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Greeted a new day while overlooking Lake Superior this morning. A sunrise over water
always seems memorable (ok, so maybe some of us don't do sunrises often so it makes it even
more memorable). I was waiting at the front door of the Visitor Center of Apostle
Island National Lakeshore at 8am for the Ranger to open so I could stamp my NPS Passport
book then hit the road:
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At the onset of today I was somewhat uneasy since there were more than a few variables ahead
in my plan (yes, the one I splashed together a few days before departure!). I really
wanted to end today in Canada (specifically in Sudbury) so tomorrow's ride to Montreal to
meet Stromtrooper “Oldgoat” would be as short as possible and thus less of a chance for me
being late to our meeting point. Between Sudbury and Bayfield, WI I would be on smaller
roads with reports of delays, attempting to reel the MI stamp, & crossing the border; I'd also
need to take the Trans-Canadian Hwy (17) and do so in as many miles of daylight as possible. To
further add to the challenge, yet another hour would be lost to a time change (CDT to EDT) and that
hour could mean I'd hit rush hour traffic in Sault Saint Marie. So, variables or not, I headed
out of Bayfield, WI south on WI-13. Lake Superior to my left (or east depending on how you
think) and the Chequamegon National Forest to my right (or west). Temp was 55 degrees in more
wonderfully clean & fresh air. I passed thru small towns, like Ashland, WI, and saw snowmobile
crossing signs right in the center of town. I just love the vibe when going through a small town!
WI-13 to US-2, yes, the same US-2 that Lori & I rode in WA. The section of US-2 that joins WI-13
continues the “Lake Superior Circle Tour.” I left US-2 and crossed into Michigan at a small town
called Ironwood where the “Hoop and Hollar Tavern” is located. It marked the beginning of multiple
areas of road construction which caused delays of 5-20min and strong urges for me to hollar! Somewhere
in the middle of nowhere MI I came upon a cruiser parked on the side of the road. I had a feeling
it was an issue with fuel (or lack thereof) and pulled up behind him. As I rolled to a stop and
flipped my helmet up he said “I'm out of gas.” I asked him how much did a gallon of gas costs in
MI and he replied “about $2.55.” So, I said “how much is it worth to you?” He laughed while
I was whipping out the “Oklahoma credit card” (aka gas siphon) and preparing the Strom to be a fluid
donor (& hopefully receive good karma).
Outside of Trout Creek, MI I stopped for gas. I went inside to pay of course since pay-at-the-pump
has not yet been discovered in Trout Creek. I think they must be too busy fishing so that's
ok. When I was coming back out to the Strom after paying there was a man standing and looking
closely at the bike. I could only see the back of his t-shirt, which said “LUCKY TOO, KEY WEST,
FLORIDA.” A fishing shirt and from Key West?! It must be a sign! The shirt's owner,
“Kevin”, asked me what “Strom” meant and I said I wasn't quite sure (actually I think it's German for
“Seize the Journey” - hehehe). He told me all about his fishing expedition to Key West last
year. He was such a nice man and told me to go see the skipper of the boat and wished me a great
ride there. Here's Kevin and a close up of the front of his shirt:
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Eventually left US-2 for MI-28 passing thru “Gran Isle National Recreational Area'” then stopping
in Munsing, MI, for yet another passport stamp at “Pictured Rocks National Lakeshore" here:
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The remainder of my ride in MI on MI-28 was uninterrupted rural countryside in the Ottawa,
Sturgeon River, & Hiawatha National Forests. This is definitely fishing country. Saw
several “Welcome Fisherman” signs outside storefronts. One store had a sign that said “DIP,
ICE, BEER, BAIT... WHAT ELSE DO YOU NEED?!” They also love their ATV's up here... not unusual
at all to see them racing just off the road. I saw one particular ATV today that had a
windscreen on it that would rival the screen size on a Gold Wing! I also passed quite a few
signs advertising “Supper Clubs,” something unique to this area of the country. “We have Pasties”
is the other unusual sign I passed today. Being in an area laden with water and trees means there
are plenty of bugs. I clean the windscreen every night but you would never be able to tell it
after riding for an hour or so.
