Day 01 - Ottawa to L'Orignal

103.0 km - Total so far 103.0 km - https://ridewithgps.com/trips/14763197

This link will show you the route and terrain: https://www.relive.cc/view/g11782245006

We are finally on the road. We had an early start and made it to Parliament Hill by 8 am to get the required start picture. We were surprised to see how many people were lined up across the street (Wellington Street) to get their free passes to visit Parliament.

The bicycles fully loaded and ready to hit the road

Eastward to "The Rock" official picture

We were a bit concerned about starting our trip in the rain but it held off until we were safe, secure and fully settled for the night in L'Orignal. Environment Canada might have been off on their rain forecast but they were spot on with the winds. We felt the 20 kp/h wind in our hair and face for the entire 103 kilometres. At times, we were overjoyed when the wind gusted to 40+ kp/h. Oh, we are so looking forward to those days when the wind will be to our back. 

Gotta stay sharp when on the road

Hélène rethinking this bicycling to Newfoundland deal

Tonight we are roughing it in L'Orignal at Marcel and Sylvette's (Hélène's brother and sister-in-law) home. To our surprise, the visit turned into a family event and many of Hélène's family including Simon and Réjeanne (Hélène's parents) were there. Let's hope we can resist the urge to have an early night as we usually do on bike trips.

We have just a few pictures and none include the Ottawa River as most people in the area have seen it over and over again in the news due to the floods on both sides (Québec and Ontario).

Speaking of floods, we have had to amend our intended route for tomorrow. Parts of the Quebec Route Verte (bike path) is still under water. More mileage might be required to get to Laval. A complete update tomorrow.

All in all we are ecstatic to finally be on the road!

Hélène working on the blog under challenging conditions.

64.00 miles - Total so far 64.00 miles