John's Week in the Twin Cities

Tuesday, July 14 – Tuesday, July 21, 2026
Two things are locked — Saturday breakfast and one work stop for Joe on Wednesday. Everything else is options. We play it by ear.
🚴 The ride menu →

The Week's Weather & Air

Wed 15
🌫️
96°
lo 75°
Hot, smoky
AIR: RED ~151
Thu 16
🌫️
93°
lo 75°
Hazy sun
AIR: ORANGE–RED
Fri 17
☀️
96°
lo 74°
Hot; smoke easing
AIR: BETTER AFTER AM
Sat 18
☀️
92°
lo 70°
Sunny
AIR: CHECK AIRNOW
Sun 19
🌦️
91°
lo 71°
Slight storm chance
AIR: CHECK AIRNOW
Mon 20
⛅
~90°
lo 63°
Cooler night
AIR: CHECK AIRNOW
Tue 21
✈️
 
 
Travel day
Air quality alert through Friday ~11 AM: wildfire smoke from northern Minnesota has the Twin Cities in the red, "unhealthy" range (AQI ~151 Wednesday), with more smoke waves possible Thursday into Friday morning. For the rides: check AirNow before rolling — orange means keep it easy, red means go short or skip. Everyone should dial back hard outdoor efforts while the alert is on. Source: MPCA air quality forecast.
Still hot and sunny most of the week — shade and evenings are the play, and Monday night finally cools off. Forecast + air quality pulled Wed 7/15 from the National Weather Service and MPCA; latest forecast here.

Today & Ahead

ThursdayJuly 16Ross day + St. Paul
🌅
Morning: open — TBDTBD
Smoke is forecast thickest overnight into Thursday morning, so nothing's scheduled — easy start
🥐
1:00 PM · Turtle Bread with Ross Savage — 4205 E 34th St · MenuLocked
Ross confirmed for 1:00. Mile and a half from the Airbnb
🚴
3:00 PM · Ride from Turtle Bread — air quality permitting · Route on KomootPossible
Rolls right after lunch, from Turtle Bread's door. Winds are forecast to push the smoke north through the day — call gets made off AirNow at lunch: orange = easy pace, red = skip
🌱
Evening: dinner at J. Selby's — all-vegan comfort food, Cathedral Hill… · MenuOption
Burgers, wraps, tacos — 100% plant-based, ten minutes from Mears Park
🎸
…then Lowertown Sounds at Mears Park, 6–10 PMOption
Free outdoor concert series, food trucks — St. Paul's best summer evening
FridayJuly 17Minnehaha evening
🎨
Minnehaha Falls Art Fair, 3–8 PMOption
Bike over ~5:30 as the heat breaks; the falls are worth it on their own
🎺
Free concert at the Minnehaha Bandstand, 7 PMOption
Pairs with the art fair — one easy outing, all within two miles of home base
SaturdayJuly 18Breakfast club
🍳
Saturday breakfast club, 9:45 AM — Egg and I, 2550 University Ave W, St. Paul · MenuLocked
You're the guest of honor
🏮
Aquatennial Floating Lanterns & Night Market, Bde Maka Ska, 3–10 PMOption
Lanterns on the water at dusk, street food, local makers
🎪
Rondo Days, St. Paul, noon–7 PMOption
One of Minnesota's largest celebrations of the historic Black Rondo neighborhood
🫐
Hopkins Raspberry Festival — Marketplace Fair, 9 AM–4 PMOption
300+ vendors on Mainstreet, Lions Club raspberry sundaes; ~25 min west
🎻
Minneapolis Pops Orchestra, Lake Harriet Bandshell, 7:30 PMOption
Free, on the water — pick one or two of these, not all
SundayJuly 19Quirky & light
🛶
Milk Carton Boat Races, Thomas Beach at Bde Maka Ska, morningOption
Real rideable boats built from milk cartons — peak Minnesota folklore
🗼
Highland Water Tower open house, 9 AM–5 PMOption
151 steps, panoramic views of St. Paul; open to the public only a few days a year
🎉
Hopkins Raspberry Festival — Grande Day Parade, 1 PMOption
92 years of small-town parade on Mainstreet, ~25 min west; pairs fine with the morning boat races
🚴
Or a lazy lake loop and a patioOption
MondayJuly 20The big ride
🚴
Brown's Creek + Gateway Trail from Stillwater (~20 miles)Option
Coolest day of the week; shaded rail-trail along a trout stream and the St. Croix, with downtown Stillwater to poke around after. Want to try an e-bike? Herman's (at Greenbridge Coffee on Main St) rents them right by the trailhead
🎷
Evening: Nova Jazz Orchestra, Lake Harriet Bandshell, 7:30 PM, freeOption
Last night in town — easy close-out
TuesdayJuly 21Departure
🚗
Car back to Cottage Grove — 7400 Iden Ave S, morningTiming TBC
Return's booked for 10:00 AM but the flight's at 10:14 — checking with the host about an early drop (~7:40) + rideshare to MSP
🛫
Fly home: UA 1637 departs MSP 10:14 AMSet

