Joe is flying down the hill at Forks of the Credit on his bicycle. Joe suddenly notices a switch back sign. He doesn't remember the switchback from the last time he was on this hill. He rises out of his tuck position to catch air and applies his bike's brakes. He makes it around the switchback, but veers into the other lane part way around. Luckily, there is no oncoming traffic. He tells himself to remember this turn for next time. "Whew, that was some turn!" He can hear a truck behind. He quickly moves to the right of the road, slows down, and lets the truck pass.
Joe glances back for his friend Andy. Andy is nowhere to be seen. Joe assumes Andy is following him down the hill. He figures that Andy must be somewhere on the other side of the switchback. Joe lets his bike pick up speed and propel him down the rest of the hill. This hill is too much fun to worry about Andy. A few thoughts emerge as Joe nears the bottom of the hill. Is Andy lost? Did Andy make the wrong turn at the top of thy hill? Did Andy have an accident? Did he make it around all the turns on the hill?
Joe and Andy started on this bicycle trip at 7 o'clock this morning. The idea behind the trip started yesterday when Joe arrived at Andy's house in Guelph. Joe is on vacation and visiting Andy, an old friend who he bicycled with a few years ago. Yesterday, in the midst of recalling their previous fun times together, the idea riding a Century came up. A Bicycle Century is a trip of 160 kilometres (or 100 miles) by bicycle in 1 day. Andy said, "Why wait, we'll do a Century tomorrow. I know of a route. We can go from Guelph to Orangeville, Forks of the Credit, and Georgetown. That's about 100 miles?"
Joe replied, "Sure! Sounds like a great idea."
Joe has his touring bicycle with him. It's in good condition. When Joe stopped to visit Andy, he hoped to rest for a few days. Instead, they are doing this long bicycle ride.
Andy's bicycle is the one he used to race a few years ago. He hasn't had it out much lately. He normally rides a mountain bicycle on trails.
The first part of the Century ride is north from Guelph through Ariss to the Grand River. There isn't much traffic. Joe and Andy ride the rolling hills as if they are flat. A pickup truck gives them a friendly beep in Ariss. Andy thinks it is one of the people that he used to race. "I must call him some time."
They cross an old railroad bed. Andy thinks it would be a good place for a mountain bike ride. He must try riding this old railroad access soon. His current passion is mountain biking. He's just riding on the road today since he knows that road riding is Joe's passion and Joe is visiting.
There are lots of houses and small factories along the road from Guelph to Ariss. North of Ariss there are fewer houses and more fields of crops. One farm has an oval for training houses. One dog barks at them as they ride by. Andy says, "That dog. It always barks at me… It's always outside and tied up." The dog shuts up when Andy waves. Does the dog understand, or just get tired of barking.
Soon they are at the Grand River. They ride on the county road along the south shore towards Elora. They stop at a small park, Pilkington Overlook. The view from Pilkington Overlook is across the Grand River valley to the north. The valley is a wide expanse of fields and trees at this point. The Overlook is 30 metres higher than the river and about 100 metres south of the river. There are birds singing and little critters scurrying around. The sky is clear with just a few small fluffy clouds.
Andy and Joe contemplate the morning. They were rushed when they left Andy's house earlier and didn't say much. They just wanted to get started. This is their first chance to have a short rest and think about what they're doing. Did they make the right choice in planning today's bicycle ride or should they turn back now?
"Great day for a ride, eh?"
Joe says, "It's getting warm already," as he takes off his long sleeved T-shirt.
"It's a long way, this ride? We could go back now? We could…"
"Yah, but today's weather is too good to waste. It should be clear all day with no rain and a strong west wind to propel us for awhile?"
Andy says, "It's starting to be liveable. I guess it'll do?" Andy just wore a short-sleeved shirt so was a bit chilled on the first part of today's ride.
They stand and listen to the birds and animals. There is a flock of birds catching insects in a field near by. There are few people fishing in the Grand River. Joe and Andy start to feel the strength of the morning. They start to feel alive with nature. They are ready to face the ride. Joe slowly mounts his bicycle and points the wheel towards Orangeville. Andy follows.
