The Bruce Peninsula, Manitoulin Island, and the eastern U.P.

After the rolling hills of central Ontario, I finally got to the Bruce Peninsula, which is a long piece of land that seperates the main body of Lake Huron on the west from Georgian Bay on the east. Its here that i got my first glimpses of the lake, which looks more like an ocean as the water stretches on to the horizon. Also, the water is exceptionally clear, giving the water an incredibly glowing blue color. Anyway, on to the pictures:

this is the coastline north of Lions Head, on the Georgian Bay. The shore is mostly large flat slabs of rock, and the water is very cool and clear.

Yard sale I passed along the way. It was about 90% romance novels. I ended up buying a Henry Miller book for 25 cents. Miller isn't really a romance novelist, he's more... well read one for yourself.

Dyer's Bay dead end.

After the Bruce Peninsula, I took the ferry to Manatoulin Island. It's a huge ship that holds a bunch of cars as well as having something like three decks with lounges, a bar etc. A nice ride. This is a lighthouse along the way. After the ferry I made my way toward the eastern portion of the island to Uncle Steve's campground and RV Park, where I would stay the night. On the way I saw this:


I happened to arrive just as the main event was coming to a close, so I missed most of the action. I later learned that the smash-up derby is the final event in the Manitowaning Summerfest, which this year included an ACDC tribute band and lots and lost of drinking.
I continued on to Uncle Steve's, where I set up camp. After that I headed into the village of Manitowaning to buy some food and beer. After finding that the stores were closed, I went to the Muskie Widow, the local bar. The place is done up in a fisherman's theme, with mounted fish on the wall, old fishing equipment, and tons of photos of people with the hugest fish I've ever seen.

If you look closely above the bar, you'll notice an airbrushed painting of a muskie on a moose antler- you won't find that kind of work just anywhere!
I was drinking beer by myself, playing the fly on the wall watching people come and go when Sarah (middle) approached me and asked if I'd like to join her table.

She said she had done some solo traveling herself and knew what it was like sitting alone in a local bar. She introduced me to Nimkii and Catherine, born and raised a couple houses from the Muskie Widow. We got to talking and I found out that Nimkii had done a bike tour in Britain, and we swapped a couple of stories. Sarah was in town from nearby Sucker Creek, not to be confused with Sucker Lake, which was right down the road. Catherine was born and raised just a few houses down from the Muskie Widow, but had moved to Sault St. Marie, the border town where I was planning on crossing to Michigan. After no small amount of drinks Catherine suggested that I hitch a ride with her to the So, which would save me 2 day's riding and the danger of being run over by one of many 18-wheelers on the narrow and hazardous Trans-Canada Highway. I took her up on the offer and the next morning we departed. On the way we passed through the Whitefish hills, which are a set of very steep and rocky hills on the north coast of Lake Huron.

On the way, Catherine was nice enough to offer that I stay the night her couch in Sault St. Marie. Once we got into town, we made a quick stop at Anita and Tony's Salon, which she had recently purchased and now owns and manages. It was a cool place, but the all-pink decor was perhaps a little out of date.

She informed me that new drywall and paint are on the way. After a good dinner, good rest and a shower, I left Catherine's place and headed over the border to be welcomed into America. Heading up the bridge:

Traffic laws in the Soo, Michigan

Outside Brimley, Michigan

I'm now in the Upper Peninsula of Michigan, or the U.P., which has some beautiful shoreline on Lake Superior. Today I stopped to swim a couple of times at gorgeous white-sand beaches with such clear blue water that you'd think you were in the caribbean.

I also saw a lighthouse oooh ahh.

That's about it so far, tonight I'm in Paradise, Michigan, where I'll begin heading west and south to start the dash to Chicago!
And I've heard that people want pictures of me, so here you go.

Prince Edward County, Toronto, and Central Ontario

After the Thousand Islands, I continued on the edge of the water to Lake Ontario. I started my day by rolling down a long hill toward the free ferry that would take me to Prince Edward County, which is a large chunk of land that juts into the lake. Just after I started the windy descent, two tractors pulling huge wagons full of hay pulled out in front of me. They just happened to be going around 20 mph, so I was able to draft one of them for around 5 miles.


It made for an easy ride, except for a constant flow of hay particles coming off of the wagon. I passed some touring cyclists going the other way who cheered for me as I passed by.

Shortly after taking the ferry, I arrived in Bloomfield, the town where Sarah the Canadian tourist's favorite bike shop was. Sure enough, on the main street I found Bloomfield Bicycle Company.

The owner Rick is a really cool guy, in his 50's with long gray hair and a very casual attitude. I talked about my bike with him and the two mechanics who were working, and they invited me to have lunch with them on the porch of the shop. So for an hour or two we all sat and chatted in the shade, munching on tuna salad, chips and veggies. Rick gave me a map and the phone number for his mother in law's place in Toronto, where he assured me I could stay for the night when I got to Toronto. So I pushed on through the county, eventually finding an old gravel pit to camp in.


What I hadn't bargained on was my close proximity to the train tracks, and during the night I was awakened to what I thought was the sound of the fabric of the universe being torn apart.

