This summer, in July, after leaving the unique metal sculptures of Massey behind me, I’ll ride toward Sault Ste. Marie, my first glimpse of Lake Superior and the town of Wawa on Trans-Canada highway 17.
["Sweet campsite" (one of many): Agawa Bay, August 2007]
My Virago 1100 will be humming like a finely tuned Swiss watch and with two days of riding behind me I’ll feel at home with the bike, the tarmac, my leather coat, gloves and heavy black boots. As per usual, a snippet from a ’60’s song will be stuck inside my head, repeating itself as the miles disappear. And I’ll be singing as part of a skilled background chorus, my rhythm in sync with the Virago’s pistons.
["View opposite my campsite": Agawa Bay]
Before reaching Wawa I will stop for certain at three places for breaks. The first - along the side of the highway near Batchawana Bay, for the view. The second - at Agawa Bay Park, home to some of the sweetest camp sites in Ontario, also for the view. The third - at a full-service center near Pancake Bay, for gas, because there aren’t too many places with gas along the way and in 2007 I only reached Wawa thanks to fumes.
While at the gas station I’ll also buy, as per habit, a few sundries for later in the day. (Definition - sundries, n., two cans of cold beer for the motel room in Wawa.)
["Sunset at Agawa Bay": Photos by G.Harrison]
And while in Wawa, I’ll walk down the street from the motel to one of the greatest old general stores in Ontario. Once inside I’ll take a few pictures of the camp and fishing gear on display from the early part of the last century, and one or two shots of the largest metal stove or store furnace I’ve ever seen.
I know I’ll drift off to sleep easily at the end of Day 3, with another 440 km. in the books, and with quiet thoughts about the next day’s detour to Hornepayne on my mind.
***
Please click here to read Motorcycle Miles: PT 5 “Vancouver Island or Bust”
.
No comments:
Post a Comment