August 5, 2023 to August 8, 2023
Day 50, 51, 52 and 53: Canada, Eh?
Lakeport, Michigan to Rondeau RV Park, Morpeth, Canada, to Niagara Falls, New York
Saturday, August 5:
We entered Canada yesterday; entering Canada was a breeze, but getting to the ferry was a little complicated route wise. However, in Port Heron, Michigan we met Randy, a local on a bike, that led us around the port - the local way. This really was helpful as we didn’t have to fuss with navigation and stopping a lot as the route was a bit complicated around the bike paths and city streets. Once we left Randy, we were on our way to the ferry in Algonac, MI. The ferry was only $3.00 a person with the bike and a seven minute ride. Once we got to the Canada, customs was quick, and we were on our way to the RV park and campground. It would have been preferable to be in the provincial park which is just like a state park but without hiker/biker sites or “no turn-away policies.” Yeah, camping in Canada around popular or congested areas is not easy. We found this out when we did a bike tour in B.C. Anyway, it was also a holiday weekend, so we were really not going to get a popular park.
The RV park was interesting. It was right on Lake Erie! Great Lake # 3; yup, I got a swim in last night, but it wasn’t the cleanest lake; the topography and geology make the shores look a bit silty, but I still enjoyed the swim in the stormy surf - it was a bit windy today. The shoreline looked like an ocean with its crashing surf. The shoreline was rocky - just lots of small pebbly rocks instead of sandy shores like Michigan and Huron. The banks were also more clay-like than sand dunes.
We arrived late as we had a really long day of big miles and winds. Well, maybe I was just affected by the winds. I thought it was the wind but Mike informed me that it was me, so ice cream was in order, and a Stroop Waffle, and then I was good for the last twenty. When we got to camp, the owner of the camp informed me that he had a spot for us, but he really didn’t have a lot of room, so he put us in a “cabin.” It was a nice gesture, but I think I would have rather slept in the tent. Anyway, we had a place to stay, we had a swim, and met another bike tourist that was making his way across the country, the hard way. The tourist, M.J., is from South Korea and had toured in the U.S. before, and fell in love with the desert. This time he wanted to make his way across the country from L.A. through the desert. He soon learned that was a bad idea in the summer: he said he had two days in which he thought he was going to die, but he didn’t; he made his way to Glacier via a bus instead that took thirty-eight hours after throwing a lot of his gear off on the desert floor.
It was nice to chat, and today we left camp with him and rode together for a bit before he headed off to a different town. We headed to Port Stanley where it was yet again difficult to get reservations because of the holiday weekend but also because it was the local CALIPSO weekend. It stands for Come and Live in Port Stanley, Ontario. It is supported by the locals and visitors’ bureau; basically it looks like a big party in the town with lots of drinking, music and food. There is a big beach here, so that is packed as well.
Sunday, August 6 and Monday, August 7:
We finally fell asleep in Port Stanley after the CALIPSO festival ended in fireworks. We were trying to sleep, but there was none of that until the festivities were over. Anyway, Mike slept well and I was worried about bugs all night. The hotel room carpet looked like it hadn’t been vacuumed this season, and the air conditioner fan was intermittent, so it was not a restful sleep for me. I am sick of yucky hotels. I am also sick of being sticky all the time; it is the humidity, and nothing is ever dry. However, I am sitting at Selkirk Provincial Park after a lovely walk to Lake Erie and witnessing a beautiful sky this evening: backlit clouds covering a baby blue canvass. This reprieve comes after four hours of rain on our eight and a half hour ride. So, as you can see, you have to take the good and the bad; there is no way around it, and there are always little gems that occur during the day as well.
