Canada Day - long weekend?

Summer has truly arrived. Almost to the day (June 21st ) things got hot and humid (and a little bit buggy) so it finally feels like summer. In fact, the days are getting shorter now so we are on the downslope. Not quite time to get the skis out and prepped but…. Well maybe even too soon for thoughts of skiing. Yesterday was a day off for Canada Day and with the judicious placement of 1 extra day off work I was able to put together a 5 day weekend – sweet! Sadly the weatherman worked against me with promises of heavy rain most days. That coupled with a concert ticket on Sunday night – mid long weekend – and I decided not to make any trips away but rather stay close to home. Kicked it off with a great show at the Black Sheep with Bryan. From there, in spite of the weathermans dire predictions (“Have Ark ready at hand!”), it didn’t actually rain that much. Oh it was certainly gray and menacingly cloudy at a few points but it only actually opened up a couple of times and even then only for a ½ hour or so. No big lose though as there was a lot to do around town and I got a lot of good riding in.

Tuesday I rode out and around Lac Phillippe on some of the great trails in the northern end of the park. Had my first run in of the season with a bear up there which seems kind of late this year. I've usually crossed paths with a few bears by this point in the season. It was a strange run in too as I usually meet bears as I come roaring downhill and they are suddenly scrambling to avoid me. In this case coming to a bend in the trail I was faced with a short steep climb… and quite a big bear walking at the top of it. My first thought was to pull my camera out of the bag as it would have made a great shot just a 100 meters or so in front of me. Alas, as I pulled my brakes to stop they made a short squeak which alerted her to my presence. A moment later – ursine synapses crackling - she bolted into the woods. I gave her a few seconds to escape deeper into the trees and then stepped on my pedals to continue on my way… only to have her re-cross my path running the other direction – What the?! Okay, I’ll give her a few more seconds to get into the trees on the other side before riding up the short hill. At the top of the hill I could see her deep in the trees and it was then that I heard the skittering of claws as her two cubs dropped out of a nearby tree and scampered after her. Seems in her haste to evade me she had forgotten her cubs… so she came roaring back to collect them. Glad I had given her some space – because after all I have slightly above-average ursine intelligence. Ah well, now that I know this spot – and can bet the family will be back – I may try (at a safe distance) to come back for some photo ops.

I also stopped in on my neighbours at the RCMP stables. They had been putting on their annual sunset ceremony this week as a dress rehearsal for their summer tour. Living so close to the stables I’ve seen the show dozens of times and typically don’t bother but coming home from my ride I spotted the horsemen in the back pasture warming up and decided to head over and check it out. No glorious setting sun at the show tonight but no rain either so the weatherman was wrong again. The show of course never changes but the riders and horses do. I looked for a few of the “old guard” of horses I remember from a few years back in the stable but I couldn’t find any. I guess they’ve moved on to a well earned retirement with green pastures and healthy stud fees.

Wednesday was Canada Day. After helping out with the Canada Day road races in the morning (Run Ottawa's first event under the new structure) I went for another long ride in the park. No bears and no rain either (despite 80% chance of showers) so another good day. Tried a new spot to watch the fireworks in the evening. It was certainly an easy spot to get to - no traffic, easy parking, minimal overall effort. The angle was a little off but there’s always next year to keep looking for the optimum vantage point. Maybe next year the weatherman will have a more encouraging (or at least accurate)forecast.