Day 66

July 17 - 153km (Toronto)

I didn’t travel as much as I wanted yesterday so today was going to be a big day. To be honest, my body was quite tired but I told myself I was reaching Toronto today no matter what.

Along the 2 I biked - until I reached Port Hope. I was climbing up a steep hill and putting heavy pressure on my pedals when my chain fell out of place. No big deal, I thought. I’ll just put the chain back on.

As I’m on the sidewalk, I’m having difficulty putting the chain on the proper gear. I try shifting the gear so it’s easier for me to place the chain back on - then my gear cable just snaps apart. A quick Google search leads me to realize I can’t fix this by myself. I find a local bike mechanic and walk there - as I’m doing so, a friend hears about my situation and sends help. I was very lucky, because the mechanic was not home. Mark arrived to save the day! There was a bike shop in a town that I passed 10km back, and so we stuffed my bike and belongings into Mark’s car and headed backwards.

After getting the bike sorted, I’m pressed for time and it’s not looking great. I reach Bowmanville, and an experienced cyclist stops to talk to me. When I tell him I'm trying to get to Toronto, he tells me that I don’t have enough time and should go for it tomorrow. But, like I said, I made a deal with myself to reach tonight.

I get into the city late. Not ideal. And I’m completely exhausted. But I will never ever forget reaching my friends’ apartment and celebrating with them. Almost everything went wrong - but I did it.