DAY 1: ROCKTON - CLIFFORD Relocating our gear to the large picnic shelter a little after 8am, adjacent to the Beverly Community Centre Building, we waited out the weather until 11am. We rode through the consistent rain for over an hour — I noticed that my front splash-guard directs all water (when there is a substantial amount on the road) straight onto my shoes. Needless to say my shoes filled up with water and where wet for the rest of the day. My shoes performed well, going from saturated to damp within 2-hours of riding (I was very happy!).

We followed Highway 8 making our first quick stop at Preston. We rode on the same route through St Jacobs, Alma, Parker and Teviotdale (a little round-a-bout). Being in Mennonite territory was interesting — we received a number of friendly waves. We also met some very friendly folk along the way.

Just before we reached Teviotdale, we were flagged down by someone who was planning a cycle tour through eastern Europe. He asked where we were staying the night and offered us his place (less than 1km up the road). As we wanted/hoped to make Tobermory the next day, we thanked him and pushed on. At Harriston the manager (owner) of the local grocery store recommended a park on the edge of Clifford as a place to stay the night.

We camped out (again sleeping outside) in this park, and set out our gear to dry in the morning!