Day 18: Kamloops-> Vancouver

I landed in with Brett around 1 after a long trip into the city as I crossed over the bridge I was pretty excited as I felt like I had finally made it to my destination! To cap it off Caelin had been here since the 9th visiting family and surprised me with a big hug when I got off the bike! Was a great moment! 

We had a nice catch up then we went to the Lawn Summer Nights event in Vancouver where I got to improve a speech on the trip and life with CF. I got to meet Duncan John Jess Alexis Simon and a ton of other really really great people who take time out of their lives to help support Cystic Fibrosis Canada! It was a late evening and I landed in to stay with Lee-Anne and Michael for a few days before heading home!

358km 3:33 on Motorcycle

Day 17: Banff-> Kamloops, British Columbia

I had to regretfully say good bye to Banff, the weather was great and I stuck around until noon driving some more hairpin turns up the mountain sides. **Side note my laptop screen broke a few days ago so GoPro and blog updates will be coming when I get home.
From Banff I headed out to BC following a massive landscape of mountain range and a train that was along side for most of the day, it was a very Canadian feel, it was 33° and mainly sunny. Much different than the day before in Banff (10° and overcast!)
What wasn't lost on me however was the worst driving I've seen (even versus Montreal). Tractor trailers are a headache (so far blown tire and debris have gotten to me) but necessary part of driving the Trans Canada however some of the maneuvering was down right dangerous to other drivers on the road. I get blown around and tailgated and I expect that due to the low grades and high climbs but it was scary to see the position other commuters were put in to have to pull off or have a truck land in their hood or bumper. Sorry for a rant. Be mindful of others on the road I suppose, I know I appreciate it as a motorcyclists!

From there I headed into BC, met a nice guy whole waiting on construction who rides a Triumph Bonneville.
The smoke wasn't overly bad until right before Kamloops. I wore my Vog mask and took frequent breaks to get out of the air. Proceeded into Kamloops and got to meet up with Caelinwings bro Brett for a Chinese food gorge and a night in to relax. It was a taxing day of driving but also very beautiful.

500km 4:37 on Motorcycle

Day 16: Banff day

Woke up and walked Banff avenue for the morning. It was nice to be off the bike for the day. Took in a movie then hiked Tunnel Mountain (not an easy feat for me but was great to reach the top!) Then came back down and did Fenland trail, a nice lady gave me some bug spray to use. I also want to say thank you to Ed and Norma who were visiting Boston pizza and treated me to my meal and watched some of the crazy Banff weather! Brady it was nice to meet you too man. That evening I went out with Chris to another little bar and had some more solid conversation and reminnce time.

I want to thank Chris and his wife Geneva big time for letting me stay with them and treating me like royalty. I had the best dinner of my trip last night and they were incredibly generous and awesome hosts.
1:05 on Motorcycle. 82km

Day 15: Calgary-Banff

I left Rob and Lorianne who were amazing hosts. Thank you again guys for letting me stay with you and help me navigate and pump the coffee to me when I needed it!
I headed back to Banff and initially had great weather but quickly was met with hail lightning thunder that shook the glass of a hotel I ducked in and left Jenny pretty waterlogged. I did manage to get in a small hike with huge views. I also went to use my laptop at a coffee shop (it broke) but I met and chatted with a wonderful trauma nurse from Arizona named Kit who is camping Banff. After I met up with one of my buds from high school Chris Barkhouse who took me out to the Rose and Crown for east coast night event. He is also awesome enough to let me stay with him in Banff (accommodation here is both extremely limited and expensive!)

220km/3:15 on the Motorcycle

Day 14: Sister lakes in Banff

I left Rob and Lorianne's home and headed out to Banff, Alberta. I landed in and quickly found accommodation is tight here. While I have that worked out, I did meet an extremely kind lady who came up to talk to me on a bench outside a Banff Inn. Her name was Lori and her and her husband own and operate Banff Scooter Company LTD. She told me about her starting the business and her family. She was really a treat to meet with and is going to hold my luggage in her shop while I explore the Park. It has been so nice to meet such kind and helpful strangers on this trip.

From there I hit Lake Louise and Moraine Lake before rushing back to Calgary to avoid the deer and Caribou scene.

398km approximately 4:16 on the Motorcycle

Day 13: Calgary Stampede

I got up and had coffee with Lorianne and Rob before heading back now onto the stampede grounds. Spoke with Joanna one of the many volunteers​ who work for the Kin Canada and as cystic fibrosis Canada being their official charity it was nice to speak with her and other volunteers who help out so much!

I met up with Rachel and Sarah for some food and drinks on the grounds and saw more of the stampede, petted a horse (they terrify me-scarier than bungee) saw a Motocross show, then left the grounds to hang out with my old pal Ace at a pub in town and had some really great conversations. You're a solid east coast fella.

No kms on the bike but definitely a few by foot

Day 13: Medicine Hat to Calgary

I rested up and looked over the bike checked the tire that had been patched and headed out to Calgary. The Alberta Special Olympics were going on and had the pleasure of meeting Josh and some of the other athletes over breakfast. It was 33° and sunny it was not pleasant in full gear and had to shed a layer in the city core as the stampede event had traffic backed up. Jenny overheated so it was an effort to get in.

