Seeing wood for trees: Forging into Ontario

I realise it's been a wee bit longer since my last post, but then I have officially entered northern Ontario, a place for people to disappear...

Leaving Winnipeg, I decided to take things easy for the next week: I had held a good pace so far, and I knew my legs would appreciate a lighter spin for a few days.

So back out on highway one, I passed a plain yet hugely monumental sign proclaiming to be the longitudinal centre of Canada - officially halfway! I took my standard selfie whilst cars zipped past me, totally uninterested in this, quite frankly, auspicious occasion that was taking place just feet from them.

The following morning I awoke to the sound of a gentle drizzle on the roof of my tent - I managed to grab my dry kit from my bike and set off, thinking the the bad patch of weather would simply blow over. Sadly it was not meant to be: the rain got progressively more heavy, I could barely see through the dreary haze. I managed two hours, when I decided enough was enough. A sign for a lakeside resort loomed out of nowhere, and I turned off the highway to search for the office.

Taking shelter from the rain first thing

The first place I found to stop (this was taken the following morning...understandably, I wasn't in the mood to take pictures on the day I arrived!)

I was greeted by two dogs barking at the obvious intruder, and a lady appeared to see what the fuss was about. She took one look at me and my attire (I really know how to pull off the drowned rat look) and practically threw a towel at me to start the drying process.

Irene offered me a log cabin to stay in for the night, provided me with tea, gave me a lift to the closest grocery store to buy lunch, and then had me join her family for roast beef dinner that evening!

I later found out that she actually has the same tea pot as me (!!!!!) so I have decided that meeting her and her wonderful family was simply meant to be. Call it fate, or workings of the above and beyond, she was my fabulous guardian angel who picked me up when I was soggy and my mood was as dreich as the weather raging outside my window.

My home for the night

Having a bit of chill time 

So I eventually made it Kenora after three variable days of cycling. And I made the most of my time there, restocking on supplies and enjoying a taste of the local tipple at the brilliant Lake of the Woods brewery, my skills at chatting to the slightly more interesting clientele getting put to good use.

New province comes with an immediate improvement in road quality - instant bliss!

I felt buoyed leaving this beautiful little town, ready to tackle the next leg of my trip. I chatted to another cyclist on my way out of town; he was just on a Saturday morning spin, but had done the cross-Canada cycle with his now wife (also an avid cyclist) back in 1981. As we shook hands and went our separate ways, I felt enriched by my chat with him, yet another complete stranger who imparted useful knowledge of the road ahead.

I peeled off the main highway to head south on 71, preferring the more scenic if slightly longer route through to Thunder Bay. This was generally considered the better route for cyclists, as the road is quieter in terms of traffic, and also has more places to stop at along the route.

And what a day of cycling. The road wound its way through boreal forests which would open up to reveal a beautiful deep blue lake, the occasional jetty and log cabin set at the water's edge. I worked hard up hills and sped down sweeping curves of smooth tarmac (the roads had improved almost instantly on the crossing into Ontario from Manitoba) enjoying the warm sun and cool breeze. As my grandma used to say, it was one of those 'good to be alive days'.

I stopped to stay the night at a lodge right on a lakefront. The owner, Kevin, said to make the most of the communal building, where I stumbled upon a group of people from the States. It turns out they spent every summer there fishing, and were all just getting together for a potluck dinner as they had just arrived the previous week. When I told them about my own trip, they immediately insisted on my joining them for dinner. Well, I certainly wasn't going to turn down hot sandwiches, homemade potato salad and fresh brownies and cookies!

The cycling continued to be hilly, but much more worthy than I had been used to in the prairies - harder work for the legs but much more enjoyable for my mind.

This week I've spent a lot of time thinking about this trip in general. Maybe it was passing the halfway mark, or maybe because I've been out by myself for so long that I'm running out of things to think about, but I had a wonderful moment of realisation and a great mindset shift.

It may have taken me over 2000 miles to let go of the factors beyond my control (so weather, road quality, the questionable campervan drivers who clearly aren't used to driving larger vehicles), but I finally feel like I've got to the stage of truly enjoying this journey I'm undertaking. And it's not the case that I haven't been enjoying this adventure so far, more that I've reached a heightened appreciation for it.

The beautiful simplicity of spinning my way through stunning surroundings, and not rushing for the sake of making up the miles each day. If I want to push it, I push it for that gratifying feeling at the end of each day. But if I do want to take it easy, I don't panic, I simply enjoy the shorter day, trusting in the knowledge that I will reach my end destination.

So my rather deep thoughts were interrupted when I stopped for lunch at Emo...yes, the timing was pretty impeccable!

I had a couchsurfing stay in Fort Frances, a border town with the US. Matt was a great host. He, along with his friend and neighbour Jeff, fed me wonderful food, good beer and had a plentiful supply of chat about their own travels. We even had a bonfire on the lakefront by their house, talking into the evening and watching bats and birds swooping low over the water.

I reached Thunder Bay over the next couple of days, cycling through more forests and wildlife spotting - another bear to add to my tally, and finally some moose! It was remote cycling, with very few buildings on the highway and even fewer that were up and running, many of them deserted and boarded up through lack of use.

Any guesses on how to pronounce this?!

Sara from Saskatoon had organised for me to stay with her family at Thunder Bay, and I'm so happy this has happened. They are Persian in origin, but the whole extended family seems to have decamped to this great little city.

I have had the privilege to meet Sara's mum, brother, cousins, grandma, aunt, and Maha's (a cousin) husband, brother and father in law, who, incredibly, got married to his wife in my own home town of Shrewsbury in 1973! When I learned this, I was utterly gobsmacked - the world is getting smaller and smaller by the day!

New favourites to go with tea - sohan and sweet date cookies

So much good tea!!

At kakabeka falls - 'the Niagara of the north'

With some of my new Persian family

Aside from this rather fantastic revelation, I got to experience proper 
Persian tea and Iranian food...how have I lived without this before now?!?

What an incredible week, full of deep thoughts and beautiful strangers. I'm finally seeing the wood for the trees, and feeling all the more refreshed for it. I've got a long way to go still in Ontario, may the warm glowing feelings continue!