(M+M) Dipping the wheels in the Atlantic

Dipping the Wheels in the Atlantic
Originally uploaded by Calypso Orchid

We have finished a week in St. John's Newfoundland with our old friend Rod. We hiked a chunk of the East Coast Trail (from Bay Bulls to the Spout), went up Signal Hill, visited an archeology dig at Ferryland, the Ocean Science Centre on Conception Bay, and rode out to Cape Spear (furthest east you can get in Canada). Dinner theater, and a few nights out with friends filled our evenings.

But, the thing that indicated the trip was complete with goals met was dipping the wheels of our bikes into the water in St. John's. But where to do it? We had already visited Mile 0, but it was quite a ways from the water, so no dipping there. The St. John's harbour is hard to get to, and, frankly, not the cleanest place in Canada (it will be a lot cleaner soon -- St. John's is getting sewage treatment). We selected the small harbour at Quidi Vidi, just to the north of St. John's proper.

We had to cross private property to gain the Quidi Vidi water, and were invited to do so by the land owner. He then had us into his house to look at photos of others who used his harbour side to launch, finish, or carry on their adventures. Nice to know we are in good company.

We'll be back home in Victoria tomorrow (Monday,Aug 25). Even now it is strange to think that the adventure is coming to an end -- what a great ride it has been! Frankly, I'd do it again in a heart beat.

ttfn and happy trails!
Mary

(Mark) Hello from PEI; Home on August 30

Hi all, just a quick note from sunny PEI. We've spent a few days in Charlottetown and then yesterday morning left on bikes; last night we camped along the dunes in PEI National Park at Stanhope and today we're in Cavendish checking out all the Anne/LM Montgomery sights! Tomorrow we'll stay at Kensington and visit a few more LMM sights (birthplace, wedding place) and then we're going to Sunnyside to see a musical before coming back to Charlottetown.

I have booked my return flight (much as I would have liked to take it, the train just wouldn't work out well, and I got a super cheap flight) and I'm getting into Victoria a day before Cathy, I'll be there about noon on August 30th. Charlie is coming in at about 1pm that day, so we're planning on meeting up at the airport and riding into town together! So if anyone wants to ride back into town with me after four months away, just come on by the airport at noon next Saturday!

Chow,

Mark

(M+M) Aug 16 - 18: 9300 kms into St. John's -- We are FINISHED!!

It seems almost surreal, but we are sitting here in the beautiful seaside city of St. John's NFLD with over 9300 kilometres under our bike wheels. It is strange to say this, but as of Monday, Aug 18 WE ARE FINISHED!!!

Here are some stories from our last days:

Sat Aug 16: Clarenville to Bellevue Beach 76 km, 5:25 on the bike
We got a bit of a late start -- too much party time I think! Sonia fed us up and we loaded the bikes and headed out. The day was clear, sunny, and warm. It looked to be a perfect day for making some miles, but the late start and a headwind kept our mileage down.

We had a hump out of Clarenville to get back on the Trans Canada Highway. We spent the rest of the morning riding around the southern end of Trinity Bay. We had some fine views of Trinity's capes and bays early on, especially around Ivany's Cove. Then it was up onto the spine of land that separates the Burin peninsula from the Avalon. At Come by Chance (one of those amazing Newfoundland place names) we could actually see Trinity Bay on the east, and Plancentia Bay on the west.

This spine of land is home to some of the famous Newfoundland fogs. Certainly we got to experience them! We were riding along after lunch when the first wisps started to make themselves known. Within about 15 minutes we were enveloped in a cool, clammy blanket. We had to ride with some care as visibility in sections was quite limited. Fog seems to change the landscape and the scrubby black spruce, small ponds, moss, and lichen seemed almost alpine as they resolved out of the fog. The place reminded us both of being up in the sub-alpine of Strathcona Park on Vancouver Island.

We decided to head down to the water and try camping at Bellevue Beach campground. Blue sky reappeared as we headed away down the Osprey Trail away from the TCH. As the name suggests, the site was beautifully situated above a sand beach on Trinity Bay in the Chance Cove area. We had beautiful views and the sound of the ocean in our ears all night long. The campground had some drinking water troubles, so our purification chemicals came in handy.

Even though it was a beautiful and breezy afternoon, Mike set up the tarp. Lucky he did, the fog descended in the evening, and the rain started overnight. This campsite also had a fresh hatch of black flies -- those odious little creatures! Mike was especially bothered as he decided to take the stove apart. Doing detail work as the black flies eat you is something of an art. Mike did quite a bit of dancing around and yelling, but the stove did burn cleaner. On the upside, black flies do stop bothering you in the evening, and we had no mosquitoes to take their place, so the later evening was pretty much bug-free.

