Yesterday was a 79 mile day, and today, a whopping 75. Our group has been feeling good, taking care of themselves, and enjoying the tour without too much stress. Couldn't post anything yesterday as wifi was sorely lacking at our hotel. My goodness, remember the days when we didn't even think about wifi at the end of the day? At any rate, here are the highghts:
We pedaled to Trenton, Ontario yesterday. Not the most scenic part of our tour thus far. Rather, a sort of depressed-looking town, struggling to come back from the loss of some kind of booming industry from yesteryear. Our hotel however, though similarly sad in many ways, provided us with cozy nests in which to lay our heads after our long day. As for, the day? Some of us pulled out of the parking lot around 7 a.m. And, from the start we were a group of five singing, playing, bicycle riding dames, a peloton of riders with similar paces and temperaments. It was a marvelous day that included blended coffee drinks and vegan brownies in the town of Bath, a lunch of veggie wraps in Picton, a wine tasting stopover just west of Wellington, and bicycle-themed modifications of songs like "She'll Be Coming Around the Mountain," "Riders On The Storm," and "The Wheels on the Bus."
Today, our ride began with a few raindrops. Nothing too daunting for our intrepid pedalers. Then, about ten miles down the road, the clouds opened up and the deluge through which we pedaled for the next three and a half hours was just simply stunning. By our first SAG stop there wasn't a dry piece of clothing or skin! Gloves and socks were removed so that they could be wrung out, jackets remained zipped in an effort to preserve what little warmth had been conjured, and road crud was brushed off of our seats and backsides only to be replaced just moments later when we set out for our next 25 miles.
In truth, the worst part of the day had nothing to do with pedaling in the rain. Most of us realize and appreciate the privilege we are enjoying by simply being able to come on a trip like this, doing what we love to do with interesting and neat women. No, it wasn't the dirt or precipitation. Rather, it was the air conditioned Subway in which we ate our lunch. My goddess, it was cold. And, Subway? Darn...can't we get that anywhere?! Evidently, there was a local cafe known to serve delectable vegetarian fare right down the road. However, our SAG, arriving in the small hamlet of Cobourg ahead of us determined that the wait for a table was 30 minutes. So, we opted for Subway, which wasn't actually bad at all. Then, we found a coffee shop across the street that served DARK coffee.
After filling up on subs and caffeine, we set out for the next thirty miles...and, within 30 minutes we were pedaling under warm, sunny skies. Jackets were stuffed back in their trunks or Camelbacks, clear lenses were replaced with sunglasses, and our spirits soared as they had in the days before, as we biked along the Waterfront Trail with Lake Ontario waving across our left shoulders! FYI, for those who are interested in the surface of our "trail," though the Waterfront Trail is the offical name of our route, we are pedaling along roads that have been a mix of "butter"-like smoothness, and "washboard" rough. The "trail" follows a route that rarely resembles the Erie Canalway, or the paved section of the WFT (not to be confused with WTF) north of Kingston. And, again, it's a delight (mostly) to have pedaling be the only thing we MUST do during the day.
Another day under our chamois! Tomorrow we head into Toronto, then have a day off from riding. Happy trails, my friends! Thanks for following along!
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