So today I played hooky from work.  Well not exactly hooky, as I had planned on taking today off and going up to Devil's Lake with my good friend Nicole.  Unfortunately, she bailed out on me at the last minute, but I decided to go up anyway on my own.  It was a gorgeous day, although really windy.  Seriously.  All day, nothing but wind.  Not a light breeze.  Wind.

I did the Devil's Challenge Bike Course, just to see how I'm shaping up so far.  As usual, my climbing skills aren't up to par yet, but I did barely make them all (barely being the operative word).  On the back section of the bike course on Newman Rd. is a great long downhill.  During a race I can easily make 35 MPH, and some people go much faster.  Today, I topped out at 25, and even that made me nervous.  Why?  You guessed it.  The wind.  The cross wind was so strong, that I was totally freaked that I would get knocked over (almost did once), and there I'd be with a broken collar bone and nobody around.  Luckily none of that happened.

One of the other things I always enjoy about Devil's Lake is hiking the bluffs.  It's actually a great workout if you've never done them.  I parked on the North Shore, did the East Bluffs first and then was walking along the South Shore towards the West Bluffs when I saw a couple in their 40's walking towards me, probably from where I was headed.  We exchanged pleasantries as we passed by each other, and then after I passed I heard behind me, "God Bless You!"

Did I sneeze and not realize it?  Granted, it's not as if I find someone wishing God's blessings on me to be offensive.  But still, I do find it a little strange, maybe slightly presumptuous, and well... out of place.  Maybe I'm alone on this.  Anyway, after that I hiked the East Bluffs, and then tried to go swimming to cool down.  I say try, because... well... the water was kind of choppy.  You can guess why.