A Holiday Special

It’s been over a month since I dove deep into Ashleigh’s audio diaries and I have bloggers guilt about not posting since then. 

I think my writing slump may have matched Ashleigh’s, like a weird syncing of emotions, the wind, heat, and overwhelmingly lonely ride down the west coast of Peru and then Chile, mirrored my weariness. Questions swirled: Would she finally crack? Would the lack of greenery send her spiralling? I didn’t know what to write. Thankfully for me, her Strava posts got longer and longer, keeping people up to date on her progress. 

I did manage to stay in touch with her, in a group chat with Aryn and through intermittent phone calls. One particularly nice phone call from Peru involved her pulling off to the side of the road to buy water because she wasn’t sure when the next convenience store would be. I could hear her speaking fluently in Spanish with the shop owner. The owner asked “where are you going?” and she replied, “Argentina”. It was getting dark, and I could hear the shop owner quickly say “no, no, no, that’s not safe, you’ll stay here”. And just like that I went along in Ashleigh’s headphones, around the back of the store, to a small room with a single bed and a roof to shelter her from the wind for the night. It was special to glimpse Ashleigh’s day-to-day interactions - in Spanish, and marked by the kindness of locals she’s encountered throughout her time in South America.

And all of a sudden there was a shift in our calls. Entering Argentina was a major milestone on her journey, and I could tell that she had reached a turning point. 

I spoke with her again as she was riding away from the Argentinian Andes, towards the coast, and although the wind was really grinding her down, she exclaimed, “this ride has really reinvigorated my love of cycling long-distance, I would really like to travel the world this way, in small chunks”. I was so pleased to hear her say that. To think of all the things that she’s been through - broken by the elements, the solitude, the terrain, over and over again. I’ve often wondered what this ride would do to her love of cycling.  Heck, I've heard her mention being a fair-weather cyclist only from now on. But her love of cycling is still there, and probably deeper than ever before. 

And as if on cue, I receive a text with a sign for Ushuaia in it! And what’s that? Derik’s flying to Buenas Aires! Wait, it's almost Christmas!? She must be close! Holy shit she’s a few days away from finishing! 

The excitement of seeing Ashleigh again soon, in Halifax, on two feet, no bicycle in sight, has got me going! I’m back to checking her location hourly, the windy app is a click away, now I’m monitoring two Strava accounts - Derik is exploring Usuaiah by bike (how unfair)! CBC is in her DMs, her bike jersey is about to fall off her back, she’s categorizing cakes by their quality and photographing each one because she’s eating them daily for dinner. This is starting to sound like "The 12 Days of... Ashleigh"?

This chapter is about to come to a close, and I’m crying as I type this because she’s doing it! She’s done it. The road is about to run out, kilometer 23,000 is in reach, the holidays are here and we’re ready to tell stories around the dinner table about our fearless friend who just set the women's pan-American highway world record. 

Happy holidays to everyone who has followed along. And to Ashleigh, we are all on the finish line with you in our hearts. See you soon!

- Jessie

Supported by: 

Augustine House Society; Arkel Bike Bags; Fluent Frameworks; Long Alley Bicycles; Anytime Fitness Halifax; Acadia Sport Therapy; Showerspass; Night of Adventure; Ridleys' Cycle; Fauna Components

Every person who's donated through the Go Fund Me page! 

A strong support system: friends, family, and the outdoor community in Halifax.