I'm still alive!

Okay all, sorry to anybody still reading this to have completely dropped off the planet. The truth is that by the time I'd started the third tour I'd gotten quite burnt out on the road and (while I did have a lot of fun!) I was ready to head home at that point! So I will give you all a quick update as to what I've been up to since tour Arctic.

The Road Trip

Before we could properly begin Tour Atlantic Kate and I had to get ourselves to the east coast! It took nine days of driving to get across the country and we were driving for 12 hours a day. This was not an easy task. I did however get a nice break in Thunder Bay where Dad and my brother Phil cam out to visit me. The journey across Canada consisted of a lot of CBC radio listening and fast food devouring and hour counting. Eventually we arrived in Halifax for a day off before we started tour Atlantic. On my day off I cooked myself a lobster, drank a six pack of beer and slept a lot. On the way out of the Yukon we got to see a huge heard of wild bison blocking the road. We also saw some adorable baby mountain goats being escorted by their parents on the same day!

There were SO many of them!

Adorable

Tour Atlantic

Even though this tour was 14 days just like the other ones, somehow this tour just flew by! I honestly can't remember a lot of the details, but some of the highlights include: standing and watching the incredible tide in the bay of Fundy; eating lobster that I didn't have to prepare, pub-hopping and wandering around in St John; swimming in the Atlantic ocean for the second time in my life; and most importantly all the gorgeous scenery.

Arriving in Halifax! We made it across 7000km!

The Atlantic crew

A scenic East Coast pier

The Great Return

When Tour Atlantic ended Kate and I met up with the tail end of Tour Du Canada and helped them wrap up their tour. These guys were far more tired and homesick than I ever was! It was a very stressful group to deal with but it was good to see them and to see how much progress that they had made. John and I sang a few songs and then they were off to Newfoundland. Kate and I turned around to go home but got stuck due to a hurricane! We stuck around Cape Breton island for an extra day and headed down the road. Three days later we arrived in Alliston and we quickly unloaded as much as we could. Our manager then drove me to my mom's house in the country where I'd never been so excited to return home. I immediately took off my shoes (a luxury I rarely got on the road!) and laid in my own bed with my own bedsheets for the first time in months. The feeling was amazing.

Moving on out Ottawa

After bidding goodbye the my employers and coworkers for the season I stayed around Orangeville and slothed about for a week or so, then it was time to move. Mom and Bryan rented me a U-haul trailer and we loaded my life into it and headed down the road to Ottawa. After a brief 6 hour jaunt down the highway we arrived at my new apartment which I took sight unseen previously. Turns out I love the place! It`s a beautiful building that`s over 100 years old with an enormous ceiling and I have two six-foot tall windows in my room. My neighborhood is the very scenic `Glebe`just south of the downtown area; I`m literally a 30 minute walk from Parliament! The day after my arrival I took a job working as the first cook at a local Italian Fine Dining restaurant. I didn`t like some aspects of the job and I quit after a couple of weeks which actually freed me up to come back home to my own convocation ceremony.

Graduation

After 5 years of hard work in Guelph I actually got to attend my graduation ceremony which I originally missed in June and almost had to miss again due to work obligations. My mom showed up as did Dana and my brother. The whole affair was rather quick, but I went out to lunch with the family, attended the ceremony, got a butt pat from Pamela Wallin and left in time to get to Kitchener for Octoberfest with my coworkers from the summer. The next morning I headed back to Ottawa. I now have landed a job working as the morning baker at the local Tim Horton`s. I likely won`t be here forever, but the management is really nice and I get the privilege of working in the Ottawa Civic Hospital which is an amazing networking opportunity. I`m quite happy here! Thanks all for sticking with me this long, this will be my final update.

You can always contact me via e-mail or Facebook!

The north wind blows....

Okay, I realize that it's been a long, long time since I've updated, so it's time for a huge update! Since we last were together, dear readers, I have began and completed all of Tour Arctic. What an amazing trip it was!

In the Beginning

Tour Arctic began with an orientation and a photo session at UBC. From there the riders immediately set out to catch a ferry to Vancouver island to start riding North.

The riders hanging out at UBC posing for photos

All the cameras that Kate and I had to use!

Welcome to the Island!

Once we landed on Vancouver Island we began our slow journey northward. The first few days we stayed in rather well serviced campgrounds on the exterior of the island usually staying directly on shore. I swam in the Pacific ocean for the first time on this tour! I don't know how I managed to avoid the opportunity during all of Tour Pacific, but it was good to get out in the water.

