Sea to Sea 2017, Cycling to Alleviate Poverty

It's our second to last day. It's wild to think about. I did feel better this morning after plenty of rest. I headed out with my group and stuck with them untill I struck up conversations with the riders we passed. old Jim Beezhold especially. I dropped back to talk with him, this day being the second to last of seeing him (at least on a bicycle). I talked to him about the end of the tour and myself moving onto college. At the first rest stop I caught back up with my group and headed out with them. We "send it" to the ferry, averaging in the upper twenties. Once at the ferry terminal we talked to other tourists around us about what we are up to. On the ferry Sea to Sea full distance riders got a group picture and then we all took it easy. Caleb and I went to explore the boat, resulting in ice cream cones. Off the ferry I stuck a decent place with my group but also savoured the sights around us. We rode on a local two lane road paralleling a more major highway to Tru...

I slept poorly and woke up not feeling well. Still this evening I don't feel quite right. I slept through breakfast and then slept through the church service. Not until the latter end of lunch did I get up and try eating. Caleb helped me out in the morning by bringing me water and some Advil. My stomach continued to feel off but it was alright enough to enjoy some soup for lunch. After lunch I went back to laying down but was unsuccessful in falling asleep before dinner. I ate light and simple at dinner. I started with green peas and then some kraft dinner. The warm of the Kraft dinner was appreciated but I could tell that it didn't sit as well. I got around to setting up pelaton and I've felt well enough for my evening activities. I still look forward to sleep despite laying down almost all day. Trip: 0km Time: slept Our kitchen truck unloaded the extra supplies here at the church. The tour is truly ending. 

So so cold! It's scary how cold it gets here along the ocean and bays. I slept not so well in the hammock overnight but I did stay warm enough. Being in one of the shelters, I did not experience the hard cold wind. I rode with Kara and Erick Schuringa to the Confederation Bridge and then split. Across the bridge I rode quite tiresome and slow till about 50km where I had breakfast with my crew. Frank decided to pick up the tab so I went with a full breakfast. A cheese omlete, potatoes, and toast. I loaded my toast with jams and jelly's, not even spreading them! I felt much better after breakfast, even well enough to ride with my crew. We stopped within 10km of breakfast at a church thrift store. I got a denim button up and a corderoy button up, and then convinced Caleb to buy a tux. This night was the Sea to Sea celebration dinner and we planned to look fancy. Later we bought matching vests and tyes. Caleb looked like the groom while the rest of us looked like his groomsmen....

Cold morning. It was so cold! Getting on my bike was a slow motion and the shadows were made of shivers. A blessing came at 17km when I saw my crew's bikes at a Tim Hortons. Caleb gave me hot hot mocha because he didn't like it for some reason. I thoroughly enjoyed having a free hot drink. I felt decent till around 80km when I struggled to sit on my seat due to such discomfort. I "sent it" to the next rest stop at 99km to get of my seat as soon as possible. I sat for part of the next section and then mostly stood for our last 30km. I unclipped my toes and stood on my heels occasionally to variate pressure points. I wasn't looking for many things in particular today but I did find a great abandoned home near the very end of the ride. Pictures and descriptions are below. Tomorrow is a shorter day of under 100km which includes a 15km shuttle ride. The shuttle ride is due to bicycles not being allowed on the Confederation Bridge to Prince Edward Island. Trip: 142...

I made many stops today. There were numerous unmaintained of completely abandoned homes and buildings to be seen today. My first spark for looking into abandoned places was on the south side of Bathurst. I didn't know it's name at the time but I saw the left over concrete from the power and paper mill. I began to notice homes along the secondary road 134 that had been abandoned. In the pictures you'll hear more of their stories. Besides the buildings I took interest in, the day faired well. The hills and bumps of the road were worse in the morning and smoothed out after Miramichi, roughly half way. Tomorrow is our longer day of the week but I really don't have much of worries. I pray for favorable wind and good sights. I plan on handing out many many Sea to Sea cards and stickers tomorrow. Only four more riding days left! Trip: 127.5km Time: 7:16am to 3:30ish pm Remains of the Bathurst Power and Paper company. After some research its name and that it ju...

I slept so very well in the little shelter. Had it not been for my alarm I would've missed all of getting ready and having breakfast. I was thankful to be dry and packed up dry! Others had to pack up wet tents from overnight rain. The rain stopped for our morning as we got ready. Out on the ride we had a couple of falls. A handful of times we cross rail road tracks and about 7 people fell due to the wetness of either the railroad rail or the rubber fitting paralleling it as a buffer to the roadway. I faired alright and took my day rather easily. At no point did I push myself yet I found my legs just as tired and my butt just as sore. I enjoyed riding one segment of the ride with Fred from Smithers, BC. He listened to some of my tunes and we shared about our lives. The mix of my high and low today was in perspective of receiving a donation. The man was very friendly and so was I to him. Almost as if we were exchging goods I gave him a Sea 5o Sea sticker while he gave me a small do...

A day to savour. Riders are more relaxed now that your days are winding down and the ride distances are shortening even by just a few kilometres. It's strange how 20km less per day, about an hour of riding lessons per day, makes us feel like the day's are so much shorter. My group stayed ahead of me all day which was quite alright as I took it easy. The morning fog made for a cool by special morning. I rode primarily with no hands for the first 45km so I could sit up and take it easy. The parrelling of the Saumon River ensured a pleasant sight and a slight downhill over the day. In camp tonight we are at the foot of a ski hill. Sugarloaf Provincial Park sounds awesome as it has camping, skiing, mountain biking, hiking, snow shoeing, cross country skiing, tennis, and day use areas. It's truly a year round park and the staff I have met are friendly. We entered New Brunswick today and it's a radically quick change to see mostly English once again. It almost feels too ba...