Lake Simcoe circle

For an unplanned training ride a lot of thought has actually been put into it. Since I started thinking about biking long distances there have been three major rides that I’ve considered. One was Toronto to Montreal. Another was riding 250k to my grandmother’s. The latest has been to ride around Lake Simcoe. Technically I suppose I’ve done it by going to Ben’s cottage and back, but there was a day of rest between. I wanted to do it either in one shot, or over two consecutive days. Since then I’ve spent weekend afternoons when I’m not riding, trying to figure out the best way around it. There are some gorgeous parts between Barrie and Orillia, and along the south shore, but connecting them can be a little messy.

When I woke up on Saturday I was trying to decide whether I should go on the official Bike Rally ride or something longer. I drafted a route around the lake. It was exactly 200 km, which made my decision for me. Since I had friends having a barbeque at Sibbald point I used that as a base. I figured I’d be back early enough to dip in the lake and hang out a bit. The ride started out uneventfully. There was a mild wind from the northwest. All the roads were familiar from other rides and drives. Most of the interesting points were tweeted about or posted to flickr.

74k near Alcona – took a break, then a few minutes later passed a couple riders who exchanged very friendly hellos.

113k in Oro Station – Saw the second VW Rabbit Pickup of the day.

178k just north of Beaverton – the bridge over the Trent Canal was under repair, necessitating a 10k backtrack.

185k – ran into the same friendly cyclists from over 100k before. They must have gone 100k in the opposite direction! I wanted to stop and laugh about it with them, but by this point I was pretty much done.

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