Kitchener – Hamilton

By Deanna on September 23, 2013 • ( 2 )

Today: 72 km

To date: 5,021 km

To go: 2,779 km

We went back to a bakery/coffee shop we had seen/smelt yesterday for breakfast…. well I’m not sure if you can call it breakfast – Alex had two minature cakes, and I was slightly more nutritious with a chocolate croissant & muffin. When I was leaving, this woman stopped and talked to me about the ride – she thought it was cool – so she gave me a bag of cherry tomatoes she had picked that morning from her garden! Delicious! (And nutritious!)

I was really worried today after the Guelph disaster, but the roads were actually really good. We took city streets to a very under-used highway and then entered Hamilton along a multi-use waterside path – lovely! We stopped for lunch and a group of what I thought were Asian tourists were fascinated by us and our bikes – posing with our bikes and then with us for pictures. Turns out they were just from Toronto – but I guess we were still a foreign sight.

Tonight we stayed with my aunt Gloria & uncle Roy. It was lovely to arrive to a plate stacked full of sandwiches! After catching up for a bit, they took us for a tour of the town – it was so nice to sit back (in a car!) and be shuttled about…… Roy is a bit of a history buff so he told us stories about the area – most memorably is the story of Laura Secord – I am sure you have heard of her before – even if it’s just for the chocolates (she had no real connection to the chocolates – they were just named after her). What a great thing to be named after you – I would much prefer to be remembered by chocolates than say some highway….. although can you imagine: Deanna Puttonen chocolates – no way would those sell. Anyway, I digress – I remembered Laura Secord faintly from high school history, but it now had so much more meaning actually being in the place where it all took place. She walked 32km along the Niagara Peninsula to warn British forces of an impending American attack during the War of 1812 – and this information helped the British be successful at the Battle of Beaver Dams (how Canadian is that?!). We later (in a few days) will ride by the house she was in when she first heard the information – we however will not stop because we are too hungry at the time!

After touring the beautiful architecture and historical places in Hamilton, Gloria & Roy took us down to Grimsby Beach. There is a community here that have the coolest houses I have ever seen. This is what I want one day!!! The houses are ornately carved and incredibly colourful! I cannot describe it – you just have to see them! I took a lot of pictures, but to look at a few more check out this article.