This part of the ride is easy. There are some hills, but the strong west wind blows them along. In Elora they stop on a bridge over the Elora Gorge. The Gorge is about 5 kilometres long and is 25 metres wide at this point. The remnants of the Grand River flow through the Gorge about 25 metres below them. The walls of the Gorge are mostly black and grey stone with some rusty coloured parts and moss. There isn't much water in the Gorge today, as the summer has been dry and the water flow is controlled by a dam.
Joe remembers seeing people kayaking here on many previous visits. There are no kayaks in the Gorge today.
"Where are all the kayaks? Have they been banned?"
"It's the lack of water -- too many rocks; not enough water?"
"Oh? I see."
They ride slowly through Elora and look at some of the older homes and churches. They stop to read a historic plaque to Charles Clarke, a politician who help make our government become more democratic about 150 years ago.
They hustled from Pilkington Overlook to Elora Gorge and are now taking it easy. Out of Elora, they take the county road on the north shore of the Grand River and start to sprint again.
As they go by the Elora Quarry, Joe says, "The water tap is still there." Joe means the water tap located near the entrance to the Elora Quarry Park. He recalls getting water there many times before. He has enough water right now so doesn't stop. At the edge of the quarry there are signs for no jumping or diving, as it is a ways down, at least 10 metres? People swim in the quarry.
Shortly after the quarry, is the Wellington County museum in a large, old, grey building to the left. The building is set back from the road with a long curved driveway that has entrances at both ends of the property. Just after the museum the road goes through a narrow opening under an old railroad bridge. The bridge is still here even though the tracks were removed many years ago.
Soon they are riding down the main street of Fergus. Some merchants are cleaning the store windows and sidewalk. Fergus still has a lively downtown even with the new mall at the south of town. Radio Shack recently opened a store in the old Canadian Tire store. Canadian Tire had moved to the new mall.
Joe and Andy follow the Orangeville Road out of Fergus on the south side of the Grand River. A few cars are parked along the side of the road. Their drivers are down by the river fishing and bird watching. About 5 km from Fergus are the Belwood Lake and dam. After the dam, there is a trail along the south shore of Belwood Lake on an old railroad bed. Joe and Andy ride the road. There are a few people using the trail: a man and young son cycling slowly and a runner.
Joe thinks this trail would be a fun place to run. He can't run right now. Maybe when he has recovered from his running injury? "Wow! Running! I must get back to that. Are you still running Andy?"
The Orangeville Road soon veers away from Belwood Lake and the trail. The trail continues to Cataract. At times the traffic is heavy on the Orangeville Road though today there is just the occasional car. There are more uphills than downhills since this part of the route is basically up the Grand River valley. They soon see the flashing amber light at the Belwood road – the road to the village of Belwood. Joe and Andy don't go to Belwood today, but continue on the Orangeville road through Marsville. They note changes in the landscape…
"There used to be a driving range back there?" He means a range for driving golf balls. "Yah?" "I wonder what happened? It must ‘a closed?"
As they approach Highway 25, east of Marsville, they see two cyclists turning at the intersection. The other cyclists come from the north on highway 25 and head towards Orangeville. The two cyclists look like they're slowing down. Andy and Joe decide to catch up. They are soon talking to the other cyclists.
"Where are you from?"
"Guelph."
"Where are you going?"
"Just a little trip from Guelph to Orangeville, Forks of the
Credit, and Georgetown. You know, a Century, about 100 miles."
"There's an awfully strong wind today for doing a Century?"
"Yah, but it had to be today… Anyway, it's helping us
now!"
"What are your names?"
"I'm Greg. He's Matt. We live in Orangeville and are out for a
church-time ride. I own a store; Matt is a teacher."
"How far have you gone so far?"
"55 kilometres."
"Same here."
"We were in Belwood. It'll be about 70 kilometres at
home."
Matt's bike is relatively new. It is red. Greg is riding a friend's bike. It is light green.
"Our bikes were made in the same
factory?"
"They're both from the same era. This one's original
equipment."
"Not mine. It has many new parts. Do you have any titanium
parts…"
They all speed along together with the wind. Andy remembers, "This road used to be rough."
"It was paved… a couple of weeks ago."
They talk a lot and suddenly notice that Matt is not longer with them. They slow down and soon see Matt come over the last hill. Matt catches up. He says, "Sorry, I was adjusting the bike's derailleur."
