Birthday Wishes
September 10, 2025
Elapsed time: 17 d 12 h 29 m; Distance travelled 3700 km
Birthday wishes are in order! Today is Ashleigh’s 34th birthday and she’ll be celebrating in Calgary! The birthday agenda includes (in no particular order):
Check-in to the hostel in Calgary… early (we hope)!
Laundry, food, admin
A good night’s sleep
A trip to the bike shop for new chain and brake pads
A trip to the post office to ship some gear home
Some relaxation! Maybe a beer and some cake to celebrate!?
The past few days have done wonders for Ashleigh’s spirit and her supporters at home! She’s now reachable 24/7 thanks to an abundance of cell towers and is no longer carrying multiple pounds of food to cover the long stretches of northern BC. On a recent call with Ashleigh, she sounded light, refreshed and worry-free (despite the steady roar of semis driving past). She reminisced about her time on the Dalton: “I will never, ever forget the feeling of dread of having to walk my bike down Beaver Slide or the feeling of relief arriving in Fairbanks to a hot meal and a bed to sleep in”. Clearly those first few gruelling days on her bike have stuck with her, and will for a while, but when asked if the monotony of the prairies was already setting in she said, [laughing] “no! I would take this any day. Bring on as many miles of easy straight flat roads that are insignificant and forgettable”.
Not too long ago the fear was bears and wildlife, but more and more she’s got traffic to worry about. On the plus side, she said the road’s shoulder in Alberta is ginormous, and interestingly she’ll be crossing the path that she and Derik rode through on their cross-Canada trek in 2018. She said “I remember riding my bike through Alberta and thinking, I’ve got my own lane on this road, all for me and my bike!”.
Over the last few days, her daily average has been steadily climbing and it now sits just over 210km. It’s not quite where she wants it to be, but the quality of roads, frequent food stops and warm temps are all helping. To hear Ashleigh talk about her excitement for road-side fruit stands in Mexico and fire halls that offer refuge in Ecuador really puts the ride into perspective. She talks of Canada as though it’s just the next turn in the road, but behind her words is the quiet fact that she's just ridden across a whole stretch of Canada that most people only ever fly over.
So, here’s a big HAPPY BIRTHDAY to Ashleigh. If you’re reading this and feeling the itch to send her well-wishes, why not hop over to her GoFundMe page and send her a treat.
- Jessie
Ashleigh in 2019, after completing her first ever endurance cycling race, the TransAtlanticWay, a 1700km bikepacking race along the West coast of Ireland. If she could only see herself now!
This ride is supported by:
Augustine House; Arkel Bike Bags; Fluent Frameworks; Long Alley Bicycles; Anytime Fitness Halifax; Acadia Sport Therapy; Showerspass; Night of Adventure
Every person who's donated through the Go Fund Me page!
A strong support system: friends, family, and the outdoor community in Halifax