mary, but Jenny is the "Lady of the Hills" on our bike :)

Halfway thumbs up!

The odometer says...2,500 miles

Nice barn and silo in Wisconsin

Jenny and our sweet niece, Anina

Jenny and our nephew Elliot groovin in the living room

My sister, Amanda, and her daughter, Anina

Greetings from Wausau, Wisconsin! It is Friday, June 29th and yesterday, on our ride into town, we hit 2,500 miles. It was an emotional event and we had many hugs and shared our thoughts on how gracious God has been in bringing us safely this far.

After a great ride in the morning from Turtle Lake to Bruce, Wisconsin, we stopped and chatted with the very nice folks at WLDY-WJBL radio in Ladysmith, Wisconsin. I think our interview was on the local news yesterday, but I can't find it online. They gave us good advice on backroads to get to the Chequamegon National Forest and we headed out. I was impressed that there is National Forest land in central Wisconsin. We enjoyed a cool breeze at our back and great scenery of rolling hills, forest stands of aspen and pines, and small farms tucked into the woods. We have seen many Holsteins and dairy farms.

One of our favorite activities is greeting the cows that we have seen along the way. As we pass a herd, we typically shout out a greeting, but it is important to note that the greeting varies depending on what state we are in. When out in the cowboy territory of Idaho and Montana it's a "Heeeya there cows, gettalong there, heeeyaa." In North Dakota it was a "Oh dem are some nice lookin cows der, you betcha." In Minnesota it's "Hey der cows." In Wisconsin it's "Go Packers!" and all the cows mooo and raise their mugs of Miller beer.

We had a great campsite along the Miller Dam Flowage (apparently they call reservoirs, "flowage" here). We were very excited to get to Wausau so we started early on Thursday morning. We hit 2,500 miles after about 60 miles and got to the Sanford's house at 12:00 after a 70-mile day.

We are currently enjoying a day off in Wausau to be with the Sanfords (Matt, Amanda, Elliot, and Anina). They have been wonderful hosts. We had great mango-coconut smoothies when we got here and an excellent tamale dinner last night. Matt had a big nursing test this morning and he is now a certified nursing assistant...Congratulations! The rest of us went out to pick strawberries and came back with a full load for various concoctions. Jenny and I rode down to the bike shop and got the wheels trued and some fresh grease on the bottom brackets and brakes. Thanks to City Bikeworks for their skilled labor!

It is so much fun to play with our nephew, Elliot, and spend time getting to know Anina, our 3 1/2 month old niece. Matt and Amanda are very good parents and we have enjoyed learning from and observing them. We're looking forward to a fish taco dinner tonight! Back on the road tomorrow morning hoping to get to Freedom, WI and then to Manitowoc, WI to catch the S.S. Badger across to Michigan on Monday, July 2.

Bob Bayn, Jenny's Dad, wrote a short letter to the editor of the St. Cloud Times. Thanks for watching out for us Bob! You can see it at http://www.sctimes.com/apps/pbcs.dll/article?AID=2007106250056.

Hope you all are enjoying the summer so far! We are feeling very appreciative of all we've been able to see and do during this '5,000 for Thirst' adventure. Their have definitely been some trying times...huge climbs in the Rocky Mountains; hard, cold rain in central Idaho; 25 mph crosswinds blowing us off the road in North Dakota; extreme heat and humidity in western Wisconsin...but we trust in God and pray to Him regularly. He deserves praise and thanks for keeping us safe and for leading us on this journey. He also deserves praise for the amazing work that Thirst Relief International is doing to help people who face challenging circumstances.

"Have you not known? Have you not heard? The LORD is the everlasting God, the creator of the ends of the earth. He does not grow faint or grow weary; his understanding is unsearchable. He gives power to the faint, and strengthens the powerless. Even youths will faint and be weary; and the young will fall exhausted; but those who wait for the LORD shall renew their strength, they shall mount up with wings like eagles, they shall run and not be weary, they shall walk and not faint." Isaiah 40:28-31

With Love,
Scott and Jenny