Sandi and Lewis' ride across Canada

Day 56 Quebec City (Rest Day) Pointe-Du-Lac to Quebec City Distance: 145 km August 18, 2006 After closer inspection of the questionable bunks in the dorms, we decided to sleep in our wee tent on the beach; it was a beautiful night, with a sky jammed with twinkly-stars. At approximately 4:00 a.m, which must be the witching hour for skunks, Lewis and I woke up to the overwhelming stench of the wretched creature once again-this time we had left our ‘fly’ cover off the tent, leaving us more exposed to the elements, skunks included. We both lay there dead-still hoping not to anger the stinky bugger in any way, so that we would not have to suffer the same fate that the Aussies did. After what seemed like an eternity, the fetid bouquet dissipated, and we could breathe once again-my heart was racing though, as I was terrified it had given our bare tent a wee squirt of the dreadful goo just for good measure. Today’s ride was one of my favorite so far; the scenery in Quebec keeps getting better,...

Day 55 Pointe-Du-Lac, Quebec Mont St-Hillaire to Pointe-Du-Lac Distance: 130 km August 17, 2006 In more Aussie news they not only had to chuck out their beloved tent, but their pillows and then their air mattresses as well, making last night’s sleep very uncomfortable for them, on the cold hard inhospitable ground. Luckily tonight we’re staying at a camp where we are sleeping in dorms so they are spared having to sleep on the hard floor again, until we reach Quebec City tomorrow where they can purchase new, skunk-scent-free bedding. Our ride today was very pretty, the Quebec countryside is quite beautiful with its rolling terrain and little farms. We rode with ‘the fun people’ today, who ride at a more relaxed and enjoyable pace, and actually do take the time to smell the proverbial roses along the way. Mercury must be in retrograde again as four people got flat tires today, slowing the ride down even more which was fine, as we no longer feel the urge to race into camp; it seems that t...

Day 54 Mont St-Hillaire, Quebec Hudson to Mont St-Hillaire Distance: 120 km August 16, 2006 Breaking news-a skunk felled the mighty Aussie Taj! This morning at approximately 4:00am the little, furry, black and white creature was nosing around their tent, when Peter, thinking whatever it was that was scratching and poking around could be discouraged by a solid ‘whack’, was unpleasantly surprised when the beast retaliated by spilling the nasty, oily contents of it’s smelly little stink-sack all over the Kookaburra Lodge. Following the nasty spillage from the wicked creature, the contents of the Kookaburra Lodge came tumbling out of the tent, coughing, splattering, and gasping for air. Poor Carol-Anne was retching and vomiting from the foul stench. Since their tent had been sprayed, all the contents of the tent were tainted by the fetid stench; they could not return to sleep, so got up for a cup of tea to ponder their stinky predicament. In the meantime, the brazen skunk returned for more...

Day 53 Hudson Ottawa to Hudson, Quebec Distance: 164 km August 15, 2006 This morning we all met at the Parliament buildings at 8:15 to have our pictures taken; as usual Lewis and I were the last to leave Carlton, and scrambled to catch up with everyone else so we could also be immortalized with the rest of the TDC in front of our nation’s government HQ. One of the riders works for National Capital Commission, and organized for us to visit his work around the corner from the Parliament Buildings and have coffee and donuts with the NCC team; they had very kindly put a package together for us, which included maps of Ottawa as well as information about what was happening around town-this was very useful as usually we have no clue what is happening and end up wandering around whatever town, aimlessly hoping to figure out what is going on-and usually don’t, so end up doing laundry and hanging about in internet cafes on our rest days. The NCC presented us with pins in the shape of the maple l...

Day 49 Carrying Place Dalington to Carrying Place Distance: 116km Day 50 Perth Road Village Carrying Place to Perth Road Village Distance: 129 km Day 51 Ottawa Perth Road Village to Ottawa (rest day) Distance: 135km Our stay in Toronto was brief, but everything we wanted it to be; we were well taken care of, fed lots of good food, and got to spend some brief time with our family. We also briefly went downtown which was a strange experience as I have not been around so many people in a long time; the largest city since Vancouver has been Regina, which, when we were there was either deserted, or they don’t have enough people there as there hardly seemed to be anyone on the streets. Not like downtown TO, where my elbows are rusty from not having to push my way along the side-walks. (Ok, maybe not that bad, but TO is certainly not lacking the masses) After all the lonely desolate towns we have come across along the way, which have given the impression to visitors that Canada is devoid of p...

