Day 24 (Part 2) and 25 - Regina to Home

Hi All,

A few people have noticed we haven't had any updates for a couple days. We ended up renting a van in Regina, loading our stuff in it and driving home. We didn't do any blog posts because we wanted to see the look on our parents faces when we showed up at home(totally worth it by the way). We decided to chicken out and quit the trip for a few reasons but mostly it stopped being fun and felt like a chore. And, since it was supposed to be a vacation we saw no point in being miserable and sufferring through it.

We didn't really take a whole lot of pictures of the ride home. We left Regina around 1:30 wednesday afternoon and drove pretty late we stopped a couple times for short naps but they weren't too long. We made it to Chris's cousin Annette's house just past Sault Ste. Marie by 8:00 thursday night. It was a good visit since its been about ten years since Chris has visited them so it brought back lots of memories. We went to bed pretty early and we slept like babies!

In the morning we drove to Chris's Aunt Dorthy and Uncle Art's house where we had a quick visit and saw Rachelle and Tyler off to school. We were on the road again with home as the final destination. The around 8 hour drive seemed to fly by(compared to yesterdays drive). We were surprised how quickly we made it through Toronto since we drove through at rush hour.

We made it home safe and sound around 5. It will sure be weird not having to wake up and ride a bike everyday. Oh, and it will also be weird not updating everyone on what we've done everyday...I'm sure our lives will become far less interesting anyways. We may do another post or two about our final thoughts on the trip but right now we're pretty exhausted so that won't be for a day or two.

-Chris & Patricia

Day 24 (Part 1) - Moose Jaw to Regina

Hello Everyone,

We were on the road fairly quickly since we packed most of our stuff up the night before. We were soon out of Moose Jaw and headed towards Regina. The weather today was a bit of overcast but no rain! There were still a few puddles from last nights rain but the roads were dry. The wind was a bit of a tailwind but mostly a really strong cross wind - It blew our trailer around pretty good. We didn't really take any pictures of the ride but when we got to Regina we stopped to check the computer and do a quick photo shoot.

-C&P

Day 23 - Rest Day in Moose Jaw

Hi All,

Not much to report for today. We checked the weather forecast and today was cold, rainy, and had a headwind so we decided to chicken out and take a rest day. The weather forecast also said tomorrow is supposed to be sunny with a bit of a tail wind so hopefully waiting the extra day will work in our favor.

We got some groceries, a new spare tire, and ran a few errands. Other than that we just watched TV and relaxed and were thankful we weren't biking in the crappy weather outside.

We also have no exciting pictures to post - hopefully tomorrow is a little more exciting. The plan is to at least get to Regina - hopefully further.

-C&P

Day 22 - Chaplin to Moose Jaw

Hello Again,

Well we've now been on the road for three weeks and are both a little home sick and having fantasies of renting a car and driving home or hopping on one of the greyhound buses we see everyday. Anyways, neither of us slept too well last night between the rain storm that started in the middle of the night, several loud trains, and coyotes howling. Oh, and Patricia was awoken a few times by cows moo-ing. We made sandwiches for  breakfast and the day, packed up, and were soon on the road. Oh, and on the way out of the campsite we saw some fresh prints in the mud - our best guess was that it was from one of the coyotes we heard last night.

Today the wind had finally died down, it was still a head wind but it was quite gentle so it wasn't too much of a nuisance. Patricia spotted what we believe was a coyote after about an hour on the road. It stopped and stared at us for a bit but once we started digging for the camera it trotted away and below is the best shot we could get of it.

Sandwich break!

The skies today were scaring us a little bit. There were cloudy blue skies all around us but above us there was a huge clump of grey clouds. The most it did was give us a tiny misting and that was it.

Exciting scenery!

We eventually made it to Moose Jaw and biked around the town for a little while and finally decided to get a motel for the night.

We checked in and settled in. We then went to an attraction called the tunnels of moose jaw. It was pretty neat but was nothing like what we were expecting. We expected a tour of some cool underground tunnels but, it was a couple actors taking us through well decorated rooms and putting on a show. After that we went to a chinese food buffet - a decision we both regretted after since the food didn't sit to well.

That was about it for today,

Chris and Patricia.

Day 21 - Swift Current to Chaplin

Hello Again,

We had a slow morning and left fairly late - just after 10am. We ate as much as we could at the continental breakfast, packed up, and were on the road again. We were hoping the headwind would go away but it was still there. Thankfully, it was a lot better than two days ago but it was still there and prevented any impressive speeds. The weather all day was overcast with the occasional glimpse of blue skies - we managed to escape any rain.

Its a cows heaven.(Dedicated to Jess who wanted more cow pictures)

We were starting to notice the bike was pretty sluggish. After some quick investigating we discovered the culprit - the rear tire! The tire we replaced in Calgary had already worn through, we were not impressed at all. The first rear tire lasted from Vancouver to Calgary this one only lasted a couple hundred kilometers. We bought an extra tire in Calgary since we assumed the front tire would soon wear through so we put that one on the rear tire.

The rear tire!

We got the tire changed and we were soon on our way. Our most exciting stop of the day was at Reed Lake. It had a lookout tower (which really comes in handy in the prairies) and a bunch of plaques with information about the lake and surrounding wildlife. We had some snacks, read a few of the signs, and talked to a family that stopped in.

Patricia in the lookout tower

We spotted a tandem in the lookout tower.

Right outside of Chaplin we saw lots of white dirt which we created several theories as to what it was.

Pile of white stuff near a lake.

More white stuff and a factory across the road.

The town sign for Chaplin gave away what the white stuff was - salt! The lake here is very high in saline so the plant in town somehow processes the water to extract the salt. When we got to town our first task was to find food! None of the towns roads were paved and we dodged potholes on our way to the grocery store - we're getting pretty good at sniffing out where the stores are in small towns without a map. The grocery store was pretty sparse and expensive so we only bought snacks(read: doritos) and stuff for sandwiches for tomorrow. We then had dinner at the towns hotel. Dinner was yummy and well priced  - I got the soup and sandwich special and Patricia got sausage on a bun.

Chaplin!

After we ate we headed to the towns campsite. It was completely deserted and pretty run down but it worked and we were soon in the tent and sound asleep.

-Chris and Patricia