What I didn’t expect, once I rolled out on the Interstate, if that’s what they call them here, was the amount of traffic so early Sunday morning. The second thing I didn’t expect was when I skimming just west of Toronto to see 8 lanes of traffic in one direction. Damn glad I wasn’t going to part of the Monday morning push through there, because it must be a nightmare. No sweat buzzing through there this morning for me because Garmin had my back. Can’t imagine old schooling all those turns through all that traffic.
Once I swung out on 400 and 69 the scenery went from congestion to peace and quiet on the road. For the first time on this trip it was starting to feel like I was on my own. Not so much so that I felt it necessary to start filling my extra fuel tanks but enough where at times there was no car in sight. I can find places just like this in my own backyard, so I’m not in no-man’s land yet. The roadside had a very distinct rock, Granite, that they obviously blasted away to make way for the road. They left a lot of these rocks as decoration or scenery. One of the more interesting things I saw was these strange little man looking rock creations along the side of the road. Not one or two, they were everywhere. So when I stopped for lunch and asked a local about the rocks that were obviously put there by humans, I suspect kids, what did they represent. He said in the past that Eskimo’s used them for navigation and you can read about them and see pictures of them here. Hell with all the fisherman that I saw, I thought the locals were marking their favorite spots.
I rolled into Elliott Lake around 3:15 and checked into a Hampton Inn so I could recharge all my toys. Oversight 1, I should have wired two USB ports on the bike because the fussy little I-phone doesn’t like to share. Whatever!! For dinner, I went out and tried the Fireside Grill per the recommendation of the front desk and confirmed by Tripadvisor. It was ok, filling, but nothing spectacular.
I rolled out of the Fireside and decided to drive down by the lakes of Elliott Lake and found out that the heritage of the town is based on mining. It was the main world supply of Uranium. Read that here. I took a few pictures of the lake, dogs swimming, and when I depart lake one, I pulled out in front of 3 motorcycles. They shortly broke off to the right and I went to the next lake. I took a few shots and then retraced to where the other bikers scooted. Hmm, Scenic Overlook…..what could that be. I followed the road a few miles up to a fire tower outlook with a scenic overlook. Course you know what happened next, we started jabber jawing about my trip and motorcycles and we spent a good hour just chatting. Motorcyclist are a fun bunch to chat with and these folks were no exception. One expressed their interest in buying the same exact bike soon and request to sit on it just to get a feel. Yes, of course I let him. It’s always great to see a motorcycle grin. Well there was 4 of them and one of me, and for the life of me I cannot remember their names, but if they read this blog and comment, we will all know soon. Great people and may our paths meet on the road again someday.
That same group of riders suggested while traveling through British Columbia that I find and ride through Kicking Horse pass. I will not forget this, because I typed it into my I-phone and now on my blog. I will have to review this to see if it fits into my routes. Shame to travel this far and miss something they loved. Yes, Mark Trent, I also keep your suggestions!!
Ok a few facts. The metric system makes it a little difficult to figure out gas prices, but I sat down today and did the math. $5.15 to $5.25 a gallon for mid-grade or 89 octane. Their signs took me a bit to figure out also. They show gas prices by the cents, not the dollars and cents. So in the States we show $3.29 and we all know it is actually $3.30. Canadian’s show their price 130.3 and they assume $1.30 per liter. Just a little different, they just don’t show the decimal after the first digit. Now all you have to do is figure the liter to US Gallon. In a car I would not even give this a moments thought but on a motorcycle most of us do not use the fuel gauge but know our max range based on our weight for the trip after a few tanks run through. Mine is looking to be 38-39, given me worst case 38 * 8 = 304 to look for fuel 334 to dry. 152 extra miles in those special tanks I have. One more metric conversion that I have had to learn is telling Canadians how far or long my trip is going to be. 16,500 miles converts 26,554 Km’s. One last number I need. In the States I tell my boys the 7 mph rule. If your doing 7mph over the speed limit or less, the police will rarely give you the time of day. Now I know here that conversion is 11Kph. Anyone’s head buzzing yet? Ok, I’m done with my silliness and I know my wife is shaking her head and saying, “You say I ‘m OCD.”
Today log shows 401 miles travel, trip total 809. Tomorrow I will end up in Nipigon, Ontario and it will be a rain event if the predictions are accurate. Well I have the gear and we will find out soon enough if I spent my money properly. If I told you how much I invested in my Suit, Gloves, Boots, and heated gear over the last two years, you might just chock. Being dry and warm, when it’s raining, 50 degrees, and going 70mph comes at a price.
Did anyone checkout the weather in TOK, Alaska today? That is my entry point into the state on May 26th and it was a low of 16 and currently 30 with light snow. Can you hear me sighing????
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