2 July 2007
Today was the first solid cycling day we've had in a while, and it felt really good to get back into the swing of things. It was hot, but bearable, and we had a pleasant ride down small country roads with very little traffic. Our campsite in Esterhazy was well-maintained and cheap--just $13 a night, a steal of deal!
DAY 30: CELEBRATING CANADA IN FORT QU'APPELLE
1 July 2007The plan for this morning was to take off as late as possible, taking advantage of our hotel, a pollen-free zone. We had the best breakfast of our trip so far at the hotel, checked out, and then did some laundry and cleaned our bikes in town. By the time we had finished doing all of those things and (yet again) having ice cream, it was quite late; we were feeling much too lazy to get going again, so we decided to spend the night at the local campsite (Dan's allergies were acting up a bit less now), and really get going again tomorrow.
The campsite was the place to be on Canada Day--the local radio station was broadcasting from there, and fireworks were scheduled for later in the evening--so it was packed with people. Nevertheless, the site manager found a spot for us, hidden away in the bush, where it was to be much quiter at night than the rest of the site. Since it didn't include a picnic table, he gave it to us for free.
After putting up our tent, we went swimming in Echo Lake, where Dan managed to cut his foot on a sharp rock. Luckily, we've each been carrying first aid kits, and they came in handy. Dan's cut was on the ball of his foot in a place he couldn't see, right below his pinky toe; so, it became my job to clean it out for him. Normally, I'm not grossed out by the sight of blood. But having to clean this cut was truly a challenge. It was a few millimetres deep, and filled with tiny rocks and grains of sand that were embedded well inside. At first, the idea of having to really dig into the wound to get all of those bits out was highly unappealing. But soon enough, I became increasingly able to forget that it was blood that I was touching, rather than, say, the filling of a cherry pie. It helped to realize that it really wasn't hurting Dan all that much, and I got the hang of it. It was actually quite rewarding to pry out those bits, one by one. Hooray for Dr. Agnes!
Once I had bandaged Dan's foot up, we decided to head into town for some dinner. Not far from our campsite was the Bistro on Boundary, serving French-Canadian cuisine. Michaelle Jean once ate there, and Monique, the owner, was quite proud of that. We had the best meal of our trip at the Bistro--turkey dinner and wine follwed by saskatoon berry pie for dessert. We felt quite classy eating such good food and sipping our wine, but our class wasn't reflected in the price--only $9 for the dinner (just the turkey part)!
After our meal, we just couldn't be bothered to watch fireworks with the masses, so we listened to them from our tent instead.
DAY 29: A FALSE START... THEN REGINA TO FORT QU'APPELLE, 76 KM
30 June 2007
When we woke up this morning at 5:30, there was a massive thunderstorm going on outside. We stayed in our tent to let it pass, so we left a bit later than expected. About 3 km into our ride, Dan realized that one of his pedals, which had been coming loose since yesterday, needed fixing. We backtradcked, heading back into Regina, to the bike shop where I had gotten my bike repaired yesterday. By the time we had finished with the shop, we were already hungry. So, a mere 20 km into our ride, we stopped for breakfast part 2, at a Chinese-Canadian restaurant in Pilot Butte.
Small towns in Canada tend only to have one restaurant. And, three times out of four, it is a restaurant just like the one in Pilot Butte: "serving Chinese and Canadian cuisine." These restaurants are great--they are always run by a friendly Chinese couple, who usually have kids that run around in the back, or sit at a table and colour. You can order anything from a burger and fries to chop suey and chicken fried rice. And you only get chopsticks if you ask for them; these restaurants definitely cater to the rural, Western crowd.
After lunch, we had some ice cream, and by the time we finished, it was already 2. We were feeling quite lazy, but somehow managed to get ourselves moving. The ride into Fort Qu'Appelle was not pleasant. About 20 km east of our destination, Dan had an extreme allergic reaction, a "hay fever attack," as he put it. To make matters worse, my back tire decided to slowly release all of its air. Rather than waste time changing the inner tube, we stopped every 5 km or so to pump it up. But just as we were descending into the Qu'Appelle Valley--yes, Saskatchewan has valleys!--Dan had had enough of his allergies. His eyes were so itchy that he was going kinda crazy (I was quite worried), and even his nose was swollen! I told him to ride ahead to the nearest campsite to splash cold water on his face, while I walked my bike into the valley. It turned out that the nearest campsite was actually just an RV park, and Dan's condition was only worsening. We went to the nearest inn, where Dan could have some refuge from the evil pollen, and spent the night.
When we woke up this morning at 5:30, there was a massive thunderstorm going on outside. We stayed in our tent to let it pass, so we left a bit later than expected. About 3 km into our ride, Dan realized that one of his pedals, which had been coming loose since yesterday, needed fixing. We backtradcked, heading back into Regina, to the bike shop where I had gotten my bike repaired yesterday. By the time we had finished with the shop, we were already hungry. So, a mere 20 km into our ride, we stopped for breakfast part 2, at a Chinese-Canadian restaurant in Pilot Butte.
Small towns in Canada tend only to have one restaurant. And, three times out of four, it is a restaurant just like the one in Pilot Butte: "serving Chinese and Canadian cuisine." These restaurants are great--they are always run by a friendly Chinese couple, who usually have kids that run around in the back, or sit at a table and colour. You can order anything from a burger and fries to chop suey and chicken fried rice. And you only get chopsticks if you ask for them; these restaurants definitely cater to the rural, Western crowd.
After lunch, we had some ice cream, and by the time we finished, it was already 2. We were feeling quite lazy, but somehow managed to get ourselves moving. The ride into Fort Qu'Appelle was not pleasant. About 20 km east of our destination, Dan had an extreme allergic reaction, a "hay fever attack," as he put it. To make matters worse, my back tire decided to slowly release all of its air. Rather than waste time changing the inner tube, we stopped every 5 km or so to pump it up. But just as we were descending into the Qu'Appelle Valley--yes, Saskatchewan has valleys!--Dan had had enough of his allergies. His eyes were so itchy that he was going kinda crazy (I was quite worried), and even his nose was swollen! I told him to ride ahead to the nearest campsite to splash cold water on his face, while I walked my bike into the valley. It turned out that the nearest campsite was actually just an RV park, and Dan's condition was only worsening. We went to the nearest inn, where Dan could have some refuge from the evil pollen, and spent the night.
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