New London, Minnesota, bicyclist exploring the world on her own power

Jun. 23—NEW LONDON — If you want to explore the world on a bicycle, you need two things.

First of all, "you need a good bicycle that fits," said Kathy Hartley.

Second, she also recommends that you have the bicycle shop expertise and backup provided by Rick Norsten and Jedd Danielson at Rick's Cycling and Sports in Willmar.

Thanks to both, she pedals anywhere from 2,000 to 3,000 miles a year. She has yet to experience a mechanical breakdown or any harmful wear and tear on her body.

It also helps to have a sense of adventure. It's what has led Hartley to bicycle throughout much of Europe, Australia and even Iceland. In the U.S., she's pedaled from the Canadian border to the Twin Cities. She biked the Florida Keys. She's explored the hill country of Texas to the tropics of Maui, Hawaii.

Her latest quest? She's two-thirds of the way on a journey from the source of the Mississippi River at Itasca State Park to the Gulf of Mexico. She's following the Mississippi River Trail, a 2,972-mile bicycle route.

Harltey, who will turn 70 in September, has divided the journey into four segments over as many years. She started in 2021 and made her way in separate segments from Itasca to St. Paul and from there to Dubuque, Iowa. Last year, she followed the river in Iowa and Illinois to Hannibal, Missouri. Both trips were unsupported.

This year, she's just returned from making her way from Hannibal to Memphis, Tennessee. Her husband, John, provided support this year, lining up hotels as overnight destinations for her and occasionally driving to meet up with her with ice-cold water.

She's broken each of the segments into seven- or eight-day journeys. She covers roughly 65 to 70 miles a day.

Give her a tailwind and she can do more. She surprised her husband one day when she decided to take a "recreational" ride from their home near New London and ended up in New Ulm, about 100 miles distant.

Hartley said she's always enjoyed bicycling, but believes her passion for long-distance rides began in 2010. She insists that age is no barrier to long-distance quests. "You don't have to do it all in one long shot," she explained. "Adjust it and still make it something accomplish-able."

When not on the road, Hartley is a part-time pastor at Bethel Lutheran Church in Willmar. Her full-time career included years as an educator and later, an ELCA pastor in Kandiyohi County.

She grew up on a farm near Raymond. "I grew up riding a horse. I think that gave me the sense of adventure," she said.

There is a sense of personal satisfaction in achieving the goals she sets, Hartley added by way of explaining her passion.

She also hopes that this journey down the Mississippi can help her call attention to the importance of protecting our water and environment. Hartley serves as a board member with Clean Up the River Environment, which is based in Montevideo.

The affiliation with CURE had its benefits when she reached Cairo, Illinois, on this year's trip, which took place in late May and early June. She needed to cross the Highway 51 bridge to Wickliffe, Kentucky. The heavily traveled bridge is just over a mile long, but no wider than 22.5 feet, with shoulders only 1.25 feet wide.

The Kentucky Department of Transportation gave her an escort across the bridge after she called for help to deal with the traffic. The man answering the phone asked if she was making her trip as part of an organization. "Then I guess I can help you," she said he told her.

Truth be told, that sort of kindness has been the story no matter where she pedals. Whether traveling as part of a group on roads in Europe, or pedaling solo on the back-country roads of the U.S., Hartley said people have been very nice and "overwhelmingly welcoming."

Dogs are another matter. She carries pepper spray for those rare occasions when she can't out-pedal a dog.

Her guide book for this latest adventure is Bob Robinson's "Bicycling Guide to the Mississippi River Trail." It allows cyclists to follow lightly traveled, rural roadways for most of the journey. She said she has especially enjoyed the river towns in Iowa. She's also enjoyed fun conversations with farmers along the way, as well as the patrons and the owners of small, rural diners.

Nonetheless, the route also has brought her to the big cities along the river. After a hard day's pedal in St. Louis, Missouri, she and her husband took a Uber ride from their hotel to watch a St. Louis Cardinals and Kansas City Royals game in Busch Stadium.

Most of her days end on a much quieter note. She's usually happy to rest her weary muscles and get a good night's rest for the next day's adventure.

While the next leg of her Mississippi River adventure will have to wait until next year, there's plenty of bicycle riding to be enjoyed closer to home. Every Thursday, she and friends meet in Willmar for a ride on the Glacial Lakes Trail to New London and around Green Lake. On any day, she will hop on her bicycle for a ride wherever her whims might take her.

That's the case year-round, by the way. In recent years, she's taken up fat-tire bicycling to enjoy her passion when winter snow covers the landscape. And when it's just too darn cold, there's a spinning bicycle in the house for exercise, along with winter getaway trips with her husband to warmer climes.

She's already looking forward to next year's trip and the chance to complete the Mississippi River route. This year, she and John quietly hopped into their vehicles and made the trip to the starting point in Hannibal, Missouri, after she led a Sunday service.

Next year, she's planning "to make more of a deal" of starting her final segment of the route. This is not because of the accomplishment it will represent for her personally. She wants to do more to call attention to the water quality and environmental issues that are so important, she explained.