Over the next few days I'm staying with a friend from home, Lorianne and her fiancé Rob to host me and help me navigate the stampede grounds. I went down to the grounds, met Robin a Motorcycle track guy then proceeded for an evening show with Chuck wagon racing with Troy Dorchester riding a Carstar Chuck wagon with Cystic Fibrosis Canada being featured. A Fireworks show and Jan Arden who doesn't look like Jan Arden anymore but still sings like Jan Arden. I will be going back tomorrow for more food!

291km 2:41 on the Motorcycle

Day 12: Moose Jaw to Medicine Hat

I got up this morning and headed back to the base to see more of what Scott does. It was an amazing display of proficiency coordination and skill. Had a blast seeing the Harvard Hawk and Snowbird jets. I met John Scott's wing man as well as Mario an emergency seat instructor and received pins to wear on my jacket, Braydon a fellow motorcyclists as well as many other staff who work tirelessly to serve us Canadians. Was definitely an eye opening experience to see the day to day operation.

Another long day (as per next paragraph) as I was feeling deflated.

Day 12

: continued.

As I was pulling out of CFB Moose Jaw Scott mentioned he saw something white on my tire from the night before. We rolled it out as I was leaving and found a screw embedded into the tire. Pressure was good but after some pondering I found a shop. Jim at Action Cycle had a Honda Supersport and other old KZs and CBs in his shop. He was an amazing guy to talk to and he patched my tire lubed the chain as we talked bikes. He was an amazing mechanic and was kind enough to fix it as a donation to the trip. An incredible human being and saved me a day or two off the road. Claude thank you too as well for helping me along the road. I needed an expert opinion and you helped me yet again. I'm indebted to you as well.
Scott-thank you so much for the tour of the base and for dinner and the conversation. Ultimately you saved me from a nasty fall had that screw set into the tire. When we pulled it the air deflated in a few seconds and going the average non listed speeds they do in Saskatchewan I would have lost more than just a few days.

400km 3:48 on road.

Day 11: Winnipeg to Moose Jaw

I woke up Wednesday Morning to meet with the Cystic Fibrosis Canada team from Winnipeg. Andrea and Dawn and Jean treated me to a delicious breakfast and got to speak with them about the trip. Honestly it was nice to sit and chat with people who have the same passion, thank you so much for making the time to see me on my sporatic schedule.

After gassing up I headed out towards Regina. About mid where there an old friend Scott Meaden, who I grew up with, messaged me to see if I'd be coming to see the base in Moose Jaw. I took advantage of the straight away silky smooth pavement (except Regina-your constuction protocols perplexed me) I met him and did the flight simulator and went out and was treated (I am spoiled waay to much) with a steak dinner and then had some beers and reminisced and caught up, was even abel to speak to Andrew his brother by phone where he lives in Edmonton, felt like the good old times when we were kids. Scott also let me take his ride for a rip! Nice to try out some major horsepower!

Hot 34 degree driving. 642 km 6:34 on the bike

Day 10: Thunder Bay to Winnipeg

Thunder Bay commute wasn't as scenic as my first day but still was quite beautiful until Dryden where construction and thunder showers left me a little damp. Kenora I'm sure you're a great city too but when you don't have a gas station unless you drive 10km into town it makes it less appealing. Clearwater Bay thanks for figuring this out.

I arrived into Winnipeg and met up with my brother in laws sister Katie. She was an awesome energetic and generous tour guide, we went to Jollibee to have some Filipino fast food and then hit the city, visiting St. Boniface Cathedral, Canadian Museum for Human Rights, The Forks (an awesome spot for food culture dance and the like!) and Manitoba Plaza. We even went for ice cream and saw some of the inner city and spoke on the challenges and successes of programs there. It was a complete look at the city and by car (thank you Katie again for driving me around) and I left really informed and happy to have visited.  I headed back to the hotel as my head was hitting the pillow I think I fell asleep!

Long day 703km 7:33 on Motorcycle

Day 9: Sault St. Marie to Thunder Bay

 One of the best riding days I have ever had was today!

I knew I had a lot of ground to cover yet again but the weather conditions were prefect and the scenery was unreal.

If the sun hadn't of went down I probably would have kept going, so many great sights right off the road. I would travel this route again, as there were perfect rivers and creeks set with lush green background. As someone who likes to drive and take photos this was just to perfect to pass up when I drove by some spots. Little pic river, Terrance Bay, Wabikoba creek were all amazing. With the only hiccup spraying gas in my eyes at an old pump in Wawa it was a really great day. Route 17 West is the ultimate Northern Ontario route, the pavement was superb and even though I travelled a lot I was not ready to get off the bike. I finished the night off eating at a BP but realized I can't eat hot food as the wind had burned my lips from having anything spicy haha
Lastly to Bruno Charlie and Richard have an excellent drive East through Canada and hopefully we can meet up when you're in Nova Scotia in August!

