Wednesday, 09 August 2006

Riviere-au-Tonnerre to Sept-Iles (Quebec)

I was awake before my first alarm as the sun was already on the tent, but I didn't get up until it sounded at 5:30. The wind was tugging at the flysheet again but as I dragged myself from the tent I found that it was a cloudless sunny morning with the wind coming from the north. It was still quite chilly at this early hour in spite of the sun. I was packed and on the road by 6:10 am.

Much of the road was by the sea and quite pleasant (though the sun was still so low that I couldn't keep my shadow of my head out of the photos!) but after Sheldrake it was more inland and not so interesting. I stopped for an hour or so at Manitou for some breakfast and to do the short walk to the falls - or cascade. Impressively powerful. There was nothing else at Manitou except a Tourist Information Office (closed as it was not yet 9 am) - again it seemed an odd place for a Tourist Office as it was miles from any community or any other attraction.

By 9 am the wind had shifted around to the west and although it was fairly light it had dragged a blanket of high cloud across the sky to obscure the sun. After another 15 km from Manitou the road was once again by the sea for a pretty and hilly section. The road is labelled as 'Route des Baleines' but most of the time it is nowhere near the sea and when it is there are not many viewpoints at which to stop. I was hoping for a viewpoint as I was keen to stop for some lunch but was reduced to snacking by the road as I went along.

It's not often that I've cycled 50 miles (over 80 km) by noon. Finally after 96 km I crossed the Moisie River where there was a campsite and a restaurant so I could stop for a rest. And a tea. And a Caramel Sundae.

It was a grey dismal afternoon, but the ride from Riviere Moisie to Sept-Iles was flat and fast; I could easily keep up a speed of 25-30 km/h, which is good news when the road is boring. As I got near to Sept-Iles there was a good cycle path which took me off the road and lead me right through the town to the Tourist Information Office on the other side. I knew that there wasn't a campground in town so I was thinking I might have to find somewhere suitable and wait until it was dark to pitch the tent and leave early in the morning. They didn't know where I could go initially but then thought to phone the Youth Hostel to see if I could camp there. I could.

As it was now raining, I stayed a while in the Tourist Office as they had internet available for free. (apparently you have to pay for the internet at the library) I went to stock up on food for an evening binge and treated myself to one bottle of beer, and then set off to find the Youth Hostel. There was a small patch of grass next to the hostel, so I pitched the tent while it wasn't raining too heavily, and after eating I cycled back to the Tourist Information Office again to type some more blog. They were open to 9 pm and luckily there was no-one else who wanted to use the internet. It was dark by the time I cycled 'home' for my nightcap.

Distance: 144.0 km
Cycling time: 7:45
Total distance: 5700.7 km