Once we reached the midpoint of the island (just after Campbell River) civilization stopped. There was then nothing. We spent a few nights in very low service areas and grocery shopping was rare or non-existent. Eventually we made our way to Port Hardy on the north shore of the island where a series of ferries awaited to take us all the way to Skagway, Alaska where we would cross over to the Yukon.

Singing songs in Sayward!

Are ye a land lubber?

From here we spent about three total days on ferries heading northward! Before boarding our first ferry though, an exciting announcement was made: two of the riders were planning on getting married in Dawson City! This was unknown to all and quite a shock, although the couple had been dating for quite some time. Everyone was quite excited and there was a lot of celebrating that night.

The first ferry ride was rather uneventful, but due to lack of sleep the night before (the ferry check in was 5am) I spent the entire 10 hour ride sleeping on a bench outside of the cafeteria. I only woke up for meals, and I managed to attend breakfast, lunch AND dinner without fail! I would call a day of entirely sleeping and eating an excellent day. This day was also my partner's birthday and thus cake and celebration were a part of dinner. We then departed the first ferry and had a rest day in northern BC.

After our rest day we packed up camp and got on another ferry - this one for a period of two entire days - which would land us in Alaska. On this ferry I spent much of my time sunning myself (and sunburning myself) on the deck in a lawn chair. I saw a few whales in the distance, and some sort of pod of dolphins or porpoises or something rather close to the boat! It was very interesting (and rather touristy!) to see these things for the first time.

On the deck I met a banjo player and we played a few old timey folk tunes together. After a few minutes a couple of guitar players came out and started playing along with us, and I couldn't believe how co-ordinated everyone was! After a few minutes I figured out that they were all part of a band and I was in fact intruding on a practice session, but they invited me to play a long anyway. The band was Ray Troll, Russel Wodehouse and the Ratfish Wranglers(http://www.trollart.com). They were heading to a music festival and were travelling the same ferry I was! Turns out they're quite a well known bunch of fellas in their homeland. We had a good jam and I was invited to play an impromptu concert with them in the ships bar later that night. We sang songs about fish, paleontology and Alaskan life. I loved the experience and got myself a signed cd! If ever the opportunity comes along I'd do it again in a heartbeat. Here's a link to my favourite song by them (warning: mature subject matter): http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=EEGrcfZ-5Y0

It only counts as one vehicle if everything's attached to it!

How Alaskans enjoy a cruise

View from the boat

The Matanuska: my home for two days

A quaint Alaskan shoreline

A Ratfish Wrangler napping on the deck

Happy as a pig in mud to be performing again!

LAND HO!! Arriving in Alaska!

After the Gold Rush

Later in the day after arriving in Alaska we set up camp for the first time in the Yukon Territory. First we had to pass through customs though, and with 20 cyclists this can be a long process. We had to wait at customs for all the cyclists to arrive before proceeding. In that time we saw a black bear that was just nonchalantly exploring the area! Nobody seemed concerned and I guess it must be a rather mundane affair in the Yukon territory.

Two shocking things about the Yukon:

1. It is DESOLATE. We were lucky to pass through places that had a gas station, potable water, a police officer or a convenience store. Grocery shopping was non-existent and after we left Whitehorse the biggest community we saw wasn't until Dawson "city" which was still less that 1000 people. At one point we pulled into an RCMP detachment and the officer was so excited to see people he greeted us outside!
2. There are bees EVERYEWHERE. I have no idea why there are so many bees, but it was absolutely infuriating.

A few days in we sadly had to say goodbye to "the most interesting man in the world". This man has ridden all of Africa on a bike, speaks 4 languages, lives in the south of France, spent his youth in the Merchant marine and is a connoisseur of fine wines. Regardless, due to a family emergency he needed to return home and his equally charming wife also departed with him. It was very sad to say goodbye to these people and it was difficult for them as well.

Eventually we arrived in Dawson where things made a turn for the better. In Dawson we were scheduled to have a rest day, so the day before the rest day we all hit the town! We all went to Diamond tooth Gerty's where I lost $24 at a blackjack table, had a few drinks, and saw a great cabaret show. The night ran long and eventually I found myself going for a dip in the Yukon river and going to bed wet with river water. What a good night!

