Day 50 Ancaster, ON to Ajax, ON

 As my riding partner, Dan, would say.....today's ride was a "blast". It started with a 4-5 mile ride down the Niagara Escarpment that required hardly any pedaling. Then it was mostly urban riding all day toward Toronto and then on to Ajax. We went through many exclusive areas along the Lake Ontario shoreline and then when we got closer to Toronto itself, we went through many neighborhoods. Later we made our way through the downtown Toronto area. I cannot believe how much development has happened along the Toronto lakeshore. Julie and I have been here a couple time to attend plays over weekends and there are so many new buildings. When we were last here, the area around the CN Tower and the Arena was mostly open space. Now, the whole area has tall condos and office buildings, either up or in the process of being built. I kind of like the way it was before.

Dan and I rode around a bit off route in the downtown area and found our way back to the route later. There were many detours downtown because of the construction. The Toronto Classis had a welcome sign along one of the bike paths coming into downtown. It said something like, "Welcome to Sea To Sea Riders......even Frisians!". I had my picture taken by some one at that sign, but he must have move the camera and it is not very clear.

The route after downtown was still very urban as we moved through one city after another, all the way to Ajax. We are camped at the Ajax Community Centre, which has soccer fields, tennis courts, green space, and an indoor pool (that I enjoyed after getting to camp), and 4 indoor hockey rinks. The building is going to close at 11:30 p.m. and reopen at 5:00 a.m. So, we will need to use the port-a-potty during the night, if nature calls.

Pastor Peter Slofstra, one of the original 2005 Sea To Sea organizers and participants, spoke to our peleton this evening. He was very enthusiastic and inspiring, reminding us of living simply and to enjoy each day and to be careful. He had written a book, "In Tandem", about his 2005 cross Canada experiences. 

We only have 11 cycling days left. Tomorrow, we have 3 church stops for refreshments along the route. Julie had a long day again today, doing number 1 and 4 SAG stops. She has a daily challenge finding the routes when us riders are taking local bike paths and not city streets.