Tuesday, August 9, 2005
Day 43 – Distance: 56.54 km
Montreal River to Sault Ste Marie, ON
What a night! The wind was howling in full force, and we were afraid our tents would blow away. It was a warm night, and the way my tent was situated, I didn’t get any breeze, which seems strange in view of the strong wind. I pulled back the fly of the tent, but since there was lightning, I was afraid of rain. After listening to the wind, and waves of Lake Superior crashing, until 2:00 in the morning, I figured it was time to take action. I used the earplugs Adele had given me, took a pill to help me sleep, and did some deep breathing. About that time the wind died down considerably as well. Finally I was able to drop off, but 6:30 arrived far too quickly. I had hoped to get out really early so we could get to the Sault early, but I gave up on that notion. I finally left about 8:30, and started climbing again. The plus was that the day was overcast, and the wind had calmed down to practically nothing.
Because I knew that I would not be biking the whole day, but that Cassie and Adele would be picking me up at noon, I did not feel pushed to ride hard. However, after about 30 km, the road started leveling out, and the wind even felt like it was helping me a bit. Finally I remembered why I like biking. I did stop for about half an hour at the Agawa Indian Craft store, hoping to find something suitable for an anniversary gift (unfortunately I didn’t), and then carried on. After the van arrived, all three of us drove another 20 km or so, and then Cassie loaded up her bike and started riding. Meanwhile, Adele and I headed for the Quality Inn in the Sault. Luckily they had a wheelchair, and we were able to move Adele much more comfortably. However, at the same time, a big thunderstorm started, and I worried about Cassie on her bike. So I left Adele in the care of the hotel staff, and headed back to pick her up. The rain and lightning had just started where she was, so she was very glad to see me.
Albert and Jean were somewhat delayed in arriving (that was okay, as it gave me time to shower), because of the same thunderstorm. It was huge where they were; Jean said the trees were bent over sideways in the wind, and the rains were pouring down, to the extent that traffic completely stopped. They even saw a house, which evidently had been struck by lightning, engulfed in flames .
The rest of the day was lovely – we had the champagne that Albert brought, and I got a lovely gold chain with a bicycle charm on it for a 19th anniversary gift. We all had a delicious dinner, in spite of the fact that the first three types of white wine that Albert chose were unavailable because they were not chilled! The poor server was quite embarrassed to keep coming back. The restaurant was right on the water, near the locks, so that made it special.
Montreal River to Sault Ste Marie, ON
What a night! The wind was howling in full force, and we were afraid our tents would blow away. It was a warm night, and the way my tent was situated, I didn’t get any breeze, which seems strange in view of the strong wind. I pulled back the fly of the tent, but since there was lightning, I was afraid of rain. After listening to the wind, and waves of Lake Superior crashing, until 2:00 in the morning, I figured it was time to take action. I used the earplugs Adele had given me, took a pill to help me sleep, and did some deep breathing. About that time the wind died down considerably as well. Finally I was able to drop off, but 6:30 arrived far too quickly. I had hoped to get out really early so we could get to the Sault early, but I gave up on that notion. I finally left about 8:30, and started climbing again. The plus was that the day was overcast, and the wind had calmed down to practically nothing.
Because I knew that I would not be biking the whole day, but that Cassie and Adele would be picking me up at noon, I did not feel pushed to ride hard. However, after about 30 km, the road started leveling out, and the wind even felt like it was helping me a bit. Finally I remembered why I like biking. I did stop for about half an hour at the Agawa Indian Craft store, hoping to find something suitable for an anniversary gift (unfortunately I didn’t), and then carried on. After the van arrived, all three of us drove another 20 km or so, and then Cassie loaded up her bike and started riding. Meanwhile, Adele and I headed for the Quality Inn in the Sault. Luckily they had a wheelchair, and we were able to move Adele much more comfortably. However, at the same time, a big thunderstorm started, and I worried about Cassie on her bike. So I left Adele in the care of the hotel staff, and headed back to pick her up. The rain and lightning had just started where she was, so she was very glad to see me.
Albert and Jean were somewhat delayed in arriving (that was okay, as it gave me time to shower), because of the same thunderstorm. It was huge where they were; Jean said the trees were bent over sideways in the wind, and the rains were pouring down, to the extent that traffic completely stopped. They even saw a house, which evidently had been struck by lightning, engulfed in flames .
The rest of the day was lovely – we had the champagne that Albert brought, and I got a lovely gold chain with a bicycle charm on it for a 19th anniversary gift. We all had a delicious dinner, in spite of the fact that the first three types of white wine that Albert chose were unavailable because they were not chilled! The poor server was quite embarrassed to keep coming back. The restaurant was right on the water, near the locks, so that made it special.
posted by BikingBabe at 11:27 AM
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