The trailer sat here through August and September with little interest in our ads. Before we picked up the new trailer right after Labour Day, I got permission to store the big one at the Rona Ramsey MS Centre Of Hope, where I am Chapter Treasurer and there was a fenced in side lot. By the beginning of October, I was starting to get discouraged and, when it came time to renew the Kijiji ad, I reduced the price a bit.
Soon after the reduction, I got an Email from someone named Jeff inquiring about the trailer. I told him the unit was still for sale and he made an offer only slightly below what I was asking. Faced with the thought of having to keep the trailer all winter and deciding the offer was close enough that dickering didn't seem in order, I accepted and he sent me a deposit via Email.
I had never participated in an Email cash transaction before, either sending or receiving. Depositing the funds via on-line banking meant I didn't have to pay any fees and the money was in my account immediately. I wish I could use this across the border.
Jeff lived in Shelburne, west of Barrie on Highway 89. He asked if we could meet him somewhere part way to finish the deal. I suggested Derek Roberts Esso at Waubaushene, 150 miles south of us. We agreed to meet on Friday (today) at 2:00 PM.
Leo volunteered to come with us in case I needed a replacement driver. Fatigue is a real issue these days, probably due to the heart issues I am waiting to have dealt with. We picked him up around 9:00 AM and then drove over to the MS building where we hooked the trailer up. After a quick stop at Tim's to get some food to go, we were on the road. But, as I got to the south end of town, something was nagging me and I suddenly realized what it was. There are ten adjustable tie-down loops for the trailer and, upon stopping and checking, only four of them were aboard. The other six were in my tie-down bag back in the garage. We had to drive all the way back around town to the house and get the other loops. Then we were back on the road for real.
The weather was good to Parry Sound where we stopped at McDonald's for lunch. It started to get grey as we headed south of there and started to rain as we approached Waubaushene. I called Jeff to let him know we were running about twenty minutes late. He and his wife Judi were already inside having coffee when we pulled into the station.
The ladies stayed inside while Leo, Jeff and I went outside to check out the trailer in the pouring rain, which let up as soon as we were done. All was satisfactory so we unhooked from the Avalanche and connected to Jeff's van. They plan to haul a couple of Harleys in this trailer. It seems we have covered some of the same roads across the continent over the years. Trailer work done, we went inside to finish the paperwork and then they were on their way. Nice folks.
Farewell trailer
We hit the road back north. The rain had abated at Waubaushene but we drove into another heavy storm before too long. On the way, we passed a BMW rider under an overpass putting his rain suit on.
Rain ahead - glad we have a roof
After driving through some heavy rain, we stopped at the Tim's at Horseshoe Lake Road just south of Parry Sound where the precipitation had again let up. The BMW rider pulled in just after we got there. It turns out he was a Metro Toronto cop who was on a weekend adventure. He was traveling without either map or GPS, planning to seek out good riding roads across the Algonquin Park area. It was good he stopped here because this was where he needed to turn east and I gave him a recommended route, which included a few of my favourite roads in the area.
We continued north uneventfully and arrived back in Sudbury before dark, dropping Leo at his house before going home. It was good to be back and down to the requisite number of conveyances again.
Moonrise over Don Lita Subdivision
Today's Route (318 Avalanche/trailer miles):
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