The Trail So Far

WednesdayJuly 15Neighborhood day
The ride beat the smoke. Rolled at 9:36 and got the creek-and-gorge loop in before the air went bad: 7.78 miles, 39 minutes riding, 11.9 mph average, 200 feet of climb. By evening the wildfire haze had settled in thick — the river gorge and Lock & Dam No. 1 half-vanished from the Ford Parkway bridge. After the Sencha drop it was an iced tea, a Whole Foods stop for John's dinner, and a night in: catching up on the state of the family, plus a good chat with an old friend, Steve Church. The bandshell went unvisited — the smoke can have that one.
Apple Watch ride stats: 7.78 miles, 39:03 riding Ford Parkway bridge fading into smoke haze Bridge lampposts against a smoke-white sky over the gorge Lock and Dam No. 1 under heavy smoke haze
The morning's numbers, then the evening's air: the Mississippi gorge from the Ford Parkway bridge under the smoke.
🚴
Morning ride, done — Minnehaha Creek → river gorge loop · Route on Komoot
9:36–10:22 AM, ahead of the worst of the haze
💻
Noon client visit — 2422 Clinton Ave
🍵
Andraya to Sencha by 3:00 — car stayed with her; John scooped Joe up out front, iced tea while there
🛒
Whole Foods dinner stop for John
🏠
Night in — family catch-up and a chat with old friend Steve Church; passed on the bandshell
TuesdayJuly 14Arrival day
Day one, done. John's in town, and the night closed out with dinner at Heather's — a good meal in the neighborhood. No pictures tonight; the camera comes out tomorrow.
🛬
Landed at MSP 12:17 PM (UA 5684 via Chicago)
🚗
Picked up the Ford Escape — 7400 Iden Ave S, Cottage Grove
🏠
Settled into the Airbnb — 3323 E 45th St, Minneapolis
Maryam's place, right by Lake Nokomis
🍔
Dinner at Heather's — 5201 Chicago Ave, Minneapolis · Menu
The pick over Sonora Grill — good meal, easy first night

Where We Eat

Vegan-first picksJohn's lane
🌱
J. Selby's — 100% plant-based comfort food, Cathedral Hill, St. Paul · MenuThu plan
Burgers, wraps, tacos; the Twin Cities' essential vegan stop
🥘
Lulu Ethiovegan — fully vegan Ethiopian, South Minneapolis · MenuOption
Veggie combos, lentils, injera — vegan and Ethiopian with no compromise on either
🥪
Herbivorous Butcher — America's first vegan butcher, NE Minneapolis · MenuOption
Deli counter: vegan brats, ribs, cheeses — good grab-and-go before a ride
🥞
Reverie Cafe + Bar — all-vegan brunch, bowls & burgers, 1517 E 35th St · MenuNear home base
Powderhorn, a few minutes away; tofu scramble, cinnamon rolls, full bar
🍔
Francis Burger Joint — 100% plant-based burgers, 3900 E Lake St · MenuNear home base
Longfellow, right on Lake St; vegan Juicy Lucy, taco-seasoned Impossible, black bean
🍲
Trio Plant-Based — vegan soul food, 920 E Lake St · MenuNear home base
Longfellow; cauliflower wings, soul bowls, vegan mac — recently relocated to this spot, worth a quick call ahead
🌮
Mexican fallback, minutes from home base: El Norteño (menu) or Sonora Grill (menu), both in LongfellowAnytime
Orale Mexican Eats is the vegan-Mexican standout if that itch needs both boxes checked
🛒
Groceries: Whole Foods for John's staples; Joe's regulars are Kowalski's and the Mississippi Market co-op (strong vegan deli)

The Map

Tap any pin for the name; addresses in the schedule above open Google Maps navigation.
Riding with us this week? The crew's ride menu lives at /rides
Built for John's visit · July 2026 · Forecast: National Weather Service