When I left Dan’s I pointed east again. I’m heading to North Bay and already melting in the hot temps of Ontario’s current heat wave. This is the first time I’ve set out without a final destination in mind for the day and surprisingly, I wasn’t the least bit stressed about it! I’d spent a bit of time looking at hotels and saw there was a lot along the way. I was shooting for North Bay, but if I decided I was too beat, I’d just stop sooner. I considered the River Mist Inn in Sturgeon Falls, but when I got there, I still had some steam in the tank to keep moving.

This was such a great day on the road. With virtually no traffic, I made really great time. The tunes, the wind, the smile on my face, and ribbons of road ahead all made for a pretty sweet experience. With a 6 hour ride ahead of me I knew I’d need to make regular stops to stay fresh in this heat. About 90 min into my ride I saw a sign for a picnic pull out. I wheeled in, used the facility, had some water, a small snack and was ready to rip again!

When I came to Thessalon, I figured it warranted a peek. I was due for another break and the name of this place stuck in my brain. In my search for hotels on a previous day I recalled seeing pictures of this place and was curious. It is a pretty little town, but I didn’t see a diner. With road construction underway here, I was forced into a detour. It was a happy accident that I found myself looking out over the north shore of Lake Huron. I pulled into the empty parking lot and had a little picnic.

Once I pulled off my helmet and started unpacking some lunch, a lady walking her dog stopped by to chat. She told me I was an inspiration taking off by myself across Canada like this on a solo motorbike tour. This is happening a lot to me today! I was starting to feel a bit braver knowing my chain was tighter and Jules’ lights glowed.

While munching on my Babybel cheese, granola bar and apple, I had a chat with my friend Trina from home. I slid into the ginormous red adirondak chair to get comfy for our video visit. What a welcome treat that was! I could have chatted away for an hour, but the clouds were rolling in and it was time to…make time!

With the detour out of town, I found myself at the highway sooner than expected, but I really needed to go back for gas. Ungh! There were eleventy nine thousand vehicles coming down the road and at least that many waiting for their turn at the change of the flag. Ah well. Road construction; what d’ya do?

I’d be stuck behind traffic, but you never know when the next fuel stop will appear on the horizon! Back I went, fuelled up, danced to the tunes in my helmet while Jules got a good drink, and took my place in line again on the highway. Fresh, black pave. 32 degrees. Heat from the bike. Even after I shut Jules off, I still melted and felt like I needed water again.

When I arrived in North Bay Petunia told me I still had another 30 minutes of driving before I reached the hotel I had in mind. I hadn’t booked ahead, but was optimistic. When I walked in to the Ramada, the gal at the front desk said she wanted me to see the room before she booked it for me. “Is it really that bad?” I asked. She advised that seeing I am on a bike with a lot of stuff, she just wanted me to be sure I liked it before hauling gear into my room. One look told me that yah, it’s DEFINITELY a good room!

I really had no concerns before she even offered to show it to me. Given the lobby, I figured it was a safe bet. With breakfast and taxes, it was only $109 all in! The pool, hot tub and sauna were all out of service, but that’s no big deal to me. It’s rare I take a swim anyway.

There must have been something in the Ontario air this day, because this very sweet young lady with all her questions about my trip while checking me in remarked, “You are very courageous! You inspire me to know that I can maybe do a big thing one day too!” When she asked how I stay so positive, I had to think for a minute. What DO I do?

Sure, I’ve been up and down and lonely and overjoyed often all in a span of a few hours on this trip, but at the end of the day, my formula is really pretty simple. I think about that for which I am grateful, I strive always to be kind to others, and I laugh big as often as I can.

Anywho…if you look hard enough in the lobby picture below, you might even see their resident groundhog looking through the window!

After breakfast in a very pretty space, I set out for my next stop: Deux-Montagnes, Quebec.