Thoughts and thanks

I have been in Halifax a few days now, I really do like this city and Grace has been a wonderful host. But I would be lying if I didn't admit to feeling somewhat flat about the trip coming to an end. I started riding on 3 July from Campbell River, BC and 7575km, 9 provinces and 75 days of riding later I arrived in Halifax, NS on 9 October.

Tomorrow I will head back to Ottawa. This adventure really started on 22 June with a drive across Canada with Laura and it has come full circle as I will drive back with her. She is an amazing friend and clearly really wanted to come and pick me up, I told her it was a crazy idea but she schemed to visit another friend in Halifax and would not take no for an answer!!

It is hard for me to think of highlights as there were so many. What started off as an adventure ended up being a once in a lifetime journey that I will never forget but it really was the people who made it such a special trip and I just want to say thanks again to everyone I met on the road especially those who gave me a place to sleep, good food and great company. 

Friends; Laura and her family, Penny, Heather, Jen and Jay, Scott, Cat, Dave and Louise, Markus, Ivan, Rick, Susie, Marilyn and Russ, Yannick and Erin, Jane and Jared, Claude, Danielle, Louise and Roland, Treena, Nancy, Karen, Grace.

Friends and family of friends; Pascale, Joan and Dave, Elaine, Dan and Shelley, Michelle, JoAnn and Bill, Mickey, Monique and Pierre, Judy and Jim. 

Warmshowers hosts; Kevin and Gay, Helen and Daniel, Sarah, Gord, Muriel and Wayne, Greg and Carolyn, Eby and Jenna, Phil, Jan, Anna and family, Bill, Bob and Glenda.

Kind hearted strangers; Don and Doreen, Bruce and Carol, Dale, Joe and Barb, Karin, Andrew, Carmel and Rod, Arlene.

Fellow touring cyclists, runners and walkers; Anna, Astrid and Eric, Sebastien, Paul, Blair, Marie-Claude, Boyd, Simon and friends, Kate, Reinaldo, Rejean, Andy, Jason. 

Thanks also to everyone who has been following the blog and facebook, your comments and emails have been hugely appreciated and sorry if I did not reply to each and every one!!

This is the end of an amazing year of personal choices and challenges. I left the government last October because I felt I needed a change, the job was no longer challenging me and I didn't feel I was growing or learning. I spent last winter as a dog sled guide with Chocpaw Expeditions in South River near Algonquin Park in Ontario. Arriving there as a rookie guide, early on I felt quite out of my depth, lets just say I did not have the typical background of a guide but they saw something in me when I interviewed in the summer for a job and I am so incredibly grateful that they gave me a chance. I learnt so much about myself and realised that the qualities that had made me a successful research scientist could be applied in a vastly different field. I strongly believe that hard work and a humble attitude are the most significant factors to success and if you want something badly enough you will find a way to make it happen. I will have a few weeks off now before flying out west for a second season of mushing dogs, it was a difficult decision not to return to Chocpaw but I long to be closer to the mountains and will be working for Kingmik, guiding on trips out of Lake Louise. Who knows what next summer will bring??

You only live once and life really is what you make it, there is a whole world out there and sometimes you have to make choices, sometimes you have to decide to take a risk, to move outside of your comfort zone and see what happens, and who knows you might discover new talents and passions and find out that you are capable of so much more than you ever imagined!!

Arriving at Wood Islands, PEI with Judy.

Bring on the snow!! (Picture credit, Danielle Cardinal).