Century Cycles in Peninsula called me up this morning and told me that the bike needed to have it's chain replaced or it could cause damage 4 - 5 months from now. Otherwise what I was requesting to have done to it was done 2 days ahead of schedule. I choose to forgo the chain for now and picked the bike up for about $65 for the brake & gear shift cables to be tightened, the derailers configured and have two spokes replaced in the rear wheel. I picked it up at about 1930hrs today.
It's next trip will be a four day tour of the Lake Erie Islands, including Pelee Island which is on the Canadian side. I've been working on the rough draft of the trip, which is now lost due to a hardware failure on my laptop. But I can tell you that I'll take the 0415 Greyhound bus bound for Detroit and transfer to the one bound for Windsor. Cross the border on the bus and disembark shortly in Windsor. Neither the tunnel or bridge in Detroit will accommodate bicycles, so the extra Greyhound is way to go. The bicycle supported way on road would require an additional 119mi by nearly circumnavigating Lake Saint Clair. I once heard plans about the city building a new bridge to Canada and I wouldn't be surprised if they fix this problem then.
Once in Windsor, I'll get off and cycle about 41 miles to the Ontario Ferries port in Kingsville, Ontario. Take the ferry to Pelee Island and spend most of the next day there. Board at the same port on the island and take it to Sandusky. Then board the Jet Express and start hopping the American islands starting with Kelly's, South Bass and finally Middle Bass. North Bass is only accessible by personal water craft. The way back is on the ferries in the reverse order.
I easily get sea sick. But the Lake is only 33 miles across, the ferries are only 1 hour and 30 minutes at most and land should always be in sight for me as I'll always try to be on the top deck. They will all accommodate my bicycle.
My trip will involve the Ontario, Miller and Jet Express Ferries where I'll arrive on the mainland in Sandusky. I don't have the camping figured out yet, but my gear will strapped to the back rack and my 20 liter Camelbak back pack. That which is on the rack will probably not weigh more than 20lbs. It's basically, a one man tent in a compactor, sleeping bag, 10 - dry camp meals and an abbreviated first aid kit. I doubt the backpack will be for much more than my 1.5L water bladder.
Tomorrow, I have a medical appointment at the VA Medical Center in Cleveland at 0900. I'm not sure how this is going to go? I might be able to pack up before the VA, drive there with everything and the trailer and then drive to Punderson SP directly after. It would save about 32 minutes, 21 miles and 0.65 gallons of fuel that way. And that would put me in the park in time to talk to the camp office clerk, get my campsite tag right then and there and set up The Cramper with time to consider Punderson's trails and determine what my plan for the next days is. And that's what I'm really shooting for.
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