September 2009
7 posts
Blazing Saddles Oddyssey (another perspective) →
Here’s a blog by 2 of the riders (they had a laptop along, which in hindsight might have been nice for things like blogs)
The end is near
So, today was our 3rd last riding day. We spend the night on the ferry tonight, and arrive sometime in the early afternoon Saturday. We’re riding to Whitbourne to stay in a rec centre (no more setting up tents!), then on to St John’s on Sunday!
The Cabot Trail
So, for most of the trip, we had heard about this road on the shores of Cape Breton Island called “The Cabot Trail”. Basically we’d heard 2 things:
its very scenic
its very hilly
Both of which were understatements. The hills were the toughest and steepest I’ve ever seen on a paved road, and the toughest I’ve ever climbed (seriously, the rockies were easy by...
Tougest day of the trip today. 2 really steep hills that made the rockies look like foothills, also the most scenic too though.
I broke the speed limit today…on the highway. 80.14kph. Too bad there werent any cops around to flag me down and put it in writing :)
Long day today, very hilly, strong headwind too. Tomorrow, the Cabot Trail, supposed to be the most climbing we will ever do.
Insanely winy tonight in Lower Barneys River, NS. Its nights like tonight im glad im sleeping in a North Face :). Hilly 167km ride tomorrow.
August 2009
63 posts
hmmm...ferry cancelled. 2.5hr wait :(
Thanks to the well equipped PEI tourism centre, I’ve got internet access while we wait for the 2:30pm ferry to Nova Scotia, instead of the 12:30 we were hoping to catch (cancelled)
T-storm Danny
So, apparently winds were actually around 70kph
The dirt really is red
We rode to Confederation Bridge, then took a shuttle over with our bikes (bikes aren’t allowed on the bridge). After a 70km or so ride on the island to our camp just south of Charlottown (Cornwall, to be exact), I’ve come to the realization that dirt in PEI really is red. Tomorrow, we ride to the ferry terminal and hop on a boat headed for Nova Scotia — our 9th province.
my first ever "Tropical Depression"
Hurricane
Tropical Storm
Tropical Depression
So…last night, we got 3.5 inches of rain, and winds that were something like 60kph. The storm was downgraded from hurricane status (which was good for us) but it was still pretty wiked. A bunch of us barricaded off an open air picnic shelter at the camground with a combination of our 5 ton truck, 2 picnic tables, 2 folding tables, a cook...
Supposed to get Tropical Storm Danny in at couple hrs. Too windy to tent, so we cordoned off the shellter here-quite a sight. Here we go
The campground brought in an Acadian folk band to play tonight. I’d enjoy it more if i didn’t have to ride tomorrow, but it’s still awesome.
Cookies
A random lady that’s staying in the campground here just delivered a box of cookies (homemade). Local hospitality is the best.
Cycling Lingo
This post is so you guys won’t be confused when I talk to you after the trip:
Caidence - rate at which you move your feet when cycling
Grind - slow caidence (“Bob was really grinding up that hill”) —note: can also be found on dance floors these days ;)
Spin - to hold a relatively fast caidence (“Spinning is much easier on your knees then grinding”)...
New Brunswick!
Well, we’re in the Maritimes. Tomorrow is our final rest day of the trip, and the general feeling is that the end is near. People’s moods are generally great towards the trip, with a bit of resentment towards the general management of the trip overall (but seriously, not worth fussing about IMO).
Having been to Nova Scotia before, I can honestly say that I like it better there. New...
”I say we go beat up those kids and steal their thing” -Constantin, on the RC car some kids at the campground were playing with
Awesome tailwind today, only one more riding day till our final rest day in St Louis de Kent. Flat tire today, my first in awhile, 4th total
Our first night in New Brunswick, Canada’s only officially bilingual province. We are in Cambleton, NB. Short day tomorrow, only 101km
Spending the night in the Appilatian Mountains. Tomorrow, New Brunswick!
