Day 3- Lake Superior Bike Tour: Duluth to Silver Bay
Day 3 of our Lake Superior Circle Tour took us up Minnesota’s North Shore, from Duluth to Silver Bay.
Day 3
The morning of Day 3 of our Lake Superior Bike Tour began much more comfortably than the previous morning. We had a nice morning eating breakfast with our first Warmshowers host in Duluth, MN. We were very grateful not to be battling bugs while we were drinking our coffee.
Saying goodbye to our Warmshowers hosts in North Duluth! Thank you!
Cycling on the Lakewalk out of Duluth is a pleasant morning ride. These city signs with cairns can be found all the way up the North Shore.
We decided we better hit the road shortly after breakfast, before the heat of the day hit, especially since we had struggled so much in the heat the previous day. Our only delay was when I stepped in dog poop in my stocking feet. That will teach you not to walk around outside with your socks on! (Especially when you only have two pairs of socks!)
After getting off the Lakewalk, our route took us along Brighton Beach.
Brighton Beach is a beautiful pebble beach just north of Duluth. It was one of our favorite spots on the bike route from Duluth to Silver Bay.
To leave Duluth, we took the Lakewalk out of town, continuing along Brighton Beach. The water of the lake was a steel blue, and we could hear the pebbles shifting as the waves moved them. These kinds of stretches right along the lakeshore were some of our favorite parts of our bike tour around the Lake.
After Brighton Beach, we got onto Highway 61, which we would follow almost all the way to Thunder Bay. This particular stretch of Highway 61 is actually called “Scenic 61,” and it parallels the commercial 61. It’s a low-traffic and perfectly smooth with a very wide shoulder that is even marked as a bike lane. We saw other cyclists—recreationalists, commuters, and even some other bike tourists.
The clouds to the north warned us of the summer thunderstorm that would hit later in the day.
Ian wearing his new bike hat that he bought at the bike shop in Two Harbors, MN. How is this better than a buzz cut?
Two Harbors, MN
We biked along this pleasant highway until we reached Two Harbors, a town of about 3,800. At this point, “Scenic 61” joins back up with the regular Highway 61. In Two Harbors, we headed over to a neat bike shop and coffee house, called “SpokeNGear,” to pick up some supplies. Ian also bought a hipster bike hat, because he didn’t like how his head looked with the buzz cut I gave him before we left. The guy at the bike shop also gave us an ominous warning that Highway 61 north of Two Harbors was about to get a lot worse for cycling.
We tried to stop at Castle Danger Brewery in Two Harbors, one of the stops on the Lake Superior Ale Trail, but it was closed, as it was only 10:30 in the morning. Time gets a bit warped when you are bike touring.
Our final stop in town was at the Two Harbors Visitor Center to get the second stamp on our Circle Tour Passport. A kind old man answered all of our questions, except he didn’t know much about the condition of the shoulder north of town. Unless we were lucky enough to find someone who was a cyclist, asking people about the condition of the shoulder on the road ahead, usually resulted in blank stares.
Ian’s newly built wheel with our dynamo hub worked great for charging our power banks.
Two Harbors has a lot of cute photo spots, and it’s one of the destinations for the Lake Superior Circle Tour passport stamps.
It didn’t take long however for us to find that the shoulder essentially disappears on Highway 61 north of Two Harbors. There are deep linear cracks along the edge of the road that you could easily drop a bike tire in. Besides the dangerous cracks, we had busy traffic to contend with in both directions.
Ian biking along the road that allows cyclists to bypass the Silver Creek Cliff Tunnel north of Two Harbors on Highway 61.
At around 30 miles, we arrived at the Silver Creek Cliff Tunnel. This 1344-foot tunnel runs straight through the tallest bluff on Lake Superior’s North Shore. Fortunately, we didn’t have to bike through the tunnel with traffic. There is a conveniently placed bypass for cyclist on a paved trail. There are some incredible views of the Lake from high above on the cliff.
This bike infrastructure is part of the Gitchi-Gami State Trail that will eventually be a paved trail leading all the way to the Canadian border.
The bike trail around the Silver Creek Cliff Tunnel has a selfie spot, where you can put your phone to take a self-timer photo with a great background.
The bypass trail around the Silver Creek Cliff Tunnel offers wonderful views from high above the lake.
A ways further up the road, there was another tunnel that we had to bike through, but it is short enough that it is never truly dark inside. There is also a shoulder nearly the size of a full lane so you can feel safe while biking through it.
Only shortly after this tunnel, we were relieved to see a full shoulder, and we were able to truly enjoy the beauty of bike touring along Minnesota’s North Shore—dark thick pine forest, bright waters, pebble beaches, and rocky cliffs.
One of our favorite discoveries on the North Shore was a giant game of ladder golf, along with normal size cornhole and horseshoes on the lawn of a hotel. We stopped for snacks (some Khalahari Biltong) and to attempt to play the massive ladder golf, by swinging the balls around like some sort of mad lasso. Eventually Ian got the knack for it, but I don’t think I ever even hit the 10-foot PVC structure.
While bike touring, hanging out in random, semi-public places, like the lawn of a hotel where you are not a guest (Thanks Grand Superior Lodge!), just kind of becomes the norm. It seems like when people see the loaded bikes, they just kind of tolerate it as well. They might even offer you some snacks. Bike touring is so different than going on a road trip.
