[posted to the Wheeled Migration Yahoo Group on May 31, 2005] ]
Hello again. I've covered a lot of ground since I last wrote, so I'm going to leave out a lot of details and focus on telling stories which I hope will interest you.
I got up at dusk this morning and braved the morning fog to make it to church on time. I thought I was going to make it when I reached the Ottawa River Parkway trail, but it was longer than it looked on the map, and Leela's church was on the far side of town. I was exactly half an hour late for the start of the service, but just in time for the sermon.
I decided to see how far I could go today, to improve my chances of getting to church on time tomorrow morning. The weather was beautiful, and easy to appreciate after days of rain.
I had a lot of trouble getting out of bed this morning, as if I were reacting to something in yesterday's lunch. When I started carrying my gear downstairs, I slipped and fell down the stairs on my back, scraping it painfully. I decided I was in no condition to travel... e-mailed Leela to say I'd be late, paid for another night, and went back to bed.
I'm kind of stunned because I just learned I have to leave tomorrow morning instead of Friday. Fortunately I did most of the things I wanted to do today, but still it's a bummer.
This morning I biked up Mont-Royal for the view. The mountain is taller than all the buildings in the city below, and it took me 20 minutes just to coast back down! It's a popular spot.
The bike map said that after crossing the border into Canada, I could continue north on Quebec highway 223 "and the Chambly Canal towpath into Montreal." I asked the border guard, and he confirmed that if I followed 223, I'd see signs for the towpath in about 25 miles.
I woke in the night with the realization that I'd forgotten to take an enzyme pill with my dinner of lentil soup... just what I need on a cold, rainy afternoon, I thought: fatigue and despair! But I lucked out and didn't have a reaction.
The mountain pass I had to face today was daunting enough, but I woke to cold, wind, and rain as well. I had a pretty miserable morning. My front wheel started making ominous noises around lunchtime, so after lunch I worked it over ... though if the rain keeps up as forecast, I'll be doing that every day!
It was slow going all day; I finally started ascending after 3:00, and it was after 5 by the time I reached the "summit" -- the high point of the pass. I wish I could say the view was great, but between the forest and the clouds there wasn't much visibility.
In addition to the mountains, I had to contend with a stiff headwind all day, but I made reasonably good time. Lake Champlain looks to me like an artificial lake, long and narrow with steep shores and little evidence that the water level ever deviates, but apparently it was here when the first European explorers arrived.
I passed through the town of Ticonderoga, which has a living-history fort and a beautiful waterfall and a rich history and a lot of motels attesting to tourist traffic. It also has a paper mill. I sincerely hope the wind doesn't shift overnight!
I swear the sun rose earlier this morning up on the plateau... I woke at 5:30 and completed the day's 50-mile ride by 3:30.
The Hudson River and I finally parted ways at the town of Hudson Falls; I followed the connecting Lake Champlain Canal the rest of the way to Whitehall.
I was getting nervous about crossing the mountains tomorrow, so I gave away about two pounds of clothes to some folks who were having a garage sale. I shouldn't need so many now that it's summer...
