Andrea's birthday celebration starts earlier than expected as a vicious thunderstorm rolls over Falcon lake at 3 AM and right into our campground. I drift in and out of sleep as our tent walls light up time and again followed shortly by the loud boom of thunder. I drift off again when suddenly I awake screaming, the light is piercing and the thunder so loud the tent vibrates. I am so tensed up I think we are being electrocuted, Andrea is grabbing me in a death grip, we are done for. Eventually we can move again, unharmed but hearts pounding. I am no longer sleepy. For the next hour we cower in the tent, dreading each flash and where it might come down. Occaissionally steady lights flicker and confuse us; it is other campers fleeing in cars, the rain so heavy we can't hear the engines. Oh What a peaceful nights sleep.
The morning is eerily calm and normal as we get up, expecting a crater within metres of our campsite. No carnage, only puddles. Andrea gets a gourmet breakfast as we regroup and hit the road by noon.
Another death-defying moment occurs an hour later when we watch a boat trailer detach from an oncoming camper and careen off the road and down a 50+ foot embankment. I watch in horror as the boat ejects from the trailer and rolls twice down the rocky slope, breaking and spilling camping gear everywhere. First on the scene, we am thankful to see there were no people or pets in the boat.
Two timid km later we gratefully enter Ontario and endless weeks of rolling hills, trees, rocks, and lakes. We spend the night at a cozy B&B and enjoy a sunset cruise and dinner on the infamous Lake of the Woods, celebrating Andrea's birthday and our still intact mortality.
93.0 km td 3,808.1 km
A hot morning, partly due to a helpful tailwind, so we try not to complain too much. The only two "grocery" stores for the first 90 km sell little more than chips and pop (and leeches and minnows of course), so we sadly are without fruit and yoghurt for the day. The heat gets to us so I ask a local biker where a good swimming spot is, and she invites us to her house on Shebandowan lake. We end up having a great afternoon, and evening, and night, with Mary and Don Wheatley (and dog Maclean), who welcome us and offer us dinner and their guesthouse. The joke of the night is 'what stranger is Mary going to bring home tomorrow off the highway?', but we get the sense that this is not typical (on either end!), and we appreciate the hospitality. As a small world event- their son competed for Lakehead University on the ski team in the early 90's, and was in Vernon Valley, New Jersey for the US collegiate nationals in March '94- as was I. That was my first year racing for UBC, and I remember meeting some of the LU boys at that meet- perhaps we met!
Also of note is Don and Mary's experience with a piece of Canadian history- they witnessed Terry Fox's last steps of his cross-canada journey in 1980, and saw him retire and be airlifted to the Thunder Bay hospital.
The memorable event of the day is visiting the Terry Fox memorial; it is a solemn and respectful occassion as dozens of people quietly come to the statue to pay their respects to a man that captured the hearts of a nation and in doing so became one of our most cherished Canadian heroes.
We continue the rest of the day North on the aptly named 'Terry Fox Courage Highway', where one must have courage on the narrow, disentegrating shoulders to be biking. Ontario is quickly joining the ranks of Manitoba on the black list.
Two other highlights of the day are hitting the 4,000 km mark- we are now halfway!! and the first sighting of the great lakes- Lake Superior.
Our best lunch spot to date as we go for a swim in one of Ontario's many lakes. It's a double moon day, once as I attempt (and fail) a quick change after our swim, and twice when Andrea takes a pee break in a construction zone, and the workers are closer than expected. We meet four other biking groups today- a record- our fondest visit is Mike and his dog Bob, being towed behind in a trailer. We also see one guy zoom by on a six-foot high bike, it almost looks like a unicycle, a sign reads 'CANADA- BC LUNG ASSOCIATION....', but that is all we make out as we are in the midst of a construction area. We spend the night out of the elements in a Wawa hotel, surrounded by massive white canada geese statues scattered in the town.
Terrace Bay to White Lake
143.7 km td 4,271.5 km
Another hilly grueling day in Ontario. My rear rim is acting up, a spoke is literally pulling out of the casing. could be trouble.
98.9 km td 4,503.4 km
A low energy day as this endless Ontario topography starts to wear us down. My rear rim is now cracked and looks sketchy. please make it to the Soo. We stop at Katherine cove for lunch, swim, and a nap, enjoying being back on Lake Superior. I am mistaken for Dr. Doolittle as I doze, with a chipmunk jumping on my shoulder, and a horsefly nuzzling into my chin; my nap is shortlived! The sunset is spectacular over this mighty lake, and after dark we find our kiwi friends once more and trade stories.