Ah, the Joy of Mobility

The fearless three are back in action! Coming out of Sydney, we were able to bike more than in the previous three days combined. Thus, we called our day getting out of Sydney, the Real Day Two. How did we get back on track? Well, a combination of things.

One was Nick's new gearing put on at the bike shop. He now has a nice low gear so he can crawl up the hills, rather than standing up and pedalling as hard as he can. We also moved his seat up, a solution he had not considered till he remembered he had altered his stem (the stem attaches the front fork to the handle bars) to create a touring posture, rather than a racing one. This proved critical.

Expect the Unexpected

We know we should have been better prepared for all this rain, but the fact of the matter is, even the Capers are shocked by it. While stuck down the by the lake, a friendly neighbor expressed surprise at two days of rain in row. Never happens, he told us. We're on day 6 now with rain everyday. So, our motto has been to expect the expected. Figure out the rest as you go.

Our other suspicion was that all this rain and cold weather was affecting our joints, Nick's especially. While in Sydney, he considered buying the fancy, $30 leg warmers at the bike shop, but held out for our planned visit to the thrift store. Our visit to the thrift store proved as magnificent as it was cheap. Nick's solution to his knee problems? An alteration of an old fleece jacket, purchased for one dollar:

Cut the sleeves off and...voila!


In addition to some other great finds (slippers for Nick so when we get to camp he can take off his shoes, which have been wet for 5 days straight, pants for Gretta, shorts for Dominic), we were also served hot chocolate and cookies by the lovely owner of the store.

We made one last stop before heading out of Sydney--the giant fiddle, which Gretta attempted to play. You can see, it was a bit too large for her...

Gleeful at our mobility, jumping for joy if we hadn't still been carefully coddling our knees, we rode out of Sydney. We made it halfway to North Sydney (which is a separate town, not just the northern part of Sydney) where we eyed a lovely camping spot on the shore. It appeared to be private property, so we knocked on the door of the nearest by house. No answer. Knocked again, and from around the side of the house we hear, "I'm in the shower...what's up!?"

Russell gladly agree to let us camp in his yard while peaking out from his bathroom window (Cape Breton hospitality is, we repeat, unsurpassed), and even brought us out some dry firewood later on. The night of the Real Day Two was spent warming ourselves by the fire, drying our clothes (Nick's shoes are dry!--for now...), and making hot chocolate and dinner.

Where will the Real Day 3 take us? Well, check out North Sydney on the map below and you might just figure it out...


View Larger Map

P.S. The sun came out...