Saturday August 11th
I made it to New Brunswick!!!!! According to Map My Ride I have rode 6,459 kilometers!!!!
Map my ride – check out how many climbs there were today!
It was hard to get out of bed but I managed to get up on the road by 8:15. This is not great but when I sleep in a bed I think I make up for the restless sleeps I have in the tent. This is absolutely due to travelling light because I have no pad or pillow, just the ground. If I am really tired I sleep through but if not I toss and turn a bit. My goal was to make it to a friends in New Brunswick but I was having my doubts even the night before since it is over 220 kilometers through hilly terrain and the wind was not in my favour the previous day and it turns out today would be the same. I decided I would make it to New Brunswick no matter what but would keep checking progress during the day.
I can’t say enough about the bike routes in Quebec. I was on the 132 highway (I only mention the number for other cyclists) and though the shoulder disappeared a few times it was solid road and went through a very scenic part of Quebec. Early on I was still in the hills a bit. Two cyclists pulled off a side road ahead of me but I couldn’t keep pace. The turned off to a little meeting place where about 20 other cyclists were gathering. This was just the begining. Apparently there is a tour right now similar to the Grand Fondo happening in Ontario and there are literally hundreds of cyclists all going the opposite direction than me. The lucky buggers had the wind in their favour too. I waved at individuals mostly since there was just so many cyclists. It was nice to see even though I wasn’t making much progress.
There are so many little towns still even though I was heading into the mountains a little bit. I wonder what the roads are like in winter since there are highway stations with plows, salt and sand. The mountainsides are covered with evergreen and deciduous trees and felt a lot like BC. Eventually you come up Lac du Salmon followed by the river with the same name. This is an actual salmon run out to the Atlantic and is some of the most beautiful scenery. My friend Dan’s father who I will be staying with recommended this road over many others due to less traffic but he never mentioned how scenic it was. What a treat!
The road runs along the East side of the river which is 20 to 30 meters in width and looks like half a meter deep while lush green mountainsides drape over both sides of the river. Sections of rock are cut out to keep the highway not too hilly and one could swear they were in BC. Though tired I really enjoyed this ride. It was cool with overcast as well and from time to time got a little misty. There is another river that joins up with this one before it heads east toward the ocean. Around that time I came across a bridge over the river which essentially took you into New Brunswick. I couldn’t resist even though the road was so good in Quebec. I think I paid for it right away as I hit a rolly polly road with no shoulder but thankfully no traffic either. I only had 20 kilometers to Campbellton but I totally dragged my ass through the Brunswickian landscape. The hills did provide great views of the river though and as I slogged through the little towns I eventually made it to the turn off for the Sugar Loaf Provincial Park. I had run into two riders from Quebec earlier that had mentioned it and I thought why not. The road however went straight into the hills for a 500 meter 8% grade hill. I was suffering but kept plugging away. Eventually you come to some crossroads and then I just followed the signs to the park about 2 kilometers up the road.
Sugar Loaf Park is a full on adventure park with skiiing, downhill cycling, kayaking and hiking. There are tenting and RV campsites plus a restaurant/bar which is where I am writing this post – hey it was a hard day, damn wind 🙂 I am very happy to be in New Brunswick but take my hat of to Quebec.