CAPITAL morning old chap!

I survived hobonight!

Not even a racoon of disturbance was there...thankfully

Another 10 miles north towards Grand-Remous before decending 70 more through Aumond, Maniwaki and ending up, (after a rather long and roasting, but gratefully swim-full day), in Gracefields with Benoit and Odette's (WS hosts) outdoor heated pool, with an ice cold beer and dinner being cooked for me (it's a hard life). Bon. Tres bon.

The miles had somehow disappeared under my wheels and progress steamed along the railtrack so that before I knew it the capital was just a day away, (albeit a long day).

Come the next morning there was no time to lose. My plan of 86 miles in 26° heat on unpaved trails had been refined by Benoit so that it might be feasible, although this did mean highway 105 south, on a Sunday, when all the Ottawan second homeowners would be racing back to the city from their lakeside retreats... probably a bit worst for wear. I was told the hardshoulder would meander between 2metres of safe pleasure and 10cm of cliff face.

I tried to mentally meld the concepts of a strong sturdy grip on the handlebars with that of loose flexibility that might aid a post-collision emergency roll /response as I sailed through the air to my fate.

Traffic is big here. It is scary. Especially the multi-wheeled silent screechmarks on the road, or the thunderous indents of semi's wheels in the lay-by sand indicative of a momentary lapse in truck driver concentration.

I tried not to think of it, and peddled on, and before I knew it Ottawa was opening up before me and I was just a little sneaky beer and 10 miles away from meeting a friend of Jerome and Lisanne's who'd been asked if I could pitch in her garden

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