Judy Byykkonen and some of the ladies from their WIND (Women In New Directions) group made the drive to Ishpeming, with their bikes in tow, so they could take a ride on the Iron Ore Heritage Trail. They rode from Ishpeming to Marquette and back again, for a total of about 32 miles. Judy said some of the ladies had pedal assist ebikes, the kind that you only use the assist when you need a boost, like on a steep hill. They aren’t fully motorized, you have to be pedaling for the assist to kick in. So it’s only there when you need it, but mostly you simply ride as usual.

The bottom photo was snapped by Beth Jukuri, who said it was the perfect day for a long bike ride like that on the Iron Ore Heritage Trail. It sure looks like it was and what a beautifully paved trail to ride on!

MI Playground takes us on the St. Mary’s River in the Sault Ste. Marie area. The lead-in to their video says: “What makes the St. Marys River so special? For us, it’s fishing, freighters, family, and spending time on the water in the Upper Peninsula. This river has been part of our story for three generations, a place where traditions are passed down and memories are made.”

These are such great pictures. This
group always has so much fun together.
I could never do that without an e-
bike. You go ladies!

That is just beyond awesome. Lucky, lucky ladies!
And I bet that paved ride was awesome.

The little dude in the video is so cute....and I
like them teaching him 'catch and
release'....that's cool...there's some of that on
Discovery's...and some guys kiss the fish and tell
them "go grow bigger" or "go lays bunches of eggs,
make more"...it's cool.

What a fantastic looking ride! I never needed a pedal assist bike when I was healthy and besides,they didn’t exist back then, but I could definitely see me getting one now if I was able to ride.
And a nice video too. I think that’s the same guy that does the MI Playground videos. It sounds like him, but he shaved his beard off so I wasn’t sure.

Alex...it is one of the guys from MI Playground. There are two of them and they're brothers, Nick and Andy Behling. Nick is the one with the beard and Andy is clean-shaven. That's Andy in today's video.

Hi
I'm happy that Judy has a group of friends to do
stuff with. The trail looks like a lovely scenic
ride.

The video with grandpa, dad & son all enjoying
fishing makes me remember my dad and brother. My
dad was always sorry his father would never take
him fishing. So when he became a dad, he resolved
to take my kid brother out fishing. It didn't take
them long to realize that they both enjoyed riding
around in the boat more than trying to catch a
fish. So they'd go boating instead. Mom & I often
came too.

"In seeking truth you have to get both sides of a
story."

- Walter Cronkite

My husband and I have ridden our bikes from Negaunee to
Marquette on the IOHT. It’s a pretty easy ride on the way to
Marquette, not so much coming back. Once, we spotted a vehicle
in Marquette at the Lower Harbor and rode there from Negaunee
and then around Presque Isle and back to our vehicle. We also
tried going from Ishpeming toward Republic, but the trail has some
rough rock and we were concerned about getting a flat tire. Plus,
that section is open to ATV’s. It’s a great trail and so well
maintained.