Less Bike, More Hike

Word around town, and by town I mean campsite, is there is some nice hiking to be found in this area. Okay, I guess that’s actually pretty common knowledge. It must be since even I knew that. So, as planned, today was a hiking day and, as such, a non-travel day … other than the travel to get to the hiking location. The hiking location in question was the Cyprus Lake area, a mere 12 km ride from the campground.

In talking with Laurie in the office at the campground, I learned that this is a good time for hiking as the trails aren’t yet crawling with pests … and yes, by “pests” I mean tourists. Just to clear, “pests” was my word, not Laurie’s. Side note: Laurie was fascinating to talk to as she has done more than a little globetrotting and has had a plethora of adventures. I really need to travel more!

Anyway, when I arrived at the Parks Canada entrance I was pleasantly surprised to learn that cyclists get in free! I quickly moved along in case they decided to change their mind. Another side note: Apparently, since Parks Canada took things over from the province, the number of tourists that go through the area has gone from somewhere around 250,000 to over 650,000. And as one might expect, there isn’t the infrastructure to handle it. So, the point? If you’re going to come to Tobermory, don’t come in July and August – you’ll probably see more tourists than trees!

Okay, on with the hike. Well, there really isn’t all that much to say. Okay, I guess there is but rather than describe the hike it would seem more practical to just put some photos into an image gallery. And so, that’s what I’ve done. Feel free to click the Image Gallery at your leisure.

After a few hours on the trails, I headed back to the campground. It was only a brief layover. I emptied one of my panniers and hit the road towards town (the campground is actually about 6 km south of Tobermory). I wasn’t planning on riding there today but I wanted to get some groceries. Both for tonight and the road tomorrow. I don’t expect to see many facilities along the road once I get over to Manitoulin Island.

The outing was successful and within an hour I was once again back at my campsite – this time, ready to make some dinner. After two days of enjoying some Warm Showers’ hospitality, tonight was my first foray into cooking on this trip. It looked (and tasted) much like my meals on last year’s trip. Probably because it was pretty much the same thing I ate last year. A gourmet chef I am not, but if you’re ever in the mood for some really average pasta, well … I might be able to help you out.

Despite its averageness (yes, I know that’s not a word), dinner was a success. Although, I did have to bring out the deet to fend off the flying carnivores that were determined to crash the party. The deet was actually surprisingly effective for a while, i.e. long enough to eat my dinner, but I think the reinforcements were called in for dessert and I have once again retreated to the shelter of my tent.

Tomorrow should be somewhat interesting in that I won’t be able to do my usual slow wake-up routine. The first Chi-Cheemaun crossing is at 8:50 and I plan to be on it. I’ve got my bags pretty much packed and ready to go so it should just be a matter of packing up the tent in the morning. Of course, the forecast is calling for rain overnight and tomorrow morning so that could make things a little less pleasant. Oh well. First world problems.

Today’s Totals:
Distance travelled: 38.04 km
Ride time: 1:35:52
Average speed: 23.80 km/h
Maximum speed: 38.79 km/h