Day 45 Owen Sound Tobermory to Owen Sound Distance 131 km Day 46 Toronto (rest day) Owen Sound to Alliston Distance 160km Since we’ve had seven days of riding, people are tired and have been anxiously awaiting the rest day in Alliston, ourselves included. My folks are picking us up and will transport us back to civilization-we are really looking forward to seeing our family, and our cat, who probably doesn’t care whatsoever that we have been away, and will be visiting her (making a special trip as she is staying at Lewis’ cousin’s place.) Someone got to lookin’ at a map of our destinations and figured out a way to shave about 40km off the ride yesterday; the new proposed route kept people on the highway and prevented them from seeing the gorgeous scenery leaving Tobermory. I was tempted to take the short cut, but since we are bureaucratic masochists who must follow the rules in the pursuit of pain, we decided to take the regular route, and pulled into camp hours after everyone else, wh...

Day 44-Tobermory, Ontario Manitoulin Island to Tobermory (ferry crossing day) Distance: 44 km Temp: hot Since we caught the ferry to Tobermory, our riding day was much shorter than usual. We had to have all of our stuff on the truck by 7:00am, and be at the ferry dock by 8:40am, 35 km away, which wasn’t a problem (for some getting up early and having the stuff loaded was the problem, me included.) Turns out that last night after the horse-shoers packed in their rowdy game, a bunch of teens decided to take up what sounded to be a very violent and loud game of tag. We were all glad when one of them was wounded and started to cry, thus ending the game past 11pm. Since Hedwig has declared war on us of late (over more than a week of his unwelcome and unwanted company) we struggled and battled our way over the relatively short distance to the ferry. I am even more convinced of my earlier stated theory that Environment Canada runs a racket; they report that there are prevailing winds from the...

Day 43-Manitowaning, Ontario Massey to Manitowaning, Manitoulin Island Distance: 111 km Temp: 26 degrees Thankfully our galley crew breakfast was successful, both in reviews and in our compatibility-we were all pleasantly surprised and happy to begin the day without drama. BP and I seemed to have moved on from our last spat and have managed to find a common ground-I am very impressed with our grown-up behaviour and ability to get along. We started the ride on a country road, which although gravelly, was relatively traffic-free. After stopping at Tim’s for a tea we set out onto a much hillier and busier route; the first half of the ride again being terrifying due to the complete lack of shoulder, and aggressive holiday traffic. A couple of people pulled into camp in near tears due to the traffic, as one rider was very nearly hit in a similar situation that we faced yesterday with an overtaking car coming from the other direction. At dinner we have all been sitting around and plotting pl...

Day 42-Massey, Ontario Thessalon to Massey Distance: 130 km Temp: 26 degrees So far today’s ride was one of the worst so far; the traffic was horrendous, probably owing to it being a long weekend, but not helping matters was the absence or decayed state of the shoulders (6 inches if we were lucky.) I have never been more terrified on the bike as I was today, pulling into camp a twisted knot of spent adrenaline and nerves. The worst moment was when we had a massive SUV overtaking a truck, coming in the other direction, so at the point they passed us we had a tractor-trailer, an SUV, and ourselves sharing a very small road. This SUV must have been going over 140km/hour trying to pass this truck-so having a heaving mass of metal bulleting towards you at such high speeds gets the heart rate near the red line. At the last minute we decided to ditch the road, and jump onto the gravel shoulder, forcing us off our bikes. We were jumping up and down and giving the one-finger-salute we were so ...

Day 41-Thessalon, Ontario Pancake Bay Provincial Park to Thessalon Distance: 162 km Temp: hot Another hundred-miler today-the hills weren’t as bad as the past few days as we are now out of the Canadian Shield, which is responsible for most of The Big Hills. We had one really steep and long hill heading into Sault St. Marie (The Soo) which had my muscles gasping for air, reminding me of little baby birds, mouths agape, screaming for food. We stopped off in the Soo for a free coffee, offered by ‘JJ’ who had done the ‘Tour D’Afrique’ last year; some riders met him at a coffee shop yesterday and they got to chattin’ about his adventure, and ours. He owns a hotel in town, and obviously felt some camaraderie with us, and offered us the beverage, to which we all gladly agreed. Afterwards we set out through some of the streets of the town; it’s quite a pretty town. The ride today was a mix of undulating hills, treed terrain, and open fields-the area is becoming noticeably more populated, as th...