719km 7:09 on the bike

Day 8: Toronto to Sault St. Marie

After a great long evening I woke up and hit the road on a long 700km trek to northern Ontario. With not much time for stops, I hit the road and stopped minimally for gas and snacks. I was able to meet Oliver, another bike enthusiast travelling with his family who was nice to stop and talk about the trip with me (if you do head to NS please reach out and let me know!) It was really nice to meet you.

Also, on another gas stop around Spanish I met a guy named Terry who was travelling by Harley from PEI visiting Calgary. He was originally from Calgary and visiting the Stampede before heading back to PEI. Nice to meet you too!

I want to thank the guy I met at the comfort inn in Peterborough for recommending taking route 17 west for this part of the trip, very scenic!

I drove and nearly frooze to get to Sault. St Marie, splurged on a nice hotel with a hot tub and warmed up before calling it a night while updating posts.

Distance 700km 7:08 on the road

Day 7: Canada Day and Blue Jays!

After an awesome fireworks show and a few drinks we went back to rest. I woke up in the morning early, the Blue Jays game was at 1:00 pm but I wanted to get out and enjoy the city and all the Canada day festivities. Hannah helped me with instructions to weave my way down through the city.

I started by grabbing a coffee and heading to Kensington Market, a very hip and unique area of Toronto. Most things were closed but the artwork and scenery was amazing. From there I walked through China town, visited the Eaton Centre and then met with Terra for the baseball game. Terra works for CF Canada in Toronto and I was able to take her to the game and catch up, it was great to meet her in person as she does so much through social media for Cystic Fibrosis Canada!

From there I walked around downtown. Chris from Adrenaline Tattoos and he hooked me up with some gear to wear and purchased a pin. Chris was an awesome very generous guy and merely did it because I had briefly talked about the fundraiser. I wasn't in the market for a tattoo that day but it was a fantastic shop and I'd go again!

I walked back much the same way I came, first seeing graffiti alley but stopping in for craft beer at different pubs, a pub crawl of sorts, had some wings (Alana nice to meet you and thank you for taking such interest in the fundraiser, you were very kind). Brayden the comedian from Saskatchewan I wish you the best of luck man, was also nice to meet you. Andre your artwork was amazing in Kensington Market, I will wear the shirt on the trip, glad we were able to talk real on some things. Toronto had lots of friendly and talkative people.

From there I finally got back to Hannah's apartment and conked out but not before having a VERY great piece of home made cake she made!

no bike, walked more kms than I can remember!

Day 5&6: Gatineau Park, Ottawa Peterborough and Toronto

Dave and I decided to go to Great Canadian Bungee where we took off and jumped from 200feet head first. It was a thrill, thank you again Dave for setting this up. After a long hard day of rain I took my shot and headed out to Peterborough to see Phil. I didn't land in until 11:30 and was met with lightning fog and deer, not optimal but glad I made it safe.

Phil and I awoke the next morning where we went on a ferry to see the Landlocks of Peterborough it was the largest in the world (65 feet). From there Phil kindly got me lunch and we said our goodbyes. He was even awesome enough to wear his CF shirt he had gotten from me.

From there I drove into Toronto where my wing Caelin was kind enough to get me accommodation with her friend Hannah who has been so so kind to let me stay for the Canada Day weekend!

Total time: 137km 1:32 on road

Day 4: Ottawa Day!

After a nice evening with Dave and Jenn, I hit the road to travel to the Cystic Fibrosis Canada office in Ottawa. There I met the team Hilary and Jennifer and was a greeted with lots of hugs and praise. It was nice to stop into the office and share in the excitement of the trip! Even the building manager made a donation thank you Glen.

I felt a bit famous as we did a photo shoot for the cover of Cystic Fibrosis Canada Connections magazine ( http://www.cysticfibrosis.ca/news/publications ) and met one of the national board members Stuart, who was an inspirational, motivational, generous and to the point kind of guy. I was so glad to have met him, he threw a few KOALLO ® stickers on my gear and made a donation.

From here I actually went back and rested, knowing the limits of the trip are important and I took a few hours off to recharge.

That night, Dave organised an event at Craft Beer to see a lot of old friends and meet new ones. It was such an awesome night with great conversation thank you to everyone who made it out to catch up with one another. To those of you I spoke to on visiting Nova Scotia please don't hesitate to reach out, you all have been so accommodating and kind I'd gladly return the favour when in my neck of the Canadian woods!

Total: 54km 45 mins on road

Day 3: Quebec City to Montreal to Ottawa

The day started off with a great breakfast and conversation with the family I was staying with. I am not great with speaking french however I had a great time and conversations while there. From there I left for Montreal where I stopped at Bar-B-Barn for ribs, it was a great lunch. As soon as I had come out to leave thunderstorms rolled in and it was a challenging bumper to bumper drive out of the city before hitting the Ontario boarder and stopping at a winery and then heading into Ottawa.

I landed in and had a wonderful dinner with Jenn who then took me out to see Ottawa we even had a chance to see the Italian Prime Minister drive by! Dave arrived in after work and we threw back a few glasses of whiskey before calling it an evening. It is so great to be with friends again in Ottawa. Looking forward to the next few days!

438km 4:51 on Motorcycle