Sun Aug 17: Bellevue Beach to Brigus 76 km
We woke to rain, but the tarp allowed us to enjoy our breakfast and pack up in dry comfort. The rain was initially quite light and we had good views of Trinity Bay as we left Bellevue Beach. We got back on the Trans Canada into a headwind. About 15 km along we pulled off at the Whitburne exit for 2nd breakfast at the Esso. We were nice and wet and hungry by this time, with the rain pounding down, so the stop was appreciated. We toweled off, changed socks, and headed in to dry out.

Our goal for today was well within reach -- the town of Brigus on Conception Bay. Mike's grandfather, Lemuel Roberts, was born in Brigus in 1849. Mike's mother has done some research on the family history in Newfoundland, so we where hoping to see some of the areas she has talked to us about.

We got off the TCH on highway 71. It was a gravel road for a few kms, but it was quiet and we now had the wind at our backs. We rode into the small coastal town of Cupids after passing through Makinsons. Mike's family also has history here, so we visited the church and the ocean front. Founded in 1610, Cupids is the first English settlement in Canada. From Cupids it was south down the coast to Brigus. This little town, founded in 1612, has kept a lot of its character houses. It has a lovely waterfront walk, several old churches on high ground, and lots of Victorian, and older, era homes.

We stayed at the Brittoner Bed and Breakfast. This 160 year old home has been beautifully renovated. It is right on the water and has views out across Conception Bay to Bell Island. Our host, Betty Barrett, made us at home. We dried out, did our laundry, and Betty gave us a fine tea and then dinner.

As the afternoon closed the rain stopped and we got out for an evening walk around the town. Tomorrow would be our last day on the road -- St. John's is just a day's ride from Brigus and the weather report was calling for a sunny day. The tour is almost over for us!

Mon Aug 18: Brigus to St. John's 88 km Betty gave us a fine breakfast and we headed out for our last day on the road. It was sunny and warm, but the wind was up. We had it in our face for the first half of the day as we made our way along highway 60 south around Conception Bay. The road was windy, with a number of hills -- but the views of the bay in bright sunshine were well worth the effort. Names like Marysvale, Avondale, Harbour Main, and Holyrood went spinning by. We even tried a few kilometres on the Trans Canada Trail outside of Holyrood, but it was a bad idea -- the trail is full of sharp rocks and is used by ATVs, so is in no shape for bikes.

After Holyrood our route got busier and turned north. The wind was now at our side and not so fierce. We went up through Seal Cove (home of Jennifer Bursey Kent), and into CBS (Conception Bay South -- but CBS is how everyone refers to it). The road deteriorated here and the drivers got a bit wild, so we climbed the hump out of CBS and made our way back onto the TCH. We took this all the way in to our exit to Memorial University. We were planning on surprising our old friend and roommate Rod Byrne at work - he is a professor in the Computer Science Dept. We missed him at work, but got directions to his house and surprised him there, after a short diversion down into town. What a great fellow Rod is -- we arrived at his house out of the blue and are now staying with him. At dinner that night we also caught up with another old friend, Mike Rendell, and yet another Mike, Mike Rayment.

We toddled around St. John's on our bikes -- down to the harbour (couldn't dip the wheels as it is only docks at harbourside), along some of the historic streets like Water, George, Gower, Cochrane and Bond. This seaside town is full of the most colourful old houses, and it seems like there are fine views down to the harbour from every street. But the streets are steep, and I had to push the bike up a few of them. And so did Mike - his drivetrain had finally had the biscuit and could not cope with the st. John's hills. It seems strange to consider it, but after over 100 days of riding and 9300 kilometres, WE ARE FINISHED!!!!

We'll take the next few days to see the sights in St. John's and area -- things like Signal Hill, Cape Spear, Quidi Vidi, and some of the east coast trail. We'll spend some time catching up with Rod, and with new cycling friends Greg, Pat, and Brian (Pat and Brian were on the x-Canada road ahead of us).We will also ride over to visit the Kents on Bell Island. I'll post something more on our time in St. John's in the next few days, but for now we are simply revelling in our accomplishment and enjoying NOT loading up the bikes.

ttfn
Mary

(Mark) Aug 14-15: Halifax, end of the road (for now)

Aug 14: 68km to Head of Chezzetcook
Today was a nice morning that turned a bit rainy, but not too bad. I could have gotten to Halifax today but wanted to check out several museums and spots along the way and take a scenic route into town, so I arranged crash space in Head of Chezzetcook and took a leisurely day. I met a nice fellow named Nicholas cycling Quebec to Sydney via Halifax, so we were able to exchange tips about what each of us would see on the road. I stopped at the Heritage Village in Lake Charlotte and the Fisherman's Life Museum at Jeddore, which was very nice as they served lunch and tea (no extra charge) just as part of their regular daily routine to visitors. I also waited out rain a couple of times, and also visited the railway museum at Musquodoboit, which was interesting. In Head of Chezzetcook I stayed with Doug and Wendy and their parrot Elvis, and I had an excellent time thanks to their hospitality; and Doug is a local bike advocate so he told me about the rail trail into Dartmouth and various local bike issues.

