Sittin' in the mornin' sun
I'll be sittin' when the evenin' come
Watching the ships roll in
And then I watch 'em roll away again, yeah
I'm sittin' on the dock of the bay
Watching the tide roll away
Ooo, I'm just sittin' on the dock of the bay
Wastin' time
- Otis Redding - "Sitting on the Dock of the Bay"
I'll be sittin' when the evenin' come
Watching the ships roll in
And then I watch 'em roll away again, yeah
I'm sittin' on the dock of the bay
Watching the tide roll away
Ooo, I'm just sittin' on the dock of the bay
Wastin' time
- Otis Redding - "Sitting on the Dock of the Bay"
Day 48: Darlington – Carrying Place
117 kms / 72 miles
I was so tired when I fell asleep last night but was even more tired this morning when I woke up - my rest day in Aliston took more out of me than I'd expected and I feel as though I'm still recovering from my 'Day Off'. It was a lovely morning but my tent was dry which was a bit of an ominous sign – the forecast has been calling for rain for a few days now but it hasn’t really materialised so I suspect that our luck will soon run out. The campsite was a noisy one even though it was a provincial park – there was a train wh
ich ran throughout the night and its whistle echoed through the darkness, cutting through the sound of the snorers in tents nearby. I ended up waking up at 2am and trying to find my way to the washroom only to let my imagination get the better of me as I stumbled toward the forest. Getting up in the night can be an intimidating experience..!
Brendan set off super early this morning (7am) with the ‘Old Boys’ and a big smile as he was headed up to Kingston today to catch a train from Kingston to Toronto for a wedding. Ian had also left the previous evening to visit cousins in Colborne so Andrew and I biked together for the day. It was a beautiful morning – not too hot and the sun looked like it was going to make a grand appearance for the day. A treat..!
Andrew and I spent most of the day cycling along the shores of Lake Ontario over some hilly but manageable terrain – there was evidence of drumlins all around, piles of gravel (hills) left by glaciers from hundreds of thousands of years ago. It was very scenic ride and an interesting one as it’s one that I have done by car on a few occasions. We cycled along a lot of secondary roads until we reached Newcastle at km 23 where we stopped at a ‘Coffee Time’ donut shop and indulged in donuts, coffee and a newspaper. Bliss. I love stopping and relaxing and eating unlimited amounts of food.….!! The Olympics were underway and it was great to catch up on the Olympic gossip and the medal count.
When we reached Port Hope at km 53 we decided to have a quick rest and see if we could track down a Tim Hortons for a stop and a bite to eat. Unfortunately we made the mistake that we often make when looking for a Timmy’s – we keep cycling until we find one and sometimes this means that we cycle straight out of town without a Tim Hortons in sight.
We did finally make a stop at Cobourg at km 63 http://www.town.cobourg.on.ca – our timing for the day was excellent and apart from the initial donut stop we hardly stopped for a rest. Cobourg is known as 'Ontario's Feel Good Town' --- an interesting claim to fame!! I certainly felt pretty good about being there. I am pretty sure that I’ve been to Cobourg before – it’s a lovely town with a gorgeous City Hall and nice downtown core – very picturesque and I could certainly imagine spending a nice sunny afternoon poking through the wide array of shops there if I had not had another 40kms left to cycle that day..! The city reminded me a lot of my hometown, Ridgetown – they are even relatively similar in size. We stopped at the City Hall for a few choice photographs and then a snack at a Dutch Bakery where I had a much needed coffee and a cinnamon roll.
It’s nice cycling with Andrew although I do feel bad for him as I am certain that I am not always brilliant company. I know that when my worst traits (I can be a moody cow!!) do come out I can be very difficult but I am learning to control my highs and lows. I also have to learn to ‘open up’ a bit more and relax and enjoy even when things are not going my way or when I am hungry and tired. Andrew is certainly not afraid of setting me straight and ensuring that I know when I am
a bit of a cow. I have to give him a hell of a lot of credit for not leaving me stranded by the side of the road on more than one occasion..! We do have a great time cycling together though and I have a lot of respect for his patience and kindness.
