Report Card #1

Alright, I've been in Chatham now for 2 days. Chatham is where my sister Lise and husband Mike live and where I'm making a "base camp" between Sarnia and Chatham. I'm at that point in the ride where you know things are not going to be reversed. You're past the point of no return. There's no going back. And besides, with this blog thing, the alpha male in me won't let me stop so it's on to the next leg.
I'm as unsure about how the rest of this will unfold as anyone reading this is, but if it continues the way it has, I can guarantee a winning season. And just to prove it, I want to take a moment and quickly check how things have gone so far:

* Food: EXCELLENT.
I've had steak, steak, steak, salmon, shrimp, pork tenderloin, steak, steak, and oh yes, steak. It would appear the key ingredient for this menu is not overstaying your welcome (with this statement, I've likely set myself up nicely for macaroni & tomatoes, tube steak, etc...)

* Facilities: EXCELLENT.
I'm not going to risk anything here.

*Roads: GOOD.
Surprisingly few construction hold ups and conditions. Speed kills, and no one is dying on these Ontario roads

* Bike: GOOD.
Steady as she goes, with one minor issue concerning stopping. And based on one of the blog comments, I should've neglected the issue and continued onward using the Fred Flintstone technique for stopping. I don't think so.

* Cost: EXCELLENT
(see first 2 bullets)

* Weather: EXCELLENT.
Started late because of rain but things have been stellar since then.

* Company: OVERWHELMING.
Best part of this road trip so far.

* Converting Non-Believers: AVERAGE.
To date, only worked on the one couple but I believe his next bike will be an HD

* Team Recruitment: BELOW AVERAGE.
Haven't come across any of those biker babes you tend to see spread across the mags. Sorry Gerry, may have to take another ride through Timmins and visit "the Center".

So, based on Report #1, I can say things are progressing very nicely. With luck and mother nature's help, next term's report will be equally excellent.

Today is July 1 so Happy Canada Day to you all. I'll be spending it with Lise, Mike with Kaz treating us to supper and Friday, I'll be heading to Windsor to see Deb & Vito.

Gail & Al: Sarnia Times

I arrived in Chatham late Monday afternoon in a typically hot and humid s-w Ontario summer day. Tornado watches had been in effect the day before but no such vicious phenomena was on the agenda today.

Candace and I spent 5 years in this area of Canada ('80-'85). During that time, we lived in Sarnia and Candace worked at St. Joseph's Hospital where she quite naturally made many friends. One of these friends was Gail who is pictured above with her husband Al and with whom Candace shared many laughs on workplace situations and events. Gail by the way, is still on the hospital staff, assessing patients, and tutoring newbie staff. She'd be willing to help out the hospital management if they were willing to listen but...

Al hasn't changed and remains a very friendly man. In fact, he's always had a lot of friends. And, I can tell you assuredly the fact that Al was the local Beer Store manager had nothing to do with that. These are good people.

Candace enjoyed her profession and working with with individuals like Gail was quite simply icing on the cake. It was my pleasure to stop by yesterday and reminisce with both Gail and Al.

The Crossing: A Ferry Tale

As mentioned in the last post, I boarded the Chi-Cheemaun ferry Monday morning which left South Baymouth for Tobermory exactly on time (09:10 hrs) and took me across the Lake Huron/ Georgian Bay "straight" if this is what I can call it. The envelopping fog was thick as soup so I missed the island views and such, but I got to hear the fog horn, every 2 minutes. Met some Quebecers who were on a bike ride in the area which gave me the opportunity to sharpen my skills in my native tongue. He rode a Yamaha Road Star but kept telling me if he had to do it over, well, the Glide is where he'd be sitting. "Rest easy my son, all is forgiven" I told him.

We landed around 11:00 hrs and I was on my way. I enjoyed their company and bade them farewell as we left the ship. Of course, I made sure he heard the Glide as I pulled away. I could see him in my mirror shaking his head. The fog lifted on the Bruce Peninsula and as they had loaded the bikes up front, I was able to make great time on a fairly quiet road (hwy 6 if I remember correctly).

Helene & Mark

After that lampooning of the city of Timmins, I need to eat crow somewhat because of the great company I enjoyed while I stayed there. I had not met Helene before but I quickly felt like we had known each other for a long time. Over the course of a couple of days, I was able to spend some quality time with Helene and Mark, sharing family photos and talking about what the future might hold. Like kitchen renos. As Mark continues to mumble (to himself particularly): a happy wife is a happy life...