The following day was the wedding! The best man (who is also a musician) and I had practised some music for the ceremony and along with some help from our cyclist choir we were ready to help make their day extra special. The event began with the bride and groom rolling into camp with their special tuxedo and wedding dress print jerseys. The rounded us all up and took us down to the Yukon river for a very quiet ceremony. As the bride rolled down the "aisle" a choral and guitar arrangement of Pachelbel's canon in D Major accompanied her arrival. Vows were exchanged while still mounted in bicycles. The official papers were signed over the back of one of the very helpful and enthusiastic riders. After the ceremony the couple shared their first dance to a cover of Neil Young's Harvest Moon as played by the best man and I. The ceremony was amazing and I'm not ashamed that I teared up a little! Afterwards a celebratory dinner was held at a local restaurant. At that same meal my partner and I had to exchange our goodbyes with the riders as we were leaving them in the hands of another tour group to head out East and start tour Atlantic. There was some crying on behalf of the riders (and maybe a little from myself!).

Yukon, you aint even ready for this much awesome.

I see you, bear! GET GONE!

The "world's smallest desert" outside Carcross

Kees loves his moose

A sad goodbye to Kees and Jenny

My night at Diamond Tooth Gerty's

They came to round us up!

Cue the band!

Liz makes an excellent table.

Just married.

Tour Arctic was an amazing group. I miss you all.

Kate and I are now on the road heading towards Halifax. I hope I can get a chance to update when I get there to tell of all our on-the-road shenanigans.

an update from Gelbin

Wow, what an exciting few weeks it's been!

One day while I was wandering around the countryside I met a lovely group of cyclists who
were heading from Vancouver Island all the way out to Newfoundland. I got talking with them and they asked me to join along with them for the ride! Of course I accepted, and hopped into one of their backpacks and headed out east with them. These folk would bike about 100km a day and then set up camp for the night in whatever campgrounds they could find nearby. I'd never slept in a tent before, but i found that it's not so different from sleeping in a garden and I quite like the idea of not being wet when it's raining. We travelled all the way through the interior of BC over the course of several days. Oh, the mountains are so beautiful there! Great green streams and rivers flow between the crags and the air is so fresh and clean. Every night I slept for what felt like 100 hours and awoke ready and refreshed for the next day of travelling. We then headed into

Alberta where I started to get a little scared.When we arrived in Jasper to my great surprise it was snowing, and it was snowing hard! We had to camp that night with three inches of snow on the ground and it was quite a bit below freezing. Now, I've never mentioned this before, but I am not a winter person! When the snow covers the garden at home it's all I can do to brush it off and go sleep inside, but I know that I must stand guard, or who else will? For the next several days on my way through Banff it continued to be cold and it rained instead of snowed. After arriving in Banff I'd decided that if I were going to be cold, I might as well be going north instead of East. I discussed things with the cyclists and they agreed to mail me back to the Vancouver area so that I could start my own journey north (now that I know for sure where I want to go!). I arrived today and I plan on leaving for Yukon in a few days once I figure out just how to get there.

I've not yet found what I'm looking for; I hope that I find it soon.

Floating over your rocky spine....

Wow, I did not expect that I would not update my blog once during Tour Pacific, but that's how things turned out! I've been quite busy in the last few weeks as I travelled over Canada's rocky spine. Things started off in Fort Langley with an orientation day and a dinner of chicken paprikash as made by yours truly. Our riders were a crew of 14 consisting of some very diverse individuals. We had a pair of psychologists from Toronto, a pair of brothers (the Holy Rollers) one of whom was a PHD in theology and the other who is an episcopalian priest, a lovely Australian couple and several other lovely characters. The day after orientation the crew dipped their tires in the pacific ocean and began their journey out east.

Cooking on the stove



Who's that handsome fella?
Ol' blue, my commuter bike that I built out of my dad's old racing bike

Part of the Tour Pacific 2010 riding crew

The crew in its entirety before heading east

Our time in BC was actually rather uneventful. We travelled up the Coquihalla highway passing through the BC interior on our way to the icefield's parkway in Alberta. Along the way things went rather smoothly and my partner and I got to know the riders. We had a rather lovely rest day in Kamloops where I found a Scotiabank, slept in a real bed and ate out at real restaurant! What a day! I also got to see Toy Story 3 which was pretty decent. My glasses exploded this day however and I have yet to get them fixed. Thank God form y prescription sunglasses.

Our first real glimpse of the rockies (on this trip at least!)

Young Anna (FROM GUELPH!!!) celebrates her 32nd birthday with a cake provided by the lovely staff

Can't remember where I took this, but it's real pretty!