We finished up our cinnamon buns and continued on Highway 2 through Grafton where we came across a fantastic hotel / restaurant. It was called, “The Grafton Village Inn” (http://www.graftonvillageinn.com/). Andrew and I felt a tiny bit guilty about stopping so soon after our Dutch Bakery stop in Cobourg but could not resist as we were making very good time anyway – plus, we could see that John, Alan, Ross, Dave etc. all had their bikes lined up along the Inn’s wooden porch railing so it must have been a popular spot. We walked into the lovely Inn and were immediately seated in the Haldimand Room – a cozy brightly lit room full of country charm complete with hanging quilts, Wimbledon wicker, and a lovely outdoor view. The others had just finished ordering and it was clear that the choice to stop was one of the smartest things we’d done that day because the portions were enormous and the food looked absolutely fantastic. I ordered a burger and a giant glass of iced tea.
Andrew and I had a very relaxing and chatty lunch. After about an hour hours two women walked in just as we were getting ready to leave. They noticed that we were on our bikes and warned us of the dark clouds which loomed overhead. Hearing that we immediately ran outside to do a bit of reconnaissance and realise that if we waited about 10 minutes the storm would blow over and we could continue our ride and stay dry… SO we waited, and waited, and waited.. and 4 cups of coffee later we decided to leave just as the French Connection came in. They too had just missed the storm and it looked like our strategic decision to wait 10 (well, it turned out to be 30) minutes had been a good one. We left and recommended that they try the burgers..!
Andrew and I continued on our way heading to Brighton. Shortly after we turned onto Station Road / Wicklow Beach Road we came across an American couple who were cycling to Brighton. They were on a two week trip and were cycling
from city to city and staying in B&B’s along the way. They were a super nice couple and had done loads of cycling throughout Ontario, Quebec and the Maritime provinces. We spent the rest of the afternoon cycling with them which was great. The sun continued to shine but I could tell that we were ‘chasing’ the storm and that inevitably we would get wet. We stopped and took a few pictures in Colbourne - the hoem of the 'Apple Blossom Tyme Festival' and hopped back on Route 2. Route 2 was not easy cycling – it had an incredibly narrow shoulder and it was very busy. I was more than happy to get off of it and back onto Lakeshore road again..!
We were about 2 kms from Brighton when I realised that our luck was going to run out on the weather front – we picked up the pace and we averaged about 28kms / hour into Brighton where we frantically looked for a place to rest and wait out the storm. I could feel my heart pounding as I desperately pulled up next to a grocery store and surveyed our surroundings… The sky was black as night and you could literally smell the rain in the air as the rumble of thunder rolled overhead. Our options were a posh little tea house, a 7-11, or a cheap, run down Country Donuts donut shop… It wasn’t a difficult decision as we ducked into the donut shop just as the rain came crashing down and as the wind picked up to strong gusts. I love the rain (
especially when I am dry and inside) and this storm was a monumental one. It POURED and POURED and POURED and we were treated to the most spectacular lightning storm as I quietly and contentedly sipped on lukewarm coffee and ate donut after donut. I felt like we’d ‘won’ by staying dry – we had well and truly outsmarted the storm. I was quietly content – nothing – absolutely NOTHING – is worse than getting soaking wet within 10 kms from camp at the end of the day. It is miserable and frustrating as it does take ages for shoes to dry. I hope that Brendan has made it to Kingston relatively dry but have a hunch that he will have been caught in the middle of the storm.
The American couple waited out the storm with us (about an hour) and then left to check into their B&B. Andrew and I, satisfied that we’d stayed dry decided to leave the donut shop and cycle the final puddle-infested 10kms past the Presqu’ile Parkway and through to the North Shore RV Park. We were just discussing what a fun and appetising afternoon we’d had together when suddenly I heard Andrew curse under his breath and looked back to see him getting off of his bike – a flat tire..!!! We wer
e literally 1 km from camp!!! What crappy luck! We pulled over and he fixed the flat, biked about 30 metres and then it was flat again… the whole process was repeated and then again… 3 flats..!!!
We decided to try and make it the final km into camp and deal with the tire there so that we wouldn’t waste any more time along the side of the road. We had made such great time in the morning but because of all of our food stops and our chilled out approach to the day it was actually about 5:30pm by the time we got into camp – oops..! Oh well – it had been an incredibly enjoyable and relaxing day of cycling.
The campground was great – there were some unhappy campers as the campground had been SOAKED by the rain and many people had been caught out in it. To make matters worse, some people had set up their tents in depression in the campground and had been flooded out by the rain. Fortunately Jan and Rick’s crew were on Galley Duty and they treated us to a special feast – taco salad for dinner and man, was it ever delicious..!! Sooo good..!! Jan always has such great ideas for meals and there was plenty left over. In spite of the storm, the evening turned out to be beautiful with a lovely sunset over the lake. We all sat along the dock and watched the sun set – it’s hard to believe that there is rain in the forecast again tomorrow. It was a magical sort of evening and I was happy and relaxed and ducked into my tent at around 9pm for a much needed sleep. A great day of riding.
