SEPTEMBER 4-10

Sept 4-10

 

Marmora Ontario, Labour Day Long Weekend

 

So, this year certainly has been much different travelling than BC (Before Covid-19).  We isolated after Justin Trudeau said “if you are Canadian, you should come home” as we were only 3 weeks into a 4-month trip in Texas…so we came home.  Winterized Miss Adventure Too and put her back into storage while we waited.  Always interested in seeing more of Canada, we headed to the near North of Ontario for 3 weeks exploring some of the less visited Provincial Parks and just stayed fairly quiet.

 

Now we will explore some spots in Ontario and head to Ottawa to visit relatives, Tremblant National Park, the Eastern Townships and who knows what might happen.  We plan to cycle a bit as we now have a reliable transport method for Elizabeth’s recumbent trike and my single bike.  (We are retiring the Tandem…another story.)

We had a nice drive across the top of Toronto opting for the 407 Toll Road…chosen due to it being a long weekend and thinking that traffic would be snarled.  The camp we are set up at is in Marmora, an old pit mining town about 50 minutes east of Peterborough.

 

After diner we thought we would take a walk around the camp.  Not more than 20 feet from the trailer I slipped slightly on the loose gravel incline of the road.  Elizabeth then proceeded to also slip but she fell, hitting her knee, twisting her (bad) ankle and also injuring her shoulder.  Ouch! What a way to start!  Back into the trailer and down to the office to buy some ice.  We’ll see how it is today as plans are for cycling the Greenway Rail Trail that starts in Peterborough.  Forecast is two days of sunny 22c weather.

 

 

Peterborough Rotary Greenway Trail is a paved 7.2-kilometer trail located in Peterborough, that features a river and is good for all skill levels. It ends at the Lakefield Trail which takes you to Lakefield on a crushed stone rail trail - another 11ish km so out and back is 36-40km of fairly flat scenic ride.  

 

Along the way we saw locks, swivel bridges and in Lakefield we had a great lunch at The Nutty Bean Café.  Oh, and a stop at the drug store for Tylenol and heat packs for Elizabeth’s shoulder etc.

So, you know how some folks stop at Breweries/wineries for sampling/tasting?  Well we stop occasionally at Cafes and I will buy their roastery roast.  In this case it is Guatemalan House Roast for me to grind in my hand (ceramic) grinder.  (Only coffee aficionados understand that significance, like a sommelier prep for sampling wine.)

Lastly on the way home we found The Rocky Meadows Lavender farm and bought some goodies including lavender scented sanitizer!  Great.

A great outing and nice cycling by all.  (Thinking of bringing some folks back to this ride sometime…)

Just outside of Ottawa near Greely/Manotick Station, we have found a very nice cozy camp while we cycle and visit relatives.  We are going to cycle, weather pending, some popular routes and rail trails.  Ottawa is well known for it’s great cycling.  

We decided on a combination 24km rail-trail/country road winery route.  We thought we could have our lunch and maybe buy some gifts but both wineries were only open on the weekend.  The country ride was very nice and traffic quiet.

Wednesday, we had a very nice visit with Shirley Young, Elizabeth’s cousin at her condo.  What a nice afternoon.  Such a bright, positive and spry person.  Shirley is 86!

Thursday we rode to Osgood (about 25km on a rail trail) and had a nice lunch on the patio of a taco place.

There are some other cycling loop(s) we hope to try in town maybe Friday when the weather is to be “sunny”.  Also hoping to have a brief distanced visit with my nephew Adrian and his wife Erin and their dog Ada at a nearby park.

We are staying socially distant and sanitizing and wearing masks where required.  It’s a strange time.  

Stay Safe, Wear a mask, Wash your hands.

Jerry & Elizabeth, Misty the cat, Miss Adventure Too and Clifford the big red truck.