July 16th - 18th North Sydney to Cape Spear 500km (by ferry), 104km, 45km

I know...I'm pretty late updating my blog...its been over a week since I finished my ride. I guess I was having too much fun in NF to find the time to update the blog.

July 16th North Sydney to Argentia 500km by Ferry

Well that was the longest 14 hours of my life. I watched 5 bad movies and in between that I tried to sleep as much as I could. On the ferry I met a man who rode from Calgary and was going to finish in NF with his daughter Dawn. Dawn saw my Joe Mamma jersey and asked me where I got it. She wanted to buy one for her brother so I agreed to send her one in the mail when I get back.

Finally 10pm came and I was free! My friend Dwayne and his parents Golda & Rex met me at the ferry terminal. They drove Dwayne and I to a motel down the road where we were going to stay the night and they headed back home. Dwayne had borrowed a bike and was going to join me on the last two days of my ride.

July 17th Argentia to Foxtrap 104km

We were up and out the door by 9am and started our search for breakfast. Dwayne knew there was a restaurant about 10km down the road. Those 10km were very hilly, showing me right away what Newfoundland had in store. Shortly after breakfast Dwayne started having trouble with the seat of his borrowed bike. Despite adjusting it I think he had a fairly uncomfortable ride but still remained positive the whole time. My favourite kind of riding partner!

The rest of the ride to Foxtrap was a hilly one. We stayed on the highway until about 30km before the end. Then we started to go through the many small outport towns along Conception Bay. This part of the ride was a little flatter until we reached the road Dwayne's parents live on. Then it was a 1km gradual climb to their house. I was impressed all day at how well Dwayne tackled the hills.
Although he is from NF, he doesn't ride his bike on hills like this because he currently lives in Holland which is very flat.

Tomorrow is the last day of my ride. We'll go from Foxtrap to Cape Spear, the most easterly point in Canada. Its just south of St John's.

July 18th Foxtrap to Cape Spear 45km

We started the day off late knowing that the ride was a short one. We continued to follow the bay until we started heading east toward St John's. Somewhere along here the strangest thing happened. We were riding along and suddenly heard a booming voice say "Nice day for a bike ride folks". It was an older man sitting outside his house speaking to us into a microphone.
The remainder of the ride was nice, we avoided the highway and stuck to minor roads that went through St John's. However it was very hilly today. We climbed most of the ride and even found the steepest climb (probably about 20%!!) of my whole trip. I was glad my last day was a tough one though and that NF didn't let me off easy.

On a downhill close to the end, Cape Spear suddenly came into site as we turned a corner. I kind of got a little emotional then, knowing that my ride was soon going to be done. It was a bittersweet moment. I was happy of course...but a part of me was sad to be finished this epic trip.

But the feeling of excitement quickly took over as we pulled into the parking lot and parked our bikes. We took the obligatory picture at the sign declaring we were at the most easterly part of Canada. Then we headed off to a secluded place so we could enjoy some celebratory champagne. Here is a video of that. We sat by on some rocks and drank warm champagne and watched the whales off in the distance. It was a wonderful finish to a wonderful trip.
I'm really glad I had someone to share the last day with.

A little later Dwayne's father picked us up and drove us back to Foxtrap (no we didn't bike back!).

So there you have it. My ride was finished.

Here are some stats from the trip:

distance: ~8000km
time: May 1 - July 18 (2.5 months)
# of riding partners: 6
moose spotted: 4
bears spotted: 0
provinced passed through: 9
longest province: Ontario at 3 weeks
Favourite spots: The mountains of BC, Lake Superior, Cabot Trail
# flats before Ottawa (road bike): around 10 or so
# flats after Ottawa (Mike's hybrid): 0!!


