Day 19: Introducing Highway 17

I'd been dreading today because it was the first day of weeks and weeks of Highway 17.

After a good breakfast, I set off in the hammering rain at 8.30. I had 20km on the glorious roadside cycle path for the last time before meeting the highway. I was told it would be busy and that there was no hard shoulder.

I suppose it was busy by Canadian standards, but it wasn't like riding along the M1 or anything. One lane each way, with a paved shoulder varying from 6 inches to 6 feet. 

I rode along for half an hour before google maps took me off the highway into a research forest. A slightly longer route but I'm so glad I did it! It was beautiful and there was nobody else around. I even saw another bear! He was on the small road ahead walking away from me. I didn't want to startle him, so I talked loudly from a distance and rode slowly. When he spotted me, he walked a little faster, and when I kept riding, he ran off into the trees. Bye mr bear!

Once back on the highway, I stopped in a coffee shop for a tea and had a long chat with Jessica who worked there. I even got chicken and chips and an offer of a place to stay! But alas, I had to do at least another 20km to feel like I'd made progress, so on I went.

I got to the motel I'd planned to stay at and it looked pretty run down. A fat man with some teeth missing answered the door; we had a chat about my journey and he leered at me before telling me it wasn't a working motel. "I like blondes though, I could offer you a room if you like?"  Erm, I'm alright thanks, there's a campsite 10km down the road. Bye!

So I rode to a nice but midge-ridden campsite where it rained and there's a 100Mb limit on wifi (why?!) so no pictures today! I had my skype call with Dave cut off and literally had to beg for another wifi password from the grumpy, harassed looking woman in the office. The campsite is bloody empty, for god's sake! 

Anyway, I am an island of calm. And I shall route plan for less than 100Mb, however much that means in browsing terms.