End of Rehearsals

If the past two days were a rehearsal of sorts to start to get me back in shape and ready for the long road ahead, then today officially ended the rehearsals. The two sub-100 km rides to start this journey now seem like ancient history. But perhaps I’m getting ahead of myself.

My morning began with a not-entirely gentle wind coming off Lake Huron. It also began with a few drops of rain. And that was before a full feast of a breakfast prepared by Ned. I was not going to be malnourished to start my ride on this day.

My goal of hitting the road by 10:00 AM didn’t quite happen because, well … breakfast with Ned and Cary turned into a wide range of enjoyable conversations (and the making of a couple peanut butter and jam sandwiches for the road) and so, the delay took care of itself. By 10:30 AM though, I knew I really needed to hit the road … and by 10:40 AM, I did so.

For much of the previous evening I was trying to determine what my plan would be. In the end, I let the weather dictate my route. Essentially my options were to continue west and go across Michigan or head south and cross into the US near Detroit. With a strong north wind in the forecast, I opted to take advantage of that wind and officially targeted Detroit (just north of Detroit, actually) as my destination. A destination that was about 130 km from my starting point. Clearly, the most ambitious day so far.

The first 45 minutes went incredibly well. The tailwind was everything it was forecasted to be and I was leisurely cruising along at about 30 km/h. Not bad considering this was only Day Three. Somewhere around the 46 minute mark (yes, that’s an estimate) the rain started. But just a drizzle. But I suspected there would be more to come. Spoiler Alert: There was.

As I made my way towards the St. Clair river, the rain’s intensity picked up. Never a downpour. But certainly more than a drizzle. And that more-than-a-drizzle stayed with me for much of my way along the river. Despite the rain, it was still a pleasant ride. There was a good bike path for most of it and the wind continued to help my progress. Excuse Alert: It’s pretty much common knowledge that I struggle with hydration … well, those struggles are certainly not aided by riding in the rain. I mean, when every inch of you is soaked the last thing one tends to think about is having a drink of water. Or maybe that’s just me. Either way, on days like this I prefer to hydrate through osmosis.

I finally made my first stop about 68 km into my ride. Probably further along than ideal, but it only took a little over 2.5 hours to cover that distance. Thank you tailwind! The main reason I waited so long was that I was hoping to find some source of shelter. Did I mention it was raining? I passed a small park with a gazebo at one point but for some reason that wasn’t good enough and I continued on. Had I known it would be another 18 km before another shelter appeared I would’ve stopped. Oops.

My lunch stop was pretty short but under a big pavilion with a plethora of picnic tables. Plus there was a nice view of the St. Clair river and the occasional freighter that was travelling along said river. In addition, there was Eric and Amy (see the Guestbook). As I was about to pedal back into rain (which had actually eased back to a drizzle), I met the aforementioned Eric and Amy who were also seeking shelter from the rain (and freighter watching). We chatted for a bit about my journeys, their journeys, freighters, the high water levels of the river, and other such things. It was a great chat. But of course, I needed to continue on my way. I was still 15 km from the Walpole Island ferry that would take me to the US (Algonac, MI to be exact). Did I mention I was taking a ferry to the US?

Well, my passage into the US was to be by ferry. According to Google, the ferry of choice was from Sombra, ON to Marine City, MI. Apparently no one has informed Google that the ferry has been out of commission for a couple of years. Fortunately, Ned and Cary informed me of that vital information so I wasn’t surprised when I passed the closed ferry terminal. The alternate ferry was a bit less than ideal as it added a couple of extra detours – on both sides of the crossing. But that was my future held.

My main concern (detours notwithstanding) with the Walpole Island-Algonac ferry was that there didn’t seem to be a clear schedule as to its departure times. I aimed to get there as soon as possible and hope the best.

I’d like to say that the rain during those 15 km to Walpole Island dissipated and the sun came out. In fact, I’d REALLY like to say that. But that wasn’t the case. At all. In fact, in rained harder – not that it really mattered though since I was long since soaked through. On the upside, my timing of arriving at the ferry couldn’t have been much better as I arrived just before they were loading the final car. Moments later I was also onboard. Eight minutes and $2 later I was going through U.S. Customs. An experience that was very pleasant and effortless.

After being welcomed to the United States, I had a 50 km ride remaining. Part of that ride was heading back north as I needed to pedal around Anchor Bay. The tailwind that had pushed me along for much of my ride to the ferry was now very much working against me. However, given that the northerly portion of my ride was minimal, I just focused on the task at hand (or foot) and pedalled.

Once I worked my way around Anchor Bay, the ride again headed south (okay, there was also a bit of west). While the tailwind was still there for the southerly portions, there was also traffic. A lot of traffic. A few cars were enthusiastic enough about my presence on the road that they felt the need to shout out to me. Yes, that was sarcasm. And no, they were not shouts of encouragement. However, given the number of cars that passed me on the day, I really couldn’t worry about those three drivers. I’m sure they shout at a lot of people (and not just on bikes).

I arrived at my destination of The Red Roof Inn shortly before 6:00 PM which made me pretty happy. I figured arriving any time before 6:00 PM would be a victory. Yes, I was wet. Soaked even. But I had made it through another day. Did I mention I was soaked? My clothes clung to me like cling wrap … yes, I know … not a pretty picture. Make no mistake, cycle touring ain’t always pretty! My fingers were so shrivelled that my phone wouldn’t even recognize my fingerprints.

Yup, all things considered, it was another good day.

Today’s totals:
Distance: 128.93 km
Ride time: 5:19:33
Average speed: 24.20 km/h
Maximum speed: 36.45 km/h