Aug 15: 53km to Halifax!! End of the road!! (until PEI at least)
A very sunny day all day, which was nice. The rail trail into Dartmouth starts near Head of Chezzetcook and winds into Dartmouth via some very scenic areas; but the surface is not so great in a few spots (but otherwise very nice). I picked a ton of chanterelle mushrooms (probably $40 worth, judging by prices at the farmer's market in Halifax) along the way, stopped at Lawrencetown beaches to watch the surfers (and the surf), and immensely enjoyed the causeway across the salt marshes for several kilometres - a very scenic part of the trail indeed. I got into Dartmouth past Shearwater and the oil refinery and then proceeded into town to my hosts Sarah and Al, who kindly lent me crash space - and lo and behold next door was where Charlie was staying! So it was great to meet up with him again and trade stories. We had a big supper with Charlie, Reuben, Becca, Amy, and Joanna at Reuben's place next door and I made a big pot of chanterelle mushroom soup.

Well, no more biking, at least until Cathy and I get to PEI: the bike is now luggage! Very weird to be reverting to "normal tourist" mode for a while (and just in time, judging by weather reports). Total mileage to date: 8930km .

Probably fewer blog postings for the rest of the trip for me, as Cathy and I will be travelling and doing "normal" tourist things, so we'll keep our own record separate from the blog. Don't worry I'll post regarding the cycling on PEI!

Aug 14 - 15: Bonavista Adventures

Thur Aug 14: Glovertown to Clarenville 90 km

The morning gave us clearing skies and a bit of sunshine. We had a relaxing start to the day and didn't get off until after 10 am. We rode along the water through Traytown and up a honker of a hill to get back to the TCH. The next part of the ride was through Terra Nova National Park, which has large, rolling hills with some nice views of the ocean. A road-side highlight in this park was a huge field of orchids. I think they were ladytress orchids, or perhaps really big bog orchids.

The hills kept our average speed down, and because we started so late we realized later in the day that we couldn't make it to a campground. We ran into Greg about 15 km into the Park and he said he was off to Clarenville, possibly to a motel. After having a quick bite to eat at a road-side cafe outside of Port Blandford we decided to call a B&B in Clarenville. We decided on Sonia's Heritage House B&B. What a stroke of luck!

Upon arriving at Sonia's we found Greg had decided to stay here too. Then we met Judy Lynn and Roger, and Roger's seeing-eye dog O'Riley. They are friends of Sonia's and although originally from the Rock, were here on a visit. Judy Lynn is a professor at University of PEI and, of course, we have friends and colleagues in common. It really is a small, small world!

As Mike moved into our room in this renovated 113 year old traditional Newfoundland home (including three storeys, coffered paneled ceilings and a slate roof), I got a ride up to the liquor store with Judy Lynn and Roger. When we came back, I found we had been invited for a cod dinner with Sonia and Lawrence. It was delicious! Then it was off for a bonfire at the fireplace in the backyard and lots of Newfoundland stories.

The world will grow even smaller for us as Sonia and Lawrence's son Lee is leaving for Victoria next week. He is going to start work with a family relative who runs an industrial window washing firm. I fired up Google Earth and showed Lee exactly where his new home would be. We will keep in touch with Lee when we get back home.

Friday, Aug 15: A tour of Bonavista Peninsula

No riding for us today. A huge tropical storm tracked through Newfoundland, dumping over 70 mm of rain and with winds in excess of 60 km/hr. Over a breakfast of partridge berry pancakes Sonia offered to drive Greg, Mike, and me out to Bonavista, with stops at Amhurst Cove, Bonavista, Cape Bonavista, the Dungeons, Elliston (to visit Sonia's mom and try her partridge berry tart), Trinity, and Port Union. We also called in at a farm in Lethbridge.

The wind was roaring and the rain lashed down for most of the day, but we got to see the North Atlantic in a storm state. I can only imagine what it must have been like for John Cabot as he stood on land at Cape Bonavista in 1497. We were almost blown off our feet as we stepped out of the car at the Bonavista light. I was only too happy to be off the bike!

