DAY THIRTEEN-123K

So, after finally deciding to get my lazy ass out of Montreal I packed my stuff and rolled out of my sisters place at about 1pm on a sunny Sunday afternoon.I had been in Montreal for fifteen days instead of the five that I had planned but to be perfectly honest I could have stayed a lot longer.The only problem was that now I was so far behind my ride schedule that I feared I would not be able to make it to Penticton at all.My attitude toward the ride had been lifted by a couple of old friends who had contacted me and told me that they would be contributing toward the Athletes in Kind cause.My old mate Lloyd also so told me that he and his wife Ead had decided to put another $2000US into an account for me should I need it.That was really all the motivation that I needed to get me on the road again and so the long trip through the city of Montreal was begun.


It was actually a lot easier to get out of town than I thought it would be but it wasn't all plain sailing as I did find myself hoplessly lost in Laval for about 40 minutes during which time I ended up having a nice tour of some really beautiful riverfront properties.Once I figured out where I was it was pretty plain sailing out along hwy 148 toward the city of Gatineau.




My target for the afternoon was to try and reach the town of Lachute some 80-odd kilometers from Montreal.I figured that would be a nice ride to get me used to being on the road again after my long break in the big city.It was great to be out and about again physically but mentally my head wasn't really in the game.I don't know why but even though it was pretty easy riding there was something that made me think I could be doing something way more constructive with my life. I did manage to hit Lachute in the early evening and after a promising entry into what I thought might be a nice town I found myself in one shithole of a place.I have heard joking remarks about some serious inbreeding in Quebec and I swear if those rumours are true then Lachute must be the inbreds capital of the province.Sitting outside a gas station sipping coffee I was amazed at the cast of weird characters that passed me by each slightly more eccentric than the next.I mean talking to yourself isn't really such a crime but arguing with yourself should be.I saw more than one guy do that.I also saw more redneck drivers racing around the streets of Lachute than I had seem anywhere else.It was very scary being on the road with them as I took off after my short stop.

I was pretty glad to be out of that town and was happy that I was going to far exceed my days planned 80k.It was only the fact that the weather closed in(yet again) that I started to look for somewhere to sleep that night.I was happily barrelling down the highway when I realsed that everyone had their headlights on and that it was getting really dark,really quickly.It was about then that the lightning started and the thunder rolled overhead!Damn it,I did not want to spend another wet night outside so I really started to look in earnest for a campsite.I found one by the side of the highway just over the bridge that spans the Riviere Rouge(red river).It was literally ten feet off the highway but was quite a bit below it and was hidden quite well.



As I wheeled my bike down the track along the road I realised that there must have been some huge weather here over the last day or so as the ground was soaked and there was evidence of a nice stream that must have flowed strong with the run-off from the highway.Luckily the campsite I chose was slightly elevated and I was pretty sure I wouldn't get flooded out.Getting rained on was something that I couldn't control.Just as I was setting the tent up the heaven opened and I had to cover my exposed tent with my tarp and hide under it until the rain let up.

Fifteen minutes later it stopped raining and I was able to set up camp and put all my stuff under cover.I did get caught myself though and by the time I crawled into my tent I was soaked yet again.There was not much I could do about it and after removing the outer layers of clothes I got into my damp sleeping bag wearing my wet under shirt and bike pants.I would be wet all night but at least I was warm and thanked my lucky starts for the tarp that covered me as the deluge that hit didn't add to the damp misery that I experienced for the next seven hours.After settlling in I ate a can of beans,did my daily report and tried as best I could to go to sleep.This was not fun at all!!