Today’s gems were a tail/side wind most of the day for one; we had many miles, so it was welcomed - especially after yesterday’s windy beat down. Other gems were meeting a woman named Joanne at a farm stand and chatting with her while we waited for the rain to dissipate, but never did. But that was okay as we enjoyed learning about Joanne’s past: nun flunky who then was too embarrassed to go back home so she hitchhike across Canada at seventeen, alone in the 40’s. We think she was somewhere between 83-85 years old. She was spry, lucid and still driving. Another gem was buying gluten free bakery items and Stroop Waffles. However, the best part of the day was the ride: the roads were pretty quiet, in good condition, and scenic - lots of farms, ports and small views of the lake. We have been following ACA’s Erie Connector Route since Marysville, MI; then we needed to do our own route as the original ferry in Marine City was not operating, so we went to Algonac, MI to catch another ferry. Anyway, today we were on The Great Lakes Water Trail for most of the day - which is part of the ACA route. It was a series of roads designated enjoyable for cycling and hiking.
Lastly, we are happy that there were many sites available at the campground today, and we are also happy that we will be in Niagara Falls tomorrow. Can you believe it? I do see more explorations of Canada in our future…in a van!
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Tuesday, August 7:
Made it to Niagara Falls, New York; back in The States! That was quick, right, eh? We left Selkirk Provincial Park at 8:00 am; woke up to a non rainy morning with winds mostly in our favor, until we headed north. The day followed The Great Lakes Waterfront Trail again for the first half of the day; that meant we were on a frontage road of Lake Erie for a long time. The difference with today was that we could see full views of the shoreline and the cottages and homes populating the landscape. We had great pavement most of the way. I kind of felt like we were on a bike trail all day as this route was pretty much devoid of cars. I enjoyed the sleepy coastline with its coffee-drinking dog walkers and seeing the various lake-life architecture. We were following the ACA route until the town of Port Colborne where we headed north. The reason I did this was to cut out some mileage and to get to Niagara Falls quicker, and I have to say it was a pretty good route; paved bike paths all the way to Niagara Falls on the Canadian side. We followed a couple of locks/canals and bike trails that connected together; I believe the first was the Weiland Canal Trail and then it connected to some other trail. They weren’t that difficult to follow, but we did have to cross several bridges which just got a little annoying when dealing with traffic because we had to go back and forth from one side of the canal to the other. But, this was so much better than dealing with lots of traffic, bad roads, and traffic lights. We eventually headed east at Allenburg. The streets definitely had traffic and we had to be defensive aggressive riders for a while, but no big deal; it was for a short time. Once we got close to the Canadian Falls, the party started. Oh, my god! First off, it was a grand view. Suddenly, we got a view of the falls- not sure if it was the American or the Canadian, but it was just spectacular, and then we hit the hoards of attractions and people. It was crazy while trying to navigate - sensory overload: people, traffic and pretty much Disney Land. I am glad to have seen it, but on a bike it was challenging. We made our way, creatively, to the Rainbow Bridge to cross over to the US. Bikes have to travel with the cars here; there is no way to get onto the pedestrian walkway; so we had some nice chats with people in cars while we were all waiting for a long time to get through Customs.
We ended our day in a nice hotel, finally! We ate good food from food trucks, walked around Niagra’s State Park to see The Falls and scope out stuff for our layover day, and we did a way long hike to Tops Supermarket for provisions. On a social note…towns are making it difficult for its residents to eat well. Markets with healthy food are few and far between. Again, besides free public parks, I also want to advocate for better healthy food options for American residents. I have a lot on my plate for the future, and I hope it’s a lot of healthy food for me and others!
Here’s to a layover day,
Team Bean
Stats
- Cribbage Game Wins: Mike 11, Dawn 8
- Tortillas Eaten: Mike 146, Dawn 54
- Jars of Peanut Butter: 5
- Flats: Dawn 2, Mike 1
- Bike Haters: 4 (We had our first one in Montana yesterday.) None in North Dakota that we know of.
- We may have had some bike haters in Canada…not sure; they do it in a polite way…
- Bags of Salad Consumed: 22
- Dog Encounters: 2
- Beers, too many to count
- Bags of M&M’s: 5 of various sizes
- Fritos: 10 of various sizes
- Bear Encounters
Today's ride: 314 miles (505 km)
Total: 3,577 miles (5,757 km)
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