Ottawa to Ottawa: Going East Across Canada (80,000 words) tells the story of the two summers my husband and I, in our late thirties, put our careers aside and rode recumbent bikes over 10,000 kilometers exploring Canada. We began the first summer riding from our home in Ottawa to St. John’s while traversing the North Shore of the St. Lawrence, the remote Labrador Coastal Highway, and the Island of Newfoundland. In our second summer, our journey started in Victoria and continued back to Ottawa, while exploring Northern BC, attending my 20th high school reunion, climbing the Icefields Parkway, crossing the central Prairies, and wild camping in Northern Ontario.
We set off self-supported, living in our tent and staying with family, friends, or friends-of-friends. We accepted offers of hospitality from strangers in places like Deadman’s Cove Newfoundland, an organic farm in Saskatchewan, and a cottage on a lake in Northern Ontario. We met and rode with other cycle tourists, including a German couple who had been travelling for six-years. Throughout this journey, I learned to let go of my need for certainty, while discovering how resilient and tenacious I can be.
