2019 On The Road Again #11

I was, of course, up and ready to go early in the morning. I went down to the lobby where there was what they called breakfast. Cold cereal and a few muffins seemed like a poor breakfast but I grabbed a muffin and went back upstairs to get ready to leave. I do not know why I bothered rushing. It was raining outside and the heat that I had experienced the previous day just east of Regina was long gone. Before I left, I put on my fleece sweater and my rain jacket. If I had had long johns with me, I would have thought about putting them on as well.

I waited at the same bus stop I had gotten off of the previous night. There was no bus shelter - by the time the right bus came I was already quite wet. The bus driver did the best he could and got me to as far west as the bus went. It was still a bit of a walk but in spite of the wind and the rain, it did not feel as far as other times. But it didn't matter how far I had to walk - by the time I got to the top of the hill, I was wet right through. Quick-dry pants are great in that they dry quickly - in terms of warmth when they are wet - wearing pants made from paper towels might have been warmer. The problem with feeling and looking like a drowned rat is that no one wants to pick you up. I understood - I would not want me sitting on my new car seats either. After far too long, with me feeling more and more miserable, a pickup truck did pick me up. He was rancher just going a bit down the road but he would let me out a gas station that had a snack bar etc. That sounded great to me.

It was a very short ride, but it was welcome. I got out of the rain, got a little bit dried out and I got to talk to a cattle rancher from the area. Given the weather - we only had time to complain and for him to wonder if the amount of rain would make it hard for him to harvest enough hay or grain to feed his cattle in the winter. I do not have many chances to talk to young people who are farmers. I would have liked a longer ride just so I could have learnt more from him.

He let me off at the gas station, I dropped my bag at the door with my sign saying "Nanaimo" and went inside to get a tea. It was very crowded inside. There was a long line up to get to the coffee/tea and then to the cash. I did not mind waiting at all. One of the reasons why there was such a long line up was that there were a number of middle-aged bikers. I had noticed them on the highway - groups of ten or so bikes zooming past, the riders wearing their rainproof gear, looking as if they were having about as much fun as I was. I think I saw well over a hundred bikes go by me. At the gas station, I hear one of the riders tell someone that they were off to a bike rally. I suggested to the rider behind me that the only people crazier than me to be out on the road were folks like him. He laughed and did not disagree.

I went outside, tried to hide under the minimal eaves of the flat-roofed building and slowly sipped my tea. I could see lots of cars going by on the Trans-Canada, but I was not about to stay out there getting wetter and wetter. I was quite content to stand there until someone saw my sign and offered a ride.

An hour later someone did.