Sonia also took us to look at her new property in Amhurst Cove. She had grown up in this area and spent many hours looking out over Amhurst Cove. Her property has the same outlook she enjoyed as a girl.

By the time we had a bite of lunch and toured down the east side of the Bonavista peninsula the rain was beginning to lessen a bit, but the wind was still up. We were in the lovely church in Trinity with the wind making the old building creak and groan like a ship in a storm.

In all we toured over 200 km in the car with Sonia. She gave up her whole day for this. Thank you so much Sonia. We would never have seen this area were it not for you! And, Sonia's stories brought the whole place to life in a way no tour book ever could.

Our day wasn't over when we returned. Lawrence had been cooking up a fine pea soup with dumplings and salt beef while we were out. A huge Atlantic salmon was roasted on the bbq, and we all sat down to a wonderful dinner. After dinner the guitars, mandolins, drums and tambourines came out and people dropped in for a kitchen party. We were singing and playing well into the night. The evening finally wrapped up with a bonfire under a clear and calm night sky. With the full moon over the trees of the backyard, Mike and I finally made our way to bed. All in all a highlight day in Newfoundland. I see why people love it here so much.
ttfn
Mary

(Mark) Aug 9 - 13: Nova Scotia Redux

OK I am getting behind on this blog thing - time to update while I have the time.

Aug 9: only 16km today!
I checked out Placentia and visited Castle Hill, which has fabulous views of Placentia Bay, before getting on the ferry at Argentia. It rained somewhat all day. I re-met up with Andy and Christa on the ferry and also met a German backpacker named Deiter and we had a fine time chatting and eating on the ferry. I slept well, once again on the 7th deck lounge floor.

Aug 10: 112km to Glendale, NS.
I got off the ferry at 9:30 and had a nice ride down St Andrew's Channel, through Grand Narrows and Iona and down Portage Rd parallel to the highway. The scenery was nice but not spectacular, and I felt like putting some km behind me on Cape Breton before hitting the Eastern shore, so I decided to get back on the highway after Portage Rd, and I made some nice mileage on the excellent Nova Scotia highways - great pavement, good shoulders. In Glendale I was asking directions to a farm I'd seen a sign for (thinking I could pitch a tent there) from a nice gentleman, we got to chatting, and when he discovered the farm I was heading for he said "oh you can't stay there, they're a bunch of g*dd*mn hippies up there, you can stay here". And thus I made the aquaintance of Roger and Maureen. Roger and I went trout fishing (first time for me, he caught a trout, I got a few nibbles but no bites), and we ate the trout for dinner. They live in a 160-year-old house that Roger fixed up, it is gorgeous and apparently people come from all over to see it. Very nice stay there indeed. Thanks Roger and Maureen!!

Aug 11: 87km to Guysborough
Roger and Maureen fed me a big breakfast despite my protestations. I took the TCH into Port Hastings, back across the Canso Causeway, and turned left down the coast road. It was an interesting ride, not too much to see though. Once I got into Guysborough I was cruising the main street when two nice ladies called me over and asked where I was going, etc. Turns out they had both bike toured, both different tours across the USA. I ended up sleeping in their beach house, it was a big family vacation house, and I kayaked on the ocean in the afternoon! (another first for me) So big thanks to Jim, Jim, Susanna, Stuart, and especially Sarah and Caroline for hosting me!

Aug 12: 103km to Goldenville, past Sherbrook
After breakfast at the beach house I hit the road. I took the Larry's River road south from Guysborough and then the dirt road to New Harbour, in order to avoid going around the big Canso peninsula. It was foggy all morning and then turned into a downpour, which I mostly sat out at Goldboro, and chatted with locals for an hour or so. Then over the cute cable ferry, on which I chatted with a nice couple from Montreal - seeing my socks drying on my bike they insisted that I take a couple of pairs of dry socks! Very nice and slightly odd gift! I went out of the way to visit the lighthouse at Port Bickerton, which is on a nice point, with great views. The rain started up in earnest nearing Sherbrook and I sat out some of it on a porch, visiting with some cats (the porch owners weren't home). Sherbrook sits on the fine St Mary's River valley and I also sat out some rain at the salmon conservation centre just outside of town. Thankfully at about 5:30 the rain stopped and the sun came out all at once as I was entering town, so I carried on to Goldenville looking for a spot to camp. Upon stopping at the first house to fill up water bottles, I met Jason and Eric who of course promptly said "why don't you just camp in the yard?" and then their mum Doreen took a look at me and said "are you kidding? you have to sleep in the basement". So we ended the day with pizza and beer and watching some Olympics.

