News & Stories

Apple Orchard Adventure- NSJ on bikes!

In late October the Nellie Stone Johnson Ski Team took a bicycle trip to an apple orchard in Stillwater.  Jerry Williams of the Major Taylor Bicycle Club of Minnesota, organized the trip and shared his experiences below. 

I was happy to organize a bicycle trip to Aamodt’s Apple Orchard in Stillwater for the Nellie Stone Johnson Ski Team.

The Major Taylor Bicycle Club of Minnesota is a nonprofit organization that promotes safe bicycling for the African-American communities of Minneapolis and St. Paul. As such, one of our goals is to promote fun and safe riding for our youth. We hope that this ride will be the first of many.

 

The day was cool and grey. The temperatures hovered in the mid-40s, but fun was had by all, and nobody was cold. We rode about 25 miles round-trip. Most of the riding  was on the Gateway trail which is mostly flat. Once we got off the trail there were a few hills along the way to make things interesting. The stop at the Apple Orchard was the highlight of course. We got to sample different varieties of apples, apple pies, apple cider, and apple bratwurst. We also toured the farm.

Our Nellie Stone Johnson riders were all from Arkansas. Two of them were recent arrivals to the Twin Cities. Our cool Minnesota weather didn’t faze them. They were all looking forward to ski season.