They choose to skirt around the edges of Orangeville. Just before Orangeville Road runs into highway 9, they turn right on a paved road that runs through a swampy area just west of Orangeville. Greg says, "This area will have 2,000 new homes by next year." Joe replies, "Lots of new people to buy things in your store?"
They almost create an accident at the next intersection. There are stop signs for cars coming from all directions. Greg and Matt quickly stop and continue through a stop sign. Joe puts his foot down and stops at the intersection. A car turns left in front of him. Another car quickly goes from left to right and almost hits Greg. Another car squeals to a stop. Andy slows down as he's 100 metres back and sees all the confusion. In the end, cars and bikes sort themselves out, no one falls, and no one has an accident. The cyclists and car drivers all pass through the intersection with no road rage! It almost happened! "Whew, that was close!"
Joe and Andy soon part from their new friends.
Greg jokes, "I'm going home and back to bed?"
Matt tells Joe and Andy, "Continue on this road to 136, turn right to Alton. You'll find it."
Joe and Andy continue travelling east. Very soon they come to Highway 136, and turn south to Alton. The traffic on Highway 136 is light. The road through Alton is lined with large trees and there are many large, stately, older houses.
Shortly after Alton, Highway 136 ends where it intersects with Highway 24. Joe and Andy continue straight ahead, across the intersection, on a township road. "I guess we'll go ahead here?" "If it doesn't work out we can always turn around?"
As it is, they are soon in Cataract, a town of about 30 houses. Most of the houses in Cataract are modest. There are a few estates. The road through Cataract is bumpier with more potholes and large cracks than the road in Alton.
In the middle of Cataract, Andy says, "There's a sign for a Provincial Park. Do you want to go look at it?" Joe replies, "It'll have to be some other time. I want to keep riding." "Oh, OK?"
What's this with no time? Isn't Joe on vacation? You see, in the first part of their Century ride Joe and Andy had trouble getting going. They took it easy, and let themselves get warmed up. They stopped at Pilkington Overlook, Elora, and Elora Gorge. A bit later, they met Greg and Matt, chatted for awhile, and then picked up the pace. Now, they're in the middle of the Century and are just blasting along.
The road through Cataract swings right and soon intersects Mississauga Road. They turn left on Mississauga road, soon touch down in a valley, and immediately travel back up the other side. There is a new chalet for a downhill ski resort being built at the top of the hill. There are two men putting shingles on the chalet's roof.
Joe is first up the hill on the road beside the ski resort. He is also first to get to the T-junction intersection at the Forks of the Credit. Here, he turns left. Joe can't wait. This road looks too exciting. It goes down and curves left. Joe is feeling pumped. He goes down the hill immediately figuring that Andy will catch up. Soon, he comes to a switchback in the road, manoeuvres this, and continues to go down. At the bottom, he waits at a bridge over one arm of the Credit River. He waits for a minute and checks his watch.
Joe continues to wait, and wait, and wait some more. After 10 minutes, Andy has not shown up. Joe doesn't really want to ride back up the hill, but what happened to Andy? Is he in trouble? Did he have an accident? Joe's imagination goes wild. Did Andy slide out on one of the turns or hit a car when going around the switchback? Joe rides back up hill. He meets Andy about half way up, just before the switchback. Andy says "Sorry, I had a flat tire."
At the bottom of the hill the road winds by many luxury homes as it follows the Credit River. The valley is narrow. There is a rail road bridge way overhead. Joe remembers hiking through this area on the Bruce Trail, many years ago. It seems like centuries? He remembers one steep part of the trail up a muddy slope. "What has happened to the Bruce Trail? Does it still go up that hill?"
The road soon goes on a second bridge over the other branch of the Credit River. After this bridge there is a dirt road to right. Joe and Andy make a right turn onto the dirt road. There are fewer homes, and more trees, along this dirt road. After a winding section, the road dumps out into a wider valley. Here, the road is paved and there are fields of crops. Joe and Andy take the next paved road to the right -– McGregor Road. McGregor Road goes uphill, out of the valley, and passes through Inglewood whe re there's a slight downhill over some railroad tracks. The tracks are at an angle to the road. Joe grips his handlebars tightly and travels quickly over the tracks. He almost falls as the tracks jerk his handlebars to the left. He's lucky today and doesn't fall. Andy slows down and puts a foot down to help him get over the tracks. He says, "These are bike killer tracks!"
