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I have been cycling over 10,000 km a year for the last few years. During that time, I've always been saying that after retirement the first thing I would do would be a cross-Canada tour. There is a difference between a daily 80 km ride and cycle-touring. You don't get home after each ride. The route is always unknown and you have to rely on internet to plan your next day. You would like to have a lot of clothing, equipment and food, but the more you have, the heavier is your bike.
I don't think I had ever been away from home on holidays for more than 10 days. I had never cycled with a loaded bike for more than 3 days. And my wife had no touring experience at all. She was always an occasional cyclist.
A friend of mine did a 6-month hike, the Appalachian trail, a few years ago. He told me that he had read that only a small percentage of people starting that hike would complete the journey. The main reason of this was injury. To avoid getting hurt, the best way was to start slow and gradually increase your distance. When tired, it is always good to take a rest day.
So when we got to Vancouver, we started out by biking around town for 4 days. We visited the area and also got used to live as a cyclist. With a bicycle as our only transportation, we have learned that whenever you wanted to visit something, distance and elevation was going to be a factor. When asking people for directions, it was never in kilometres, but in minutes. So if they said 20 minutes from here, we just had to multiply by 3.
Getting around town in those 4 days was brutal for my wife. With the heavy traffic in town, the big hills, and my wife getting used to her feet clipped to the pedals, she fell a few times. By the time we officially started our trans-Canada tour, she was bruised from head to toe. She got up every time and never talked about quitting. For the first time, this is where I said to myself that I may not get to the finish line by myself.
I never told this to my wife, but my goal was to average no less than 100 km a day. The worse was that on day 3 we would be starting with some big climbs. I told my wife that we would go 1 km at a time. It would always be our goal. We would stop our day whenever tired, and never look at our average speed. And I also told her that if she at one point would want to quit, we would buy a car. We started out with a break after each kilometre and gradually increased. By the time we got home, we were only stopping every 25 kilometres.
Then you have to talk about all the cyclists we met along the way. We all had one thing in common, but even though some had more experience, the goal was always to get from point A to point B. The important thing was to get there, not how fast you did it. When people heard my wife had no prior experience, she got lots of encouragement. Marthe really benefited from all that. Her confidence was building up.
After a few days, we started meeting up quite often with Kevin Ticknor, an Ontario cyclist. He was by himself, and since we were travelling at the same speed, we started planning our days together. We all wanted to get up very early and be done early in the day. And like us, he wanted to do hotels and camping.
This is where Marthe started to realize that she had a good pace. Kevin was also very good in letting her know that she was doing very well. We had been gone for about 10 days, and Kevin really helped me to push Marthe. We were doing longer distances. I was very happy.
Yes, there was some days that I had to push Marthe a little bit, but overall, I would have to say that for somebody who always said that she was not an athletic person, she was doing very well. We were meeting a lot of cyclists and they were all making very good comments to her. There is not too many women over 50 who do this.
By the time we reached the prairies, we were doing very well. Once in Winnipeg, we separated from Kevin, and we decided to go around the Great Lakes on the American side. Shoulders in Ontario were narrower and I knew Marthe would not be comfortable. We had great advice from a Duluth couple, and this route would be a lot safer.
Once back in Canada, we headed for Bruce Peninsula. Again, it would be a safer route, and we also had some contacts where we would stay. A 100 km day ride was now almost always reached. My wife didn't like me planning those days, so I would always have option 1 and option 2. It made her feel better. One thing I have to mention, is that the weather was being really nice to us. If it did rain, it was always in the night or in the evening.
Then Marthe's brother joined us for one week. With his wife following with the car, it was another experience. For the first time in weeks, we did not have to worry about how far restaurants, or food stores were after reaching our destination. We enjoyed the company. We all had fun.
After that, it went very fast. We were faster, doing longer distances and also had more people to visit. We were at my son in Ottawa, and at my brother Daniel in Montreal. It was 3 out of 4 nights, sleeping in a house with family. It was very special, especially after being away from home for so long. We were also now in Québec. After Ottawa, we were almost only on bike trails, away from traffic. So quiet and so relaxing.
