Day 79: Fieldville

Yes, you read the title right. The Field family does have a claim to fame. Katie’s family came over from Ireland in the 1850s during the potato famine and landed in Quebec, north of Ottwa. There were a number of brothers each or whom started a farm and a family in a clustered area that became known as Fieldville, and it is still there today. Katie’s second cousins Lorraine and Ruth picked us up early to take us to this historic place. To us this is one of the highlights we were most looking forward to on this trip, and it turned out to be everything we hoped for.

Lorraine and Ruth are fantastic tour guides, going above and beyond our expectations. They started off with a scenic and informative drive out of Ottawa, and continued detouring by experimental farms, natural springs, old high schools, hydrodams, quaint towns and, most importantly, second breakfast spots.This is a moving vehicle shot of the experimental farm, a practically downtown farm that grows, as one might expect, experimental produce. Ottawanians are particularly proud of the fact that this land has not been sold to development companies.
Second breakfast. Ruth is in the middle. Lorraine on the right. Katie's hiding behind Brandon's arm.

This was all just preamble for the main event, a visit to the Field farm and the Fieldville cemetery. We were treated to an interesting greeting at the Field farm Under close inspection, you'll see that this ordinary looking photo actually captures a fierce gaurd dog sounding our arrival from the confines of fortress, aka the crawl space under the porch to which it ran to the instant it spotted our approach.

The Field farm is where Katie’s Grandpa Hank was raised, and is still owned by Hank’s brother’s widow, Eileen. At the graveyard we saw the graves of members of the Field family dating back to Katie’s great grandpa Patrick Field.

Across from the graveyard is the Fieldville church to which generations of Fields have visited.

Katie taking a picture of a wall plaque commemorating her great grandparents donation to the church.

Lorraine and Ruth aren’t actually Fields, but McCarthys. Their mother, Kay, was Hanks sister, but she married a man by the name of McCarthy. They are still pretty cool though, and they still sound blooming Irish, especially Eileen, which was really exciting to us. Our next stop was the McCarthy farm where we met Doug, our tour guides’ brother. Doug is the proud owner of a small black bear:She’s pretty friendly though, albeit thick.

The bear has a vicious tactic where it captures its victims by flopping its entire weight onto its victims feet and demanding endless belly rubs.

Doug's cat/dog duplex creation. He's quite handy, in typical Field fashion.

The penthouse resident.

We made a quick stop at the McCarthy cottageson McCarthy road (they are very proud of this claim to fame) before returning to the McCarthy farm for a sugar shack tour and dinner. We now not only know how to make maple syrup, but we can eat it too. Aunt Jemima, you’re history. Thanks Doug.Doug uses these corks to plug the sugar maples after tapping them to extract the sap.....

.....as seen here.

Steak and potatoes, wine and beer and tons of funny stories about Field ancestors capped off this already perfect day.Sorry for the bad aim Ruth.

Capturing this pillar was mandatory before heading back to Matt's.


B&K

Day 78: Cardianl - Ottawa

km today: 111.22
total km: 5351.1



Seeing as how we were camping along a major walking path, we had to wake up especially early this morning, at 5:30 to be exact. Although it was freezing outside, the sight of a gorgeous misty sunrise over the state of New York kept us packing. We hurredly packed everything up and then rode the 500m to the park entrance where we shivered through breakfast sitting at a picnic table. This was definitely one of our favourite camp sites, and definitely the best squatting site yet. Sunrise over our campsite. Try not to focus on the mill on the horizon.

Packing up in the golden light at dawn.

Getting on the road was a chore because the last thing our already frozen bodies needed was a frigid breeze. We tried to stop for coffee along the way to warm us up, but the coffee shops were either still closed or the towns we passed through were too small to support a coffee shop. We finally found one in “Ottawa,” at Kay’s Landing 54km into our ride.

After our coffee turned lunch stop we followed the owners advice and jumped onto the most gorgeous bike path we’ve seen to date. It meandered along the Rideau River for about 12km and delivered us right downtown at about 2pm. Pretty good time considering we’d already done almost 100km.

The bike path along the Rideau River:



We were early for meeting up with Matt (our host for our stay in Ottawa) and so decided to start our sightseeing starting with the Govenor General’s place of residence, Rideau Hall (it was under intense renovations and was covered entirely). We did get to meet these guys though: Brandon tried his best to imitate, but his bike threw off his posture.

From there we went to Steve’s place:The iron bars and plethora of RCMP security guards interfered with our artistic vision.

Then cruised up to parliament hill (as seen in the opening photo). En route to Parliament Hill we ran across these beauties:The majestic Notre Dame.

The majestic Notre Dame and a 30 foot iron spider (he lives in front of the National Art Gallery).

