Reports from Jamie's latest tour

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day 82

getting ready to leave lake superior

Actual Date: 2007-07-25
Uploaded: thu, 26 jul 2007 05:35:38 -070
Distance: 76.00 km

Pancake Bay, Ontario

I encountered my first west bound cyclist in three days today. He was 12 days out from Niagara Falls on his way to Vancouver for school in September. He seemed nice and was really enjoying his first long distance bicycle tour.

He was riding a racing bike and carrying his gear in a Bob trailer that he was towing behind him.

We had a good conversation at the bottom of the last of about eight hills on the way out of Montreal River. He likely had a very interesting few hours climbing the 8 and 9 percent grades after our conversation ended!

Montreal Hill itself seemed to be a series of climbs that ultimately took you over the top. It wasn't a particularily difficult hill compared to hills between Nipigon and Marathon but it still let you know that it was there. It is possible that my decision to camp at Agawa Bay, a campground immediately before the hill, may have played a decisive factor. After the main hill was complete there were a series of climbs and descents before finally exiting the area.

The beautiful shoreline continued all the way to Pancake Bay with numerous picture taking opportunities. After at least a week with mainly rocks, trees and bugs it was quite a shock to come upon a full blown tourist trap complete with wood carvings, large convenience store, gas station and most importantly an ice cream stand. I think that the last time that I had ice cream was Thunder Bay so havng a double scoop of triple tornado was great.

My day was a relatively easy and relaxed one. I recently read somewhere that Pancake Bay was named after the habit the Voyageurs had of cooking up pancakes here on the last day of canoeing before they were able to resupply in Saulte Ste Marie.

A common question that I get asked as a solo tourer is if I get lonely.
Not really. I have the scenery and people who I meet along the way to keep me busy. I do miss my close friends back home but soon enough
I will be back hanging out with them again.

One device that lets me keep in touch is my pocketmail device (www.pocketmail.com). I use it to update my journal but also to keep in touch with my friends. It requires a phone of some sort to upload and download email. You pay a modest fee for the service but they provide a toll free number for you to call. When I went around Lake Ontario I left it behind and really missed it. This time I've brought it with me and really appreciate having it with me.

Tonight is probably my last night on Lake Superior. After so many tours rounding the lakes it's interesting to think that after tomorrow I will have gone around all of them. The tour will continue with my ride back home and I'll probably experience more adventures along the way.

~Jamie N

Interested in bicycle touring? www.bicycletouring101.com

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Tour Statistics

(Based on riding days only)

Number of Riding Days: 34
Overall total so far: 3840.10 km
Daily Average: 112.94 km
Shortest: 53.00 km
Longest: 163.00 km

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