During my visit, I was able to meet Mark's daughter Melissa, her husband Michael and new baby girl as well as his son, Brent, his wife Jenny and their 2 girls. Great folks all the way around.

You know, I've known Mark since I was 5 years old. In fact, Mark went to grade school with Candace so he knew her well before I did. This type of history typically means a certain level of familiarity with each others skills and wants, but life has a way of continually surprising us. During my visit, I had the opportunity to taste some of Chef Mark's delicacies, like pork tenderloin in a red wine sauce. Yes, you are reading this correctly. From what I witnessed though, you need to get him in the kitchen early... if you know what I mean. Otherwise, you get plan "B": pork tenderloin without a red wine sauce.

Once again, I had to let go of a perfectly good handrail and get on the road. This morning I headed out of Timmins and thanks to Brian's (Kap) suggestion, I went westward at Sudbury rather than south on Hwy 69. Two reasons for the good fortune: bad weather along the eastern coast of Georgian Bay, and heading west led me to Manitoulin Island and the South Baymouth to Tobermory ferry. That will be the start of Monday's ride and if the weather cooperates, its end in Chatham.

Timmins, and Never the Twain Shall Meet

I've always hated Timmins. They would clean our clocks back when I played hockey. You know this kind of place, big town, big names, lots of history and inevitably we would get beat up. So I've always considered Timmins like Pittsburgh is to Cleveland. Hated Timmins.

Now we all know this is Shania's place, and well she is a woman, so I thought I'd give Timmins another opportunity. I kept hearing about the "Shania Twain Center"and I thought quite logically if I had any chance to meet Shania, that's where it was likely going to happen. To my demise she wasn't there. However, I was able to locate her center using the cut-out that you see above. In fact, what I'm pointing at is what I calculated to be Shania's geographic center, her belly button. One of the nicest geographic centers around, at least from my experience. As attactive as it is, even I must admit that it pales in comparison to her South Pole which unfortunately was cut out of the picture. Amateurs.

I still hate Timmins, but I must say, I'm now more inclined to like her citizens.

Kapuskasing, Ontario

I slowed up as I was arriving in Kap from a westerly direction. It was somewhat surreal as I hadn't really been here since 1989. I pulled into the cemetary and people already there got into 2 parked vehicles and left rather abruptly. What's with that. Relax, this is a cemetary, not the OK Corral! Anyhow, this cemetary is where my parents are both interred. Couldn't find 'em. Had to call my brother long distance on a cell in the cemetary to find my mother and father. That has to be a first in my family.

Next was the obligatory cruise over to my house ("... that didn't take long") and the Circle, Kap's business center. Didn't do the complete 360 around the circle. Wanted to save something for the next day you know, so I took the 270 deg option and merged out on to my hosts home, Helene et Brian. Grandmom, Doug, brothers, sisters, nephews, in-laws were all there... by the pool... in Kap... under sunny skies... in 28 deg C weather... in Kap. None of the scenarios I dreamed up for my return home included this one. None. I would've been happy with just "no snow".

Went for a long walk Tuesday to check out sights including the museum, the park, the civic center, the high school, our old church (which was unlocked so I went in), my house again and the downtown area. Never saw one person I knew. I think they've all aged and I still have that mental picture of them 20+ years ago. Maybe that's it. Hey, but they should've recognized me! I still look the same...

We were treated to some hors d'oeuvres followed by stuffed atlantic salmon for supper... in Kap ... under sunny skies... in 29 deg C weather... by the pool. I may never leave. Helene and Brian are very generous hosts and I couldn't have landed in a better place.

Thursday was relaxed as my hosts were both working - time to hit the keys and get some blogging done. Doug and I visited as well and got supper somewhat organized for our fabulous hostess. My stay in Kap wound down with an evening of visiting my nephew Tosh and his lovely wife Danielle along with their daughter, Elizabeth, truly a little doll. Back at Brian's, we finished the evening playing some billiards and some guitar. Tickets for the show go on sale in 2014.

I'm leaving today for Timmins after having a thoroughly wonderful time here. I couldn't have ordered it any better and if Helene & Brian read this: THANK YOU! I'm on my way to Timmins to see Helene & Mark - yes, there's more than one Helene in N.Ont. On the way, I intend to stop in Moonbeam to see the largest assembly of my mom's family. That's the good news; unfortunately, they're pretty much all in (you guessed it) the cemetary. No worries, I've charged up the cell, just in case. And, just for bragging rights, we have a street named after our family in Moonbeam, the St-Aubin street as well as a bay at nearby Remi Lake, Ouellette Bay. I"ll let you figure that out. I suppose I should mention Moonbeam has a population of 217.