The Locks on the Rideau Canal.

From there we had a quick and delicious bite to eat at Ahora’s mexican restaurant, and headed back to Matt’s place, this time biking along the even more beautiful Rideau Canal.The sun setting along the Rideau Canal.

Matt is actually Katie’s cousin Sarah’s boyfriend whom was given the task of putting up with us when it was discovered that Sarah wouldn’t actually be in Ottawa when we were. Matt was very nice and hospitable. Welcoming us into his “dirty” house as he referred to it, that by our standards looked like something in a Martha Stewart magazine. We unfortunately didn’t get to spend much time with him due to our opposing schedules. You know, we do lead a very busy life.

B&K

Day 77: Museum - Cardinal

km today: 103.59
km total: 5239.6

It was a slow and labourious rising this morning. 6:30 turned into 7:00 before either of us decided to stir. It was almost 9:00 before we finally found ourselves packed, fed, and ready to move out - perhaps a new pace record.

Our first stop was only 15 km down the road at “All About Books” where the very hospitable Deb treated us to free coffee, good company, and a new book for only $2. And we didn’t even give her our blog address so these were not embellished for her own personal flattery.

From Deb’s place in Gananoque (gan-an-ah-kway) we were treated to a 38 km ride along the waterfront highway which, for this segment of its length, has its own separate paved and most importantly, vehicle free path. It felt like our own personal highway. As icing on the cake the “waterfront” of the “waterfront highway” was the infamous St. Lawrence River, and its opposite shore belongs to the State of New-York. Very exciting times.Personal bike highway aka "The 1000 Islands Parkway."

Some other tourists we met along the way. We were impressed with the recumbent bike.

Unfortunately, we had to jump back onto the #2 in Brockville and ride along its narrow shoulders for the final 50 km of our day. We still caught some pretty nice sights along the #2 though.
The real subject is the international bridge in the background linking us to the state of New York.

After turning 180 degrees we found this.

Corn crop at dusk.

We are now in Cardinal squatting on a beautiful peninsula in the St. Lawrence midway between Canada and the US. After a quick tally we’ve realized that this is now our 14th straight night of free accommodation and thanks to Sarah (Katie’s cousin) we shall have a couple more waiting for us in Ottawa tomorrow. We can hardly wait.
Sunset over our campground on the St. Lawrence river.


B&K.

Day 76: Bloomfield - MacLachlan Woodworking Museum

km today: 84.0
total km: 5130.5

Our home for the night.

We awoke to waffles. Not those stinking belgians either, but ones that actually fill you up. These were certified organic corn, and other tasty stuff ones. Katie apologized for having run our of organic maple syrup, and sheepishly explained that all she had was organic yogurt, freshly made hot fruit compote and pear butter (that’s so good she keeps buying it even though it’s not organic). We were full after only two, mind you, they were plate sized. Now it may just be because we had had a whole week off but, in any case, they were hearty.

After a final few touch ups (that actually took a really time) we were ready to hit the road at 1:00 pm. We were off to a very early start. All things done, we were finally ready to pay. For the few things that they did charge us for, they still gave us 30% off, assuring us that we weren’t special, it’s just the rule applied to touring cyclists. Even after the bill was settled, Katie couldn’t stop giving, throwing at us a bag of organic cliff blok shots (energy packed gummy bears for adults) and organic dried bananas. Five minutes later, when they noticed that Brandon wasn’t carrying a camelback and that our water bottle cages were devoid of water bottles (we just hadn’t put them in yet), Rick and Katie both freaked out at the thought that we weren’t drinking enough water. Rick went to the back to fill up one of their extra ones as Katie ran to grab extra water bottles, returning with three full ones. They were not to see us ride off carrying an inadequate amount of water. We rode away on what felt like brand new bikes, laden with presents.Katie and Rick are so busy that this is the best shot we could get of them (helping out a customer).

The little free ferry from Picton across the bay (in the background you can see the other ferry going from the bay to Picton).

We rode the entire way into Kingston along the waterfront trail, enjoying an ample, paved shoulder, and minimal traffic along Lake Ontario’s shore. This is how waterfront the waterfront trail is. It was a really good day of riding. The temperature was even agreeable, verging on cool. Not so agreeable was the lack of campgrounds in Kingston. Our solution was to continue riding and look for a place to pitch a tent at the first sign of squatter friendly territory. Luckily for us, 10km of riding brought us to the MacLachlan woodworking museum. If you’re ever in the area, it’s backyard is ideal for squatting and they don’t open until 10:00 am, leaving ample time to pack up and eat without being caught.

B&K

Day 75: Brighton - Bloomfield

km today: 59.03
total km: 5046.5

Morning glory after a night of rain.

