July 25- We started our morning with chocolate and banana pancakes,
expertly cooked with gobs of butter by John and Lydia in our host's
kitchen. We ate them happily and scooted out the door to a local bike
shop, where we picked up some bike boxes on the house. We then got a
lesson in bike boxing as we packed up our trusty steads and waited at
the bus station to catch a ride to Sioux Falls. Although we didn't plan
on hopping on a bus, we did what we had to do to catch up on some miles
we had lost due to our wonky start. After six hours of looking out at
the unchanging South Dakota scenery, we arrived in Sioux Falls where we
reassembled our bikes and rode into town. We arrived at the Gier's
house, where we were warmly greeted with hot pizza and Jasmine tea, just
as a massive downpour began. After eating our fill and playing with Ted
and Bill, the two impossibly fluffy house cats, we got a hearty night's
rest.