Charting a Course

Many don't actually know the route I'm taking on this journey, at least at a high level. That was intentional of course. You know, less time for you to lock up when you hear me arrive. However, the receptions have been so great I've given this some more thought. I want to give you a rough outline and that way, there's a better chance of making our respective schedules mesh. So, from here in Kapuskasing, this is my best shot at the sequence of destinations:
Timmins, Sarnia, Chatham, Windsor, London/Appin, Dundas, Kingston, St-Mathieu, Gaspesie, Charlottetown, Halifax, Fredericton, Trois-Riviere, Ottawa, North Bay, USA. My arrival back in Red Deer should be around late August.

This a plan and we all know plans usually are deviated from. That's my CYA statement.

June 21: Dah Bears

It's been many years since I've taken the ~160 km connector road from Hwy 17 to 11, known to everyone as the "Hornepayne Rd". Just prior to getting on this road, I was fueling the Glide and asked the attendant about any construction or other issues ont this particular day. "No" he said, "just watch out for the bears". Is that all? Just watch for BEARS! So, I headed out on what should have been a great ride, on a winding road with blue sky. There's a few reasons why it wasn't exactly so.

First, this Bear thing; when I'm riding, I feel rather naked out there and I don't like seeing any mammal on the road, whether its Bambi or Thumper. Bears I don't like at any time, naked or not. Evidently the concentration of black bears in this part of Ontario resembles what deer population is like in most other parts of our nation. It's not a question of "if" you'll see one, it's a question of "when".

Second, this road is full of blind corners. In fact, that's all there seems to be for the first 90 kms. Combine that with the trees being up against the road and, well you get the picture: no time to react to a sighting with some evasive maneuvre and there's really no need to anyway as there's nowhere to go.

Third, I'm alone. Usually, the rumble of 4-5 Harleys guarantees that within a radius of 200 metres, creatures go the opposite direction.

Fourth, they've assigned a speed limit of 80 kph on this road. Yep, you read that right. Presumably, this is so you would be able to stop in front of the bear. This is starting to feel like that salmon run when the grizzlies stand there in the river swatting at the fish for a snack. This biker doesn't want to die like a fish out water. 80 kph also means that if you're traveling at a respectable 120 kph, they could pull your license right there (I wonder if they would give me a ride...).

Curiously, there were no tractor-trailers on this road effectively clearing my path if I were to stay a short distance behind: you can never find a good semi when you need one.

So, I did the only thing I could think of: sped up to 119 kph, dropped from 6th to 4th gear to bring the rpm's up (as well as the decibel level) and away we go.

That worked, because the mother bear and her 3 cubs were looking at me well before I saw them. Thank the lord they scattered into the bush. I relaxed after that figuring I had a winning formula. If anyone doubts that "loud pipes saves lives", they haven't walked the Hornepayne mile. I did feel sorry for that Goldwing rider who was heading in the opposite direction though. I gave him the thumbs up as he went by. Hey, it was his decision to buy that thing.

Wawa, the city of brotherly love

I arrived in Wawa on Friday to visit my brother Claude as well as the Goose of course. Lake Gitche-Gumee can be pretty stingy when it comes to doling out sunshine but when it does, Wawa`s location is truly a thing of beauty. So far, it's been generous for my stay. Claude is older than me (and I'm being kind here), so we have very different stories from our childhood and it`s always interesting to swap these. He's also the family liaison between me with my insular nature and all of our relatives. I find out who`s where, doing what to whom, why, and when. This time, he's provided me with a name of a relative we have in my father's hometown in Quebec, a place I've never been. I look forward to meeting my cousin Marie-Anne.

Tonight was an evening out with Enza, Lynn, & Ron as well as Lillo & Judy. Claude has known them for perhaps all of his 44 years in Wawa and they've showered him with much care, love, and concern over that time. I was looking forward to to the outing and wondering where we would eat. So for all of you who ride, drive, pedal, jog, or walk Hwy 17, about 5 kms south of the Wawa turnoff is a small log restaurent called the Kinniwabi Pines. Stop in and order the pickerel but unless you're with a partner, stay away from the passion fruit desert. It's that good. (You'll owe me). Tomorrow morning (Monday), we'll be packing for our respective departures as he and I are both leaving, he in the southern direction while I head to my hometown, Kapuskasing. His summer is filled up with travel plans and between commitments and weather, it`s never guaranteed that all will fall into place.

