UGRR - Owen Sound, completion and reflections

Before giving a few of our reflections of the whole trip , photos above ( click on any , for enlargement ) show from bottom to top
1 M being congratulated by an interested passerby on reaching Main St , Owen Sound. Ont.
2 After finishing a delicious lunch courtesy of this lovely Napalese owner ( and chef ) of this restauraunt immediately on reaching Owen Sound. He insisited on giving it as compliments of the house .
3 The wharf at Owen Sound , southern end of Lake Huron.
4 The Greyhound bus that initiated our 15 hour journey back to Cincinnati via Toronto and Detroit.
5 Mike and Joan to whom we shall for ever be grateful delivering us back to the Buick at Milford ( outside Cincinnati ) self storage. From there a straight ( with one motel stop ) 22 hour car journey back to Snowmass through Ohio , Indiana , Missouri and Kansas.

UGRR: REFLECTIONS ON COMPLETION

We finish with
**an overwhelming sense of satisfaction to have crossed the USA from south to north and beyond by bike--albeit in 2 trips. Total time taken, 47 days, averaging 50 miles per day.

** an "in the guts" appreciation of the sufferings of the slaves who fled (as Aunty Martha so well said --George isn't having a good time unless he is suffering--and we only had a very small taste of the suffering of those slaves!!!) and of their desperate desire for freedom that drove them on

**a lasting impression of the kindness of the folk who never failed to offer support, friendship, hospitality and assistance when needed

**a sense of wonder at the beauty and grandeur of a constantly changing landscape

As the Butters so aptly have said, touring is all about "highs and lows" so here are some highs:

1. arriving at the Owen Sound, having battled mainly headwinds once crossing into Canada--descending alongside a waterfall, which emerged into treelined streets of porched cottages

2. setting off from Cincinnati with Mike and Joan, cycling along a corridor of trees and cliffs, rushing rivers and many sightings of wildlife (not squashed, for a change!!!): birds, groundhogs, deer, raccoons, snakes and turtles--and learning all the history of the Little Miami Railroad from Mike and Joan, and visiting the charming former railroad towns

3. the amazing extent of the rails to trails throughout Ohio--usually paved, easy gradients, lovely countryside and NO TRAFFIC! Well done Ohio!

4. getting to know towns which began as names on a map, then were seen as distant watertowers and finally emerged as tree lined streets and houses with large shade trees, porches--like a film set from "To Kill a Mockingbird" or "Tom Sawyer". America is more than just strip malls and fast food joints--small towns do still exist, and they are wonderful! And of course meeting the people who lived there who were unfailingly interested, amazed and helpful in so many ways: doing our laundry in the laundromat for free, being given a $20 Canadian note when he heard where we were shortly to cross the border, the man who rescued us with his pickup truck after G's bike had 2 blowouts, the complimentary lunch in the Rocky Raccoon Cafe in Owen Sound simply because we had come such a long way on bike!

5. cycling on a Sunday morning in Amish country when ALL the Amish were on their way to church, dressed in black dresses, or suits for the men, handmade boots, the women wore white starched aprons, and the men had hats and long beards--some walking on the road pushing huge buggies filled with several babies and toddlers, or else packed into a black carriage pulled by a horse, trotting hell for leather.

and then the lows, of course!!!

1. 2 blowouts outside Oberlin, and having to seek help from a kind man with a pickup truck. He looked like a farm worker, and it turns out he was retired FBI!

2. consistently cold weather in Canada--thanks to Duncan for lending some warm clothes--and having to get up in the middle of the night in a campsite to be sick, and naturally the camping area is at the farthest possible place away from the toilet block. (Why do the RV's ALWAYS have to be near the toilet block and the tent sites so far away? Not only have they got microwaves, satellite TV's--they all have toilets, and no doubt jacuzzis as well!). Many of then even have golf carts attached to the back of the RV's just , it seems , for GETTING to the toilet block !

3. getting very wet and cold on the stretch between Delaware , OH and Butler , and findng the anticpated Malabar Farm hostel accommodation closed. The day was saved by finding the Angelwood B & B and their hospitable and generous proprietors Vicky & John.

4 taking a wrong turn outside Medina and fighting back against the wind to get back on track.



5 Skirting - for ever it seemed - Hamilton, Ont and taking the hard shoulder of a freeway for 8 very unpleasant miles against the wind and with storm clouds threatening.

By way of conclusion , a big thank you to all those who befriended us from Mobile to Cincinnati , including the librarians in so many public libraries ( what a wonderful resource ) who were without exception interested in our trip and enormously helpful with use of computers and recommendations for good eating spots. Food was of course our fuel and we were rarely disappointed .

Thanks finally to Adventure Cycling for mapping such a fabulous route and for the massive amount of info that their maps contained .