Canada’s secondary roads are not only more peaceful and scenic to ride, but they also often lead to the serendipity that adds to the richness of our experience. We were on one such road, Maple Ridge Road, in northern Ontario, about an hour’s bicycle ride east of Thessalon (near the head of Lake Huron) when […]
Amish follow a humble path to a simpler way of life Read More »
We’d been planning the ConnecTour cross-Canada cycle-touring ride for 16 months. Had it ever crossed my mind that one of us would be injured and off the ride for more than seven weeks? I know I certainly didn’t. Ever the optimist, I was excited to start on the four-month ride to discover our beautiful country
Learning to roll with one of this tour’s unexpected twists Read More »
Anita Young feels a lot of loyalty to the people of Wawa. And for good reason, because the people of Wawa have been there for her and her late husband, Bill, when they most needed a hand. Bill Young founded what has become Wawa’s most famous landmark, Young’s General Store, way back in 1971 and
Wawa’s loyal support keeps country store going strong Read More »
Sheri Turner is ebullient and energetic as she welcomes strangers to the fascinating world she’s built for herself near the tiny community of Shebandowan, about a day’s bicycle ride – or an hour’s drive – west of Thunder Bay. Her immaculate property, called The Settlement, is a house and panoply of outbuildings, mostly painted grey
A private fantasy world, rich in local and family history Read More »
Jeff Allport isn’t into false flattery, so when he’s asked, he tells you straight out he started his craft brewery in Nokomis, Sask., simply because it was cheap to locate there. He didn’t move there for the small-town charm, or the clever strategy of being centrally located between Regina and Saskatoon in a province underserved
Cheap rural living enables brewery dream to become a reality Read More »
Cyclists have good reason to be hyper-aware and cautious on the road. Transport trucks sometimes barrel past too close for comfort (think lumber trucks in B.C.); motorists can be aggressive and road shoulders can be too small to ride on. Riders can mitigate all these risks. What they can’t prepare for are the unforeseeable, fluky
A sudden, frightening crash sidelines one of our riders Read More »
There’s a leak in the roof at Riches Antiques that’s filling the bucket in the rear left corner of this old store in Rosetown, but Sandra Mathison is unperturbed. It’s hard to keep shingles on the northwest corner, she explains, because that’s where the prevailing winds come from. Today, those winds have brought in a
Antique store owner revives memories for bikepacker Read More »
The call came out of the blue on a Tuesday afternoon. Our son-in-law, Dax learned there was a liver available and he was told to come to Vancouver General Hospital immediately. Within 36 hours the liver was declared a match and, just like that, Dax was undergoing the 10-hour surgery. This was thanks to someone
Update: Our son-in-law gets the life-gift of a liver transplant Read More »
COVID-19 seemed like the least of his worries when Robb Syre moved from Vancouver to Banff in 2020 to work at a tattoo shop founded by his best friend Ronnie Giesbrecht and an associate, Leighton Gall. “Honestly, at first I thought it (COVID) was total bullshit. It was just the flu, rebranded.” But then life
Banff tattoo business dream derailed by COVID reality Read More »
We’ve only been on the road for 18 days of our 110-day ride, but we’ve racked up pannier loads of experiences — most of them fun and fantastic, others more of the physically exhausting and unexpected, crazy-weather kind. From time to time, we’ll compile a list of the highlights and lowlights and some bike-touring tips
Highlights, lowlights and lessons learned, so far Read More »