New top speed today - 76.5kph! Down a hill here on the Gaspe Penninsula in Quebec
Smelling the salt water of the Atlantic today, smells pretty good :)
Hello from Trois Pistoles, Quebec! Crazy strong headwind today, a few of us pulled others through the wind for the day. Really cold as well
Pat broke one of his pedals today. Not sure how that would happen really, but he was 500m from camp, so that was lucky
Saw a free Cirque du Soleil outdoor show in QC, as well as a show called ‘le moulin a images’, images projected on a HUGE mill. Very cool
In Riviere Ouelle, on the south shore of the St Laurence. Our turn to cook tonight, only 2 more left, great tailwind today
Rest day in Quebec City-our second last one. Tomorrow we start a 6 day stint to St Louis, NB. Supposed to get a nasty storm soon.
Also, from tomorrow all the way to the end of the trip is new territory for me. Im looking forward to three new provinces (PEI, NB, NFLD)
Camping tonight just north of Trois Rivieres, so some of the roads and such are familiar. We are staying at Laval tomorrow, Quebec City!
”you just throw them against a wall and see if they stick” -Steph, on how to know if you need to wash your bike clothes
Riding to Trois-Rivieres tomorrow, my old stomping grounds for Explore this summer before TdC. Tres cool. Day after? Quebec City!
My cell phone has predictive type software for text messages. Now, after i write ”Ontario”, my cell puts in ”humidity”.
We rode throuh the old port of Montreal today, which was cool to be in again. Its been nice peicing together familiar places across Canana
When i get a car, its definitely gotta have A/C. Its sooo humid!
Entered Quebec today! Really hot ride again, rode a fast paceline with Sherman, Barry and Graham. Very tiring. Long 164km today,shorter tues
On progress
It seems like we’ve been in Ontario forever. Don’t get me wrong, this province is great…I mean seriously beautiful in places (we didn’t go through Toronto). Biking through Ontario gives you the impression that you’re actually going through multiple provinces because the terrain is so varied. Despite all this, I can’t wait to get into Quebec. There’s...
Heat warning issued in Ottawa →
Yeah, its really hot here. Yesterday, Graham and I were in Tims cooling off and the sweat had evaporated on our arms and such, leaving visible salt. The city of Ottawa recommends:
drinking lots of fluids (check)
getting access to air conditioning at least 2 hours per day (see previous post about air conditioned tents…)
wearing light colored clothing (i have white socks I guess…)
...
In the news -- Portage La Prairie, MB →
Tents would be way better if they were air conditioned. This Ontario humidity is a bit much.
In Ivy Lea, 50km out of Kingston. Riding to Ottawa tomorrow,our last full riding day in Ontario! Stopped in Belleville to meet friends too
Well, my bike tweaking last night seems to have fixed the noises. On to Belleville tomorrow to have coffee with friends, then Kingston-ish
Stopped for pb&j in Newcastle. Going through Port Hope, Cobourg, Colbourne. On the way to prince edward county, close to Belleville
Beautiful ride today! Very scenic. I was the last to go to bed tonigt-around 9pm. Bike making weird noises today, gonna get that checked out
I have absolutely no idea what day it is.
Nobody in our group does. It usually takes a good while of talking amongst ourselves to find out the day of the week (and forget about the date…that’s asking too much). In general, I can tell you it’s August, but how far away from September we are is beyond me. In some respects, its cool being that much on vacation that you don’t even know about the time scale of the...
Hitch hiking has restored my faith in humanity
I’ve hitch-hiked a few times on this trip, and it never ceases to amaze me:
how easy it is
how nice people are
When we were in Sault Ste. Marie, one lady that was camping at the same campground drove 3 of us to a bike shop in the city, then downtown, then picked us up 2.5hrs later from downtown, then drove us back to the bike shop, then back to the campground. Wow. I’d always...
iPods are great
I know ipods don’t advertise as being water resistant or anything, but I think mine is. I’ve had it in my jersey pocket (at the back, right over my seat basically) for several days in torrential downpours, and the thing just keeps on trucking along. Its great. Having some issues with my camera though, or maybe just the batteries (don’t seem to be holding a charge).