We've had a beautiful day for a rest day, with sun, warmth and a beach to enjoy. After this past six day stretch of riding, it's been great to have a day off and a chance to try and even out my cycling tan. Our ride has taken us along the north shore of Lake Superior, the only Great Lake I had not yet seen. It's a very impressive body of water and although the terrain has been a bit tricky (HILLS!), the past few days have been very enjoyable.
The week started with our leaving Thunder Bay, with a quick visit to the Terry Fox memorial along the way, and a view of the "Sleeping Giant" in the distance (takes some imagination to compare it to a giant). Thinking about how Terry Fox was running the distance that we are biking makes our trip seem like a breeze by comparison. It was a gorgeous day and the rest of it was fairly uneventful. We stopped at a truck stop for lunch and a couple of my friends learned that their "Fruit Bowl" on the menu was actually canned peaches. Made it to Nipigon and enjoyed lots of ice cream, freezies and chess at camp.
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| Sleeping Giant in the distance |
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| Terry Fox! |
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| Very impressed with the fresh fruit bowl |
The next couple days, we left Nipigon and rode along the shore of Lake Superior to White Lake. Unfortunately the weather conditions were more adverse, with wind, rain and cold. Not long after leaving Nipigon was my first sight of Lake Superior, very impressive, but unfortunately the next day the views were obscured by thick fog. We also encountered a few long and steep climbs through these days.
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| Outside Nipigon |
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| Halfway lunch! |
The ride from White Lake into Rabbit Blanket was another century ride and we had an almost perfect day for it! Sunny, warm, mostly flat, and a tailwind for the first 100 km or so. A couple of sweet stops along the way - in White River, the home of Winnie the Pooh, and then in Wawa, the town with a giant goose statue. We entered Lake Superior provincial park, which was pretty much constant climbing until camp, and at the same time the wind had reversed to give us a brutal headwind for the end of the ride. The park was gorgeous though, and Old Woman Bay was stunning and a perfect place for a quick swimming break.
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| White River |
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| Wawa |
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| Badass hands-on-hips pose at Old Woman Bay |
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| Beautiful view in the morning at our campground (click for larger image) |
Next day was a slightly shorter ride through Lake Superior park, and a very picturesque one. Again, lots of climbing and unfortunately a headwind for the later part of the day, but the views were amazing and we did get lots of sweet downhills. Stopped at Agawa Rock to look at the Native pictographs, and stopped again a few minutes later for a swim in Lake Superior. The afternoon was long and hot, but we made it to camp and had the luxury of a beach on Lake Superior, so spent the evening swimming in the cool, clear water.
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| Hike to the Agawa Rock |
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| Pictograph |
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| Lake Superior |
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| More Lake Superior!! |
Our sixth and final day before the rest day was to Sault Ste. Marie, and since it was only an 87 km route, many of us were expecting the worst. Luckily, the day was entirely flat except for one long but not too daunting hill. Got into the Soo around two, and spent the afternoon scarfing ice cream and wandering through the mall. Our campsite is just outside town and on a beautiful river for swimming - including a dock for diving!
The pre-rest day evening was a lot of fun. Played some hearts, drank some scotch, and enjoyed great company around the campsite. People are commenting that camp is really getting a family-like feeling, and I agree. It's been so much fun riding the bike during the day, and having the evenings just for socializing and hanging out. Late in the evening, as it got cold out, a friend suggested a late night swim, which was one of my favourite experiences of this trip to date. The water was warming than the air, but the sky was perfectly clear and the views of the stars while lying back and floating were just amazing. So peaceful.
Today, the rest day was great and un-ambitious, as usual. Got some laundry done, ate a massive breakfast, napped, and spent the afternoon at camp enjoying the water and trying to get a bit of colour on my pale torso.
Life is good.
Take care!
Thunder Bay to Sault Ste. Marie, ON Riding Stats
6 Riding Days
738 km
Overall Riding Stats
34 Riding Days
4372 km
Peanut Butter Sandwiches consumed, to date: 74
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