6,274 kms

I made it home safe and sound on Saturday night following a LONG LONG drive. I wanted to track how long it was, but I couldn't find a pen on the morning I left Calgary to write down the odometer reading, so I took a picture with my phone. Then I took another picture when I pulled into the driveway.

You can see the difference is 6,274 kms (around 3900 miles). That's a long way to drive east.

Although I won't ever do it again, it was fun. I got to visit family and friends along the way and see a lot of familiar sights. You know how you always look for familiar landmarks and sights to mark your progress when you make a long trip? When Lori and I would drive to the cottage we would always look for the numbers embedded in the hills around Kenmare, North Dakota. The graduating class of the local high school has been putting them there since 1945.

I always look forward to my favorite places to eat as well. Every time I pass through Harriston, Ontario, I always stop in to the Cedar Rail for lunch. It's hard to find a place that still sells a foot-long hotdog.

You know you're doing a long drive when you have to take 2 ferries.  My first was the Chi Cheemaun across Lake Huron from Manitoulin Island to Tobermory.

My second was a much larger one from Nova Scotia to Newfoundland.

This one crossed overnight, so I booked myself some luxurious accommodations.

Actually, it was very comfortable. Of course, I was pretty exhausted by this point so my standards may have been a little lower than normal.

Thanks to Linda and Colin in Calgary, James and Amanda in Wiarton, Dean and Charlene in Cambridge, Brad and Darren in Ottawa for putting me up and feeding me beer. It was a fun week.

db