Day 40-Pancake Bay, Ontario Wawa to Pancake Bay Provincial Park Distance: 163 km Temp: mild and overcast/rainy We set out late this morning as we’d stayed in a motel overnight and had to get back to the campsite to take down our tent since we’d set it up anyhow, in case we decided to go back to camp the night before the ride (we decided against it.) Since we got to camp late, we missed breakfast so ended up eating at a truck-stop with really bad service, putting us even later into the morning. We were on the road shortly after 10am; hours after the rest of the group had set out. As mentioned previously, some kilometers come easily, and tick by relatively quickly, and other times it feels as if you have to fight for every one-today was one of those days. It seemed like the whole ride was uphill (much of it was, at 1220 meters of climbing ) but adding Hedwig to the mix turned the ride into one of the most challenging so far; with all elements conspiring against us, I felt like throwing e...

Day 38-Wawa, Ontario White Lake Provincial Park to Wawa Distance: 129km Temp: 27 and raining I was woken up at about 4:30 am by the distant rumblings of thunder and the light pitter-pat of rain on our tent. I drifted in and out of sleep as the thunder continued to build until there was an ear splitting crash, followed by our tent lighting up completely by the lightning that then continued to flicker on and off for the next while. The skies let lose and the rest of the night and morning we got hammered by the rain. We tried prolonging getting up in the hopes that the rain would let up, but no such luck. I’d left my shoes outside the tent, and got a rude wake up when I stepped into soggy, wet sandals, and squelched my way over to breakfast, where I had a soggy egg on bread (only because I stepped out into the rain from underneath the half-tarp.) Since we were straggling, again we were one of the last to leave (as always.) The rain did seem to let up enough by the time breakfast was over ...

Day 37-White Lake Provincial Park Terrace Bay to White Lake Provincial Park Distance: 153km Temp: 33 degrees Half way! Today Megan met us at the half way point on our ride, to celebrate the half way mark of our tour- 3 759km, and 3 759 km to go! We had a nice lunch while overlooking Lake Superior; we thought it such a civilized way to do the ride and suggested that she meet us every day at the half way point (no such luck.) There is a group called Bikes For Bibles who are traversing the country at the same time as us; we’ve crossed paths a couple of times (either they clean out all the ice cream and pie at the stops, or we do-whoever gets there first.) But they have volunteers who cook for them the whole way, and supply lunch along the way as well. A few of us have considered converting just for the food-I’d say it’d be worth it. We notice that some strangers are especially nice to us-like overly nice, and we finally figured out that we were being mistaken for the Bible Bikers-but we d...

Day 36-Terrace Bay Nipigon to Terrace Bay, Ontario Distance: 108km Temp: cold! Today’s ride finally delivered on the promise of the hills-we climbed 1030 meters today; the hills ranged in distance from 2 to 5 km, but there was one section after lunch, and on the last 40 km that was on a more or less incline for approximately 12 km-it just kept going and going-legs were heavily objecting by the end of it. To compensate for the challenging terrain, the scenery was pretty spectacular as the hills seemingly lifted us into the clouds, and had us at such heights that we had incredible views of Lake Superior and the surrounding areas-this is definitely postcard country. Of late my bike has started to make very curious noises; I took it into to see Bike Guru in Thunder Bay, and had my bottom bracket changed, however the groaning noises have stopped but now it’s squeaking. As there were often no other noises to hear beside the wind in our ears, and the squeak of my bike, the mind starts to do o...

Day 35-Nipigon Thunder Bay, to Nipigon Distance: 109 km Temp: 27 degrees We kept hearing from people about how bad the hills were; we were warned by the organizer, as well as by all kinds of people along the way About The Hills. We all worked ourselves into a frenzy about today’s ride, which as it went along, only delivered little ‘hilletts’-nothing too substantial. We kept thinking that perhaps the worst of them were saved until the end-but nothing that was worth the hype and hooplah. I thought that maybe we had ridden such monsters over the course so far, that we had become un-fazable, so fit that monstrous hills no longer had any affect-surely not possible. Anyhow, we all remained suspicious as although the terrain was certainly challenging, it in no way presented us with the hardship that was promised (although Hedwig certainly had a good go, as we had strong winds for most of the day.) Since we had all slept so poorly in residence at Lakehead (due to the heat) we were all tired an...

