The week and then the Barron Canyon

It was a pretty good week last.
In between some not so nice weather I got some after dinner rides in. Nothing huge...all under an hour, but still good.

Wednesday I went out to Brent's and we changed my front tire. He had  a virtually new tire that he had no use for, and he has a bead breaker, rim protectors, and the spoons.
Went really well, and I have a tire that will get me the rest of this season and probably into June next year.
Sweet !

Saturday I got out for a few rides in the city doing chores and pick-ups. I would rather take the bike to do something than drive the SUV any day. It takes longer somehow...but that is OK.

Sunday I left the house at 7am to meet up with Brent in Lanark for breakfast. Foggy and cold.
Froze my nads off.
Any ways, we met up and decided to run to the Barron Canyon in Algonquin Park.
The turn off is between Pembroke and Pettawa, on the left.
The 1st few miles were paved, and then we hit gravel, and then packed earth...took a good 45 minutes to get there . A few times I thought I had hit bumps hard enough to break a spoke.
Definitely not a motorcycle friendly route.

All was forgotten once we got there.
Pretty spectacular place!
The only thing I can compare it to, ( geek alert!..... geek alert ! ) is the scene in "Lord of the Rings" where the fellowship is canoeing through the canyons.
There was even canoes/kayaks.
Kind of a fairly steep uphill trail.
Brent and I looked totally out of place in our boots and leathers with the other hikers.
Oh well.

There are no guard rails of any kind, just signs saying watch your kids.

I am so getting a canoe for next year, and trying this  !

The forest is of a different kind than I am used to seeing...it seems almost West Coast-ish for some reason.
Beautiful, in any event.
We saw deer tracks, and were told there are definitely bears and wolves.
We did not see any of the bald eagles that are there, but there are supposed to be all kinds of hawks and birds to be seen soaring around, and living on the cliffs.

We had a good chat with a game warden...real nice guy.
When asked, he informed me that yes, there is indeed a helmet law in the park.
I had to ask. :)

In typical Parks Canada fashion, everything is clean, well maintained, directional signs everywhere....the whole nine yards..
You can't mind seeing your tax dollars being well spent in a tangible fashion.
Cost at the gate for a day pass?...6 bucks each. That is almost free.

The ride out was not as bumpy, but still took a while. You cannot get past  40km/hr on roads like these.

Looking at the time, we decided to highway 17 it home.
Not a particularly exciting end to the day, but it cut at least an hour off going the scenic route.
Uneventful ride home.
I was actually kind of beat from the off-roading and the hiking we did , so that was OK by me.
The coming week is looking like a mixed bag for weather. It looks like the heat spell is over as well.

No more riding in just a t-shirt and vest.
Jackets, gloves, hoodies and chaps are the order of the day now.
sigh......