Week 2

August 29
Dist: 86km  Avg: 19kph  Time: 4:32
Cranberry Campground to Eldon, PEI

We woke up to overcast skies and a decent wind off the ocean which left us pulling down a nice dry tent, after hauling around wet ones for the last few days which meant a bit of extra water weight to carry.

We had a fair tailwind out of the NE which pushed us into New Glasgow about 11:45, just in time for lunch or breakfast as all we had before we left was PB & J wraps and left over spring water from yesterday.

We stopped and asked for directions to the nearest and only bike shop in town, as Fab needed to buy some extra tubes and a spare tire, as he woke up to a low tire again this morning. It turned out to be another small hole in the tube from something he picked up on the road. The directions were getting more complicated by the minute, so we decided to halt that process by asking another question.... "where is Marsh street?" That one was easy.... we were on it :)

Thanking the young mail delivery lady for her help we proceeded down to Cozy's Restaurant for brunch. While there I asked to use their phone and gave a high school friend of mine (Charlene Marshall Flynn) a call, as she worked just up the street from the restaurant. Charlene and I re friends on facebook and have been in contact with each other since she learned of our bike trip and our passing through New Glasgow which is quite close to where she lives.

Charlene met us at the restaurant after I called and sat with us with a cup of tea while we had our second breakfast/lunch. We chatted about many things, most of which turned out to be things we'd remembered from our days we lived in Red Rock. After an hour, we decided we'd better hit the bike and grocery store then get back on the road as we didn't really know where we'd be resting our heads that evening. To our surprise, Charlene had prepared lobster sandwiches for our trip on the ferry to PEI. She even had an ice pack on the zip container to keep them from until we stopped to eat them. To our surprise when opening the bag containing the sandwiches, we found two different Nova Scotia lapel pins for of us. Thanks Charlene, it's little things like this that one remembers for a lifetime. The sandwiches were great too :)

We stopped to get the bikes parts and food at Sobeys then headed for the ferry, but not before donning our rain coats, as the drizzle was getting a little heavier. It rained lightly on and off all the way to the ferry, along with our constant companion none other than Mr. Wind who made our trip there a bit more difficult.

We only had to wait a short time for the ferry as we could see it coming a little way from the terminal. We pushed off bikes to the far end of the feerry and tied them down with a set of those wratchet type tie-downs. As we were doing this a younger fellow approached us to chat and mention that he waas also from Thunder Bay. We didn't talk too long as the wind was blowing cold as we secured the bikes.

Once upstairs, