The two waterlogged brothers wandered into Thunder Bay on Monday, the same day their other two brothers turned 59. (A belated Happy Birthday to Owen and Ian).
It rained all day. It let up but never stopped. This after we spent Sunday night in our tents at a little fishing campground, Savanne River Resort, while a thunderstorm poured down upon us. It also rained for a majority of Sunday’s trip, and for the final half of Saturday’s leg between Dryden and Ignace.
By my Sigma’s count I’m over 3,400 kilometres making us more than halfway to Halifax. (Brody, by the way, is back to nursing his knee again. This time he’s in the picturesque cottage town of Falcon Lake which is just west of the Ontario-Manitoba border.) So in no particular order in honour of the midpoint milestone here is a little best of, worst of and whatever of on the first half of the trip from a half-wit.
Hardest Hill: No doubt, the 19-kilometre climb up to the Coqhuihalla Summit which took about three hours going at a speed of about 6.6 km/h during much of that stretch.
Scariest Hill: That would be Clive’s 10-kilometre-or-so slick descent down into Little Fort, B.C. during a rainstorm to meet up with Grant.
Worst wind: I’ve moaned and groaned about the wind in Saskatchewan ad nauseam. Sorry about that. The worst leg, as I’ve already written about, was between Lanigan and Foam Lake. We averaged about 12 km/h tor the 115-km trip. We rode southeast into gusty winds coming out of the south east. The worst of that worst was about eight kilometres where the Yellowhead Highway joins Highway 6, a north-south route between Melfort and Regina, where the winds were right in our face. They had to be a minimum of 50 km/h and more likely much more than that. Second place goes to the stretch between North Battleford and Radisson where it felt like the southward would blown us off the shoulder into the traffic.
Best impromptu lunch stop: We ate our sandwiches on the rocks – and on top of the Kinder Morgan pipeline – beside the raging Dominion Creek along B.C.’s Highway 5. It was beautiful to see and listen to the water racing around the rocks.
Worst impromptu lunch stop: There were a few stops in Saskatchewan where we were forced to basically eat on the side of the road because of the lack of rest areas along the highway – unlike B.C., Alberta and Ontario. Not much fun when it’s windy and especially with Clive picking up a tick or two walking around in the grass.
Most jealous moment: We stopped for an early break about 45 kilometres east of Dryden the other day when a cyclist breezed into the rest stop atop a beautiful, super-light, carbon-fibre Ridley. The rider was a water bomber pilot in his 50s based in Dryden but who lives outside Thunder Bay. He was taking a break from his duties since there were no fires to put out. The only baggage he had on his sleek bike was a little pouch below his saddle for his spare tire tube. As he whisked his way back to Dryden it wasn’t hard to develop a pang of envy because Clive and I both pack at least 50 pounds on our heavier, but sturdier, machines. It made myself wistfully long for a ride on my BMC back in Burnaby.
Nicest campground host couple: Marg and Hugh Kirk at the Painted Rock Campground in Colonsay, Sask. They were extremely accommodating in helping us set up, and when the weak WiFi was hard to connect to they allowed me to come into their home/office to finish off a blog.
Worst shoulder: Much of the trip between Kenora and Thunder Bay has a paved shoulder of about eight inches on a two-lane highway teeming with transport trucks. Considering it’s part of the Trans-Canada Highway it just doesn’t seem right.
Scariest highway: While the above stretches were bad, it was unnerving riding toward Edmonton on the Yellowhead. Empty gravel trucks rolled by us going at least the 110-km/h speed limit or faster. We were glad to get off of the highway even though we were headed straight into a north wind to get to St. Albert.
Worst urban roads: Has to go to Winnipeg, although Thunder Bay is right there, too. Way too many potholes. Way too many. Hard on the bum.
Nicest river path: The one that follows the Sturgeon River in St. Albert, Alta., is quite pleasant. It takes cyclists and pedestrians away from the big box stores to some nice neighbourhoods. It just beats out the longer Meewasin Trail alongside the South Saskatchewan River in Saskatoon only because it’s smoother. Both are beautiful to ride, though.