Our original plan for the day was to head straight into Kingston in our drive toward Ottawa. However, after a random phone call to Gaspar from the Tim Horton’s in Trenton, our route was changed. Gaspar convinced us to detour down to Prince Edward county with the news of a jazz festival, a garlic festival and scenic, less busy roads.Waterfront park just outside of Bloomfield on lake Ontario.

En route to Picton (the sight of both of the festivals), however, we randomly stopped at a bikeshop in Bloomfield. We were stopping only to see if they had “Take a Look” review mirrors (we had both lost ours) and 16” tires for the trailer (they were displaying our trailer in the yard). This was a pit-stop that was meant to be brief.

We never left. We ended up having major bike make-overs! Both of us now fit our bikes waaaaaaaaay better. Our seats are the right height, position and angle. Our handle bars are the right heights. Even our cleats were adjusted by a couple of millimeters to better the positioning of our knees over the pedals. Most exciting for Katie was the aquisition of a brand new girls seat! Combined with a proper fitting bike means no more soreness. Apparently the bikes that we thought were working just fine were in desperate need of some help.

When we say we never left, we literally mean that we never left the premises. We ended up staying the night for free because Katie and Rick (the owners of Bloomfield Bicycle Co.) officially open their house to travelers from around the world, whether they be cyclists, backpackers, or just passersby who need a place to stay. One struggling soul ran out of gas (and money) in front of their bike shop and ended up staying on their couch for an entire 7 months! Needless to say, they are very selfless people.Our only obligation as guests was to create these three tiers of clean dishes. Well worth it.


We ended up staying in “The Mother in Law Suite” in the barn, but had our choice of room from between the mother in law suite, the attic, the back of the chevy (which was actually converted into a suite), camping outside or “Peter’s” bedroom (we never actually met Peter). Our stay included an amazingly good dinner. Katie fed us a hearty and healthy vegetable quiche, followed by organic apple pie, both of which she made on the fly.

Another randomly delightful day.

B&K

Day 74: Toronto - Brighton

km today: 38.89
total km: 4987.7

En route to Brighton. The perks to the scenery after the rains stop.

Once again, due to the time zone change, we woke up in the early afternoon. Our last few hours with Kate were spent watching classic cinema (old school Katie and Kate home videos - Hahle, you make a wicked judge). We said our final goodbyes and drove to the outskirts of Toronto, which happened to be into a little town called Cobourg. It was here that we dropped off our car, thankfully, free of charge for the crank set grease marks that we accidentally stenciled across the back seat, or the chicken scratch lines that our handle bars etched into its side door. Hey, we asked for a truck.

After an entire week off, we were rusty. In fact, pedaling felt strange. Luckily our road of choice coincided with “The Waterfront Trail” for some sections and we were provided with an ample, well maintained shoulder. It also coincided with other tourists in need of directions. For some reason lost drivers keep thinking that loaded bikers look like they might know their way around local areas. After only 34km the sun was already nearing the horizon and we found ourselves in Brighton, far from any campground. The obvious solution was to set up our tent behind the grocery store in an area that provided excess privacy and comfort, until the rain found us half way through cooking dinner.
The clouds seemed to part, and the day got brighter just as we were entering Brighton, oddly enough.

B&K

Day 73: Toronto Sightseeing Round Three

Due to the time zone change that occurred upon crossing the threshold of Kate’s apartment (she and all of her roomates work very late) we did not rise until early afternoon. Revisiting Kensington market was first on the agenda, this time with tour guide Kate.
Katie and Kate picking out their wedding dresses. Option a) hideous blue.

Option b) puke green.
Katie ordering a chunk of halva (that was exceptionally good)from the fromagerie.Avocado and mango milkshakes.........
.......accompanied by vietnamese coffee and medium (not large) bowls of Pho.

Duties called for Kate and she left us for work as we left her for more free beer. Hey, how can you pass it up?! It’s free. This time we even hopped on the tour, which was also free (at least for us) and surprisingly really informative. Did you know that the term “Blind Drunk” came from the fact that non sanitary Medieval brews used to actually render its patrons blind?

We followed our drinks withAlong with the usual ketchup, mustard and relish, we also had sweet corn relish, banana peppers, green olives, sweet pickles, bacon bits (Brandon only), sweet onions and a mountain of sourkraut.
and followed our hot dogs with
Taking ourselves out to the ballgame.Not bad seats for 41 bucks.The view through the roof.


The Bluejays almost made a comeback, scoring 2 runs in the bottom of the 9th inning, and finally getting knocked out with the tying run on 3rd and the winning run on 1st. Great times none the less.

B&K