Long Lake to Eagle Bay: The first day of winter

October 11, 2016

I survived my night in the lean-to (I probably should've mentioned earlier that the cyclist I met at Mont-Tremblant got swooped by a flying squirrel that night, which makes two "attacks" in a short time span and thus helps explain why I don't trust them), but I woke up too cold to go back to sleep.

My feet were the problem but getting my wool socks would have required leaving my sleeping bag, so I just sat up, looking like a puffy cartoon caterpillar with no legs, and watched the dawn. That was boring so I also mentally redesigned my sleeping bag with zippers at the bottom (for shoes/walking) and around the middle (for nighttime bathroom trips).

There was frost. My damp leggings were stiff and I had a hard time even strapping them on top of my luggage. Leaves everywhere were falling from trees with a quiet rustle; it was a lot like snow. Except for the sound, and being leaves... minor points.

My fingers and toes and entire body were cold so it took me a long time to get packed up and on the road. I couldn't warm up once I was moving; even when I started sweating, I was still cold. That was unusual for me, and worrying, especially given the effort I was putting in just to keep the pedals turning.

It felt like the road was 99% uphill. I was drained, depleted by the cold, even though I had stopped early yesterday to save my legs.

I turned on my phone to see where I was; the battery said 2%. It was drained, depleted by the cold, even though I had turned it off early yesterday to save the battery.

I plugged the phone into my power bank and wished I had such an easy solution for myself. A partial solution presented itself when I saw a sign for Blue Mountain trailhead and realized I probably had been going uphill all that time.

Blue Mountain Lake. Note the flowers in the foreground!

After the descent, I felt a little better, though still cold. I managed to warm up by the time I reached Raquette Lake, but I was seriously considering ending the trip. On my way to Petawawa, I wondered if I could go on; now I wondered if I wanted to.

Raquette Lake. Yes, that's a Party Size bag of M&Ms. They lasted almost a week.

I took a couple photos of the lake to my right, then looked to the left and saw something that made my entire world perfect, if only for a moment. But that moment was all I needed to quit thinking about quitting.

Someone amazing put a satellite dish on a beaver dam! Thank you so much, you made my day!

Another short day. This time I camped in the forest off the Tobie Trail bike path that I picked up in Inlet.

So... it's all downhill from here, right? RIGHT??

Unsuccessful side trip looking for a camping spot, but successful in terms of scenery.

The tree these leaves belong to was preventing me from getting a clear shot of a pretty river, so you get the leaves instead.

Today's ride: 61 km (38 miles)
Total: 1,722 km (1,069 miles)

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