A cool night meant for a good nights sleep last night in Davids garden. This morning Owen had to do some work for the job placement with the Royal Engineers he is soon to be starting, and so we spent most of the morning making conversation with David and Nancy over a cup of spiced Indian tea with Owen working away on their laptop. While working outside on the bike, I did managed to stand on a wasp, getting an unpleasant shock as it stung the soft arch of my foot, leaving me with cramp for the rest of the day. Cheers wasp!
Owen finished by midday and we set out on the canal towpath once more. We were stopped a number of times by cyclists asking about our travels, and we had our photo taken by one enthusiastic nature photographer who stopped us on a bridge. We caught up with a couple of tourers, Becky and Gary, who were cycling Seattle to Maine. We spoke for a long while, and decided to share lunch at a local canal side restaurant which made a nice change from the usual burger and chips!
Becky was from a military family, with three brothers of Colonel rank, one cousin a Lieutenant General in charge of NATO in Turkey, another Uncle of General rank and a brother who works as navigator for Air Force One. They were a big Republican family, and we debated the merits of socialised healthcare for a while.
We took photos and said our goodbyes. It was 3pm by this stage, and we decided to write today off as a rest/ half day, and set out for the next town and the American Legion, hoping to repeat our success at the Canadian Legion and secure accommodation. Unfortunately it was closed on arrival. I popped into a small bookstore to ask where we could find a drink in town. Before we knew it we were pulled in by John who took us to a small room at the back with a coffee shop out of a kitchenette, a seating area with sofas, and snacks laid out. A couple of elderly locals were there, regulars, who welcomed us in and offered us freedom to snack away. John presented two lagers and an alcoholic root beer free of charge to us. The store was full of character, and interesting books. John was a keen historian, and many interesting historical books caught our eye. Toy soldiers lined the top of the mahogany bookshelves. We spoke of home and our travels, and they asked many questions, and shared opinions and stories of the States. It was an excellent way to spend the rest of the afternoon.
John gathered receipts from a local pizzeria, and had accumulated enough to get us $10 off a meal over the road. He took us over to ensure we got fed. Later he came in as we ate, and had a message from the Mayor, saying we could camp in the local Butterfly Park, by the fire station. We could also use the fire stations showers in the morning should we wish. He also gave us left over cookies, crisps, fruit and bottled water for the morning. He was an exceptionally generous, gentle and kind hearted man.
We set up at the park, put our bottle of wine from the winery in Niagara-On-The-Lake in the stream to cool, and relaxed for the evening. Unfortunately the wine had spoiled somewhat in the heat, as it was supposed to be kept chilled. It was still drinkable, but not as enjoyable as before. Some Dairy Milk washed it down well.
Another day along the canal tomorrow, taking it easy with a target of 50 miles. The stone dust of the canal is giving our grey panniers and bikes a covering of fine white/grey dust, making them resemblant of something from the Rommel's Afrika Korps.
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