The ride from Montreal to Quebec was almost also all bike trails. We really enjoyed it. We only encountered heavy traffic in the Rimouski area. Marthe had originally planned to get to Saint-Louis. Rimouski is where she decided that St-Louis would be her final destination. It did not however change her motivation. We were still doing amazing.
When in Saint-Louis and she confirmed she wanted to stop there, again I was 100 % on her side. Her hands were getting numb and after 6300 km, I really think she deserved the break. She had accomplished her dream. Not too many people thought she could do it, and she had proved them wrong.
We had also found out that a cyclist we had met in British Columbia was killed in a road accident. We had shared a campsite with this great guy, and seen him on the road quite a few times. He had also told my wife quite a few times how amazed he was at how well she was doing. He was born in 1961, like me, and he had the same dream as us. His death was a big factor in Marthe's decision to stop in Saint-Louis.
It was very emotional for her when we reached Caraquet. She was glad to see her father. We would have liked to stay longer, but being away from our house for so long, the desire to get to our home made us leave the next morning. This is where Marthe surpassed herself. We did a 169 km day, a distance she never thought she would reach in her life.
The meals with her father in Caraquet and with my parents the next night, were very special. It was fun to be reunited with our parents. Marthe was done with the cycling, but me, I had to get to St. John's, Newfoundland.
After having been away on the road for that many days and me always pushing her for more kilometres, all the time, she didn't hesitate and said she would follow me with the car. It was also going to be a lot easier for me. She would have all the stuff in the car. I was now continuing my tour supported.
I made sure not to bike too long. It gave her time to relax at the motel in the morning. She would always meet with me in early afternoon at a pre-determined motel. She would also stop on the way if she saw me on the side of the road. I never had to stop to buy anything, because in the morning, I would always leave with enough food and drinks to do me the day. I was a lot lighter, going faster and with the car, we now had the opportunity to visit the area a lot more. When I reached Cape Spear, me an Marthe were both very happy and proud of what we had accomplished.
The motels and camping was fun, but I have to mention the times we got spoiled and stayed in a house. It started in Vancouver, where we were invited for supper at the Wye's. We had hosted them on their Canada tour a few years back, and we really appreciated the food, the advice and the encouragement.
Then again, in North Minnesota, we stayed two nights at the Hoeg's camp. It was Independence day weekend. The camp by the lake was full of homemade food and wonderful people. They gave us very good advice and even hosted us again at their house in Duluth. They knew how to make you feel at home.
And the two nights in Lion's Head. Again treated like royal family by the Lougheed. How convenient to live in a house with a bathroom, a kitchen, a fridge and a bed. And of course lots of food. You never want to leave, but the kilometres don't add up when you rest.
Then again we were spoiled in Ottawa, Montreal, Caraquet and Saint-Louis. The fun part when you're touring, is that you can eat whatever you desire. You burn so many calories in a day, that you constantly have to be eating. What a better place than in a house.
Conclusion:
When you think that for every hour you drive a car, it can almost compare to a whole day of cycle touring; it is hard to understand how so many people like that. You meet a lot of people who share the same dream and the same passion. You make lifetime friends with strangers. When you get to the end of your journey, and share that accomplishment with other people, it is very special.
When I reached Cape Spear, it was a feeling I never had before. I was at the end of the road. I had made it. Yes, it can be dangerous, but yes, I know I will be touring again. You learn to appreciate little things. Life is very simple.
With all this I also learned a lot about myself. Before, if somebody would have asked me to join them on a tour for a few weeks, I probably would have said no. I have always cycled by myself, and always looked at my average speed and distance. I found myself very patient. I was happy just to be cycling. Speed did not matter. Bicycle touring is about enjoying yourself, and not about how fast you get somewhere.
I hope my wife enjoyed it as much as I did. She learned a lot over the last few weeks. She knows she still have to improve on certain things. She is a lot better and I'm sure she will improve a lot more. To get comfortable on a bike, it needs a lot of practice. She is definitely on the right track.
We did this trip in two different ways. The future will tell us what to do. It's all about having fun and enjoying it. This was the best summer of my life! Looking forward to surpass this!
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