A septuagenarian cyclist from Ontario arrived in Halifax Friday after logging more than 2,000 kilometres on the road in an effort to raise money to help Cambodian kids go to school.
That leg completed Armin Kluge’s journey across Canada, broken up into three chunks over three years.
The trim 72-year-old said the idea for a cross-country bicycle trip was first hatched a few years ago when a fellow kayaker told him about cycling from Vancouver to Halifax at age 70 as they were sea kayaking around Ellesmere Island.

He said that thought got stuck in his mind, but not being a serious cyclist, he didn’t act on it.
That changed in 2010 when he returned from Cambodia, where he had helped a childhood friend from his native Germany establish Angkor Peak Sneng Junior High School.
“All of a sudden I realized I’m going to be 70, so I said, ‘Hmm, what about this bike trip,’ ” Kluge recalled.
“I said, ‘OK, I’m going to ride my bike across Canada,’ and then of course, the next thought was here’s a good opportunity to support the children in the village in Cambodia in the school that I helped to build.”
Kluge, who lives in Aurora, Ont., said his goal was to raise a dollar for every one of the roughly 7,000 kilometres he’d travel. He said he’s almost up to $30,000, but has hopes of getting to $50,000.
He sounded overwhelmed by the generosity and warmth of people he met across the country.
“What stands out by a country mile is my experience meeting Canadian people, seeing the willingness, the goodness, the compassion that they have shown toward me, toward what I do, I have so many wonderful stories,” he said.
Kluge, a retired automotive manufacturing engineer, said he may write a book about the experience.
More information on Kluge and his efforts can be found at bit.ly/QhzaiM.