It`s been a great visit and I'm very happy the logistics worked out.

June 18: Thunder Bay

I actually didn`t get to Thunder Bay. I stayed at Phil`s but I can`t spell Kaministiquaw. Anyhow, that`s where my long time friend Phil resides, in a lofty home on 40 acres. Phil, just so you know, I still don`t think I can operate your refrigerator ice machine, or your shower for that matter. You may want to have instructions nearby for visitors. Always liked that about Phil: if you do something, then do it completely. When you buy something, make sure you don`t have to go back anytime soon to upgrade. This goes part way to explaining the pallet of dog food in his shop.

Phil, Candace and I had not seen each other for about 20 years although our relationship is similar in its development to both Brian and Denise. It just so happens they all live in a linear sequence on my journey. Phil use to live in the same apartment house (frat house essentially) as Candace and I did for a couple of years in the `70s while at Lakehead. I learned a lot from Phil, both things I wanted to improve myself at, and as any good student would observe, things I should avoid. Like the time he wanted to save a Chrysler slant 6 engine. So, we carried it down a 100 yr old house`s narrow set of stairs, around corners finally into a very dark basement. We covered it up with a tarp, looked at each other and said: `well, that`s never coming out of here.` As far as we know, it`s an artifact in that house as I write this.

Phil has always done everything he can to ensure your comfort when you visit and this time was no different. He cooked me a great supper, we had a few beverages, we talked about the past, we talked about Candace and we looked at recent photos. I know it gets repetitious to read this, but it isn`t repetitious to actually do it.

All these one night stands seem to compress the visits somewhat and I hope folks understand that I value each one of these equally.

Canadian Shield: Big Lakes. Big Bugs. Lotta Cops

There’s always clues, we just don’t always see or hear them. Candace use to tell me this in her own way, as in “... Bob, you’re not LISTENING!...’. At least, that’s what I think she said. After a day-long ride, I tend to decompress by trying to look somewhat engaged, but typically drifting off somewhere thinking about pronghorns, or whatever. Well, while at Brian’s, he was busy sharing some history and mentioned buying a case of insect repellent. Now, why didn’t I latch on to that? Many of us grew up in the Canadian Shield and this should have been an alarm bell. A “CASE” of repellent! We’re not talking Molson’s here. Repellent comes with a XXX across the labels: ”DEET: DO NOT USE IF UNDER THE AGE OF 18; DO NOT LICK YOUR FINGERS, DO NOT PICK YOUR NOSE; WASH YOUR HANDS BEFORE GOING TO THE WASHROOM”. This should trigger a reaction of some sort. Sadly or rather expectedly, I missed the clue until now.

So, here I am sitting at a gas station, cooling down and minding my own business when I realize I’m being savagely attacked by these females. There trying to bury themselves into my triceps and suck my blood. One of them suckceeds and buries this 2 inch shaft through my arm and out the other side. Naturally I flicked her off but it didn’t come off quite like I hoped. While most of her flew off, her head and shaft remained deeply buried in my arm. I guess she’s going to Nova Scotia. I’ll get used to her.

There`s a few OPP officers in the northwestern Ontario. There`s a few every 10 kms. I travelled 3 prairie provinces on this trip totalling 1680 kms or so and I saw no police, not one, nada. I crossed that Ontario line and although I had been warned, I wasn`t prepared. Lotta cops that have to deliver on some mandate or other. Well, we pay people to answer these types of questions and the Ontario gov`t obviously gave this some serious thought because you can`t have that many officers idle. I believe that had a large part in the right-left combination of the ´lotta cops, low speed limits` strategy now keeping so many public employees busy. The highway speed drops to the point where your fuel consumption actually goes up because you have to shift from 6th gear (in my case) down to second or third just so you don`t lug the engine. Try explaining that to the newbie cop: I was doing 120 in the 80 because I`m doing my part for the enviroment, saving fuel, etc.

Let`s call a spade a spade: I haven`t seen the rest of the province but this part of Ontario is a police state. If you doubt it, try shifting into 4th.