We then crossed into Alberta where things took an interesting turn. One of our major stops on the icefield's parkway was Jasper. We had a rest day scheduled here. On the night leading into the rest day (my only day to sleep in) my air mattress broke in the middle of the night! The following morning was teeming with rain which continued all day. I spent my day off in Jasper checking out the local laundromat/internet cafe. I managed to buy a therm-a-rest which was on the best decisions I made in my life. It may be thin, but it sure is comfy! The following morning was just awful. I awoke to heavy, heavy freezing rain and temperatures hovering around 0. As we packed up the galley in the downpour the rain began to slush and quickly turned to wet, cold-packed snow. Now, I like a good fluffy white snow, but this snow was basically like getting pelted with a 7-11 slurpee. As this is a DIY tour except for food and a campsite, the riders bravely set out into the frost. Most of them made it about 10km, but a few made it for longer. A bus was called in to pick everyone up and take them to the icefields center where they spent the night. However, us staff needed to tend to our duties and stay at the proscribed campsite and had to set up camp with our soaked gear in the -5 temps and camp the night!! I slept in the back of the truck while my manager and my partner slept in their tents in a shelter next to a woodstove.

TURN BACK KEVIN!!!

A view from the road

Gelbin and I 'chilling' at the campsite for the night

We eventually survived this ordeal and headed out for Banff where we had a lovely, sunny stay. We then descended into Calgary over a scenic and lovely couple of days where the tour sadly ended. There are no pictures of the going away party as I went to bed right away! This job really is working me quite well.

The water everywhere is so green. It's eerie

Some more mountains

Sad that all these are from the truck, isn't it?

Tomorrow I'll be doing orientation for Tour Arctic and then the following day we begin to head north! Things are moving really, really quickly.

I miss you all terribly.

One Great City!

Having travelled from Ontario all the way to the coast of BC, I can say that in the past few weeks I have seen an awful lot of Canada. However, one city stands out in all that adventuring as an albatross: a city that possesses a certain "je ne sais quoi". While passing through - and even near - this city we were subject to flooding, camping relocations, construction detours, lane restrictions, and awful, awful weather. In my brief stint passing by this metropolitan and allegedly world-class level city I accumulated quite a strong emotional perspective on her.

In that vein, I have recorded a song as written by The Weakerthans which I feel sums up how I feel about Winnipeg quite nicely.

You say "Goodbye" and I say "Hello"

After our journey across Canada I had a few days off in Fort Langley to rest my bones at the campground here. Afterwards though we were quickly uprooted and transported to the University of British Columbia to help officially "launch" Tour Du Canada 2010. I was given my very own room at the university dorms with a real bed for two nights! This made me quite happy. The first night we were there was rather simple; just some preparation and bookwork for the coming days. The following morning we started to meet the cyclists. This was a day of registration, meeting and greeting and of orientation. The following morning was the first official ride of the Tour Du Canada and everything at UBC was packed up in the truck and shot out East. Everything ran smoothly on the first couple of days barring a bit of rain here and there and some confusion over bathroom keys. Highlights of the journey include jam sessions with one of the TDC guys who brought his own guitar s well, and on our last night many of the TDC cyclists and us went out for a karaoke adventure in Merritt which was a great amount of fun. I sang "Solitary Man" by Neil Diamond by myself, and then after a few more pints myself and the musician-cyclist did a duet of "Daddy Sang Bass". My partner and I only followed the tour for a few days in order to help launch the tour smoothly and I tried to stay relatively detached, but I can't help but feel sad after having left them behind in Merrit. They have now moved on further East and now we've headed back to Fort Langley to await the launch of Tour Pacific: our first official tour of the season! It was also especially sad to say goodbye to the Tour Du Canada staff as we went through all of training together and convoyed across Canada together. Dare I say that we became friends in the ordeal and that they will be missed every time I pull into camp and go to set up for dinner.

Gelbin and I hanging out at UBC enjoying a scene from his natural habitat.


Meet and greet with the TDC cyclists at the UBC residences

"Suit up!" TDC style
(Not pictured here are the 43 cameras laid at my feet so that everyone would have a copy of this picture. This took about 5 minutes to get everything shot!)



In BC some things are really, really tiny!



...but some things are really, really huge!


Camp: Day 2

A little bike repair

"Any place to swim around here?"
"Sure, just across the way!"

Two brave souls go in for a closer look

What a coooool walking path

On my last night with the TDC the other musician and I somehow dressed identically with awesome beards, earth-toned plaid jackets, jeans and black hoods!

My manager insisted that the Turkey Tiara stay with the TDC crew, so I wore it as often as possible while I still had access to it.

I have today off as it's Canada Day. Later I'll be going out to check out the fireworks, but right now I'm just bumming around the Fort Langley campground again! Tomorrow is the orientation for Tour Pacific and then we're off to travel all across western Canada the following morning.