Day 26: Hellllooooooooo LEGS!!

Today was as close to perfect as I think things are going to get. It was sunny, clear skied, relatively flat and most importantly, the winds were as calm as Hindu cows. Of course a tailwind would have been nice, but after last week, I'll take whatever I can get.

I started the day by enjoying a nice breakfast with Jill, Ted and their cousin Jamie. We probably stayed up partying a bit too late last night and I didn't get on the road until close to 11, but some things are just worth it. I'd rather have a good time now and sleep when I'm dead. Thank you again Jill and Ted for all of your hard work and for being so hospitable. I did more and met more people in a day in the Soo than the entire week around Superior and most definitely will have some great memories to take with me.

Once I finally got going on the road I again noticed something different. With smaller hills, no winds and rested legs, I was really booking it. I covered 120km today at around 25km/h without even feeling it and am suddenly very excited to blow through the rest of this ride. I kept looking down at my legs, expecting them to eventually hit the wall as they had so many days before around northern ON, but they simply pushed on, and smirked at me as though to say we're baaaacck.

All things considered, it was an enjoyable but uneventful day. The shoulders are still horrible and there are still a ton of trucks, but that should all change once I turn onto Manitoulin in the next couple days.

As a parting shot, I think I found my favorite road sign of the entire trip. I wish I could say this was a unique anomoly, but these things were everywhere. I was pissed off because I didn't see a single carriage; all I stumbled across was a pile of horse crap.

Rest Day: Sault Ste. Marie

If I thought yesterday was amazing, I had no idea what was in store for me. Jill & Ted had put a ton of work into the day and we had an absolutely amazing time today.

I started the day bright and early with a meeting with the mayor, followed by a photo op & interview at the hospital. I then did my usual 'day off tasks' of bike maintenance, catching up on emails and groceries.

I had heard some unfortunate rumors about cycling not being allowed on highway 69/400 south of Sudbury, so I decided to give the ON ministry of transport a call. Sure enough, after being transfered 7 times, I eventually spoke to someone who was able to tell me that from Sudbury, there really was no good way to cycle into Toronto which wasn't either:

A) Illegal

B) Suicide
C) All of the above

As such, I had to do a bit of research and make a tough, last minute decision. My route for the last week of my journey has been changed and unfortunately, I'll no longer be passing through Sudbury. This will mean me missing out on a number of media and hospital opportunities as well as a chance to stay with the family of my friend Lynn.

What I will be doing instead is turning south before Sudbury and venturing onto Manitoulin island (I've updated the 'Route' section for a more accurate map). From there, I ride to the tip of the island and catch a ferry from South Baymouth to Tobermory. Then I will turn east at Owen Sound and ride along the coast to Collingwood and towards Barrie, before taking Yonge street all the way to downtown Toronto. The difference in distance is only about 15km shorter, but I assure you, I'll be well over the promised 3500km (in fact, it looks like I'll be closer to 3700km after all is said and done).

View Larger Map

While I'm dissapointed to be missing out on Sudbury, I've been told great things about Manitoulin and the Nottawasaga Bay. In addition, I love boats, and I'm looking forward to getting to ride the ferry across the lake!!

Tonight, we had the most incredible time. Jill & Ted invited over a group of friends and we sat around eating, drinking, singing and enjoying everything there was to enjoy about life. It was a great change after being isolated in the woods for a week and I could not have thought of a more perfect evening before kicking off my last week on the road. We even had a cake to commemorate the occasion, spelling mistakes and all!!

Day 25: A Hero's Welcome

I often wonder if the left hand watches the right and makes plans accordingly. After spending one of the most arduous weeks of my life traveling around the Superior, today felt almost as though it was decided that I had suffered enough, and the time for my enjoyment was upon us.

Now don't go thinking for a second the wind was pointed in the right direction or anything... let's not go crazy. I still had a slight cross/head wind, but by this time, it felt like nothing more than a gentle tickle across my crazy bushman's beard. Everything else however, was sure to click into place.

I bid adieu to my good friends from the south after an amazing evening and got on the road in good time. Sure, the situation really wasn't that different from previous days, but at this point, it was information which drove me forward: I was almost in Sault Ste. Marie.

The day pushed along with more gorgeous views of lake Superior, fantastic voyageur breakfasts, hills that I may have nightmares about tonight, and a slowly declining odometer towards civilzation, and a day off.

What I didn't anticipate was upon my arrival in SSM, little ol' me would get one of the warmest welcomes of my entire trip. Jill Lang Ward, her husband Ted, and a group of friends had come out in full force, with police escort and Prairie Pedal flags hanging from their car windows to usher me into their fine city. After the last week I'd had, it was almost enough to bring me to tears.