Thanks everybody for following the most amazing trip of my life. Its been fun keeping this blog and having you all around for the ride. I couldn't have done it without all your encouraging comments! xox

Special thanks to the following people who took me into their home throughout my trip:

Krista & Brett, Greg and Rachelle, Monilee & Fraser, Dave, Randy & Joanne, Kathie and Frankie, Warren's relatives in Cranbrook, Warren's friend in Winnipeg, the guy in the campground close to Mattawa, Kari & Andre for the Ottawa party, Jon & Simone, Mom & Dad, Amy & Sue, the couple outside of Antigonish, Steve & Natasha, Craig & Christine, Dwayne, Golda & Rex!
Wow! Thats a lot of people!! Meeting up with friends and family made the trip that much more special.

Extra special thanks to Hil, Warren and the rest of the crew for the wonderful time on the first half of my trip. Congrats to you guys for finishing your trip across Canada too!! And thanks to Attila for teaching me the ropes of carrying my own load; making the transition much easier for me and making me laugh a lot along the way.

I've spent the past week vacationing in Newfoundland. Here are the photos that tell the story.

Cheers!

July 14th and 15th Pleasant Bay to Nfld Ferry Terminal (North Sydney) 72km and 98km

July 14th Pleasant Bay to Ingonish 72km

They kept all the doors open to the hostel last night so while I was on the computer in the sitting area I noticed a chipmunk about 5 feet away from me beside the couch. I didn't think much of it until later on in the middle of the night when I was woken up to noises that sounded like plastic bags crinkling. The door to my room had also been open when the chipmunk was around so I worried he was in my room munching on my food. I got out of bed and turned the light on and checked the whole room. Nothing. I heard the noise 3 or 4 times throughout the night and I still don't know what it was.

Today was one of the best days of my trip. It was sunny and beautiful making up for yesterday's fog. Today's mountain was one of the steepest climbs yet. It was steep enough that I couldn't sit down for most of the climb which was between 8-10km. I felt strong today though so I was up for the challenge. At the top of the hill I saw a moose with a big rack. Still no bears!!

I met a couple from Quebec who commented that I was brave to be doing this. I've heard this a few times and each time I laugh to myself. I'm the biggest wimp I know. I'm nervous of a lot of things...bears, flying, strange men when I'm alone, etc etc.... I'm the last person I'd call brave!

After my ride today I took a hike out to a point that is surrounded by water. The hike was about 1.5 hours and it was really nice. After that I went to the Keltic Lodge for supper.

July 15th Ingonish to Nfld Ferry Terminal 98km

Another nice day today! Had a good ride but I was a little tired. Had two big climbs today. I also saw about 8 bikers...which was nice cause I hadn't seen any for two days. I was beginning to wonder why no one was biking the Cabot Trail.

I'm now at the ferry terminal and will be staying the night here. Its perfect! They have showers, tv, internet connection and places where I can cook my food. Oh yeah and its free! I'll probably go up to the second floor and sleep in my sleeping bag.

Here are all my pictures from Cape Breton...the colours are a little washed out. Wonder what I could have done to fix that.

Looking forward to Newfoundland!!!

July 11 - 13th Marshy Hope to Pleasant Bay (Cape Breton) 127km, 110km and 71km

July 11 Marshy Hope to Petit de Gras 127km

For the third day in a row I have a headwind and the big hills are continuing as well. I worry about the upcoming Cabot Trail because my legs are very weary these days.

Petit de Gras is a small island off another small island (Il Madame) of the coast of Cape Breton. Its a little out of my way but I'm here visiting the ruggedly handsome Steve M and the lovely Natasha. I only gave them one day notice but like the PEI girls, they fed me (vegan corn chowder!!) and took me in without batting an eye.

Steve tried to show me the whales that hang out nearby their place but it was too foggy. I met their new (to me) baby Shaymus - wow what a cutie! And I re-aquainted with Evan - who has an amazing memory...he's three and hasn't seen me for a year but he remembered me and what we did last time I visited. Impressive.

As a side note Steve and Natasha live on a road called Gros Nez (that's "Big Nose" for all the Anglaphones).

Tomorrow I stay with Craig and Christine in Margaree Harbour.

July 12 Petit de Gras to Margaree Harbour 50km by car, 110km by bike

This morning Steve drove me back to Port Hastings so I didn't have to retrace my steps from yesterday. This saved me about 50km. Thanks Steve!

