7/11/09: Parts of Segments 47 and 48 and 49 http://www.4thehealthofit.net/segment_htmls/Segment47.html http://www.4thehealthofit.net/segment_htmls/Segment48.html http://www.4thehealthofit.net/segment_htmls/Segment49.html Wawa, Ontario to Montreal River, Ontario; 67 miles.
Tooooooouuuuuuuuggggggghhhhhhh to get up this morning. I just wanted to sleep and sleep. Ryan was not his usual self as he wanted to sleep the morning away to. And Rob to boot. All three of us were just lazing it to 7am. Then Ryan and I finally got it going. He did the coffee run and I began to pack gear. Then Rob got up, and headed over to the Visitor’s Center for coffee.
We got the coffee going and Ryan made me two of the thickest, drippiest peanut butter and Jelly sands I’d ever seen. I mean I was dripping jelly al over my cycling kit, the bed sheet, the pillow. I looked like a baby child who had eaten his/her first ice cream cone. But was it filling? YES. Then we turn the Tour on, and really get into it as it’s the day after the controversy over whether Contador should have attacked, and the day of another mountain stage. So we’re both realllllllllllllllllllllll slow to get out of the motel and on the road. So we’re just sitting there, glued to the TV with the Tour. And Ryan finally says, “dude, I’ve got to go NOW, or else I’ll watch this whole thing.” And I’m there with him as I could easily have just hung, rode late, and watched the Tour. So, we’re now Tour addicts without televisions.
So we get going. And it’s damned cold out. So cold that I was clenching my hands into fists on the bars. My knee caps were icy. It was crazy cold. And it was gnarly overcast, with the wind out of the northwest, but a bit more northerly. Ominous is the word. Kind of like it could rain at any moment. And the weather had called for a great, sunny day. So I was cautiously optimistic about the whole day even with the chilling start. We descended steeply to begin with and then kind of road a nice flats for a bit as the road was angling back to the south along Lake Superior. And as soon as we hit the sign for the northern boundary for Lake Superior Provincial Park – the real climbing started.
But heck, we were mentally prepared for some of the toughest climbing along the Lake here, so any climb was no surprise today, and what with the rest and gluttony day on Friday, we were stoked to ride the hills today. These climbs were nice and long, and the scenery was some of the very best along Superior that we’ve seen yet. Spectacular stuff to be sure. I just love this lake. It’s wild, raw, cold, beautiful, deadly, and mesmerizing, all at the same time. This lake is an inland ocean, with waves, a tide, and some of the most ferocious weather on the planet. It can be passive and harmless, or it can be turbulent and lethal. You never know. It keeps you guessing – always. That’s the intrigue of this grand lake. And I’ll be sad that tomorrow is our last day along this wonderful body of water.
So I was riding and climbing and stopping and shooting and just soaking up this amazing stretch of riding, some 50 miles of Provincial Park within our projected 65 mile day. The clouds diminished, and the sun finally broke through, and all of a sudden we’re in and out of the sun, and it’s just turning the usual green waters of Superior into these gorgeous hues of blue. For the most part the coastline is craggy and rugged, with small bays and inlets here and there of sand beach. And the climbing just takes you up and up into the high country so that you look way down onto the lake and just get blown away by the vistas.
So this kind of riding go on for 2 hours. And then we hit a stretch of inland riding where the hills settle down and we’re able to get a super nice rhythm going. And this last for about an hour and a half. Then it’s right back to along the coast and up and down these long, stupendous climbs. So I’m getting off of the bike and walking on a beach shooting for a bit. I got back aboard my steed and see someone coming down the last descent. So I wait, and it’s Rob. So Rob and I ride for a bit, and then we see Ryan up ahead, as he had passed me by when I was off on the beach shooting. So now we’re all riding together, all on cloud nine, and all looking forward to the next climb, the next vista around the corner.
We were making excellent time considering the terrain, and I think this had to do with the fact that we had a day off, and that the day was just so spectacular. And all of a sudden we see the sign for the southern boundary of the park, and that was it. We had just ridden 50 miles through the park and it went like a snap of the fingers. So we had one more monster climb, and a descent that was analogous to descents we had in the Canadian Rockies, and bang…….we were in Montreal River. And our campground was at the bottom of that massive descent.
We rode into the campground, and were directed to the tenting area………WOW. Right on the lake, with these breakers just crashing into the shoreline. It sounded like the ocean. We were in heaven. Quickly pitched the tents right out on a bluff overlooking the lake with these massive lake waves breaking into the rocky shore, and the Montreal River just plunging into Lake Superior with such force that there are these big waves and turbulence where the two meet. It reminded me of camping on the beaches of Northern California or the coast of British Columbia. I got out the Ipod and speakers and started playing Dire Straits Alchemy CD as we lay in the sun on the picnic tables. Brothers in Arms track in a duet with the crashing waves of Superior. The music was perfect.
Rob rode up the next hill and brought back some beer so we all just sat there and took in the raw beauty of the moment, waiting for Ryan’s parents to arrive. About 2 hours later they made it, and it was a very nice sight seeing Ryan and his folks embrace. As I imagined my parents, Judy and I in the same scenario, after such a long journey thus far. I’d never met Ryan’s mom, Cheryl, but I gave her a big hug as I feel that I’ve known her for the past 7 weeks as she’s corresponded with us and talked with us on Skype numerous times. I’ve met his dad Neil, and I look forward to doing some riding with him in the next several days.
We were pretty stoked that we had such a memorable camping spot for them to come to, on this their first day with us on the Trans Can. I think they were very impressed with the area, and the rawness of Lake Superior. We all talked for a bit, and then went over to a kind of chuck wagon building where the owner took our food orders and then grilled us hamburgers, hot dogs and sausages. It was just great. We stuffed ourselves (Ryan and I) and then retired to take a walk along the lakeshore and hopefully up to the rocky highlands just to the north of the campground. Unfortunately the highland area had a “No Trespassing” sign up, so we ended up just walking along the rocky shore listening to and watching the waves crash into the cobbled shore.
Rob ended up going somewhere else to camp due to his “free spirit” and not wanting to pay the 24 bucks for a tent site. I feel for him as we’re run into that for several provinces. You get 24 bucked to death for a damn tent site, or pay 30 for electricity……..which means you have a vehicle. Don’t get it. So Rob split for the eve, but we’ll see him tomorrow on the way to the Soo. Another through rider, Peopl, from Quebec, came in and camped with us, and then several more parties of cyclists came in. So it was busy with bike traffic tonight.
I just went out and shot some sunsets, and then back in the tent to finish this blog. I feel a renewed sense of purpose today with this ride, and I’m really stoked to keep the ball rolling to Newfoundland. We’re 3200 miles in, ALMOST past the hardest riding in the trip, and we’ll be along the great lakes and/or the ocean for the rest of this trip. There will be many more Great Lakes and ocean sunsets along the journey, but this time with Huron, the Georgian Bay, Ontario, The St Lawrence Seaway, and the Atlantic Ocean. Tonight I’ll listen for the final time to the breakers of grand Superior – right outside my tent vestibule, up on a bluff, under a brilliant pink sunset high above the chilly waters of Superior. I’m sure it will be one of those evenings I’ll be able to relive in my mind the rest of my days. And for that I’m thankful. It’s moments like these that drive me to do the crazy things I do – so I can occasionally kick back on an easy chair on one of those cold, quiet winter evenings and relive those precious moments of the past, to see it, to feel it.
Goodnight all…………Pete
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