Day 61 - Norland to Paudash

82.26 km - Total so far 5,078.49 km - http://ridewithgps.com/trips/5828518

We made an effort to leave a bit earlier this morning because we had a pretty long ride to Bancroft, We aimed for an 8 am start and only missed it by 15 minutes. The ride was pretty uneventful until about kilometer 8, then all hell broke loose. 

We still have our bear bells mounted on our flag poles and they ring all the time. We don't notice them anymore but all the animals do. As we came around a corner, I could hear a small dog bark which is usually okay. What I was not counting on was the big rottweiler dog that I spotted running down the lane towards us. I stopped quickly as there is no way I could accelerate and get away from him. My plan was to take him on with the bear spray. I was so focused on the darn dog that I failed to notice Hélène was right behind me and when I stopped suddenly, she ran into me. The only damage was to my luggage cover on the right side and everyone was okay. The dog had run to the end of his chain and was just across the street going crazy. The owner was trying to call him back without success but he was so determined on getting a mouthful of spandex wearing cyclists that he just ignored her. We finally got away slowly and happy we did. Some people should not own dogs especially big one's. 

You can see Hélène's tire marks below the hole

The dog looked like this one but bigger and more teeth

Next stop was in Kinmount another 8 km down the road, We stopped for pickled eggs and cookies to snack on during the day. We also took a quick walk along the river to the historic sawmill property that has been turned into a nice park. We also noticed the railway museum they have near there but like most things we stumble upon it was not open yet. 

The Austin Sawmill in Kinmount

The Sawmill Park

There is a cycling event run in this area in early October that is called 'The Hilly 100 (km)' and we understand where the 'hilly' bit comes from. After Kinmount, it was nothing but uphill, downhill and uphill right away with no break in between. Okay, there were not that many big hills but a lot of them over the next 65 or so km. We are thinking of coming back in October to check out more of those hills riding our much lighter road bikes.

A similar law recently adopted in Alberta caused a big stir in the news

We must have seen hundreds of the yellow sign looking for 'family doctors'

They advertised as the world's smallest bookstore

Our plan was to cycle to Bancroft, pick up groceries and head off some distance away to the campground. However, we stopped for coffee in Cardiff (13 km from Bancroft) and discovered that there was a motel nearby and as a bonus, we could pickup all that we needed right in Cardiff. So we are spending the night in a motel looking outside at the sky that is clouding over. 

The 'share the road' signs only appears when bicycles can ride on the shoulder. What if there is no shoulder?

Flower of the day

Every town was to be famous for something or someone

What is a surprise to us is how poor the services are in this general area and if you can find something, it is bloody expensive. We found one campground (in Griffith) between here and Arnprior that is close to the road we are taking. When Hélène phoned to make a reservation, she was told they don't accept road people. They changed their mind when Hélène told them we were on bicycles travelling accross Canada. In Arnprior, there is no campground so we will have to stay in a motel. 

We should be home late afternoon this coming Sunday unless we win the LottoMax tomorrow. If we win, we will be heading to Toronto! Should we not win, we aim to be at Hog's Back Park at about 3:30.

Hélène (aka Mme Beaver) Leroux was attracted by the sound of rushing water and had to stop and take a video of Furnace Falls. 

53.60 miles - Total so far 3,155.62 miles