My ride was nice..good tailwind and the hills aren't too bad yet. About 40km before Margaree I met Craig and Christine driving by. They were surprised that I was on my bike. They thought I was still in Cape Breton since the wedding last weekend. They gave me the key to their cabin (they live in Ottawa with me and are just visiting Cape Breton with Christine's family) because they were off for a hike and a swim and would be back after me.

When I got to the cabin and unlocked the door, Jacks, their gigantic dog (Bernice Mountain Dog - similar in size to a Nfld dog) greeted me a little too enthusiastically. I think he was pretending he was a guard dog and was barking angrily at me. I knew he was harmless but I didn't want to make him upset so I waited outside in the porch until their brother in law came by and introduced Jacks to me. From that moment on we were buddies and I could come and go from the cabin as I pleased.

When Craig and Christine got back they made a nice supper (fajitas!) and we spotted some whales out the from window. Later on we sat up with the whole family on a cliff and watched the seals play and the lovely sunset. I couldn't have asked for a nicer evening. Thanks guys! You have a great family!

July 13 (Friday the 13th woooo!) Margaree Harbour to Pleasant Bay 71km

I woke up this morning to a rainy, drizzly day. This was disappointing because Craig was supposed to join me for the day and now couldn't because he didn't have rain gear and was worried about his knee staying warm with the slow pace.

Also disappointing was that this is the section of the Cabot Trail that I think is most beautiful and it was all fogged in. I couldn't see a thing past 40 feet. Ugh!!

When I passed through Cheticamp, I stopped in at the local Frenchy's (thrift store chain in Nova Scotia) on a whim and this man started talking to me. At first he seemed really nice but then he wouldn't go away and even gave me his cell phone number in case anything went wrong on the Cabot Trail. Yes this is a nice thing to do but some of the things he said were a bit weird and for some reason he creeped me out. Maybe I'm easily spooked but I was glad to get out of there.

I arrived early (2:30pm) at the hostel I'm staying in because I only rode 75km. I thought I'd take it easy around the Cabot Trail because I don't have to be in North Sydney for the Nfld ferry until Monday morning. I'll take 3 days to do it and each day will be about 75-90km.

The hills have become ferocious now. I climbed for 8-10km on a very steep road today...maybe 12%? I'm not sure but it was steeper than anything I've had up to now. Apparently tomorrow's climb is worse!!

I went for a tough walk on the beach with all my spare time this afternoon. The beach was quite rocky and very difficult to walk on. I was exhasted after walking about an hour. But it had cleared up a little so I got a few pictures and some nice views.

Tomorrow is supposed to be sunny and I'm off to Ingonish!

July 10 Charlottetown to Marshy Hope 128km

After a good night sleep (first one in a while!) I set off from Sue's place with instructions on how to get to Charlottetown. It was about a 10km detour but it was worth it, it was a really nice drive.

I thought my ride was going to be easy today because I was retracing my steps (er...my pedal strokes?) from yesterday. I mentioned in my previous post that the road had rolling hills with an upward trend. So that means today is downhill, right? Wrong! Today felt exactly the same as yesterday...uphill trend. How is that possible??

On the ferry I met a nice group from a tour bus mostly packed with folks from Texas. They said when they saw me they were discussing in the bus what I could possibly be doing. One man named Bright, who I spoke with the most, was particularly interested in what I was doing. He asked a lot of questions. I think he thought I was a little crazy.

After the ferry ride it was about 5pm and I still had about 75km to go. I made the decision to go to Antigonish even though I knew there was nothing in between. I had to make it there or I was screwed. I was pretty sure I could do it in 4 hours which would put me at 9pm...no problem.

Well, at 9pm I was still 20 km from Antigonish and I was tiring fast. The hills were relentless, as was the headwind and to top it off I was still suffering from my nausea of yesterday now combined with heartburn. Oh yeah and did I mention? it was rapidly getting dark. Awesome.

Finally, I thought I was seeing things when I saw a sign for a campground. Wow!! The man came out and said he had been closed for two years but I was welcome to stay. I gratefully agreed. Then he offered me to stay in the camp office in the bed upstairs. Um, yeah...perfect! Luxury...

