The Paul Bunyan Trail led me across a bridge overlooking bustling daytime Bemidji. While the day started cold and wet, the sun now warmed my skin, welcoming me. I tingled with joy. My sluggish legs were suddenly full of energy despite the strength needed to carry the 40 pounds of tent, sleeping bag, and other camping gear jammed into two pannier bike bags.

I started planning this trip a year ago. It was an idea that came to mind and pulled me into it. I was compelled to take this journey and followed the energy without understanding why. I purchased the necessary gear and practiced setting up camp and cooking using the hiking stove. I conducted a 70-mile trial run on a local trail to shake down my pack. Culling a headlamp, extra tent stakes, and other items I didn’t use in my practice ride. About a week into September 2018, I drove into Crow Wing State Park to solo bike-pack up the nearly 120-mile Paul Bunyan trail over three days.

Despite washing my riding clothes and showering nightly, I still smelled of campfire, sweat, and Coppertone, but I didn’t care. It was the perfume of my success. I felt like my soul had been swept clean by the quiet, the physical activity, and the time in nature.

As I approached the massive Paul and Babe the Blue Ox that welcomes visitors downtown, the wind grew stronger off Lake Bemidji, cooling my face and filling my chest. I snapped a few selfies to commemorate my arrival and turned north to finish the last 8 miles to Lake Bemidji State Park, my home for the next two nights. The yellows, oranges, and reds of early fall speckled the trees along the trail. Some leaves were beginning to fall, offering me my own ticker-tape parade. As I pedaled, the movement in and out of the sun created a natural strobe light.

As I rode on the soft park gravel road toward my campsite, I realized no one could take this experience from me. This journey and all the experiences along the way would be mine forever. It’s been nearly 5 years since I finished this pilgrimage. Time and distance have helped shake down my experiences and unearth new nuggets of wisdom. What started as an idea I was driven to fulfill has become a long-term teacher.