Last post for this wander

I went out Thursday morning the 24th of July

to the Alviso Marina in north San Jose and rolled the bike backwards down the boat ramp until the rear tire touched the water. Salt water at Ferry Beach, Scarborough, ME to salt water Alviso Marina. Coast to coast. 4,697 miles including the shakedown cruise in fifteen travel days.

Days over 500 miles - 1
Days over 400 < 500 - 4
Days over 300 < 400 - 2

Things to remember:
High 300 miles is good for a travel day where you can arrive in time to set up, explore and relax. The days over 450 really didn't allow for anything else but travelling.
It stays lighter much later the farther north you go. The farthest north I got was Kenora, ON and there were less than nine hours of darkness. You can get in late and still have lots of time.
Don't plan on being on the road before 8:30. Even with my best intentions, I never got on the road before 8:30. I always stopped to talk with someone or found some additional preparation that needed to be made before I could go.
Whenever in doubt, put on the rain gear! The weather can move very fast.
A night spent in a primitive campsite is worth two spent in a motel.

Places to avoid:
The Canadian prairie. The people are fine but it's a very long way between points of interest.
Thunder Bay, ON to Kenora, ON - long road with little of interest
North shore of Lake Huron, ON - long road with little of interest

Places to return:
Adirondacks - would definitely return to Saranac Lake area
Algonquin Provincial Park, Whitney, ON - Wonderful wilderness
Kenora, ON - Lake of the Woods - rent a boat?
Lake Superior -  it's apparently common to go all the way around the lake. The north and east shore were great.
Glacier National Park (US side) & Waterton Lakes National Park (Canadian side) the glaciers were less interesting than the terrain as a whole. Stick to the east side, the west side is too commercial.
Central Oregon - didn't get to Crater Lake and that whole area, a long haul to get there, but it looked like it would be worth exploriing.

Things to take along:
Some additional water capacity. Primitive campsites don't necessarily have potable water. Something collapsible perhaps?
Padding for the backpack straps that fit the tank bag. It's a good solution, but after a few hours the shoulders get too sore too soon.
Take books on tablet. Easy to read in a tent after dark without disturbing anyone.
Might think about more padding to sleep on, although after the second night, that ground didn't seem that hard

Talking with people:
Three questions:

• Where's the best pie? 
• If over 25, "Why should someone move to <name of town where you are>?" 
• If under 25, "What does the future hold?"

No matter who or where I asked, the answer to the "Why should someone move to <name of town where you are>?" question was almost always, "Because of the people who are here." The community feeling of small towns is still there, although the entire northern tier is becoming more sparsely settled by the month.

Thanks for following along, this is the last post for this wander. But there will be more wandering in the future.