Bicycle Trip Conclusion....Cold and Tired


   When I was alone on the bicycle for 12 hours a day, it give me so much time to think, or daydream. What struck me the most was the memory of old songs that came into thought, some I hadn't heard for so many years; others I could not get off my mind for the whole day. I had brought a walkman with me for music but I was always too tired to listen to music once I got inside the tent. Speaking of tired....I slept in some unusual places, mostly so I could stay out of the rain. I was in a barn, an abandoned truck, on a lawn chair, in a laundromat, an empty old house, in a culvert under a busy highway......
   During this trip I often seemed to be waiting for money to be sent to a post office (a loan by my parents) and a couple of times I had no money for food. One such time started on the day before  I left North Sydney, Nova Scotia on the 7 hour ferry to Port Aux.Basque, Newfoundland. I had little food but was happy with the scenery on the 200 km journey along the coast. By the time the ferry boat was loading I was so hungry (and broke), as the ship bounced in the rough waters of the Cabot Straight it might have been good that I had an empty stomach. Once I got off the ferry I asked at the tourist information where I could work off a meal and they sent me to the Salvation Army, they gave me a voucher for a breakfast. It would be 2 days before I would get to a branch of my mom's bank in Corner Brook, it was just over 200 kms. away.
   I went about 100 kms and the scenery was beautiful but the weather was not cooperating; the light rain turned to a heavy downpour, and the temperature was only 7 degrees. I ended up with a flat tire so I thought I may as well set up the tent, it was far too windy so I pulled my plastic over my body and hugged myself. I was on the bike early since I did not sleep, it was one of the most miserable nights since the start, more of those nights were to come. This next day was cold, rainy and windy, I seem to be handling it fine until I looked up and saw a sign that said "warning 200 km wind zone ahead", then I had an emotional breakdown. I started focusing on the negative things: my cramped legs from being huddled all night, the cold, the pain, and hunger. I was so close but yet so far (from Port Aux Basque to St Johns is about 1,000 kms.)
   I was so hungry that my whole body was shaking...with the cold and wet conditions I was getting weak, almost too weak to ride 100 kms. more to Corner Brook. I made it alive and ate/drank until I was so bloated...my mental state improved dramatically. I took the better part of the day to get the money and eat so I was only able to get 50 kms  east before I took up residence in Deer Lake Park. Although there was discomfort associated with the weather conditions the traffic was not too bad until I got east of Gander. Ever so slowly the traffic increased as I got closer to St Johns and I got back into being honked at, sand blasted, and blown off the road by trucks. I had about 4 days and nights where all of my belongings got (and stayed) soaked. Once I reached Clarenville I met Wayne and Janie Adams who were a blessing. I stayed over in their home, all of my possessions got dried by the wood stove, and she phoned the newspaper who sent a reporter over to interview me.
    The next night I woke up at 3am with my nose running, it was 5 degrees outside the tent, this did not matter as much as previous times because by days end I would be in St. Johns. I managed to get a stand by flight this same day from St Johns-Toronto, then I got on a Toronto-Edmonton flight; sat there from 3:30am-8:30 am, then I got a flight to Vancouver.
  In wrapping this up, I pointed out two of my mistakes in an earlier story (time of year and weight of bike with bags) but there were so many more mistakes that I made; it was a learning experience. Some things I would do differently, now that I have the wisdom. Despite my description in these blogs, maybe I am the only one who fully grasps the difficulty for me to ride 150-200 kms per day; against all the odds. These days this kind of trip would be easier for a cyclists safety, riding is much more the norm this many years later and governments have provided safer avenues for cyclists to travel.
   I did keep my cheap Norco bicycle, I melted the aluminum, crushed the steel and mounted it on wood, covering it with a coat of fibreglass. The trip is nothing but a memory...stored in a journal that nobody will read, accept my daughter maybe.