Rest and Recovery


We spent four days at Gill’s house eating all the food in her fridge

We didn’t think we’d make it to Canada’s separatist province so quickly! It’s our first significant milestone, and now if wildfires or something else derails our biking at least we’ve accomplished something by making it this far. Also, now when strangers come up to us and ask us what we’re up to, instead of vaguely saying, “we’re heading east” we can begin to more confidently say, “we’re biking across Canada.”

Two days before reaching Edmonton, we learned about the challenges of headwinds. We were planning on having a relatively chill, five hour bike day going from Cremona to Sylvan Lake. A 20 km/hour headwind turned that five hours of biking into a difficult ten hours. Unlike mountains, which are inevitable and culminate with a sense of accomplishment, wind is random, unpredictable, and unsatisfying to bike through. That same day Karen also learned about the benefits of drafting, and spent the whole day strategically biking just behind me. The day was very rewarding in the end because we made it to a friend’s mom’s house who was hosting us, and she gave us a warm Alberta welcome of steak dinner.

When we made it to Edmonton we took a pre-planned four day break to see friends and family. We had a relaxing time talking to people other than just each other, and eating lots of food. Karen had time to see a physio friend who confirmed that her knee pain isn’t going go away without a month or so of rest, but it also isn’t likely to get worse or cause long term damage.

As we make our way through the prairies we’re hoping to continue seeing a number of friends, extended family, and friend’s parents.

Karen‘s been going through baking withdrawal so in Edmonton she managed to find time to make cookies. And cheesecake cupcakes. And lemon curd.



Comments

  1. GinnyMay 25, 2025 at 4:14 PM

    Love to hear about your journey and we are hoping for calmer wind days in Sask. There are no super windy days forecast in the next week or so - just windy. Just windy means different things in different places. Looking forward to welcoming you remotely to the farm.

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