unicycling across canada

Unicycling Across Canada

Monday, February 22, 2010

Background

• Philip Schleihauf

• Male

• 18 Years Old

• 6’2”

• 140 lb

• Unicyclist


Unicycling

• Seven Years Experience

• One Previous Tour: Ottawa to Kingston

• 250 km

• Four days

• Self-Supported


Invisible Children

• Operates in Northern Uganda

• Ending the Longest-Running war in Africa

• Freeing, Protecting, and Rehabilitating the Child Soldiers of the LRA


Unicycling Across Canada


Training10 Weeks

RidingResearch

Persuading Parents


Snow Most cycling paths in Ottawa are snowed over until late spring


Train Ticket Purchased six days before departure


Small Tent Purchased three days before departure.

Most of the planning was a bit last-minute.


TorontoTrain ChangeoverUnicycle Tune-Up


Bedford Unicycles

• Checked in for a Tune-Up

• Unicycle was Falling Apart

• New Hub, spokes, cranks, seat, much more

• Thanks Darren!


Broken Hub The bearings broke upon removal


Wheel Rebuild The bike shop where my wheel was rebuilt with new hub and spokes.


Train West


Northern Ontario A bit of a shock to wake up finding the landscape blanketed in snow.


Toronto to Vancouver

Four nights. We stopped for several hours each day so I was able to ride a bit and keep in shape.


Black Bear The only bear on the whole trip.


Ferry to Victoria They charged the extra “bike” fee, but I still had to carry it with me.


Victoria, BCOne Week to Prepare and

Get in Shape


Bike Paths Victoria’s bike paths are incredible. Packed gravel or paved, and the landscape is beautiful.


Pacific Ocean


Fraiser Valley, BC

Four Days of Easy Riding Before the Mountains


Surrounded by Mountains

The route to Hope, the town on the edge of the mountains, is remarkably flat.After the second day the mountains in the distance almost surround the valley.


First Newspaper Article

My first article was arranged for the morning I headed out of the valley and into the mountains


Rocky Mountains


Road out of Hope

The highway splits after Hope into the number 1 Transcanada, and my route, the number 3 Crowsnest highway.This photo was just after that split, showing the beginning of Hope Slide, and mountains looming in the background.


Lunch Break Part-way up Hope Slide


Snow Just a little into the mountains and I hit one of my biggest concerns, snow.


Hope Slide These signs are only posted at the tops of big hills, never the bottom. It’s almost nice to see them, confirming the tough climb just completed.


First Night Camping It was a challenge to find dry ground.


Misty Morning It started raining halfway through the night, and kept up well into the fifth day.


Allison Pass I had read that this pass is one of the toughest. Not because it’s demanding, but because it’s the first. I didn’t realize I was climbing it until I got here.


Leaving Manning Park

After four days in the mountains, I finally left manning park, the most remote stretch of the trip until Northern Ontario.


Camping in Luxury Someone left a smouldering fire, some pots and pans, cutlery and mugs, and chairs in this forestry reserve. My tent is in the background on the right.


Osoyoos, BC One thing that struck me in the mountains was the diversity of landscapes.


30 km Uphill Steep uphill for 20 km out of Osoyoos, mostly uphill for another 10. I had gotten warning of it in Osoyoos, where I took a rest day. It was the best pass of the trip.


Frozen Lake After Manning park, there was little trouble with cold temperatures and snow. Only at high elevations was it cold enough to be a problem.


Blueberry-Paulson Pass

By far the toughest climb. I left much later than I should have, and was assured it would be easy.


Paulson Pass Many hours later and over a kilometre higher, I made it over the pass and found the ski shelter where I spent the night.


Nelson, BC


Kootenay Lake I took Highway 3a through Nelson, which added a bit of distance but bypassed a mountain and brought me along Kootenay Lake, one of my favourite rides.


Camping on Kootenay

Another case of listening to drivers’ advice. It was difficult to find anywhere not occupied by houses or cottages, and I got stuck here for the night.


Emu I was offered a place to stay in Wynndel, just before Creston, BC. The woman had two emu at that time. Incredible creatures.


Cranbrook, BC The ride into Cranbrook was the best of the trip to that point. I did two short days’ worth in one.


Mountains and River

23-photo panorama taken on the way to Yahk, BC.


Horses Zoom of a region of the 23-photo panorama on the way to Yahk.


World’s Biggest Truck

Now decommissioned, this truck used to work 24/7 in some kind of mining operation


Unicycle and pack for scale


Crowsnest Pass Highway 3 crosses the AB/BC border at the summit of the Crowsnest Pass.


The Prairies


Mountains to Prairies

The change is pretty abrupt.


Long, Straight Roads


Saskatchewan I started averaging about 100 km each day after entering the prairies, taking away most of my time energy for photography.


Snowstorm Saskatchewan got dumped with snow the day before I crossed the border. The storm had closed the highway.


Second Unicyclist

• Dave Cox, from Newfoundland

• Left a few weeks after I did, caught up in SK.

• Rode together to Regina, after which he went back to AB for a girl...


Salt Flats


Rocket Stove

• Dave showed me how to make a small stove out of two pop cans

• Finally, I could have warm meals when camping


Ontario


Welcome to Ontario Ontario’s welcome sign was . . . disappointing.


Ontario’s second welcome sign, on the other hand . . .


Road to Thunder Bay

I rode three days with Brian and Emilie on their “Tour de Support” from Calgary to Thunder Bay.


Upsala, ON Bryan, me, Emilie.


Handlebar Drops

I added handlebar extensions in Thunder Bay, making the ride much more comfortable from that point on.


Sleeping Giant


Terry Fox Memorial


More Cyclists I ran into a lot of people crossing Canada on bicycles. These two were heading west.


Wawa, ON


Lake Superior


Montreal River Hill


Sault Ste. Marie


Almost Home

• North Bay

• The first sign showing Ottawa


Mosquitos


Ottawa


Final Stretch About 20 cyclists joined me for the very last leg of the trip.


The EndOttawa, ON

4700 km


unicycling across canada

Art & Photos

rocky mountains

beginning of hope slide

bike pathsvictorias

hope slidethese signs

manning park

northern ontario

bike shop

rest day