Bikes and stuff

After 700km in a day, you start look for new positions on the bike to stretch out. This is comfortable enough to ride like for a while.
Sunset.
Tired and worn out. Although waking up and going motorcycling is still way better than a job.
Highway rain, passing a big old truck.

Somewhere along the way we found a tiny Kawasaki dealer, where the guy let us pull off the clutch cable from a brand new bike on the floor. Turned out to be perfect timing because two days later Scott's jerry-rig fix broke for good. I guess it lasted a few thousand kilometers, so can't complain. We've gone over 13,000km which is about 3 average Edmonton season's worth of riding. Also being fully loaded is hard on the bikes. We've done one oil change each, Scott has broke a choke cable and a clutch cable. He seemingly had a plugged main jet on his carb, too. I broke a chain and almost lost my license plate. There are a few minor things here and there, too, like a bent pannier rack. Also, I've got a little bit of an oil consumption problem. Today I put in my 16th litre of oil since the beginning of the trip. My motor only holds 2.5 litres of oil, which means I've burned over 6 times capacity. Tires are getting worn, too.

So far we've been in Alberta, Saskatchewan, Manitoba, Ontario, Quebec, New Brunwick, Nova Scotia, Prince Edward Island, Newfoundland, Maine, New Hampshire, Massachussets, Connecticut, New York, New Jersey, Pennsyvania, Michigan, Indiana, Illinois, Iowa, Nebraska, Minnesota, South Dakota, Wyoming. We've got a few more to go!

Not so eastbound anymore

New York City was a blast. The challenge of traffic was like a real life video game of swerves and near-misses. From there we rode up to New Jersey, and back into New York state to stay near Buffalo. We motelled it to dry off our gear. The next day we got up and rode to Niagara falls, found a good parking spot and strolled down to check out the falls. Took a picture:

Because you can't go to Niagara and not take a picture.

We then booted straight for my birthplace: Sarnia, Ontario. A best friend of mine that I grew up with was kind enough to be our Sarnia guide. She took us for fries under the bridge, a famous Sarnia thing to do. It's great now because it's probably the only place in the world where people have "fries under the bridge" while under two bridges. We stayed in a stellar beach bungalow right on the beach. We decided that a nice quiet bar would be a good place to get a few friends together to catch up and chat. The quiet bar turned into a very loud, very late karaoke bar where I flaunted my karaoke skills:

Tara, Alex, Krysten and Me. I hung out with all them until I was 8.

We went pitch-black swimming, but it was too cold to stay out for long. The next day we got up and went out for breakfast downtown at a timely 2pm. By the time we'd said our goodbyes, packed, crossed the bridge and gassed up in the states, it was 5pm. Almost 600km later we pulled into "The Warren Dunes" in Michigan. Home of the Cicada Killer Giant Wasps, which are awesome:

Click for a huge scary picture!

Next day was a scorcher, and we rode in Michigan, Indiana, Illinois and Iowa (possibly in that order.) Apparently, we scraped shoulders with a tornado in Iowa.

The last 60km of our longest day yet was the most beautiful non-coast non-mountain ride. Rolling prairies where you could see for miles. Riding fast west means a sunset that lasts for hours. Breath-takingly epic.

New York New York

A map of New York City to the street. The first map that ever intimidated me.
The shadiest motel in New Hampshire. We didn't even untuck the covers, and we slept on top. The joys of riding into the night until you're desparate to stop at the first motel you find. There wasn't one for another 100km, we found out the next morning anyways.
Note the low ceiling and the scratch marks on the door. From a dog or a small child?
Classy. You gotta stay here at least once. Never twice.
The best thing about New Hampshire is the license plates. The second best this is pronouncing the "shire" like the place where hobbits live.
My cousin Craig graciously let us stay with him. He's in the middle there. That's a cityscape in the background. I crack me up.
The pugs loved Scott's receding hairline.
This picture is for my Dad, who calls both of these dogs "Frank." He also called both his sons "Frank."
The Holland tunnel, the only place to break 100km/hr within New York City.
Tough traffic on the Brooklyn Bridge. Scott gets props for a sweet photo on the go.

ferry-fort-fog-fundy

Waiting for the 14 hour ferry. This time we were there on time (which turned out to be 3.5 hours early.) Waited in a line of motorcycles just hanging out for the afternoon. Goodbye Newfoundland! I'll be back again when I can.
Another KLR rider, taking a KLR nap.
Our top-bunk sleepers. I didn't make much use of mine over the night as I met a newfie riding an old kawasaki 750; we chatted all night.
Went to Fort Louisburg in Nova Scotia. Took this sweet picture. The people there are weird looking.
The reason to go to Fort Lousiburg: 4 pound loaf of bread, cooked old-style. Scott recalled a story of visiting the Fort as a child, and the highlight was the bread. That's why we went.
Mmmmm..... bread. Delicious.
That little red light is Scott. This is pretty much exactly how I saw it. This is at 11pm, 80km/hr, almost at the Bay of Fundy. Right after this picture, we switched so I was leading. A baby moose jumped out in front of me. He almost wiped out, clumsily slipping on the pavement. I was to fascinated to be surprised, really. But still, I was mere feet away from hitting  a moose that stood as high as I do.
This will be my profile shot when my book comes out.
Lobster time in the Bay of Fundy. We had to wait about 20 minutes while they pulled the lobsters out of the traps. Can't get much fresher.
The aftermath. Take that lobster!

Sea Kayaking with Stan Cook

Scott and I had the priviledge to go sea kayaking with Stan Cook's group. Our guide was both knowledgable and passionate about everything we explored. We paddled about 8km around Cape Broyle.

Lots of wildlife. The "Dog 1" was actually all over the news the day before; the rescued a poor stuck dog while out on the kayaks.
Stan Cook manning the boat that towed us back. This man is a legend. Stan and his lovely wife Nancy invited us back to their place where we snacked and chatted all night. A huge highlight of our stay on the rock.
Beautiful geology.
Scott and a waterfall. Awesome description.
These two ladies were from Saskatchewan. One of them moved to St. John's for no particular reason... just "because."
The teeth of a sea urchin. Looks like predator's baby or something.
A sea urchin. Our awesome guide, Connor, sliced a live one right open in front of us, and we ate it. The stuff sells for 40$ per ounce for sushi. But the newfies call these abundant, annoying bottom dwellers "whore's eggs."

Random Passage

Soft sand + highway tires + fully loaded bike = a whole lot of work to keep the shiny side up!
Big steep rocks to ride up. A good change from the highway.
Not a soul to be found on this beach.
This was an epic day of playing (and falling) in the sand, and riding along with the waves. The wet sand was the easiest to ride in, just don't ride in the waves! "Random Passage" is/was a TV show or something that took place here, I've never heard of it.

Dildo and Blow Me Down

We went to "Blow Me Down Provincial Park" and it messed up our hair!

Scott has a bit less hair to get messed with. Don't mess with him!

Captain Dildo and Marc, just hanging out. The town of Dildo is on the way to "Conception Bay" right beside "Butter Pot" provicial park. That's also the world's biggest lighthouse.

We were there on a weird monday holiday, so the whole town was shutdown. Sorry, no souvenirs or postcards from here. Sad.
The coastal road out to Blow Me Down was fantastic. We rode into the sunset to get there. Epic.
Roar, I'm racing! This is the world's biggest corner.