Nicest dinner spot: No contest. It’s the patio back in B.C. on the banks of the Fraser River at the restaurant connected to the Tete Jaune Cache Lodge where highways 5 and 16 meet.
Nicest dinner: Same place. I had a delicious fettuccine jambalaya at that restaurant served up by the chef, maitre d’ and waiter. He looked like an overwhelmed Chef Boyardee as he bustled around doing all of those jobs. But boy he was a good cook.
Nicest showers: Same place. The washrooms/showers were spacious, the water hot and the building’s woodwork beautiful. They even provided individual towel bath mats so no worry about picking up some sort of foot fungus.
Nicest town: Has to be Jasper … wait a second maybe it was Kenora. It was a gorgeous sunny day in early May when we arrived in Jasper and it was bustling with all sorts of Albertans flocking there for the weekend. Not hard to see why. But then Kenora on the shores of beautiful Lake of the Woods was spectacular too. It’s no wonder so many of Winnipeg’s hoi-polloi consider it their summer playground.
Biggest beer: Also Jasper. After a hot trip from Tete Jaune Cache, Clive ordered a 32-ounce stein of a craft pilsner at the Jasper Brewing Company.
Coldest night: The minus-3 C we experienced in Edson, Alta.
Bad timing award: On three occasions on this trip I rolled into a town hoping to at connect with someone I knew there but the timing wasn’t right. I had wanted to connect with one of my fantasy baseball competitors, Mike Stackhouse, in Yorkton but since it was the middle of the May long weekend like any other Saskatchewanian he was at the lake. We made a side trip into Brandon by car where I did catch up with two other guys in that league, Cam Moir and Earl Chesley, but wouldn’t you know it missed out on meeting up with Bruce Luebke (who basically runs our league) and Rick Dillabough. They were out of town because the Wheat Kings had reached the Memorial Cup, a rare occurrence. But the most disappointing was not hooking up with cousin Anne-Marie in Saskatoon.
We were worried about not seeing her, Linda and Aunt Ruth because they were scheduled to spend the first weekend in June in Victoria. No problem, we arrived there two weeks before that. But it turns out when we were there, she was off touring Ireland and Scotland, and hadn’t told us about that trip until she left. Sorry we missed you Anne. Hopefully we’ll see her soon.
Spookiest campground: We rolled into a provincial campground near Entwistle, Alta., only to find out it was closed. But the caretaker turned a blind eye as we went around the gate. He even told us the best sites. But it was weird having no one around with some of the campgrounds lights still operating. It was just weird.
Best weight loser: By far, it’s Clive. He’s looking downright svelte these days. He even had to buy new bike clothing in Brandon and Winnipeg because he’s dropping kilos to go along with the poundage he lost training for the trip. Me being a food addict, I am taking advantage to feed the addiction. I’m not gaining weight but I’m sure enjoying the calories I’m consuming. Not good. Have to make better choices like Clive.
Brody being Brody award: When we left Brody behind in B.C. he managed just fine on his own. The best might be when he reached Hinton. While shopping someone left a card for a hair studio on his recumbent bicycle. So he went in and got a beard cleanup and ended up staying three nights during some wicked weather with the stylist, her nine-year-old and her boyfriend. Amazing. He’s hoping to rejoin us again, and if he does I’ll get him to write a blog or two about his experiences. At last report he was going to pull out his concertina and busk in Falcon Lake.
Of course a big highlight has been our ability to visit and connect with family and friends across the Prairies. That won’t be an option the rest of the way. Many thanks to Brian and Ruth Mennegozzo, Linda and Gerald Goosen, Auntie Ruth, Marg Rycroft and Bob Robinson, Barb and Tom Riddell, Alex and Lisa Hofstede, and David and Kathy Northcott for opening their homes, fridges and washer and dryers for us.
Kilometre count
Day 37: Ignace to Savanne River Resort 128 km; Total (30 riding days): 3,304 km
Day 38: Savanne River Resort to Thunder Bay 127 km; Total (31 riding days): 3,431 km
Day 39: Rest day in Thunder Bay
The 7 Cs blog 