Day 33, 34-Thunder Bay Quetico to Thunder Bay, Ontario Distance: 174 km Hot then rainy Well, wouldn’t you know it, the Button Pusher (BP) and I got into a huge row in the parking low at Kakabaka Falls; without going into too much detail, all there is to tell is that I am all that is logical and reasonable and he has the logical reasoning of a teenaged stubborn donkey. I tried to begin the conversation like an adult, inviting him to discuss a matter that needed attention. He refused any such engagement and immediately went into the equivalent of sticking his fingers in his ears and saying, “lu lu luluuuu, I can’t hear you,”. I attempted to engage him again in adult dialogue which he again met with the same type response. At this point I lost any cool I had left and regrettably made it personal by asking him if it was any wonder that no one liked him on the tour. It got ugly from then on in, and I am embarrassed to say we caused quite the scene. Since we were engaged in battle at a popu...

Day 32-Quetico Provincial Park Taylor’s Cove, to Quetico, Ontario Distance: 154 km 40 degrees measured on the road We have all, since starting this tour, become quite adept at ‘cyclist tracking’; how far ahead the others are, how long ago they passed a certain point, and the like. Naturally one needs clues in order to be able to ascertain this information, and in this case the telltale signs are fruit skins, specifically spent bananas. Often riders will eat the fruit while still on the bike, and throw the peels onto the road; judging by the shade of the brown on the skin, and the general hydration of the skin, we can judge their position, and adjust our speed accordingly-I am starting to feel like a Great Cyclist Hunter. I am not sure where these skills will take me once the tour is over, but for now, it has been of some use. The ride today was a toughie, as the terrain was very hilly; as soon as we climbed one hill, there lay another one in wait, taunting us. According to someone’s al...

Day 31-Taylor’s Cove Caliper Lake to Taylor’s Cove, Ontario Distance: 128 km 28 degrees We’re staying on a private campground tonight which has definite advantages, and some disadvantages; on the plus side we do not have to contend with the masses who have packed all their earthly belongings including the dog and cat (yes, cat) into their roving home, and then disgorged its contents for all to see, cat included. There are very few others around; giving the place the kind of solitude that one often wants when in the Great Outdoors. We’re camping beside a lake, which except for the odd motor boat, is quite quiet. I got to chattin’ with a ruddy, red swollen faced guy at the camp store who is here from the States for a three day fishing competition; turns out he is a professional fisherman and travels all over Canada, US, and Mexico from competition to competition. He says he hunts in the winter. I didn’t know that people like him still exist. He was complaining about having been on the wa...

Day 30-Caliper Lake Kenora, to Caliper Lake Distance: 127 km Hot It rained on and off throughout the night last night; there is something comforting about sleeping in a dry (hopefully) tent while it’s wet outside. Lewis and I did a cycling trip in Newfoundland a couple of years back and experienced torrential downpours; unfortunately our tent then wasn’t up to the challenge, and I ended up spending the night akin to what I imagined Chinese water torture to be like; with a constant drip on my forehead. Luckily the rain let up by the time we set out in the morning, and we cycled for most of the day under cloud cover, but by the end of the ride the temperature was measured at 36 degrees, making it an intense ride. It’s also strange to be in Ontario now, with its very typical Canadian Shield terrain-even though I have never been here; it seems all very familiar with the rocky, sandy, treed terrain with many lakes - it’s very much like the Muskokas north of Toronto. Also immediately noticea...

Day 28-Rest day Beasojour to Kenora, Ontario! Home Province Distance: 172 km Hot then thunder showers later on The past couple of days have been tough rides (I think I always say that, but its all true, each one offers its own unique challenge.) Day 27’s ride was pretty flat, but unfortunately Head and cousin SideWig decided to accompany us for the ride, turning what would ordinarily be a relatively easy ride, into a challenging one. We started off the ride on some very rough road (for the better part of 60km or so) and had us riding beside all kinds of fields of wheat and sunflowers. Also accompanying us were aphids, tiny, almost invisible buggy-things that flew nonstop into our faces, up our noses, and into our ears. We couldn’t see them, so I thought I was imagining them; but luckily their existence was confirmed when talking to the other riders who experienced the same thing. Bees are also very enthusiastic travel companions, (unwelcome) as they seem to love to zoom back and forth ...