Day 19 - disaster

It was the 19th day on the road.  We'd had a charmed trip with nothing but sunshine until yesterday when the oddest things appeared on the windscreen. We tried to remember where we had seen these little oblong reflective mirrors and suddenly looked at each other and shouted -"rain!"! It lasted an hour, before we were again bathed in sun.

We spent that night in Sault St Marie. The little motel advertised free movies, so, after registering, we made a tough selection in a room that took us back a decade. It was full of VCR jackets. We selected two options before heading off to the lake shore for a 'sit down and order whatever we wanted' dinner. We chose whitefish and felt nourished by both food and the view.

Cathy, frightened by an errant firework, huddled under something safe!

The next day was slightly overcast. In spite of the turn in weather, we decided to head to Manatoulin Island and see more of the rock, trees and sky that had intrigued us so far. The sun came out for our run through the Manatoulin area, on the north part of Lake Superior. The place was riddled with islands within islands within islands. Just the thing for two island girls! We drove by one island that was no more than seven feet across and bore a lone pine tree on it's rugged surface, and stopped to photograph the delicate soft green of spring that enveloped us like a lucious green pillow.

We stopped at one shop and met the white-haired owners who blessed us with stories about themselves, the pine needle art, the artisans, and a bundle of sweetgrass for our trip.

We met a curious couple while dining on more fish near the ferry terminal. They had seen the dragonfly-wing blue truck, with its cocktail glasses on the side, and tall antennae, and wondered about the series of addresses on the back. We laughed together sharing stories from our journey, and learned about great trains in India. Others were curious too, and the intrigue led to an invitation to the bridge of the ferry once it was underway. That was a treat, and we complimented the crew on the comfortable arrangements on the boat, where seating options were diverse, with scattered Adirondack chairs, long lazy wooden benches and padded cozy chairs.

I post no pictures of this trip as a tribute to my little i-phone, which had a watery death on the ferry.  I had placed the phone in my hip pocket - you know - the one that should come with a warning label for silly people like me who head to washroom without thinking. There was a terrifying plunk as I was about to sit down, and sure enough, the phone had dropped a couple of feet into the bowl. We begged a ziplock bag of rice from a kind crew member in the galley and the rest of the day I traveled in a "how could i be so stupid' funk. It's a holiday weekend and I won't know if the phone can be resurrected until Tuesday. So call us on Cathy's cel please.

It was certainly a little' d' disaster. The truck is fine, although sputtering a bit these last two days, upon starting. We are both well - staying with a friend in Milton, where we may go swimming, and will certainly enjoy a rest today.