Friday, 02 June 2006

Yarmouth to Church Point campground

I woke up a little before 6am, took one look out of the window at the weather, rolled over and went back to sleep for another hour. Luckily for Jamie he didn't snore. He was even quieter asleep than he was awake so I hardly knew he was there and had a good night's sleep. I crept my things out of the room and had a quick banana and yogurt breakfast with a tea before I braved the weather. I'd packed the bike and said my goodbyes and was on the road by 8am.

I headed north out of Yarmouth on Main St. with the mist drifting eerily between the houses and dampening any sound. I turned off the main road to follow the quiet coastal roads through Overton, Pembroke and Chegoggin. It was a pleasant ride on a gently undulating road. The views were muted by the blanket of grey cloud so I consoled myself with some photos of the local houses and postboxes, the later which I'm sure reflect the personality of their owners.

Through Sandford and Darling Lake, I stopped at a little restaurant in Port Maitland around 10am for a fantastic cooked breakfast. I never feel guilty about a fried breakfast when I'm cycling on the bike. And a cup of tea has never tasted do good. I had a long chat with the owner and so ended up staying for almost an hour.

When I cam out it was raining lightly, but within 10 minutes and seemingly out of nowhere it was raining heavier and was quite dark. It's a no-win situation cycling in the rain - you put your waterproofs on to stay dry and end up soaked in sweat. The rain only lasted half-an-hour, but I felt cold when I took my waterproofs off, until the sweat had dried off.

The area I was cycling through is labelled as part of the 'Acadian coast' - an area with French roots and a lot of the names are clearly of French origin and the signs in dual language. By just after noon I arrived in Meteghan having already done 50 km aleady. I stopped by the library and the Post Office and when I came out it was raining again. I'll have to stop stopping at places as it seems to make it rain. I ducked into a 'Tim Hortons' - a local fast food chain, but like all fast food places it's soulless and plasticky however nice the staff. I think I'd rather pay the extra and go to a little family-run place.

People here keep asking me if I'm from Australia or New Zealand! Can you believe it? I'm going to have to start hamming up my Hugh Grant accent a bit more.

I climbed back into my wet-weather gear and set off in the rain again. It's so frustrating to see all the things that would make a great photo but not being able to stop. I'm having a problem with oil leaking from my suspension forks and that's making my front wheel spindle/quick release work loose, and then the front wheel starts to wobble a bit; so I stopped when I saw a C@P (Community Access Program) sign (free internet) so that I could email the manufacturers and ask their advice. While I was there I was chatting to the lady on reception and she recommended a little restaurant about 5 km further on in Grosses Coques. I cycled past 2 campsites and on to Chez Cristophe where I arrived at about 5pm. It's lucky that I decided to go straight there rather than go to the campsite first as they were just taking their last reservations for the evening as I arrived. I asked them about "Rappie Pie" - something I'd seen often on signs by the roadside. It's a local delicacy made with grated potatoes and either chicken or clams. They said I should sample it first as it's not to everyones taste. Surprisingly it's almost transparent and jelly like, but I liked it. Not that that is what I ordered though; I went for the pan-fried fresh haddock and scallops (with mash, veg. and salad) - Absolutely delicious.

People here are so friendly and always eager to talk to you - perhaps especially if you are doing something a little unusual such as travelling by bike.

I cycled back to the first campsite , Belle Baie and asked how much it was to camp - $20. Church Point campground was advertising a rate of $12 ($13.80 inc. tax) but they only charged me $10. That's more like it! They had only opened for the season this week and I was the only person there. They directed me to a nice flat spot next to the lake, but then came over with the suggestion that I should camp under a roofed picnic area that they had as heavy rain was forecast for tonight and tomorrow (and Sunday) It would have been churlish to refuse. They said I could move the picnic tables around and make myself at home... There are moments in the day (or more usually at the end of the day when you finally get off the damn bike!) when you feel utter contentment with the world. Who cares if it rained most of the day.(The 'moment' doesn't usually last too long though!)

Oh, and the 'Reese' peanut butter/chocolate confection - actually not as bad as it sounds, but quite sweet.

It stays much lighter in the evenings here than in New England; it's still light until way after 9pm.

Distance: 80.1 km
Cycling time: 4:47
Total distance: 982.9 km