NORTHERN LAKE MICHIGAN LOOP, Part 2

At South Bend, IN

The Amtrak train we took was the Lake Shore Limited (train # 449) that runs daily between Boston, MA and Chicago, IL. I had been checking frequently over the last couple of weeks the arrival status of the train in South Bend, IN to try and determine how well it kept to the schedule, which was to arrive in South Bend at 8:46 in the morning. If this held true, we would have a good two to three hours to put the bike together, store the empty cases to await our return trip to the train station, and have enough daylight to ride the 58 miles to Mattawan, MI to stay the night with friends. Needless to say, the train was regularly off schedule by the time it got to South Bend which is near the end of the route.  A couple of times it was near schedule. One day it was over seven hours late. Typically it was about one to two hours late. I hold nothing against Amtrak in this regard because they are at the mercy of the freight lines that own the tracks the train uses, and passenger trains do not always have the priority in such cases. With this little bit of information I figured (hoped) the train would arrive in South Bend by about 10:00 or so. I felt comfortable with this as I figured I would need two hours to get the bike put together. A noon departure on the bike, out of South Bend, seemed reasonable.

August 3, 2018

The reality was that the train arrived in South Bend at 11:00. Still, not so bad and I felt comfortable with the timing since the sun doesn't set until almost 9:00 in western Michigan. We were able to quickly get the cases with the bike parts from the attendant, and found a grassy area in the shade of some trees to start putting it together. Thinking back, I don't feel it was too difficult to get the bike together, and it took about two hours, except for one little part that created a very large problem. When I had taken the bike apart at home, I disconnected the timing chain that connects the two cranks together so we both pedal in sync, so it would be easier to pack and not get kinks. I tossed the old SRAM Powerlink (because I have read they should not be reused) as I had several spares. Well, I did have several Powerlink spares, for a 10-speed chain. The timing chain was a 9-speed chain. That means the 10-speed Powerlink was just slightly too small to link through the 9-speed chain (which is slightly wider), and I was not able to connect the timing chain. A person could ride the bike, in the back, but you needed really, really long arms to be able to steer and stop. Or the second person could sit in front and steer and brake, while the person in back did all the pedaling. Not a bad idea other than the 90 pounds of gear that we had to carry, plus the cases we still had to deal with.

Getting ready to assemble the bike

Calling local bike shops to see if they have the necessary parts.

Still calling.

The wrong size Powerlink was problem one, but we found a bike shop that carried it a couple miles away, so we would just walk, or ride, or do whatever we needed to get to the shop before it closed. First we just needed to get the four cases into storage at the train station. Hence problem two. The station manager was happy to store our cases. For six dollars per case, per day. Since we would be gone three weeks that would be over $500 dollars to store cases. We pleaded, and she was sympathetic, but regulations did not permit any other option. Uh, not going to happen. Granted, this falls on us as we did not verify ahead of time with the station what storage costs might be. We naively thought that once they saw we were on a bicycle tour they would be agreeable to store the bags for at most, a nominal fee. So, what to do? By now it was nearing 2:00 and we needed to get on the road. Laura started calling around to try and find a place to store the cases. Hotels, fire stations, police stations, churches, warmshower hosts, all either said no, or did not pick up. We were getting desperate now.

Laura calling around trying to find someone to store our cases.

 

I love trains, but the loud crossing horns and rumble of fright cars did not make using a phone very easy.

 

Still working on a solution.

We came up with a plan B. Rent a car, drive to Mattawan, MI, store the cases with friends, and start riding the next morning. If you have done enough bicycle touring, you will know that plans will typically have to change for any number of reasons. These particular reasons fall into the realm of stupidity and naivety, but all these become learning experiences. Back on the phone to rent a car. Called one company and they quoted a ridiculous price of $300 for a 24 hour rental. Called around some more, and found a car for about $100 a couple of miles away, but we had to go and get it. I started walking/jogging to go get the car while Laura stayed with the bike, gear and cases. About a mile in, I received a call from the local car rental agent (apparently we had rented through the national office). They did not have any cars available. Nobody had any cars available for that day. I stopped, turned around and headed back to the station.

We came up with a plan C. Find a hotel room, rent a car for the next day, get a taxi to get the cases and gear to the hotel, and I would walk the bike. We found a hotel about four miles away (did I mention the South Bend train station is on the edge of town?) and booked a room. We successfully rented a car for the next day. We called for a taxi. He would arrive in about 15 minutes. We proceeded to move all of our stuff to the other side of the station to expedite loading the taxi. At this point we discovered a young gentleman on the other side of the train station dealing with his own issues of getting some place. He was carrying two large suitcases and needed to get south, further into Indiana. None of his friends were willing to come and get him. He wanted to take the bus out of South Bend, but the bus station was a few miles away, and the last bus was leaving soon. We were sympathetic, but not sure what we could do. He was thoroughly unhappy with his friends. At this point, a nice woman riding by on a bike noticed our gear and stopped to see what we were up to. She said there was some fair going on in the center of town, and if we were staying the night, we should stop in. Sounded fun, but I did not expect we would go given the day we were having. The taxi then arrived, and fortunately it was a mini-van. We talked to the driver and offered to share our cab with the stranded gentleman. We loaded our four cases, six panniers, and his two large suitcases into the mini-van. Laura hopped in front of the cab, and I started walking with the bike. As I walked, well actually scooted along with one foot on a pedal and the other pushing on the ground, the woman on the bike came back. She asked if she could help me get the missing Powerlink, but I declined saying I would deal with it tomorrow. She rode off, and came back again, asking if there was anything else she could do. I said I was fine and thanked her for the offer. I scooted along on the flat streets of South Bend towards the hotel. I made good progress too. I arrived at the hotel shortly after Laura and caught her checking us in. We got all the cases and gear into the room and put the bike in there too and headed off to find some dinner. By this time it was about 6:00, and we realized we had not eaten since shortly before getting off the train that morning.

Relaxing in the hotel after a long day.

What we learned after all of this is that there are usually many solutions to a problem, you just have to think it through. It also helps to have the financial means to help make it happen. We are fortunate in that regard. This is all part of what makes these trips an adventure, the good and the bad, and the unexpected. Tomorrow will be a new day and we will see what it brings.