I forgot what time I left Assiniboi, maybe 10. Since it was still raining, I weathered up. Fueled up and headed east. Rain. Bad roads. Kept speed down. Really bad roads for awhile. Maybe 30 miles. Then they improved and I brought speed up to about 65 when rain was light and 55 when heavy. It was like this all day long. I had an hour or so with no rain, but then again no sun.

Scenery was monotonous. Flat. However not treeless. Agricultural. Big ranches, farms, occasional small town.

It was cold as well. Relatively speaking. In the 50s. About 150 miles out the winds picked up. 30-40 mph. Off the forward quarters of the bike. I was starting to get cold. Cold and wet. The winds will not knock the bike over. It will however push you around the lane, especially in big gusts. Sometimes in the sustained winds direct to your broadside you’re leaning the bike in an angle into the wind to compensate.

Cold, rain, wind, bad roads at times, all day. I even hit a patch of hail. Not the big stuff. The little pea sized. Stings. This was one of my most challenging ride on this trip. Technically at least. Physically, that heat down south I believe still is the winner there.

I stopped in some town in Saskatchewan to get a sandwich. Main reason was to warm up and figure where I was and what my plan was..

50 miles to Manitoba. Another 75 to Soures, MB where I could catch a road south to a border crossing and drop into North Dakota. Another 100 miles. I had a plan. Albeit it was getting towards mid-afternoon and I was not making good time.

I hit Manitoba in short order. I was even going to stop for a pic of the sign. However, the rain, a shoulder of loose gravel and a sign that smaller than a speed limit sign negated that.

Hit Souris, fueled and headed south. Good road. Light rain. Picked up speed. About 10 miles north of the border the rain stopped. Customs was a non-event. Smiled, checked my passport and told me to be safe.

In 50 miles I was in Rugby, ND. Which I found out is the geographical center of the North American Continent. I picked a hotel next to this national treasure knowing that I would be on the receiving end of some sort of metaphysical energy vortexes all night. It would help me sleep.  It was close to 8p when I check in.

Cool evening. Sat outside for my customary scotch and cigar. This is why I brought my hoodie. A local came up to chat. I didn’t get his name. 80Yrs young. Nice guy. He said his wife was out doing something so he was going to see what was going in town. Talked for a while.  Realized it was 10p and went to bed.

Up, looked outside and saw rain. Oh well. Went over to the restaurant for their complimentary breakfast. You bet.

So its a little after 8. I’ll push this out. Load the bike. It has stopped raining and it looks pretty clear east following US 2. Tonight hopefully somewhere in Minnesota.

Life is good.