June 17 - Kenora: Great Catch

I arrived at Denise and Peter`s home mid afternoon after a relatively short ride from Winnipeg (225 kms). Denise and I go back to the Lakehead days and she`s someone who`s seen one of my highest highs, and one of my lowest lows. One of the highs was back in `74 with her unexpected attendance at Candace`s and my wedding. Ours was somewhat of a spontaneous arrangement (14 days) so we had family and an exclusive list of 6 or so guests (only so much room in a house basement reception...). She and her new hubby were on their way to Thunder Bay and stopped in only to find we were getting married that night. Naturally, Candace and her maintained a close relationship throughout our years in Thunder Bay. However, Denise was also with me for one of those lows we all want to forget (and which I can barely remember) when some of Thunder Bay`s finest insisted on providing me with their free room and board accommodations.
So now it`s 36 years later, her and Peter have been married some 27 years, and out of the blue, the Glide and I show up. I was fed, washed, and entertained with an evening of Pete`s cooking, watching Jersey, Lola, Lucie and a couple of other cool cats perform, as well as the usual Q&A`s about our past. It was also the opportunity to let Denise know all that happened with Candace. Catching up. That`s what this journey is all about.

On the Road Again

Just a quick note to pass along that all went as planned and I left Winnipeg at noon on Wednesday. Staying the extra day did provide me with the opportunity to witness a couple of things. On Tuesday night as I was out walking and stopped at a set of lights, an old biker pulled up and was sitting there idling. I looked at him, and did a double take as he wasn't wearing a helmet. When he looked at me, I tapped my hand on my head and he simply shrugged. I figured he'd decided that the fine was worth it. The next morning when the cab was taking me to the shop to pick up my bike, I saw another biker without a helmet. I asked the cabbie, but he answered in a dialect that I wasn't familiar with. At the shop however, I was told this was probably a "medical exemption". A medical exemption. Right. Evidently, some doctors provide this if they feel the individual's neck would not be able to sustain the weight of a helmet and the police force honour that exemption. Well, let me just say there'd be some very popular doctors in Alberta if the RCMP bought into that one.
The other thing I picked up in Winnipeg is the recent political trend of local municipalities diverting folks' attention from real issues to one of loud motorcycles. Some of Winnipeg's finest have equipped themselves with sound meters and are targetting bikes. We got people riding without head gear, gang shootings over crack, etc., and among all this, loud pipes. Politics.

Winnipeg, the extension

Still in Winnipeg today. The day started off well with warm temps and broken cloud. Things changed rapidly. As I rode away from Rebecca's & Brian’s home, my rear brakes disappeared. Looked like a split brake line. Thankfully, there are 2 dealerships in Winnipeg and with my front brake functioning, I was able to ride the roughly 50 kms on the perimeter highway to an HD service center.

The Good: better to happen here than in Beardmore.

The Bad: keep pushing the schedule back another day.

The Ugly: seems like some higher force doesn't want me to cross that On - MB line

Winnipeg HD were courteous and did the right thing according to the Old Biker credo: because I'm "on the road", they pushed it ahead of the queue and promised to get it looked at asap. They did and confirmed the split line.

Unfortunately, they didn't have the brake line in stock.

Fortunately, there's 3 in Toronto.

More fortunately, they got the order in before cut-off.

Mor-er fortunately-er, the part will be here at 9:00 am tomorrow.

Best of all, I'll be on the road by noon. And as a bonus, get this: before I left, I called Road America, an insurance company that services HD, paid $29 for emergency roadside coverage and now my hotels, meals and cab fares are covered. So as I'm writing this, I'm in a pretty damn nice hotel, showered and feeling pretty mellow.

That glass really is half full, isn't it?

Winnipeg, the visit

I arrived in windy Winnipeg Sunday afternoon to be greeted by Rebecca and Brian, as well as Asha, their beautiful two and half year old grand-daughter. We had a great afternoon (in the sun!!!) with Rebecca and I aquainting ourselves (we had never met), all 3 of us updating our bios with events from our lives over the past 30 years and eventually getting into the inevitable rehash of days gone by when we were back at Lakehead. It always amazes me how much is forgotten until one chain of thought leads to memories from long ago. It's a ton-o-fun and we went late into the night. Now, one should be firing on all cylinders traveling the TC1 in n-w Ontario and as an outcome of our festivities, only about half of mine are working properly at the moment, hence the blog in mid-day. No riding today. Rather, it will be a gentle maintenance affair for my Glide with some overdue scrubbing and TLC.
I must mention Brian's culinary skills were at their peak form yesterday and he cooked us a meal that would make any restaurenteur proud. To reciprocate, I offered to return the favour by whipping up supper this evening. They have no idea what I will prepare, but I have a secret recipe of herbs and spices that really elevate K-D to that next level. Should be fun.

