Day 15- Highway to Nowhere

Woke up at 5 AM after a restless sleep in the hot confines of my tent. In the future I will try not using the fly on hot nights and see if that is any better. I quickly packed and ate breakfast, eager to get as much done before the heat began. I stopped at a gas station to fill my water supplies and rinse up a bit since my campsite had no water because it was closed.

I cruised along in the morning cool, once again making pretty good time, but I could feel the heat starting even earlier today. I kept biking down the painfully boring Trans Canada HWY, the only interesting thing in sight being the passing trains on the railway. As the KM passed, it became hotter and hotter; much like yesterday. Apparently it was 34° yesterday, and it eventually got up to 31° today.

The road rambled on through positively vacant territories. Nothing but cows, oil derricks, and telephone poles for over 100 KM. The road stretched before me, straight as an arrow, into the horizon through the shimmering heat. It seemed as though that highway would continue off the edge of the earth itself.

As a side note, Ive noticed cows have an odd staring fixation. Everywhere I went, every cow in range would stop and stare at me, and follow me with their whole head as I passed. It was almost creepy, like a bovine version of Alfred Hitchcock's "The Birds".

I saw at least five coyotes today, and what I later found out were antelope. I thought that was what their colouration looked like, but I didnt think they lived in Canada.

After a long and weary day in the sun, I finally reached Medicine Hat around 3 PM, ready to crash for the night already. I took what I thought was the right exit and ended up in a nice residential area. And what was this? There were trees! I was unbelievably happy to be around trees again, and the shade they provided felt great. There were also many lilac bushes around, which is one of my favorite scents. The whole town seemed like a rather nice place, with trails and little rivers everywhere. It seemed even more so after the wasteland outside.

It soon became apparent that I was no where near my campground, so I pulled out my GPS to look for it. Seeing my gear and my lost look, another cycler stopped to ask about my trip and offer directions. No sooner than he had finished, a second cyclist approached and offered: 1. Better directions and 2. That I could stay at his place tonight instead if I wanted!

He seemed like a nice guy, so I trusted him and accepted his offer. We took a nice series of trails over rivers and through tunnels across Medicine Hat to his house, where I met his family, and they very kindly fed me and accomodated me for the night. It just goes to show the kindess people will show, even to complete strangers. Dave enjoys bike touring himself, and had some really interesting tales about his own travels. He said he had been granted similar hospitality in the past, and wished to pass the good will along. I will have to remember that in the future when I see a needy adventurer.

I also mailed my winter gear home today, hoping I wont need it again later. This creates a nice amount of extra space in my bags.