You never know what kind of unexpected fun you will find on a bike tour.
The North Shore of Minnesota is a great place to bike with fun places to stop and even quite a bit of paved trail for riding.
Gooseberry Falls
One of the most popular stops along the North Shore is Gooseberry Falls. Five waterfalls tumble down into Lake Superior over ancient basalt lava flows. We stopped to take a look at Middle Gooseberry Falls. When we got down to the overlook, it started to rain a bit, so we headed back to the visitor center.
As soon as we got back, it started to downpour. We watched the deluge from under the wide awning of the Gooseberry Falls Visitor Center and cozily drank coffee from the gift shop while staying completely dry. We chatted with some other cyclists who were biking this stretch of the North Shore as a day trip.
Gooseberry Falls is one of the most popular destinations on the North Shore of Minnesota.
Gooseberry Falls, where five water falls tumble into Lake Superior is a must-stop for any North Shore Bike Tour.
At Gooseberry Falls, we were able to get on the Gitchi-Gami State Trail. This trail is part of the North Star Bicycle Route, which will eventually lead 315 miles from St. Paul, Minnesota to the Canadian Border. That is why there are other brief sections of bike infrastructure, like the detour around the tunnel, along other stretches of Highway 61. When completed, the Gitchi-Gami State Trail will be an 89-mile paved trail from Two Harbors to Grand Marais. In the meantime, we enjoyed the 12-mile stretch of the Gitchi-Gami and the reprieve from having RVs full of gray-haired retirees whizzing past us.
We were able to avoid a massive downpour by hanging out at the Gooseberry Falls State Park Visitor Center.
Gooseberry Falls is where you can pick up the Gitchi-Gami State Trail, which you can ride on for about 12 miles.
There are many other beautiful waterfalls, like this one on the Beaver River, that you will encounter while biking along the North Shore
We had planned to stop at the historic Split Rock Lighthouse, but even though the land around the lighthouse is a state park, apparently the lighthouse itself is managed by a private organization. To climb the tower, you have to pay for and reserve a tour. We decided we didn’t have the time or energy to stand in the drizzling rain, waiting with the hundreds of other tourists to see the light, especially when there would be other lighthouses to explore along on our Lake Superior Circle Tour.
Continuing to bike north on Highway 61 was awful. The worst biking conditions were between Beaver Bay and Silver Bay, where there were no shoulders. In some places there were even guard rails that push you directly out into the lane without any option to bail onto the shoulder if a car gets too close for comfort.
The Gitchi-Gami State Trail along Minnesota’s North Shore was one of our favorite places for cycling around Lake Superior. The rocky cliffs along the lakeshore are breathtaking—and so was Ian rocking his Aero Tech Designs jersey!
Silver Bay, MN
We arrived at the charmless outskirts of Silver Bay quite frazzled, passing the blue behemoth taconite processing facility. I found a few piece of the round, black, marble-like taconite on the side of the road to show Ian who didn’t know what taconite was.
In Silver Bay, we had planned to camp at Black Beach Park, which was listed as a free campsite on one of our favorite travel resources, FreeCampsites.net. However when we arrived, there were no camping signs posted everywhere.
Ian stops to take a photo of a waterfall on one of the bridges along Minnesota Highway 61.
Only 3 miles from our destination for the night! Day 3 was one of the most exhausting days of our ride, because we still weren’t used to being on the bikes all day.
The charcoal-colored sand of Black Beach is a stunning contrast to the turquoise waters. The dark shoreline has less than stellar history—the dark beach actually the result of tons of taconite waste that was dumped into Lake Superior decades ago. Jagged and colorfully stained cliffs, ring the cove.
Unfortunately we were much too exhausted and emotionally fried from the day’s ride to truly enjoy Black Beach. Plus we knew we would have to find a spot to stealth camp nearby. Stealth camping usually gives you a place to sleep, but it’s not going to be a room with a view. This night in Silver Bay was a rough night even by stealth camping standards.
When looking for a stealth camping spot while bike touring, you’ll want to find a spot where both your tent and your bikes can be out of plain sight.
For Night 3 in Silver Bay, we ended up camping in a small gravely clearing in patchy area of woods between the highway and lake. There was broken glass, random rusted metal, and garbage everywhere. We could here the shouts from workers at a nearby construction site. Fortunately our tent was green, so it allowed us to camouflage a little better.
We were happy when it stopped raining, and the sun came out right before sunset, but then the mosquitos came out in hoards. Our tiny damp tarp tent revealed it’s serious limitations for two exhausted cyclists on a 1300-mile bike tour.
Home, sweet garbage site.
Ian looking pleased to be out of the mosquitos and rain, while I try to get into my pajamas while being eaten alive.
Stealth camping isn’t for everyone, but we did it fairly often in order to reduce the cost of our bike tour around the Big Lake. Night three of our Lake Superior Circle Tour is one of those nights that we look back on now and laugh about!
The touristy North Shore of Minnesota has a lot to offer to bicycle tourists. There are A LOT of giant Adirondack chairs. Climbing these slippery wet chairs in our bike cleats was nearly as dangerous as riding on the busy highway.
See our full route for Day 3 on Strava!
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Have you biked Minnesota’s North Shore? Where were your favorite spots along Highway 61?