Yorkton - Winnipeg Leg

On my last post, I forgot to mention the pronghorn. Pronghorns are prairie anteloppe that I believe are only found in N-A's great plains. Beautiful animals and I was fortunate to spot one near Hannah, Ab while riding to Yorkton. She was only a few metres from the highway as I approached her. I know it was a female pronghorn because as I passed her, she winked just before leaping into the farmer's field. Aha, the old "catch me if you can" ploy. Well, I'm longer in the tooth and a little wiser now and there was no way she was going to lure me into that field, again.

The other interesting tidbit I observed and want to share is in the 1400 kms or so of 2-lane highway I travelled between Red Deer and Portage, Mb, over the 2 days this weekend, not once did I meet up and have to pass a semi. Not one. Being an engineer and having nothing but time while riding, this got me thinking what was the statistical significance concerning this fact. After (too) much pondering, I concluded the following: I believe there is a 98% probability that while riding in Canada's jugular artery known as the TransCanada north-western Ontario leg between Kenora and Thunder Bay, I will be trapped behind 38 or 39 tractor-trailers eating their dust and rubber. Things always have a way of evening out, 19 times out of 20.

Red Deer to Yorkton, Sk

Love is a drug. I must love riding the Glide down the highway because that's the only way I can explain the rush I had this morning. I was somewhere around Delburne when the drug kicked in (thanks Hunter) and it was an intense jolt of excitement. There was no need to let anyone know because they'd have just become suspicious...

The problem with riding the Great Plains is people expect the Rockies. Kinda like being in the jungle looking for cactus (cacti?). The prairies today were spectacular in their own way. The land was loaded with lush stalks of cereals, grasses, and grains as far as you could see, under a blue dome above. (The lushness is partly due to the recent weather in which they've had a lot of "moisture" with pools of standing water creating temporary homes for overjoyed ducks). Small towns everywhere are filled with folks who like to talk. There's a lot of small towns in Saskatchewan and gas stops are as much fun as you want them to be.

The great plains are pretty, yes they're pretty flat. A slight change in elevation is defined as a hill. Place two of these in relative proximity and you've got the makings of a town name like Two Hills. Yes there is a Three Hills but I've not yet discovered a Four Hills. I believe that the locals define 4 hills as a "range". Speaking of town names, the prairies' dynamic history is in evidence by some great town names like Outlook, Cut Knife, the Battlefords, and my personal favorite, Medicine Hat. There's not a more colourful name in our land than that one in my opinion.

Well, I've substituted the riding drug with the beverage variety and after a day-long fix of 1000 kms, and appropriately enough, some fermented grains, my head is feeling a little punchdrunk so that's my cue to sign off. Tomorrow, a visit to the geographic center of our nation and a visit with Rebecca and Brian.

Saved From "Daffy-ness"

I've enjoyed not having to put any sunscreen on over the past few days but the sun is breaking out today and just in time. I was developing a slight "waddle" in my walk and a penchant for hanging around ponds looking for flat-beaked women. Despicable. Although it's still raining east of Red Deer, indications are this will clear by tomorrow morning. So that's it then, no need to worry about morphing into a duck.
My plan is to head east to Saskatoon on Saturday morning and keep going if all is well. Yorkton would be a stretch but would ensure a mid-afternoon arrival into Winnipeg on Sunday and some time to visit with an old friend, Brian and his wife Rebecca.
On a side note, it's been different preparing for this trip because of the time I've had to think about what I"ll need, what to bring, what not to bring, etc. I'm curious what it is I will remember I forgot and how long it'll take before I find out.
Anyhow, bring on the pronghorns!

Pwairie Wetlands

Well, well, well, a wet Wednesday in the West. Wonderful. You can bet I won't be widing in the wain today (thanks Elmer). But seriously, it was good I didn't leave Sunday or Monday as the clouds and rain have blanketed the prairies all week. Not fun on the Glide in those conditions. On top of which a few glitches arose at home so it was good to be here at that time. All indications are that the rain will stop Thursday night. I should be on the road Friday or Saturday at the latest.

June 5: Waiting on the Big Guy to Shut Off his Garden Hose

Attended Ben's graduation ceremony at the U of A on the 3rd (that's him in the pic). We now officially have a new Engineer in the family. Congratulations Benjamin! All went well and we ended up at Janice & Wayne Bezan's for some chili and gabbin'.

So, let's see: yup, everything's done that needed to be done to get the show on the road. I've got the bike chained down cuz it just can smell the road now, and it wants to go. Forecast sucks out here. Today's forecast calls for rain Monday through to Friday!!!! Thank god, because with the record they've had, I should be good to go by Wednesday, June 9. That would mean Winnipeg Thursday evening and Kenora Friday.