117 kms / 72 miles
I was so tired when I fell asleep last night but was even more tired this morning when I woke up - my rest day in Aliston took more out of me than I'd expected and I feel as though I'm still recovering from my 'Day Off'. It was a lovely morning but my tent was dry which was a bit of an ominous sign – the forecast has been calling for rain for a few days now but it hasn’t really materialised so I suspect that our luck will soon run out. The campsite was a noisy one even though it was a provincial park – there was a train wh
ich ran throughout the night and its whistle echoed through the darkness, cutting through the sound of the snorers in tents nearby. I ended up waking up at 2am and trying to find my way to the washroom only to let my imagination get the better of me as I stumbled toward the forest. Getting up in the night can be an intimidating experience..!Brendan set off super early this morning (7am) with the ‘Old Boys’ and a big smile as he was headed up to Kingston today to catch a train from Kingston to Toronto for a wedding. Ian had also left the previous evening to visit cousins in Colborne so Andrew and I biked together for the day. It was a beautiful morning – not too hot and the sun looked like it was going to make a grand appearance for the day. A treat..!
Andrew and I spent most of the day cycling along the shores of Lake Ontario over some hilly but manageable terrain – there was evidence of drumlins all around, piles of gravel (hills) left by glaciers from hundreds of thousands of years ago. It was very scenic ride and an interesting one as it’s one that I have done by car on a few occasions. We cycled along a lot of secondary roads until we reached Newcastle at km 23 where we stopped at a ‘Coffee Time’ donut shop and indulged in donuts, coffee and a newspaper. Bliss. I love stopping and relaxing and eating unlimited amounts of food.….!! The Olympics were underway and it was great to catch up on the Olympic gossip and the medal count.
When we reached Port Hope at km 53 we decided to have a quick rest and see if we could track down a Tim Hortons for a stop and a bite to eat. Unfortunately we made the mistake that we often make when looking for a Timmy’s – we keep cycling until we find one and sometimes this means that we cycle straight out of town without a Tim Hortons in sight.
We did finally make a stop at Cobourg at km 63 http://www.town.cobourg.on.ca – our timing for the day was excellent and apart from the initial donut stop we hardly stopped for a rest. Cobourg is known as 'Ontario's Feel Good Town' --- an interesting claim to fame!! I certainly felt pretty good about being there. I am pretty sure that I’ve been to Cobourg before – it’s a lovely town with a gorgeous City Hall and nice downtown core – very picturesque and I could certainly imagine spending a nice sunny afternoon poking through the wide array of shops there if I had not had another 40kms left to cycle that day..! The city reminded me a lot of my hometown, Ridgetown – they are even relatively similar in size. We stopped at the City Hall for a few choice photographs and then a snack at a Dutch Bakery where I had a much needed coffee and a cinnamon roll.
It’s nice cycling with Andrew although I do feel bad for him as I am certain that I am not always brilliant company. I know that when my worst traits (I can be a moody cow!!) do come out I can be very difficult but I am learning to control my highs and lows. I also have to learn to ‘open up’ a bit more and relax and enjoy even when things are not going my way or when I am hungry and tired. Andrew is certainly not afraid of setting me straight and ensuring that I know when I am
a bit of a cow. I have to give him a hell of a lot of credit for not leaving me stranded by the side of the road on more than one occasion..! We do have a great time cycling together though and I have a lot of respect for his patience and kindness.We finished up our cinnamon buns and continued on Highway 2 through Grafton where we came across a fantastic hotel / restaurant. It was called, “The Grafton Village Inn” (http://www.graftonvillageinn.com/). Andrew and I felt a tiny bit guilty about stopping so soon after our Dutch Bakery stop in Cobourg but could not resist as we were making very good time anyway – plus, we could see that John, Alan, Ross, Dave etc. all had their bikes lined up along the Inn’s wooden porch railing so it must have been a popular spot. We walked into the lovely Inn and were immediately seated in the Haldimand Room – a cozy brightly lit room full of country charm complete with hanging quilts, Wimbledon wicker, and a lovely outdoor view. The others had just finished ordering and it was clear that the choice to stop was one of the smartest things we’d done that day because the portions were enormous and the food looked absolutely fantastic. I ordered a burger and a giant glass of iced tea.
