Away from the world: Just where I wanted to be

June 11, 2016

There were some more ticks on my tent in the morning but they seemed rather docile. It might have been the cold of a surprisingly chilly and overcast morning. But it was Saturday and the highway was much quieter than it had been the previous evening, making for a pleasant enough cycle into Kenora. Kenora is a biggish town, certainly the biggest we would be seeing for a few days, situated on the Lake of the Woods and it has a giant fish as its mascot, perhaps to prove the point that we were very much entering serious fishing territory here. We stopped for a while at the library and then went to the supermarket where I stocked up. I was doing my best to only shop at the cheap supermarkets in the big towns, and this was the last one for a while.

It was sunny and actually quite hot again by the time we left Kenora, soon turning off the Trans Canada to take the 71 south. It was a nice quiet road, and seemed immediately to vindicate our decision to take this alternate route here. Over the next few days we’d add about 100 kilometres on compared with sticking to the Trans Canada, but for the peace and quiet it was worth it. It was hilly, but not too bad, and the forest and frequent lakes were true Canada at its natural best.

We decided to stop and take a break here because, even though we had to sit at the side of the road, the view of the lake was spectacular. Vivian spent the whole break looking at her I-phone

At one point we met a cyclist coming the other way named Brett. He was on his way from Ohio to Alaska and he certainly looked the part, with a basket on the front of the bike. It was simply ingenious - so much more practical than fancy handlebar bags. It could carry much more, and provided very easy access on the move. Given the ease of access, it wasn’t surprising to see it mostly contained food.

With so much water around I was hoping that I might catch sight of an elusive Canadian creature that I had never before seen. I scanned the lakes and rivers and waterways hoping to see one and then I was in luck. For the first time in my life I saw a beaver. It was at a distance, but I soon saw another, much closer, in a little stream next to the road. As soon as it became aware of my presence it smacked the water with its tail with a massive thunk and disappeared beneath the surface. I was really happy. The beaver was one of the few animals missing from my collection of Canadian animals that I’d seen. Now I could tick it off the list, and with my previous stays in Canada included I had now spotted black bears, grizzly bears, moose, elk, deer, wolves, coyotes, a lynx, a cougar, bald eagles and now beavers. All I need was for a wolverine to cross my path and I would have the full set!

I'd also spotted caterpillars. Once again they were everywhere, great mobs of them. There were trees that had no leaves on them because of this. I looked forward to seeing a lot of butterflies soon.

That night we found a great place to camp. The road we were on was so remote that there was little trouble about wild camping, but nor did we worry about being disturbed pitching our tents at a rest area. That we stumbled on one at just about the right time, with picnic benches, toilets, and a little path leading down to a magnificent lake, was almost too perfect. We had to stop.

I went down to the lake alone and swam. The water was so refreshing after a long day on the bike, and the surroundings were incredible. There’s something absolutely wonderful about being away from the rest of the world, surrounded by endless forests, wildlife and almost feeling like a part of it. (At least I thought so, Vivian didn’t agree, and in fact never made it down to the lake because she was up on the road trying to get a signal for her I-phone). I didn’t mind about that at all, and I was quite happy to be alone with my thoughts as I sat on a rock by the water after my swim, with the sky turning purple in a beautiful and colourful farewell. I spotted another beaver, floating effortlessly out into the lake where I myself had just swam. It was going about its business, as it did every evening, oblivious to my curious, watching eyes. At moments like that this bicycle trip all made sense and I felt like I was just where I wanted to be.

Today's ride: 94 km (58 miles)
Total: 51,841 km (32,193 miles)

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