Day 16: Pain in dem der hills

After all the hassles I'd been having with the rear wheel, Ron was kind enough to take me into Kenora this morning and I got a brand new tire, spokes, and tube. It was a costly little venture, however the ride today was great, and well worth it. Due to the little excursion in the morning, I got started rather late and was on the road just after 11.

Claire dropped us off at the highway and Ron rode with me for a bit as I traveled further east. The ride continued to be breathtaking, with little lakes around every corner. There was unfortunately one catch.

I never in my life thought that after cycling half way across the country, I might say that I felt out of shape, however today kicked my butt. While the prairies were a great warm up, I think I may have had it a little to easy (and this is still considering all the rain, headwinds, and cold). Today was a perfect, sunny day, however at the end of it, my legs have never felt so tired. The winding roads, while beautiful, were an agonizing push every kilometer of the way with constant hills.

However, things started to flatten out a bit closer to Dryden and I'm now sitting comfortably in the good company of the Nordlunds. A few loose connections put me in touch with them, and I just got to experience yet another evening of an amazing home cooked meal. I got to enjoy corn yet again, and had some of the most delicious wild rice I've ever tasted (which is strange, since I've never even liked it before this).

I know what you're thinking; this has got to be the most pampered tour in history. I even have another bed tomorrow night, and a place to stay once I hit Thunder Bay. I assure you that I will make up for all of my decadance once I get on the road around lake Superior. Looking closely at the map, cell service and warm beds are going to be the least of my worries. Towns are spaced far enough that water could even be a problem, and I'm going to have to carry enough food for 4 or 5 days, to weigh down my bike even more (making more fun for that rear wheel).

In short, this entire trip has kind of been a build up towards the long haul around the Superior. I've had fewer and fewer days off, less people I know along the trip, and as I learned today, I'm heading towards terrain which is going to chew me up and spit me out.

For 7 days straight.