Andrew and I had a very relaxing and chatty lunch. After about an hour hours two women walked in just as we were getting ready to leave. They noticed that we were on our bikes and warned us of the dark clouds which loomed overhead. Hearing that we immediately ran outside to do a bit of reconnaissance and realise that if we waited about 10 minutes the storm would blow over and we could continue our ride and stay dry… SO we waited, and waited, and waited.. and 4 cups of coffee later we decided to leave just as the French Connection came in. They too had just missed the storm and it looked like our strategic decision to wait 10 (well, it turned out to be 30) minutes had been a good one. We left and recommended that they try the burgers..!
Andrew and I continued on our way heading to Brighton. Shortly after we turned onto Station Road / Wicklow Beach Road we came across an American couple who were cycling to Brighton. They were on a two week trip and were cycling
from city to city and staying in B&B’s along the way. They were a super nice couple and had done loads of cycling throughout Ontario, Quebec and the Maritime provinces. We spent the rest of the afternoon cycling with them which was great. The sun continued to shine but I could tell that we were ‘chasing’ the storm and that inevitably we would get wet. We stopped and took a few pictures in Colbourne - the hoem of the 'Apple Blossom Tyme Festival' and hopped back on Route 2. Route 2 was not easy cycling – it had an incredibly narrow shoulder and it was very busy. I was more than happy to get off of it and back onto Lakeshore road again..!We were about 2 kms from Brighton when I realised that our luck was going to run out on the weather front – we picked up the pace and we averaged about 28kms / hour into Brighton where we frantically looked for a place to rest and wait out the storm. I could feel my heart pounding as I desperately pulled up next to a grocery store and surveyed our surroundings… The sky was black as night and you could literally smell the rain in the air as the rumble of thunder rolled overhead. Our options were a posh little tea house, a 7-11, or a cheap, run down Country Donuts donut shop… It wasn’t a difficult decision as we ducked into the donut shop just as the rain came crashing down and as the wind picked up to strong gusts. I love the rain (
especially when I am dry and inside) and this storm was a monumental one. It POURED and POURED and POURED and we were treated to the most spectacular lightning storm as I quietly and contentedly sipped on lukewarm coffee and ate donut after donut. I felt like we’d ‘won’ by staying dry – we had well and truly outsmarted the storm. I was quietly content – nothing – absolutely NOTHING – is worse than getting soaking wet within 10 kms from camp at the end of the day. It is miserable and frustrating as it does take ages for shoes to dry. I hope that Brendan has made it to Kingston relatively dry but have a hunch that he will have been caught in the middle of the storm.The American couple waited out the storm with us (about an hour) and then left to check into their B&B. Andrew and I, satisfied that we’d stayed dry decided to leave the donut shop and cycle the final puddle-infested 10kms past the Presqu’ile Parkway and through to the North Shore RV Park. We were just discussing what a fun and appetising afternoon we’d had together when suddenly I heard Andrew curse under his breath and looked back to see him getting off of his bike – a flat tire..!!! We wer
e literally 1 km from camp!!! What crappy luck! We pulled over and he fixed the flat, biked about 30 metres and then it was flat again… the whole process was repeated and then again… 3 flats..!!!We decided to try and make it the final km into camp and deal with the tire there so that we wouldn’t waste any more time along the side of the road. We had made such great time in the morning but because of all of our food stops and our chilled out approach to the day it was actually about 5:30pm by the time we got into camp – oops..! Oh well – it had been an incredibly enjoyable and relaxing day of cycling.
The campground was great – there were some unhappy campers as the campground had been SOAKED by the rain and many people had been caught out in it. To make matters worse, some people had set up their tents in depression in the campground and had been flooded out by the rain. Fortunately Jan and Rick’s crew were on Galley Duty and they treated us to a special feast – taco salad for dinner and man, was it ever delicious..!! Sooo good..!! Jan always has such great ideas for meals and there was plenty left over. In spite of the storm, the evening turned out to be beautiful with a lovely sunset over the lake. We all sat along the dock and watched the sun set – it’s hard to believe that there is rain in the forecast again tomorrow. It was a magical sort of evening and I was happy and relaxed and ducked into my tent at around 9pm for a much needed sleep. A great day of riding.
My odometer is at 4998 – tomorrow I hit 5,000..!! Hoooolllllllllly!
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