Friday, July 26, 2013

Day 40 Friday, July 26

Day 40 Friday, July 26.  Port Huron, MI to London, Onyario, Canada.  82 miles

We were "up and at 'em" early this morning with breakfast at 5:30 and mandatory load by 6:30. With passports at the ready, I said good-bye to Mandy, Vaughn, Sophia and Cate and we set off promptly at 6:45 as a group to cross the Blue Water Bridge, over the St. Clair River and into Sarnia, Ontario. The US department of Transportation halted east bound traffic into Canada and provided an escort for our group over the bridge to the Canadian Customs Office. Twice we had to dismount our bicycles due to the expansion joints in the bridge, but all made it safely across and cleared customs. Well, almost all cleared customs. One of our riders, Mark, originally from Bath, Ohio, and a proud alumnus of the Ohio State University, now living outside Dallas, learned two days ago that, due to an old traffic issue in Canada from several years ago, he would not be allowed passage. He took off yesterday to ride solo around the south side of Lake Erie, adding another 180 miles to his trip. He plans to meet us in Niagara Falls. Godspeed, Mark. You've got some very long days in the saddle. I think I may have just ridden down to Bryan and called Tam!

It was a pleasant day, except for the 10 mph headwinds we battled much of the day. I guess that's part of the price you pay for high pressure systems sitting off to the east, creating blue skies and comfortable temperatures. There is a 50% chance of rain tomorrow, so I'll probably be cursing the weather again, wishing for wind!  Thankfully, Yuval, Amy, Katie, Jane and Fred formed a line and it made it a lot easier.

At mile 11.3 on our ride sheet, we were cautioned about the railroad tracks. It didn't say anything about a train, but just as we were approaching the tracks, the gate swung down and the bells started clanging. I thought we could have beat the train, but the group was wise to stop and wait...and wait...and wait. Although I didn't count cars, this was a long train. A second came by going the other way and the first pulled to a stop...and wait...and wait.  We waited 20 minutes or so to get back on the road. Amy estimated that we've crossed well over 100 railroad tracks on the ride so far, but this is the first delay we've had due to a train. In the grand scheme of things, nothing to complain about.

We arrived safely in London just before 2:00. Yuval and I did laundry to get us through the next few days as we start to think about winding down. There is still a lot of riding left, although we have now completed just under 3,000 miles. The ride sheets say 2,984, but with the detours we've encountered along the way, we have probably ridden right about 3,000 miles. Tomorrow we officially pass that milestone. Holy mackerel, we've come a long way.

So now it's off to bed, as it's off to Brantford, Ontario tomorrow and Niagara Falls on Sunday.

Be well.  Do good.

Don

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