The concept of a quest is perhaps as old as humankind, a hero's journey to attain something elusive and desirable, whether real or spiritual. The Odyssey by Homer told the tale of a man seeking respite from the wrath of the Olympian gods. Homer of The Simpsons tells the never-ending tale of a man seeking donuts. Sir Galahad - and Monty Python - sought the Holy Grail.
I sought putin. No, not Vladimir Putin, current prime minister of Russia. No, I sought the real putin ("poo-teen"): French fries with melted cheese and gravy, popular in eastern Canada. Who says America has all the haute cuisine?
Enabling this Arthurian quest were Harley-Davidson and Best Western. In 2007, they joined forces and created the Gold Crown Club International Ride Rewards program. Members-membership is free-receive 10% off of their hotel stays and also earn points redeemable for free rooms, airline travel and more. There are also more than 1000 Best Western hotels that are now "rider-friendly" and, at a minimum, provide cleaning towels and a place for riders to wash their bikes. H-D's Ride Planner, on the Harley website, shows all of the Best Western hotels that are on a rider's planned route.
After flying in to Toronto, Canada, my quest companions and I rendezvoused a few miles outside of Toronto, in Orangeville, at the local Best Western. Besides our hosts from Best Western, there were six other journalists from the U.S. and Canada. Dinner was at The White Truffle, a restaurant that would fit right in to Napa Valley with its California cuisine offerings.
The fun and games really began the next morning. Harley-Davidson Canada provided us with a selection of bikes. None of the touring bikes were to be found but this wasn't quite so odd considering that there would be a minivan (oh, the indignity of motorcycling with a minivan!) shlepping all of our gear and freeing us up for lightweight touring.
Prior to our arrival in Ontario, there was record rain all summer but our weather was sunny and heading for the 80's-we were lucky to have it for the whole trip. The roads were pretty straight as we headed south on Highway 404, skirting most of the congestion of Toronto before going east on Highway 401. It was a lovely bit of road with Lake Ontario to the south and farm fields to the north spanning the gaps between small towns. Most of the fields were growing corn for animal feed, the food corn having already been harvested. After a nice lunch in Port Hope, we continued east on King's Highway 2 to Trenton, with a dip south on Highway 33 (aka Loyalist Parkway) to Wellington.
There began the next challenge on the quest: kayaking. Fine, there were no barbarians attacking us and the waters were free of sharks, but it was a new experience for most of the group-so there! Bernie Gray and his crew of one guided us on a sunset tour of West Lake, a small lake protected from Lake Ontario itself. No one capsized and all were in fine condition for the post-sunset ride up Highway 62 to our lodging for the night at-where else?-the Best Western Belleville. We headed across the street for dinner at Mexicali Rosa's. Like everywhere in Canada, the staff was friendly and attentive. That said, Canada has never been known as the premiere destination for Mexican cuisine. Due to our late arrival in Belleville, the next morning's departure time was pushed to 10 a.m....and I used every extra minute counting sheep.