A day of mud water and falling over :-)

We left Rm 101 of the hotel in Nipawin and headed north.  The day involved a lot of falling down but at least the water washed off the mud.

Wet wet and yet more wet!!!!

We left Winnipeg and started to head NW.  We crossed many railway tracks that do not have gates or barriers but fortunately we were on the look out for this train.

A lot of the roads in Ontario and Manitoba have been closed due to flooding.  Normally we would ride past the barrier to see if we could get through and rarely have we been successful so our policy now is when we see a sign then we do not even try to get through.  There were 3 barricades on this day alone. 

We finished the day at Lake Mnitoba Narrows where we camped at the lake edge and when the tent was up I decided to go for a run.

Part way through yesterday we needed to do an change and so in Winnipegosis (Little muddy waters) we pitched up at a agricultural machinery repair yard owned by Cathy and Cory, who had been in the business for 50 years allowed us to use their forecourt, use their tools, dispose of our oil and take away our rubbish.  Good people.  Cory has been associated with the volunteer fire service for many years and was proud to tell us that they had the first pink engine in Canada.

The afternoon was one of rain so we stopped earlier than normal and booked into Duck Mountain Provincial Park campsite.  On a slope, boggy and full of mosquitoes.  The evening was even wetter than the day.  Not a lot of sleep due to the noise of the rain.

So today we awoke to yet more rain and therefore packing up was a miserable experience.  We rode all day in the rain and finally arrived in Nipawin, having crossed the Saskatchewan border, which Alex said reminded him of Tower Hamlets on a bad day. This city was awarded the honour in 1998 of being Canada's most desirable town to live in.

I have crossed many lines

On leaving Timmins I took the road south trying to catch Alex..  The ride was very uninteresting and long but thankfully the rain that had been promised did not materialise.  Just outside Timmins there was a town that seemed  to be hell bent on making everything a 100 times its normal size.  I finished the day camping at Neys Provincial Park.  I had a great location on the shores of Lake Superior with its own beach and it used to be a camp for German prisoners of war.

Today I had decided to take it easy and visit some local attractions since I only had to get to Thunder Bay in order to meet Alex.  I checked out the visitors centre that was closed due to a photography course.  I passed through Schreiber and noticed that the names in the graveyard were Schroder  and a whole range of other German names.  What is the betting that their ancestors were prisoners who decided to stay after the war.  I also went and tried the longest zip line in Canada and thanks to Alison, Frances and Dale for their photography skills.  I visited the Terry Fox memorial where I got a text from Alex telling me that he was not in Thunder Bay but a further 200 km up the road at Ignace so I had a long ride and then a subway before heading for bed.

Leaving Ignace Alex rode 30yds across the road from our breakfast spot to the petrol station without his helmet.  This caused much aggravation to the police officer who was sat watching him and needless to say Alex received a few stern words.

The 21 July was a good riding day and we rode together good and fast and we arrived in Ear Falls in good time and chose to stay at Pakwash Provincial Park.  Great place bad weather since it poured down all night and it turned out that I pitched my tent in what turned out to be a puddle.  Not happy and so to today the nights rainfall lack of sleep and overcast sky helped us decide to ride to Winnipeg by road.

So what are the lines that I have crossed.

1)  The halfway along  the route mark just before Thunder Bay

2)  The mid way longitude of Canada

3)  Entering the Central Standard time zone

4)  Entering Manitoba

The little lady is ready for what promises to be a very wet ride tomorrow

I am currently riding alone! Let me elaborate.
Yesterday afternoon we stopped next to a beautiful lake for a drink and some snacks before starting the last 150km over gravel tracks to the planned overnight stop at Timmins.  As is now the routine I set off about 10 minutes before Alex and he would then ride fast to catch me and then wait another 10 minutes etc etc.  The tracks of this stage were smooth and in good condition and I made good progress and was surprised that after 30 minutes Alex still had not caught me or had he passed me where I had taken an accidental short cut that was not part of the track.  Anyway after a couple of hours I reached the pre arranged meeting place at Tim Hortons.  As time progressed I became a little concerned and after 2 hours I headed for the Police Station.  Just as I was explaining the situation to the police officer who was going to call the hospital I received 3 texts that Alex had sent via skype.  The first was corrupted and the second said that he was staying elsewhere and he would text me when back on the road.  I got a room at the Bon Air Motel.  Not a good name and not a good hotel and it was not even cheap.  I took myself off to the best pub in town that happened to be next door.  I met Lelling (not sure if that is his name but the alternative that comes to mind is lemming and I was not going to call him that) told me that Timmins is about logging or mining and that there is money here but I am not sure where it is being hidden.  Those born and bred here are desperate to get out but most get caught up in a dead end job, then 2 1/2 kids and then a life living in Timmins.  Apparently Shania Twain managed to get out to become a really bad singer.
Today I washed the bike, fitted the tyre and went for a run.  Finally got a mail from Alex.  He had stripped some teeth off his front sprocket and it is coincidental that he was talking about the condition of this sprocket when I headed off.  On the side of the road he could not get it off to fit a new one so he managed to get a lift in the back of a pickup and spent the night in a motel.  He rode on today and is now at Marathon on the shores of Lake Superior.  I will ride by road to the lake tomorrow which is about 550km and promises to be very wet as thunder storms are forecast to break this hot weather.  It is raining outside now.

Dinner in the Bon Air Motel

Since there are very few pictures for this post here is an example of how to make an ad.

Great car!!!!

Water, mud, rocks and sand. All in a days riding in Ontario.

Since we left Ottawa on 13 July we have found lots of technical trails and lots of great people.

That day we had a very hot ride and during roadside rest a couple of guys pulled up in their car asked us what we were doing.  I replied having a rest and they then said would we like to go back to their house and rest over a beer.  Our reply was 'is the pope a Catholic?'  We were fed and watered and then taken back to Ottawa so we could go to the Ottawa Blues Festival.  Mike and Leon were both paramedics and proved to be really great people.  We were given breakfast after a good night sleep on their sofas.

The following day involved even more difficult riding and I managed to drop the bike in a water crossing.  Fortunately I was able to stop the engine before the bike submerged and also lucky that I was through the deepest of the water and on the way out.  Alex the wonder boy was able to get Marigold started after we had drained the engine by standing the her on the rear wheel.  In the late afternoon we saw a quadbiker who we thought was having engine difficulties so we asked if he was OK.  Richard said that he was simply cleaning mud out of his radiator and that he was camping with his family and friends just up the trail.  He offered us to camp at one of sites that he had booked and was not using.  Not only did he offer that but he also fed us that night and the following morning.  Richard, Bonnie, Victoria, Eric, Jennifer, Abi and Evan you all have our thanks.

Yesterday was basically the same as the previous day with lots of water so we were looking forward to a nice campsite.  We ended up with one that had loads of potential but was extremely dog eared.  We were told that the toilets were closed daily between 1030 and 1130 for cleaning.  That must have applied in the last century since they could not have been cleaned since then.

And so to today.  I am now getting better at this technical stuff since I am listening to Alex's call for 'more power'.  The weather is still stifling hot but this this view of a lily covered lake and and good food and a chat with Victoria and the team at the Magpie Cafe helped relief the constant sweating.  So tonight we are in a motel in Sudbury which looks really bad from the outside but the rooms are nice and I even managed to keep up the trend of getting discounts.