Sideways
August 13
I enjoyed a leisurely recovery morning, and rolled my way along the Yellowhead Highway into *drumroll* Manitoba. Yay Manitoba! So much for my much anticipated prairie tail winds - even here the winds are still blowing strong in the 'wrong' direction. (Before I started my trip, I was told that prevailing westerlies would be pushing me along, but instead I have been experiencing consistent easterlies.) It has also been very hot but I'm reluctant to complain much because on the positive side, it hasn't been super stormy and no tornadoes in sight. The heat has also helped me discover a new favourite drink combination - see my photo and this one you can try at home! Terrain highlights of the day include a descent into and a climb out of a large valley which included an enjoyable coast on my bike (the first in several days), and the sudden disappearance of my glorious paved shoulder, aka "home." When the shoulder disappeared, I tried biking through thick gravel on the roadside for a bit before finally realizing that was not going to get me anywhere, and turned onto gravel side roads. (I can bike hard gravel and dirt, but I cannot bike 2 inch thick, loose gravel.) The side roads were okay for the most part, except a notable rough stretch down, into and through a gravel pit and next to a black bear - yep, I'm blaming the road, not the bear! After a long but definitely entertaining last few kilometres, I reached Carly's parents' place and was welcomed happily to my home for the evening.
August 14
Some days are better left without every minute detail explained and today is probably one of them. After leaving the fantastic hospitality of the Sotas with some delicious treats, hugs and smiles, I jumped on my bike saddle, encountered lots of less than ideal cycling roads, and faced a relentless and strong headwind. I'm not happy to admit it but the headwind also blew me into a grumpy headspace and I stopped short of my goal for the day, after 195 km of fight. Most often, I try not to fight the daily challenges and instead roll with them and save my fight for the road. I find that even with cycling day after day, it's not my legs (hilariously pictured above) that I have to be aware of and take care of, but more so my thoughts. However, today my legs were stronger than my head and they carried me to a lovely campsite where I got to enjoy a beautiful sunset before laying my head to rest. Uplifting news... I have officially clocked >8,000 km cycling this summer. Here's to tomorrow!
August 15
Good morning headwinds! I broke camp and renewed my fight through continued winds and then joined the good ol' Trans-Canada Highway. On the parries, I have tried to avoid this beast by travelling on northern and smaller roads, but the smaller roads haven't been working too well as they are also busy with traffic that seems to be funnelling into a bottleneck around Winnipeg; so it has become part of my route also. The highway shoulder is nice and wide, it's just the constant roar and rumble of trucks that leaves something to be desired in the soundtrack! I stopped mid-morning at my intended destination for the previous night - a lovely spontaneous connection in Portage La Prairie - and was so glad I did. I enjoyed fresh baked scones, an absolutely delicious smoothie, local veggies, yummy toast and homemade granola balls. But even better than the food were the friendly faces of Ashleigh and her two kiddos. We had a fun little visit and the kiddos even escorted me down the driveway on their bikes as I left! Back on the road again, I peddled 121 km into a Winnipeg hostel.
August 16
When I woke up and realized that I hadn't spent more than one night in the same place since Inuvik, I was arguably tired, it was raining outside and I was in a cool spot, it seemed like a good time for a rest day. And I had a great one! I ate food, caught up on electronic things, Skyped the magnificent @bowtieal, napped and visited the Canadian Museum for Human Rights. The Museum is relatively new, major Canadian museum with stunningly unique architecture and I found it to be well worth a visit. In particular, I think it does good work sharing stories from Aboriginal people in Canada. Later, as I visited The Forks market in search of food, a voice called out, "Julie! Is that you?" A great catch-up with Jasmin ensued, and I am now heading to bed smiling, rested, and excited to get back on Nutterbut tomorrow.
Friendly Manitoba
August 13 - 16: Friendly ManitobaAugust 13
I enjoyed a leisurely recovery morning, and rolled my way along the Yellowhead Highway into *drumroll* Manitoba. Yay Manitoba! So much for my much anticipated prairie tail winds - even here the winds are still blowing strong in the 'wrong' direction. (Before I started my trip, I was told that prevailing westerlies would be pushing me along, but instead I have been experiencing consistent easterlies.) It has also been very hot but I'm reluctant to complain much because on the positive side, it hasn't been super stormy and no tornadoes in sight. The heat has also helped me discover a new favourite drink combination - see my photo and this one you can try at home! Terrain highlights of the day include a descent into and a climb out of a large valley which included an enjoyable coast on my bike (the first in several days), and the sudden disappearance of my glorious paved shoulder, aka "home." When the shoulder disappeared, I tried biking through thick gravel on the roadside for a bit before finally realizing that was not going to get me anywhere, and turned onto gravel side roads. (I can bike hard gravel and dirt, but I cannot bike 2 inch thick, loose gravel.) The side roads were okay for the most part, except a notable rough stretch down, into and through a gravel pit and next to a black bear - yep, I'm blaming the road, not the bear! After a long but definitely entertaining last few kilometres, I reached Carly's parents' place and was welcomed happily to my home for the evening.
August 14
Some days are better left without every minute detail explained and today is probably one of them. After leaving the fantastic hospitality of the Sotas with some delicious treats, hugs and smiles, I jumped on my bike saddle, encountered lots of less than ideal cycling roads, and faced a relentless and strong headwind. I'm not happy to admit it but the headwind also blew me into a grumpy headspace and I stopped short of my goal for the day, after 195 km of fight. Most often, I try not to fight the daily challenges and instead roll with them and save my fight for the road. I find that even with cycling day after day, it's not my legs (hilariously pictured above) that I have to be aware of and take care of, but more so my thoughts. However, today my legs were stronger than my head and they carried me to a lovely campsite where I got to enjoy a beautiful sunset before laying my head to rest. Uplifting news... I have officially clocked >8,000 km cycling this summer. Here's to tomorrow!
August 15
Good morning headwinds! I broke camp and renewed my fight through continued winds and then joined the good ol' Trans-Canada Highway. On the parries, I have tried to avoid this beast by travelling on northern and smaller roads, but the smaller roads haven't been working too well as they are also busy with traffic that seems to be funnelling into a bottleneck around Winnipeg; so it has become part of my route also. The highway shoulder is nice and wide, it's just the constant roar and rumble of trucks that leaves something to be desired in the soundtrack! I stopped mid-morning at my intended destination for the previous night - a lovely spontaneous connection in Portage La Prairie - and was so glad I did. I enjoyed fresh baked scones, an absolutely delicious smoothie, local veggies, yummy toast and homemade granola balls. But even better than the food were the friendly faces of Ashleigh and her two kiddos. We had a fun little visit and the kiddos even escorted me down the driveway on their bikes as I left! Back on the road again, I peddled 121 km into a Winnipeg hostel.
August 16
When I woke up and realized that I hadn't spent more than one night in the same place since Inuvik, I was arguably tired, it was raining outside and I was in a cool spot, it seemed like a good time for a rest day. And I had a great one! I ate food, caught up on electronic things, Skyped the magnificent @bowtieal, napped and visited the Canadian Museum for Human Rights. The Museum is relatively new, major Canadian museum with stunningly unique architecture and I found it to be well worth a visit. In particular, I think it does good work sharing stories from Aboriginal people in Canada. Later, as I visited The Forks market in search of food, a voice called out, "Julie! Is that you?" A great catch-up with Jasmin ensued, and I am now heading to bed smiling, rested, and excited to get back on Nutterbut tomorrow.
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