After a delicious breakfast of fruit and toast, I packed up and said goodbye to Lorraine (Doug had already left to go golfing) and Jazz (and Ralph, the dog visitor for the day). This was one of the best Warmshowers stays I've had!
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| Lorraine an I |
I had decided to take the Greenbelt Route to St. Catherine's to meet up with the Welland Canal. I found it to be well signed, and a fairly decent shoulder most of the time. There was some construction in St. Catherine's that caused a bit of rerouting, but I still was able to follow the route signs until I saw the sign for Lock 3 and the Canal Museum. Unfortunately, the museum wasn't open yet when I arrived, but I have a brochure about the Canal.
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| Cool bridge |
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| Where do you want to go? |
It was started not long after the Erie Canal in an effort to be able to compete with New York in the shipping of goods. The Welland Canal runs from Lake Ontario to Lake Erie, and allows ships to bypass Niagara Falls. There are 8 locks along the 24 mile canal. The most impressive locks are 4, 5, and 6. They are at the town of Thorold, and they raise or lower ships up to or down from the Escarpment. The Escarpment is what Niagara Falls flows over. Another interesting thing about these particular locks is that they are Twin Flight locks. That means two ships can pass through the locks at the same time.
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| Twin Flight Locks |
At Lock 7 I stopped to have a look in the Info Center. There were some cyclists there with Freewheelers Cycling Club jerseys on. Lorraine had said if I saw any of those jerseys, say hi as they are her cycling buddies. I did say hi, and told them I had stayed with Lorraine and Doug last night. They were doing a reconnaissance ride of the trail with the Mayor of Thorold, documenting any hazards. I saw them a few times.
At Port Robinson, there used to be a bridge across the Canal, but it was washed away. Now there is a small ferry for bikes and pedestrians. It's free, and is just a short ride to the other side. Lorraine had told me I should take the ferry, even just over and back. The powers that be think the ferry is unnecessary, so the cyclists are trying to increase usage to show that it is needed. This was another spot where I met up with the Mayor and the Freewheelers. Tomorrow they were having refreshments at the ferry to increase awareness of the ferry's existence.
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| Port Robinson Ferry |
It was an enjoyable ride over and back. I just left Tilmann behind. He was perhaps a little disappointed, but it would not have been so easy to get him on and off. If I was going to continue to ride on the other side, it would have been fine.
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| Tilmann left behind |
After my little ferry ride, I continued along the Canal. It's not like the Erie Canal Towpath. This canal never had a towpath (well, the first one probably did, but this is the 4th Welland Canal--known as the Ship's Canal). Therefore, the path doesn't always stay right by the canal. It's also not what I would call completely seamless. When it crosses a street, or comes to a town, you kind of have to look around to see where it continues. In the town of Welland, it was like that. I came to a street. The path ended, but across the street there was a restaurant right next to the canal, and no path. I had to go on the street, and around the block to get back to the trail.
At the next street, I decided to go off in search of some lunch. I could see what looked like some businesses. Sure enough, there was a Subway.
When I came out of Subway, it had started to spit rain. I put my rain jacket on, and rode back to the trail. Just as I was coming upon a place where they do boating competitions it decided to do more than just spit rain. I quickly pulled in under cover. There was a guy, and a couple. The gal was going to go swimming in the canal. Her and her husband had officiated at a triathlon this morning. It rained pretty hard for a short time, then it stopped, and the sun came out. I continued on.
I happened to be riding along the canal when I saw a ship coming. It was perfect timing, because just after that, the trail departed from the canal, and I wouldn't have seen the ship. So, one could say that little rain shower was a bit of good karma!
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| Ships ahoy! |
Coming into Port Colborne I saw another ship. I also met a guy named Chris who is going to do his first ever bike tour in Denmark in October. He asked for some tips. I told him there are no rules, and to not have any preconceived ideas about what he should do (in terms of speed and distance). I told him about Euro Velo and suggested he look it up for help with route planning. I also told him about my blog, so he could read my posts from Denmark.
At the end of the Welland Canal, I came to Lake Erie and was now back on an Adventure Cycling Route--the Lake Erie Connector! It feels great to be back to following the red line! No more need to watch for Waterfront Trail signs (although I am still on the Waterfront Trail)! The only weird thing is, because I'm going west, I'm following the map panels in reverse. Fortunately, there is a westbound narrative. I'm sure I'll get used to it quickly.
It was very windy (17 to 18mph) once I was back on Lake Erie (no surprises there). Also, rain clouds have moved in and it's rained off an on. But, no problem. I'm snug in my tent and everything is covered that needs to be covered. There is the issue of dinner...I'll figure it out...won't be the first dinner I've eaten in my tent!
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| Back to Lake Erie |
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