I woke up this morning to the sensation of warm breath on my face. I opened my eyes and there was Kramer, inches away, staring intently at me with a toy ball hanging from his mouth. Adorable. I did my usual morning routine, said my good byes and thank you's to Kevin and Jeaninne, and I was on my way by 8:30.
It was a beautiful morning. The sun was shining and the skys were clear. I cruised out of winnipeg and quickly found myself on a series of quiet secondary highways, bound for White Shell Provincial Park. I made fantastic progress, and watched as the plains finally gave way to dense pine and birch forests and marshlands.
That is when I had some unwelcome guests. Out of no where, I suddenly had around 20 horse flys circling me. They relentlessly chased me down the highway for around 40 KM. I didnt stop once the entire time, even eating my sandwich as I rode, afraid to stop lest the swarm should descend upon me. Sadly I did not have bug spray yet either; there has been so few bugs so far that I forgot to buy some. Fueled by my pursuers, I reached my halfway point in Elma in fantastic time. Just as I entered town they finally left me alone. I headed toward a small market geared toward cottages to get supplies, bug spray included. I was quite impressed by how much they had to offer, it was the best Ive encountered yet while not in major towns. I asked a store clerk about the horse flys. The bad news is nothing deters them, the good news is they arent a problem in Northern Ontario.
I continued on down several back roads, barely a car in sight, and no cell reception to be had. Eventually I reached White Shell Provincial Park, and the terrain began to change again. I was now entering Canadian Shield territory, so smooth rock formations began to crop up everywhere. I also began to encounter a foreign concept; hills! The road finally began to develop character again as it snaked around bend after bend, up and down small rises. The sky was pure blue above, not a single wisp of cloud to be seen anywhere.
Despite my fast pace, it was still a lenghty 150 KM day, so I was quite happy to arrive in the Caddy Lake area. I pulled into a camp and found myself a nice site overlooking the lake. It had an amazing view, and there was a large section of smooth rock leading down to the lake, where I went for a quick and cold swim to wash away all the sweat, sun screen, and bug spray of the day. I was just beginning to set up for supper on the rock face overlooking the lake, when they came for me. It turns out I had set up in the "seasonal" area, and the park employees requested I move my already set up tent and campsite to a "day use" site, which was down the hill in a boring forested area, no where near the water. It would appear that seasonal campers are the privileged bourgeoisie of this social strata. Not impressed. I completed the hassle of moving my entire campsite, and it was time for a well deserved meal and relaxation time.
A great day despite my displeasure at being moved. I look forward to many more days like today.
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