Just when I thought things couldn't get any better, he offered me to come up for some tea and supper. They had some delicious veggies for me and strawberries for desert. They also offered me to come up for breakfast tomorrow morning.

They were wonderful people and I will always remember them. I got their address so I'll be sending them a thank you card or something.

Pics here...

July 9 Truro to Charlottetown, PEI 130km

For those of you paying close attention you might find it strange that I went from Truro to PEI for two reasons (for those of you not paying close attention...well I don't blame you!). The two reasons are:

1. I told a lot of people I was going up to Gaspe to meet Attila after the wedding.

2. I stopping in Moncton before the wedding but I restarted in Truro after the wedding.

I'll address number 1 first. I spoke with Attila late Sunday night. Turns out his knee was really bothering him and he wasn't sure if they would do the Gaspe peninsula or just cut through. I didn't want to take a bus up there if they weren't doing the peninsula because that was the main thing I wanted to see. Also after my drive to Cape Breton this weekend, I got inspired to do the Cabot Trail. Plus I really wanted to go to PEI and Nfld to visit friends too. So I decided to keep heading east instead of backtracking to meet Attila. I hope to meet up with him just before he leaves so I can say goodbye.

Number 2. I was staying in Truro with my parents so instead of busing up to Moncton I just started from Truro. The distance from Moncton to Charlottetown was close enough to the distance from Truro to Charlottetown.

Anyway I was excited to get back on the road yesterday. However, my excitement was short lived because I soon felt really ill. I had a lot of nausea all the way to the ferry. Not sure of the reason but it made me have to ride really slow. I then slept through the whole ferry ride and felt much better when I got off.

After the ferry I made my way to Charlottetown and was surprised that the whole way was rolling hills with an uphill trend. It was tough! I thought PEI was flat for some reason but boy I was wrong.

I finally made it to my friend Sue's place by 7:30 which was the same time my other friend Amy and her boyfriend Andrew were pulling in the yard. Good timing! Sue fed me some great pasta and we spent the night catching up. Thanks for your hospitality Sue despite the short notice I gave you!!

I'm off to Antigonish today.

Couple of pictures.

July 5th to 8th The Wedding 0km (by bike, many by car!)

I had a really fun weekend in Cape Breton watching my oldest friend (26 years we've been friends!) get married. The wedding was held at the beautiful Keltic Lodge in Ingonish.

I drove to Ingonish Friday morning and it was non-stop action from that moment on. We had spa appointments (got my first - and probably last - ever manicure and pedicure. Then on to the rehearsal, the rehearsal party followed by decorating the hall.

The next morning it was time for hair and make up. The make up was pretty involved because we had to try and cover my horrible tan/burn lines on my back. The self tanner stuff didn't really cut it. Here is a picture of the make-up job on my back. I was pleased because believe it or not, it was much worse before. However I was still a little self conscience when I had to walk down the aisle because it looked kinda gross.

The rest of the day was spent on the wedding and getting millions of pictures taken by the photographer. The wedding was really nice despite a minor sprinkle of rain.

After photographs and the ceremony came the reception. It was lots of fun and there was great food for me. The chefs had a special vegan meal for me that was outta this world. They asked me what I liked to eat the day before and I told them everything as long as its vegan so surprise me. Well I got a surprise - yum! Here and here are a couple of pics of what I ate.

The rest of the night was a dance which was fun. I got to meet a lot of Krista's & Brett's friends who I had heard of but never met.

Here are the photos I took or were taken with my camera (Thanks Deke!). There are a ton of them so you'll probably get bored but this is mostly for my friends who were there.

Congratulations Krista and Brett and thanks for the wonderful weekend!

