Tobermory

I arose early, packed and was on my bike around 7:15. With no one in the office at the camp ground (Durham Conservation area) it was a free nights stay. I could already feel that today was going to be very very warm (this was in fact quite an understatement).
With little real choice of route, I headed south on Highway 6. The flattening out of the route and quick shift, whilst still undulating (not a great deal), to predominately downhill came quick. This was very welcome given the rising heat. I had plans to meet up with a friend in Guelph, so I pushed on most of the morning, stopping only for refills my water bottles.

We set off before 7:30am for the last 20km into the ferry terminal at Tobermory. We rode the predominately downhill run in well under an hour, with the arrival at our destination being both sweet and sobering. After having a chat with one of the workers at the ferry — a retiree from Hamilton — we had about 10 minutes before Gwen had to board. I managed to get one last shot of Gwen and I together. It was perhaps fitting the camera lens was fogged!
After a big hug and some parting thanks — I clearly had not given anywhere near enough thought to this moment — Gwen had board. I indicated for her to head up onto the deck for a last shot or two... as I was waiting for her I could feel tears well in my eyes!

We sat around, having the luxury of a cooked breakfast, whilst waiting for our gear to dry (dew and the impacts of the previous night/early morning rain) — starting off again at 11am. At the other side of Clifford we had our water bottles filled with water and ice at a local store (thankyou!). In the car park we had a conversation with a life-long local who knew someone who had moved from Clifford to Australia (via Japan) — he mentioned this on the off chance I might know them!
We headed North on Road 10 and deviated onto an unmarked (on our maps) side road which another local pointed out would takes us into downtown Chesley. It was a great road for riding — no centre line and minimal vehicle use. On the other side of Chesly(?), we stopped for a photo with a not-so-big (by Australian standards) cow!

Relocating our gear to the large picnic shelter a little after 8am, adjacent to the Beverly Community Centre Building, we waited out the weather until 11am. We rode through the consistent rain for over an hour — I noticed that my front splash-guard directs all water (when there is a substantial amount on the road) straight onto my shoes. Needless to say my shoes filled up with water and where wet for the rest of the day. My shoes performed well, going from saturated to damp within 2-hours of riding (I was very happy!).
We followed Highway 8 making our first quick stop at Preston. We rode on the same route through St Jacobs, Alma, Parker and Teviotdale (a little round-a-bout). Being in Mennonite territory was interesting — we received a number of friendly waves. We also met some very friendly folk along the way.