Day 28, June 26th, Thunder Bay Int. Hostel to Nipigon (89km)

The Porch Thunder Bay Hostel

Late last night, just after dusk, a ghost arrived at Thunder Bay Int. Hostel.  I'd heard rumors about Victor the Australian in Saskatchewan and Manitoba.  We were traveling parallel routes, but we always seemed to miss each other by a day.  At one point, we were even at the same hostel in Winnipeg.  A hostel so big, that we probably brushed shoulders in the hall without recognizing each other.

Wildflowers Beside the Road

 Victor is quite the character.  At age 63, he comes from the most isolated city in the world, Perth Australia.  Perth is over 2100km away from any major city.  Years ago, Victor rode from Sydney to Perth, a journey of over 4000km.  He mentioned the severe droughts plaguing Australia.  Droughts so bad that water had to be trucked in to remote gas stations servicing the outback.  As a cyclist, the gas stations wouldn't even sell him water.  It was a very precious commodity needed for cooling systems of the trucks.  Victor subsisted on that trip by buying 4 liter jugs of orange juice at remote out stations along the way.  For a man his age, he is in amazing shape.  While he is traveling at much slower speeds than me, he is doing approximately the same distances.  At over 170km, the trip to the hostel had been his longest day.  The great thing about Victor is his methods of travel are before old school.  Map and compass in hand, he doesn't even have an odometer on his bike.  His flare gun for the bears is something only an Aussie would carry.  Armed at the hip, he looked like a cowboy.  The bears are shyer than Australia's venomous spiders I pointed out with a grin on my face.

Endless Tracts of Wildflowers in Full Bloom

Early this morning, I was ready to leave.  At 9am, I was off.  I thanked the Swiss for all their help and told Victor we'd see each other down the road.   Victor had taught me a lot about making surmises from a regular map.  He told me that river crossings cutting through the Canadian Shield on their way to lake Superior have short steep downhills followed by a brutally short steep uphill as the carve through the landscape.  Winds he said, pick up in the afternoon as the sun heats the air increasing the speed of the collisions between molecules.  It was all basic chemistry, but these old timers have this basic useful knowledge that technology seems to kill.  Today's stage from Thunder Bay to Nipigon featured rolling hills, rivers and the threat of bears.  Pulling into a gas station a patron said he had seen 4 bears on his way west.  I said great, I'll have the camera ready.  The bears just don't worry me anymore.  I cruised down the road on fresh legs.  I felt like a million dollars.  Forcing myself to slow down, I took some pictures of the wildflowers beside the road.

Terrain Between Thunder Bay & Nipigon

Entering the Port Arthur Hills, the going got a little tougher.  Working the gears, I noted the signs for Amethyst mines on the side of the road.  About 75 km from Nipigon are some of the worlds richest deposits of the gemstone Amethyst.  While not as valuable as rubies and saphires, ancient Greek philosophy suggests purple hued Amethyst protects its owner from drunkenness.  The locals in the small towns out here have been a little too friendly.  With so many offering to buy a drink, it might be a good idea to pick up this little gem.

1906 Church Nipigon

I found the Port Arthur Hills to be an easy challenge.  Before lunch time, I had arrived in Nipigon.  Nipigon is a small town of about 2000 along the shores of Lake Superior.  It's primary industry was forestry, but the mill has now been closed.  As one local said, all the six figure jobs disappeared.  Ironically, I met a few forestry workers from B.C. who ended up moving here after poor government policy wrecked the industry on the West Coast.  When a downturn in lumber and pulp prices shuttered mills along the coast, the subsequent sale of multi million dollar mills to developing countries for pennies on the dollar lacked foresight and business acumen.  Government policies allowing for the export of raw logs were the final death blow to a suffering industry.  As prices recovered, Canada was left without the facilities to process wood.  Now Canada is merely an exporter of raw logs to oversea mills we once owned.  As with a lot of resource towns, this town is shrinking.  Shuttered businesses line its streets.

Paddle to the Sea

Nipigon's biggest contribution is the 1941 childrens book "Paddle to the Sea."  In the book a native boy from Nipigon carves a wooded canoe and inscribes the words "Please put me back in the water" on its hull.  The canoe travels all the way from the great lakes to the Atlantic on an epic journey of discovery.  People from all walks of life come across it on its voyage to the sea.  In 1966, the story was turned into a film that was nominated for an Oscar.  I still remember seeing this movie as a kid and was delighted to stumble across the history of the story down by the lake.

Cat Guarding My Bike

Dropping by the grocery store, I came across Graham, Owen and Natalie.  These three cyclists had met along the way.  Graham and Owen had started off as soloists while Natalie had been ditched by a cycling partner who couldn't take the hills, rain, wind and her way of traveling.  On a $25 a day budget, this girl has been free camping.  It's been three weeks since she had a shower, but there's lakes along the way.  We had a bit of a picnic in front of the grocery store.  They gave me a lot of good advice about abandoned hotels that I could squat at along the lake.  For a few kilometers, I rode west with the pack.  Shaking hands at the campground, they headed off into the setting sun. Perhaps I'll have the chance to seem them again when they make it to Vancouver!

Elaborate Chainsaw Carvings

Distance: 89km
Average Speed: 23.9km/h
Maximum Speed: 54.7km/h
Time: 3:43
Odometer: 3408km