The next morning I awoke early so I would have as much time as possible to get to Toronto, which I reckoned to be about 75 miles away. As I rode west, the landscape became more and more congested. I passed shopping centers with all the same stores as the shopping centers I had passed only minutes before. I also discovered a trend that is sweeping the Toronto area: housing subdivisons. Dozens of them, each seeming to stretch to the horizon with tightly spaced faux-stone facades, with ridiculously inaccurate names like "Castlemore Manor" and others.



The fallen sign in the foreground of the picture says something like "Estate living in a breathtaking ravine setting." The 'ravine' was a gradual slope down to a dirty piddling stream. Clearly Canadian real estate developers have a finely honed sense of irony when naming their new projects.
Anyway, after battling traffic for a couple of hours, I finally got to the house I was supposed to stay in. Upon arriving, the guy who was there said that the owner was in France, and her roommate, who would have welcomed me for the night, wasn't around. He was nice enough to let me look up the address for a hostel in the city, where I ended up staying the night.


The next morning I awoke to torrential rain, which put a damper on my mood for the morning. Luckily, by the time I was ready to leave, the rain had stopped and a heavy fog settled in on Toronto. I rode down to the waterfront to follow a path that would link to another path that would take me outside the city.


The path ended up being a really nice 20+ mile long meander along the Humber river, which goes north-south through the middle of the city. It was a very relaxing change from the previous day. In an overpass on the path, some graffiti artists did a collaborative mural with some great style. (top-bottom=left-right)




After getting out of the city, I ended up on long, straight, flat roads with tons of truck traffic. I asked around, but apparently since there is no large highway going north, trucks drive on pretty much any through way. Needless to say, the riding was not the most exciting. As if to highlight the uninteresting landscape, there's a town called Mono.


Eventually, it started to get hillier, and the clouds were making some interesting late-day formations, so I at least had something pretty to look at.


See those towers in the second photo? I camped near the base of the thinner one on the left.

Now I'm heading north towards Lake Huron, where I will be taking my first rest day of the trip so far. I plan on eating a bunch, having a beer, and nodding off in the afternoon. Later!

The Adirondacks and the St. Lawerence River

Lots of good riding from the ferry landing at Port Kent, NY. Rode the Ausable River Valley to Whiteface Mountain, where I rode in the Wilmington Gap.




The Gap was carved out by the West Branch Ausable river, leaving huge cliffs on each side and a bunch of gorges and waterfalls on the river. Great riding. I also went through Lake Placid, which is a total tourist trap, so I continued on to Saranac Lake, where I found a great place to spend the night: the former site of an old motel.


After setting up camp and making dinner, I headed into town for a drink. Found a bar called "the Waterhole," which was blaring the Grateful Dead. I sat and drank a beer on their porch for a minute before striking up a conversation with Sam, who invited me to hang out with some other people at the bar. Everybody was really cool and psyched about my trip. Saranac had a good vibe, laid back, not too touristy, but not a redneck hole.

The next day I rode Route 56, which goes through some very remote country. Miles and miles of smooth pavement with forest on each side, punctuated with the occassional pond. Very few houses, virtually no cross roads.




Camped outside Canton, NY for the night.
Next went to Ogdensburg to cross into Canada. The woman at the toll booth waved me through and I spent the next 10 minutes on a white-knuckle ride on the steel-grate bridge crossing the very wide St. Lawerence river. Once I got my bearings in Canada, I found the Thousand Island Parkway, which is a long bike path which runs along the river. Lots of great views and good riding.

Today I'm in Gananoque Ontario, where I met Sarah, a very friendly Canadian bike tourist from Peterborough, ONT who is heading to Halifax Nova Scotia. Had a nice talk with her and got some good tips on where to ride next. Speaking of which, it's beautiful weather out here and I'm in a library typing, so I'm going to get going.

Hooray Canada!

Day One, Mile Zero

Well, the bike is all loaded up with all the possessions I'll need for the next few months. For those who are curious, my gear weighs in at about 30 pounds. Today I'll ride to Burlington to party with friends and co-workers, then take the ferry to New York tomorrow morning. Thanks to everyone who encouraged me or just called me crazy for undertaking such an adventure. Now's the time to test myself, and see if I can live up to all the talk.

See you later, if I don't see you out on the town tonight.

Another change in plans

I've decided to push my trip back by a few days to Thursday, so I can participate in the Old Spokes Home employee dinner in Burlington. Just as well, since the weather here will be spotty for the next couple of days.

Route version 1.2

I'm also going to Chicago!

Four days until the trip kicks off. I'm putting things together- gear, route, making arrangements for bills and other logistics. It's a strange feeling, like standing at the edge of a cliff wondering if you've packed your parachute right. I've got my final doctor's appointment on monday, then I'll be heading to Burlington for dinner with the parents, drinks with friends, and a night's rest before ferrying over to New York to begin the first leg of the journey. For those who know the area, I'll be heading from Port Kent to Lake Placid, Saranac Lake, Tupper Lake, Canton, and Ogdensburg. At Ogdensburg I'll be crossing into Canada. Pictures and words to follow in the coming days and weeks.