Poopy's Lunch Ride

With a full-time job just around the corner, this might be the last "free" Monday I have in a long time, so what else other than ride should I do?  I planned a ride to Poopy's in Savanna, Illinois for lunch.  This route I had planned would cover close to 400 miles roundtrip.

My route would have me ride a small stretch of The Beltline Highway 12/18 westbound to Highway 14 (Park Street) south towards Oregon.  South of Oregon Highway 14 changes from a divided highway to a 2-lane roadway.  On this 2-lane roadway I saw several flags showcasing American Heroes.  As I walked along this fence line, I thought back to the many friends in my life who have sacrificed a "normal" life so that others can feel more at peace.  Whether these Heroes were in the Military, Law Enforcement or a Fire Fighter, they have done their assignments unselfishly, knowing their life was on the line everyday.  

  

Continuing on Highway 14 south I decided last minute to turn west onto Highway 92 and take it into the Village of Brooklyn, then Highway 104 south to Highway 59 west.  I rode into the Village of Albany, crossing over  the Sugar River.  I stopped to take a photo of the Damn along with S&B Tubing Company (Floatin' through Life).  We might need to try this River out next summer since we now have kayaks!  Weird names of two cities close to each other in Wisconsin, better known for their New York locations.

Continuing westbound on Highway 59, I passed a church that began in 1856.  The Gap Church was a perfect spot for yet another photo.  If someone knows what Hymn Sing means please let me know.  I'm assuming it means the congregation gets together and sings hymns?

After a few photos I continued west on Highway 59 until I reached Highway 11, there I rode west towards Monroe.  Instead of riding through downtown Monroe I decided to take the Highway 11 and bypass business 11.    

Just east of Browntown on Highway 11, I saw a sign that read "Hawks Mill Winery".  I decided being so close to a Winery and not buying a few bottles for my absent passenger would be a big, very big mistake.  I rode south on Allen Road and found Hawks Mill Winery.  The parking lot was gravel so I took extra caution as to not make a bad impression of my years of riding experience.  As I got off the motorcycle I read a sign saying, "Wine Tasting 11:00AM" and it was only 10:00AM!!     

In the wine processing building a man, later found out to be the owner came out to greet me.  I asked if there was anyway I could purchase a bottle of wine even though the store was closed.  He graciously opened up and spend some time explaining the many different fruit wines.  Hawks Mill Winery has only been in business for about a year.  The Winery covers 18 acres and uses their home grown grapes as well as others to ferment fruit into wine.  The store is located high above the valley where they grow their grapes and from out on the deck overlooking the grapes below, you can see for miles.  Wisconsin has many wineries, each with a unique story to tell.  The store itself was once a house, later sold to the winery and in 2015 after being remodeled was opened to the public as a store and tasting room!  

Inside the store, or "tasting room" you will find several types of fruit wines.  Some are sweet, other semi-sweet and a few dry.  The store was spotless!  During regular hours they serve food.  What an awesome stop that I could have easily passed had I taken a different route or had been in a pack of other riders and on a time schedule.  This lone-wolf-ride might turn out to be the perfect ride!  The owner took a case box and custom made it to hold 3 bottles securely so I could ride without the worry of broken bottles.

Back on my route westbound on Highway 11 I came into Shullsburg.  Shullsburg is known for their cheese processing.  In fact, October 1st is their Cheesefest Celebration!  A Danish immigrant in an Irish town started making cheese in 1938 and by 1940 the Government heard about Tony's cheese that it became a household word from Shullsburg to Berlin!  Shullsburg known for the lead mining that once was a way of life has seen its' own disasters when 8 men died in the mine.  This Lead Mine Cave disaster occurred February 1943.

I finally reached Dubuque and the Mississippi River!  After a short ride west on Highway 61 I turned left to ride south on Highway 52.  I met up with four other riders, all on Harley's, they also had plans for lunch at Poopy's in Savanna, Illinois.  As my low fuel light started to glow, I knew I had at least 35 miles until empty.  Not knowing the area very well along with male pride, I refused to use my onboard GPS!  As soon as I saw a Casey's Station I stopped.  Good choice because there were other photo opps nearby!  Checking-in on Facebook, I found out I was at Lock and Damn No. 12 in Bellevue, Iowa (A True Riverfront Experience).  

I haven't ridden these roads in what seemed like forever and yet as I traveled on, I recall the sites as if it were yesterday.  This to me was amazing since I rarely remember what I did yesterday!  I knew I was in for another awesome grated metal bridge on Highway 52 followed by a stop sign approximately fifteen feet from leaving the bridge.  Since the stop sign is so close to the end of the grated bridge, one must start braking prior to leaving the bridge.  Be prepared, know ahead of time what is coming up!  To my surprise, as I reached the bridge I saw they were constructing a new one.  The new bridge looks to be bigger (of course) and no doubt better and hopefully NO metal grating!! 

The bridge from Iowa into Illinois is short in length when comparing it to the bridge from Wisconsin west into Dubuque, Iowa. 

Being on the road since about 7:30 this morning, I was getting hungry and hoped Poopy's was near!  Continuing south on 52/84 along the Mississippi River you immediately land in Savanna, home of Poopy's!!  Since this roads were somewhat familiar, I felt I had to turn right onto Highway 84 in order to reach Poopy's.  I had reached my destination after adding about 200 miles to our 2014 Harley-Davidson Peace Officer Special Edition Limited.  Without wasting anytime in the parking lot, I damn near ran inside to get a look at the menu.  A special bar stool was waiting just for me, now how did they know!?  My goal was to be back on the road by 1:30 and it was almost 1:00!!  With another 200 miles to ride before reaching home, I thought a Poopy's Burger, would have me stopping a few times at gas stations even though I had plenty of gas to make it home (go with your first thought here!).  So I played it safe and ordered a grilled chicken breast sandwich and diet soda.  Service was very fast and I was back on the bike in no time and easily before 1:30pm!  Pope's is a place you could easily spend an afternoon.  They have a large store with many t-hirts, patches, ranger and other biker apparel.  For those who have more time, you can even have one of the tattoo artists add some special artwork!

Just shy of 400 miles, I arrived back home just after 4:30.  This gave me plenty of time to take a load to the yard waste center.  Hopefully I can talk a few couples into a Couple Fall Color Ride covering this same route.  I will need to start working on lodging and see what is available.  October can be a very busy time for everyone!