Day 20 – Saving Canada

There’ll be no Canadian crossing — for now!  I was thinking a lot over the last 3 weeks about the conversations that Greg and I had in preparation for this trip.  He was super excited to be part of this journey I had mapped out and I was excited to have him on board (Jason and Becky too!) He missed connecting with Janel in New Jersey and I didn’t want him to miss all the Canadian family history too.  So I’m saving Canada for next summer.   This will give Greg plenty of time to recover, train, and be ready for the final phase — Mid-Michigan to Niagara Falls.  Yeah, the wind usually blows from West to East, so I’m reversing the direction of the ride to make it easier 🙂  If we can do this right, Mike and Greg can both join me and that would be pretty cool.


After my Day 19 post, don’t think I bailed because I over did it, I feel great!!  I haven’t ridden so many miles in this time frame ever and I feel like I’m getting stronger every day. I didn’t ride at all on Day 20, instead it was a 6 hour driving day that got us back to my place in Brighton, MI.  I got to see Becky again after 2 solid weeks of riding and we all enjoyed a home cooked meal — grilled chicken, peppers, sweet potatoes, rice, and garlic bread. A couple of Captain Morgan drinks and it was a perfect evening.


I’ll have a couple more posts to do about this journey; a summary of the statistics, and a video compilation that may take me a little while to put together.  Stay tuned!

By Dennis

Ninth generation Howell in North America

12 comments

  1. Congrats on a successful trip. Good luck when you come back with Greg and hopefully Mike. A perfect evening with Becky….indeed!

    1. Thanks Johnny B. It’s such a crazy notion. So glad I was able to do it. Leaving a little on the table to do later — not a bad idea either.

  2. Happy for you Dennis. What a great trip and epic journey. So much to see and so many great experiences. Can’t wait to hear more of the details. Congratulations!

    1. Thanks Skip!!! I’ve never done anything like this. So cool to be able to do it. Hopefully I’ll be able to keep up the long rides. I’ve got more of this in store.

    1. Thanks! I rode 38 with Mike the day after we got back, and then I rode to Lansing and back the last 2 days for about 100 miles. I’m ready to ride when you are.

  3. Congratulations, D! The wind blowing in your face must have been fierce, it’s been unusually strong and persistent the last few days. Yesterday’s northerly wind finally subsided in the evening. Sorry there was no break for you, strong work persevering! I’m looking forward to next year’s adventure and your recap of this year’s trip. Nice job!

    1. That’s just me whining 🙂 There’s always wind out there. Normally when I ride around town I will pedal in all directions. On this trip, I’m going one direction mostly. I was super lucky on Day 2 with a 55 mile tailwind. Not so lucky on Day 19 with an 83 mile headwind. Overall, I couldn’t have asked for better weather or conditions.

  4. I’m glad you’re taking a break. I was wondering how the heat waves did and would effect you. We have some pretty hot days in the 90s coming here. Congratulations on what you were able to accomplish so far. Tomorrow is another day. All is good my friend.

    1. The weather was near perfect! A little bit of rain on the 1st day and a lot of wind on the last day. Everything in between was fantastic. I couldn’t have gotten a better window to ride in. Becky was telling me about the heat but it didn’t get into the 90s ever. I think the high on Day 19 was 88. Probably good timing to take a break though.

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