We eventually made our way back to Jill & Ted's home where they INSISTED that I do as little as possible. They prepared a meal fit for a king and we spent the evening eating, drinking, and learning more and more about each other. Jill underwent a stem cell transplant over a year and a half ago which took very well and has been in remission ever since. She's technically retired, but as is the case with so many of the energetic people I'm meeting on this trip, has a life which one could hardly call relaxed.

The icing on tonight's cake (well, blueberries and ice cream) was when, after catching up on the prior website posts and before doing this one, I went for a quick dip in the hot tub. Yes, as though a crack of sunlight was broken through the dark clouds, my definition of perfection was redefined. Take a body that's been beaten, battered and bruised around one of the the largest lakes in the world, introduce it to warm, jet-filled waters and what do you get?

Mushy, lazy, euphoric bliss... aaaannnnd, bed.

Day 24: Turn the right corner

(expanded upon from barely decipherable notebook scribbles)

It's amazing how a small brush with a mother bear and her cubs can make you forget about trivial things like headwinds. That said, I "awoke" this morning, still clutching my can of bugspray and well aware that once again, I would be battling my old friend Mr. Wind.

Still, I wasn't going to let it ruin my day. I had the fortune to travel through one of the most scenic places in all of Canada, Lake Superior park, and I was going to enjoy it!! Between stints of pressing my nose against the handle bars to hide from the wind, I managed a few glances along the coast to see some of the most beautiful views one could imagine, and slowly made my way through the park.

Near the end of the day, I hit the infamous Montreal River hill, which I had been anticipating for the whole trip, as it was likely the steepest hill I was to face on the entire thing. At a 7% grade, I was really hoping to top my old speed record as well, but with the wind, I barely made it over 55km/h.

When I was ready to settle down for the night, I picked a random dirt road and turned the corner. This was the choice which would make my day. I followed the road towards the lake and stumbled across a little slice of heaven. There was a small clearing with a few fire pits directly beside a beautiful pebble beach with a creek flowing into the bay. To add to everything, a small apple tree grew by the lake.

To make things even better, 3 motorcyclists from the US were there to greet me. Mike, Paul and Cody had been riding around the Superior and were fantastic to hang around for the night. We talked Canadian-US politics, muscle power vs motor power, and even the finer points of relieving one's self outdoors. Being on motorbikes, the guys had the luxury of carrying a lot more gear than I did, so we managed to start a fire and had a proper cook up with chicken, corn, soup and grilled apples.
Before the ride, I was really looking forward to lake Superior because it would afford me the opportunity to, at a moment's notice, hop off my bike and go for a swim. Sadly, with the weather as cold and wet as it had been, I'd yet to have a day to enjoy the lake. Fortunately, on one of my last days on the lake, the sun was shining, the water looked inviting, and I had 3 other people as crazy as I was. We jumped in the lake for a quick dip and then spent the evening shivvering and drying off by the fire.

I fell asleep to the sound of a babbling creek and soft waves lapping on the shore of lake Superior. This was the trip I had been waiting for. This was the adventure I wanted every single night.

This is living.

Day 23: Baby Problems

(expanded upon from barely decipherable notebook scribbles)

When I last left you, I was bathing in a euphoric figurative and literal tub of hot water, pizza and beer. The next morning, while relaxed, was unfortunately a harsh snap back to reality.

The wind was blowing in my face again. At this point, I almost began to feel as though I wasn't welcome around Lake Superior. It was as though the lake had simply decided that I did not belong and that it was going to do everything in it's power to try to turn me the other way.

Little did this lake know of the strength of a Saunderson's stubborness.

I realize as I write this that you're likely quite sick of hearing me mither and moan about the wind. I assure you, however sick you are about hearing it, I am FAR more sick to be still complaining about it. I realized today that since leaving Winnipeg, I have had 1 day of tail winds.

Otherwise, the day was quite pleasant, if a bit cool. I decided to ride with my shirt off for a bit, but put sunscreen on my shoulders, which have been known to burn in the past. I apparently bought very good sunscreen because my lower back is painful to the touch and yet my shoulders are still white as a ghost. It's actually quite a hilarious thing to look at; you can see the exact lines where my hands reached around my back to apply sunscreen.

The evening was an interesting one. To date, I have only seen 1 bear (roadkill near Dryden) however I have now heard a couple. As I began to drift off in my tent, I heard the most frightening noise I could possibly experience. It was not the expected growl or groan of a full grown bear, but little hoots and hollers of wee little babies.

Anything but babies.

Yes, what little I knew about bears shot to mind and I recalled the most important fact: never mess with a mother bear when the kids are near. I stuck my head out my tent and saw some russling in the bushes around 100m away. I sat in fear as the cubs slinked further and further away, and fortunately was never given my introduction to mom.

I still slept on pins and needles, alert and ready for action. Sadly, I even got rid of my leatherman, so the only weapons I had to defend myself were a can of bugspray and the scissors from a first aid kit. The bear may have killed me, but boy would his eyes sting.