I should point out that I haven't turned on my camp stove in five days at this point and I was actually looking forward to camping and cooking for myself that night, but I just can't refuse Nova Scotian hospitality! Everyone is really eager to help out the traveller it seems.

Aug 13: 97km to Spry Harbour
Nice riding along the shoreside towns all day today. One interesting highlight was a scarecrow collection, similar to the one near Cheticamp, but unlike that one (which was fun and silly) this one was downright creepy, with everyone looking like Thriller extras, and no fun icecream stand to set it off. Weird. Upon getting past Sheet Harbour I started looking for a place to camp. I stopped at one guy's house to get water and ask whether camping on the beach was legal (it isn't, I found out later) but he was kind of crazy so I beat a hasty retreat and asked at another place, where I got water. So camping on the beach is out, so I was going to stop at a rest stop and camp, but I had to find a phone to call ahead to accomodations for Aug 14 (a warmshowers.org host in Head of Chezzetcook) so I stopped at the first house past the rest stop. And guess what? The house owner owns all the land behind and beside the rest stop, invited me to camp there, and we had a great chat. So thanks to Owen for that! It was a great camp: no bugs, beautiful location on a tiny island poking out into the harbour (an old road came onto the island), and in the evening there were two foxes cavorting about 30m from me that I watched for quite a while.

Tomorrow (today, as I write this) is 100 days on the trip! And the day after is Halifax!!

(M+M) Aug 10 - 13: Newfoundland Touring

Not too much to relate on this section of our trip. The weather has taken a grey and unsettled turn. We have been riding mostly along the TCH and, while it does give a speedy ride, it is not full of "scenic wonders". This is especially true when the sky is overcast -- grey skies, grey water, grey pavement. I don't think Newfoundland gets a lot of sunshine anyway, and this August has been particularly poor in the sunlight department so far.

However, we have been pleased to meet a number of interesting people and they have made our days fun. Also, NFL has by far the largest number of honkers on the highway. These are people who honk and wave, encouraging us onward.

Aug 10: Deer Lake to Springdale Junction. 122 km, 7 hrs on the bike. We stayed at Stella and Francis Hull's Riverview Bed and Breakfast. They are both keen birders and Francis had some fantastic bird photos on display.

Aug 11: Sprindale Junction to Grand Falls - Windsor. 110 km, 17.5 km/hr average. Easy riding on this section of the TCH. Grey skies again. We met two other riders, Aidan and Tyler. They started a few days after us in Victoria. Check out their blog at bikecanada.blogspot.com

We stayed at Beothuck Campground outside of Grand Falls - Windsor. It was 18.00, but not the nicest place. Just generally unkempt. We should have stayed at the slightly more expensive RV campground closer to the downtown. We had a fine Chinese smorg for dinner and could barely roll back to the tent and get into bed.

Aug 12: Grand Falls - Windsor to Gander. 116 km, 15.6 km/hr
Another grey morning with some sunny breaks in the afternoon. We spent the morning trying to find the big waterfall on the Exploits River in Grand Falls. It looks like there used to be one, but it is now behind a dam. The Abitibi Bowater mill hides quite a bit of the riverside landscape.

We traveled on to Bishop's Falls and found remnants of another set of rapids and falls, again behind a dam. Then it was on to the highway with a lunch stop down on highway 351 at Norris Arm. The Valley Lounge does all day breakfasts!

We camped that night at the Country Inn Motel and Trailer Park. Very nice facility. It looked like rain, so Mike tarped the site. Sure enough, it really dumped over night. We fell asleep with the sound of rain on the tent and tarp.

Aug 13: Gander to Glovertown. 70 km, 16.7 km/hr
Grey morning in Gander, but our gear was fairly dry, so we packed quickly and headed into town. Mike had found a set of keys on the highway yesterday so we turned those in to the RCMP in Gander.

Today was the greyest day of all, and as we stopped for lunch at Square Pond, the skies opened in a thunderstorm that lasted for at least an hour. We were also pleased to meet up with another cyclist - Greg from Montreal. We heard about Greg from some folks at the Tourist Info stop in Springdale Junction, so we knew he was just ahead. Like us, Greg is riding an old bike. Unlike us he has had only one flat (we got flat 29 today -- my bike, front tire, sharp metal spike).

We stayed at Square Pond until the worst of the rain had passed, then rode for Glovertown and the Lilac Inn B&B. Here we met Keith and Elaine, our hosts for the evening. We had some fruit, wine, and crackers and chatted with Keith about updating an old house (like the Lilac Inn), then it was off to bed, again with the sound of rain.

Tomorrow we head south through Terra Nova National Park. Hopefully the weather will improve a bit.

ttfn
Mary