July 2nd to the 4th - Edmundston to Moncton 170km, 148km and 125km

July 2nd Edmunston to Woodstock 170km

Not much happened throughout this day...just rode my bike ;)

I decided to push it to Woodstock today because I felt strong and the conditions were good. When I finally reached Woodstock, I picked the exit that had a lot of things like Canadian Tire etc thinking that it would also have all the motels too. Unfortunately I was wrong but it was too late. I was committed to this exit because I'd gone downhill about 1km and didn't want to go back up. So I continued on to downtown hoping I'd find something. It was getting late at this point, almost 9pm.

When I got downtown I came across an old man so I asked him if he knew where a motel was. I had to hollar so he could hear me. He vaguely directed me to a motel and then continued to tell me about his bike he was riding. It was a pretty cool bike, he said it was 40 years old and to brake you pushed back on the pedals just like a kid's bike. It was interesting to chat (er...hollar) with this guy but at that point in the day, I was so hungry and tired after riding 170km that I could barely concentrate on what he was saying. He wanted to discuss which tires were better, wide or skinny. I told him it depended on what he wanted to do but he just plain thought the wider ones were better but wouldn't say why.

Anyway after discussing with what seemed like half of the town, I finally came across a residence for a local college for $26. It was perfect. The room was big enough to set my tent up to dry, there was a kitchen and internet access. Everything I needed and wanted!

I won't forget how nice the people of Woodstock were to me. Turning into the wrong exit turned out to be a happy mistake.


July 3rd Woodstock to Gagetown 148km

Although I rode less than yesterday, it took and felt much longer. Lots of hills and I think I'm getting tired from all the km's I'm logging. I'm ready for my vacation!

I ended the ride in Gagetown which is a military base town so unfortunately there is heavy artillary being fired off into the woods behind the campground. I'm just about ready for bed so I hope it doesn't continue much longer (Note: the shooting ended around 11pm - midnight).

Tomorrow is Moncton! Can't wait!

July 4th Gagetown to Moncton 125km

Before I began the ride today I was already on vacation. I was stopping in Moncton for a four day vacation because of the upcoming wedding so it was a similar feeling you have at work on the Friday afternoon before a long weekend. You don't feel like working, you just want to be done. But unfortunately I can't coast my way through a 125km ride like I can coast through a lazy Friday afternoon. The big hills and my poor attitude made for one of the longest rides of my trip (only mentally though, the ride time and distance covered was actually about average).

Not much to say about the ride except that the hills were relentless and glass was everywhere. The Trans Canada in NB is probably the best I've found in the country with nice wide shoulder and new pavement. However there is a huge problem with glass of smashed beer bottles. Approximately every three km's (not exaggerating!) someone felt the need to smash a beer bottle on the shoulder. It was unbelievable. I don't know how I didn't get a flat in NB - it was really a test for the tires of my new bike.

Anyway I finally made it to Jon & Simone's place (brother & sister-in-law) for a wonderful home cooked meal and a nice long shower. My parents came to get me and whisked me off to Truro where I am now. In Truro I have a bunch of appointments to make me presentable for the wedding. The most important is my fake tan application. Yup I am having a professional apply fake tan stuff on me to even out my awful tan lines. I hope I don't come out orange!!

Pictures are here.

July 1st Saint Alexandre to Edmundston 145km

Happy Canada Day!

Today I had the pleasure (?) of being in a Canada Day parade. No that's not a typo... I accidently starting driving along the parade of a small town during my ride today. But this was no ordinary Canada parade or not like any I've seen. The whole parade was about 50 transport trucks (without their load) riding up and down a short section of the street honking their horns like crazy. Many people were watching and waving and seemed to being really enjoying it. I found it painful. I got a bunch of waves and I heard Velo! a few times as I went by. Too bad I didn't have a bell or I would have rang it! I recorded it on my ipod to post on here but I can't figure out how to do it...and I don't have a lot of time. Tried youtube but it doesn't do .wav files. Too bad!

It rained all day...I was going to go to a motel but in the end it cleared up so I went to a campsite. My tent and thermorest mattress were soaked after today. My feet are all pruny... oh woe is me! Should have taken a motel. Maybe tomorrow night as thunderstorms are in the forecast for the evening. Here's a picture of the rainbow I was rewarded with after all that rain.

Off to watch the fireworks!

Pics are here