“Cycling is perfect. You can cover a reasonable distance in a day, but stop when you want, look at things, talk to people. You’re not shut off from your surroundings like when travelling by car.” ~ Helen Dowson
Helen Dowson is back on the road after a brief stopover in Victoria, B.C. Since leaving St. Johns, Newfoundland, on May 20th, she has cycled 7,000 kilometres across Canada. Last Saturday, she made the obligatory pilgrimage to ‘Mile 0’ of the TransCanada Highway.
The 35 year-old novice cyclist—with a few modest tours to her credit—quit her job as a University administrator in Beverley, England, to allow herself time to travel at a comfortable pace.
The Internet has played an important role in Dowson’s odyssey. “People have been following my blog and then offering me places to stay.” The Web was also the site of our meeting, via a UK-based cycling forum.
For the most part, she has enjoyed the freedom of solo travel, but “after e-mailing and following each others’ blogs for nearly 8 weeks,” she met up with fellow UK cyclist Liz, a physiologist from Brighton, on Lake Superior.
Their union lasted six weeks. At Lake Louise, Liz, a ski enthusiast, headed south to check out the ski resorts of the Kootenays.
No surprise that the Rocky Mountains made a great impression. Dowson lingered for two weeks at Beauty Creek, on the Icefields Parkway, helping with maintenance on the hostel.
“I’m glad I did the trip east to west, saving the best of Canada for last.” A lot of people question that choice (pointing to unfavourable winds) she said. “It’s all the single women doing it the supposed ‘wrong way’ and coping with it.”
In Vancouver, she tested her newfound fitness, covering the famous 853 metre Grouse Mountain “grind” in 1 hour 06 minutes. On the summit, she modified her initial view of the city as just another crowded megalopolis.
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Whether via the Internet or by chance meetings along the way, the trip has been memorable for “the people you meet—the random acts of kindness.”
Dowson paused in Victoria to see the sights, marvel at the capital’s abundance of cyclsts, and invest in a warmer sleeping bag. I saw her off on the Coho ferry to Washington on Tuesday.
Next stop, Los Angeles.
Helen’s story at Crazy Guy on a Bike
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I remember meeting Helen in Edinburgh last year, she a lovely lassie, great to see that she has made it all the way across.
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