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I rolled into the Depot Coffeehouse in Hopkins, MN right before the rain hit on May 10th. I shoved my bike under the small awning and worked on tying up loose ends. I will admit. I was disheartened. I thought I was going on a solo trip that day after spending so much time and energy planning what I had hoped to be an amazing day of riding and then camping with a huge group of women and male stokers.

I stood outside and greeted the sag wagon driver Matt Vanderson and the rest of the Surly team guides. The rain kept spitting and stopping as we moved the sign up inside to stay dry and warm up. Things were not looking good.

Until they came.

As the clock ticked closer to roll time of 1:00PM, riders continued to roll in! One of the riders told me the cashier at the Depot wanted to talk to me. She brought out 3 huge trays of awesome baked goods provided by Phil Velo for our riders. It was amazing. THANK YOU PHIL! Everyone who arrived was excited to ride. There were no bad attitudes or complaining. When the time arrived to roll out we had 42 riders on the road to Waconia.

The official midpoint was Excelsior Brewing. We all rolled in and lined up for beer. They were ready and waiting for us. I can't thank them enough for stepping up by agreeing to be open on that Sunday, offering a free brew for each rider and then donating a growler package to the prize table.

At Excelsior the guides talked about next steps. The weather report looked worse than ever. Heavy rains and thundestorms were all the forecast had to offer. We decided to hand out raffle tickets and give people the option of riding on to camp or heading back. Most chose to camp. I was personally shocked at the number of campers we had. I was excited to camp but did not expect so many others to be right behind me. It was glorious.

The weather held out for the most part. It rained a lot but it was mostly light rain until the night came. The hard stuff came after midnight when we finally extinguished the fire and last of the riders crawled into shelters.

The morning ride back to the Depot was swift and varied. Everyone had a different agenda. Some stopped for bloody marys. Some jetted straight back to the Depot. Some were gone before I even got out of my hammock. Again, I heard no complaining and only happy chatter about the trip. It was a short overnighter but it really meant a lot to me. I was told by a few that it was their first time bike packing and they were stoked to do it again and again this Summer. That was all I needed to hear to call CycloFemme 2015 a success.

Looking forward to seeing you all again! You are my heroes.

Now let's enjoy some photos I took and stole from various people's facebooks (with permission because I am not an animal).

Downward view of 3 hand over a campfire, with one of the hands holding a Cyclofemme Surly Ride 2015 sticker

Six people sitting around a rectangular table with baked good and a stack of papers on top Downward view of 3 trays of baked goods on top of a table

Three people sitting around a square table, chatting, inside of a room in a building

Left side view of a silver Surly Big Dummy bike, with a cyclists standing in front of the front wheel, on a brick patio

A closed up of a person, wearing a bike helmet, making an angry face, with another person standing behind them

Tilted view of a patio area with tables and bikes, with train rail cars in the background

A patio area with tables and bikes, with train rail cars in the background

A person, wearing a bike helmet and rain gear with a backpack, on a street crosswalk with a train cars in the background

2 cyclists posing with their bikes, with a young cyclist on a recumbent bike between them, on a brick patio

People sitting at tables in a bar of a brewery

Headshot of a cyclist, wearing a bike helmet on the side of a paved bike trail with trees on the sides

Front, right side view of a cyclist a the front of their bike, on grass next to a paved trail, with trees behind them

Front view of a group of cyclists riding down a gravel road in a rainy day in the green woods

A group of cyclists, riding or standing with their bikes, on a gravel road with trees on both sides

Rear view of 2 cyclists, standing with their bikes and a child in rear bike seat next to them, with trees in background

One cyclist turned away and another facing forward, standing over their Surly bikes on a gravel road with trees behind

Three cyclists standing on a gravel road with their Surly bikes, loaded with gear, with trees in the background

Panoramic image of a green grass field with a campsite, in front of trees

A group of people gathered around a campfire on a dirt clearing of a green grass field with a few trees

Two people posing side by side, in a green grass field with tents and bikes in the background

Downward, chest down view of people, standing around a campfire, holding cans

Right side view of a tan Surly bike with a hockey helmet on the ground behind the front wheel, leaning on a wood wall

Tents in a row on a green grass field, with picnic tables bikes and a few trees in the background

A campfire at night with people sitting behind and trees in the background

A view looking out of a tent at the right side of a bike leaning against a tree

Homeward Bound

Rear view of cyclists riding down a paved bike trail running between grassy fields, on a cloudy day