After Inglewood, they travel south to King Street, turn right, and go to Terra Cotta. At Terra Cotta, they pause and read a map before descending the hill. Just down the hill there is a large trailer park on the banks of the Credit River. The road follows the Credit River through Terra Cotta. There are many homes and more open fields here than at the Forks of the Credit. The valley is wider and there are some cattle. The road goes up hill after Terra Cotta.
"My, this route is confusing. It goes in and out of the river valley. It would be a lot simpler if we just stayed in the valley?"
Joe and Andy follow the road south from Terra Cotta and take a right turn to Glen Williams. Glen Williams is again in the Credit River valley. There is a large park with ball diamonds in Glen Williams. They turn left along Confederation Street which follows the River and are soon in Georgetown where the road name changes to Mountainview Road and the road climbs out of the Credit River valley. This is the last climb out of the Credit River valley on this trip.
Mountainview Road continues uphill to a cemetery at Maple Avenue where Joe and Andy turn right. Today's trip continues on Maple Avenue through Georgetown. Joe and Andy have a short diversion at Highway 7 where they get some lunch at a grocery store. They each buy lots of fruit drink, consume most of it, and put the rest in their water bottles. The weather is quite hot and they don't want to get dehydrated.
After their lunch break, Joe and Andy return to Maple Avenue and travel west through Georgetown. Just before leaving Georgetown, there is a large golf course down a hill to the left and the Halton Hills Civic Centre uphill to the right. They go up the small street and take a look at the Civic Centre before continuing on Maple Avenue across Trafalgar Road and out of Georgetown.
Andy says, "Limehouse is near here. Follow me." He takes take the next paved road to the right and continues uphill to the next paved road to the left where he goes up a short, steep hill. Joe follows. They are now in Limehouse. Joe has never been here by bicycle, but remembers hiking the Bruce Trail through Limehouse. It all looks familiar when he is at the centre of Limehouse. They take the road to the left on a rickety bridge over railroad tracks. There are modest looking houses all along t his road. At its end they jog left and go up a steep hill for half a kilometre. Andy was here last year. As they approach the hill, Andy tells Joe that the hill is steep and requires a low gear. Part way up the hill, Joe is glad that he heeded Andy's advice. At the top of the hill there are major quarries on both sides of the road. The quarries are closed today. They both stop to pee at the entrance to the first quarry.
The weather is now very hot, probably 30 degrees C., and they are travelling into a strong head wind. Both cyclists felt a bit stodgy going through Limehouse and up the hill to the quarries. They take a short rest and decide to continue.
"It's not too much further."
"We're past half way?"
On the next part of the trip, some trees and bushes shield them from the wind. Joe also starts to realise how steep the road was just outside of Georgetown. He is now magically travelling in a higher gear. "Sure was steep coming out of Georgetown… I thought I was done for the day… it's easier now?" Andy replies, "Yes."
The Limehouse Road leads to Highway 25 where Joe and Andy turn right. There is lots of traffic on Highway 25, but they don't have far to go. They turn left at Road 12, which they follow to Guelph Line. They are glad to be off of Highway 25 since the traffic on Road 12 is light. Two mountain bikers ride by going in the other direction. One mountain biker asks Joe, "How are you?" Joe replies, "Hot." They all smile and pedal on. There are lots of trees to protect them from the wind and a few houses along Road 12. The terrain is rolling with a few short, steep sections. The trees are mostly green. A few have started to change to their fall colours of red, yellow, and brown.
Today's route goes right at Guelph Line. At Eden Mills Road there is a stop sign. Andy says, "The bridge at Eden mills has been under repair all summer. Do you want to try it?" Joe replies, "Yes."
They soon see that the bridge is still under repair. Andy notices a woman walking down a road near the bridge. They follow her and cross the river on a temporary footbridge. On the outskirts of Eden Mills they turn right on Road 29 which takes them to Highway 7. They are almost back in Guelph. After turning left on Highway 7 they soon see Guelph's airport, eastern industrial park, and penitentiary. They stop in a park by the Speed River, sit on a bench, rest, and chat before returning to Andy's house.