Finally arrived Sault Ste Marie, MI at 4:15pm in 72 degrees weather. I wanted to fill up with
gas before crossing the border into Canada and also find a pay phone since my cell phone was
striking out finding reception. Have you recently tried to find an operable pay phone? Geez,
what a fandango experience that is! Locating one is the first problem since they are not exactly
on every street corner. Then, finding one that doesn't have the local pimp making a day's worth
of, um, business calls or simply a phone that doesn't have the cords severed, the speaker missing,
numbers missing, or any other critical part to complete a telephone call. Since every minute that
went by meant I'd likely be in more traffic I almost gave up for the quest to find a phone but
eventually found one. Since all my time was spent finding the phone I had little to no time to
actually talk. Sorry if you're someone who was expecting a call. I tried.
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Ready to face the border crossing I thought I'd get a pic of the bridge before I jumped on it
(or maybe off it if things got real bad!) and headed into Canada:
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Entered the I-75 on ramp which, by the way, was clearly marked “TO CANADA ONLY” (these people
need to share this idea with the Peace Arch border people in Blaine!) and then pulled over to
take this pic of the US toll bridge. You'll see it also says end of I-75 (yes, that'd be
yet another warning). Just before the toll bridge, should you have figured out Canada was
not your desired destination, there is ample area to simply turn left and essentially do a
u-turn with no penalty or re-crossing (yeah, I know… how can you RE-cross something that was
never crossed?! Ask the Blaine boys, maybe they'll tell you then you can tell me):
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After paying the $1.50 toll to leave my own country I proceeded into Canada across the bridge...
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..to the Sault Ste Marie, Ontario welcome sign...
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...and, of course, traffic:
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Only took 20min to get to the front of the line....
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... where I was asked by the officials “where are you from” then “where are you going.” I
said I was from Phoenix (which is only partly accurate since I'm a snowbird but since that is
where the bike is tagged that was my answer) and that I was heading to Madawaska, Maine. He
said “Oh, so you're just traveling through Canada?,” asked for my DL then asked me questions about
my DL, (that'd be the bike “DL” not my Driver's License). He said it was a lovely bike,
asked if it was a 1000, then asked me if I needed a map of Ontario, which he gave me. That was
it and I was off. Woo-hoo! Here's a pic of the bridge from “the other side”:
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I do have to say that the entire time I was waiting in line to cross I was shooing flies away;
my windshield that was caked with dead WI & MI bugs was an apparent buffet to these Canadian flies.
Now that I had the border crossing completed the last of my uneasiness was simply getting to
Sudbury. Since I was racing the sunset I didn't stop to take any photos but these two:
Now, let me say something about this TransCanada Hwy... hopefully you're not picturing some
multi-lane, high-speed interstate raceway type of road since this road is nothing like what
it might sound. If you have a road in your area that starts with “Old Highway...” then
that would be like the TransCanada Hwy (or as Mrs. Oldgoat tells me is nicknamed “TCH” to the
locals). Think US-50, US-60, US-2 or the like... just some two lane road that is not
in the best condition, has non-interstate speed limits that fluctuate depending on the
population, seems to always have road construction going on, has sporadic services that may or
may not have someone who can read & write working behind the counter, and usually has cows
grazing along the way. That's what this big named “TCH” is like. I'll also add
that on this road I saw not only the largest deer warning sign I'd ever seen in my life but
also signs indicating “EXTREME NIGHT DANGER.” One particular sign as I was approaching
Massey was half the size of a regular billboard (meaning it was huge) and said: “DEER DON'T
LOOK BOTH WAYS.” I absolutely would not recommend running this road at night. Sure,
there is probably some guy somewhere who has ridden it every night for 90 years and has never
seen an animal or had a problem but you will not find me on it at night again. Aside from
the lack of services (no rest areas, the shoulder of the road is very soft sand in most parts,
few places for fuel) the chances for contact with a deer or moose is high given the topography
of the area. I have superior auxiliary lighting and I wouldn't do it again simply for the
fact that the terrain to the side of the road is bushes and rocks and trees where critters are
hidden. Being in wide open prairie land with lights that project to the side is one thing;
having objects that block the beam from illuminating the critter is another.
I made it into Sudbury at almost 9pm safely and after a rather long day. Tomorrow I'll be
going to Montreal to see the Mr. and Mrs. "Oldgoat" and to take a planned day of rest with the
"Goats" on Saturday! Needless to say, "Oldgoat" isn't their real name, but rather a
screen name from the V-Strom forum Stromtrooper.Com
AGirl
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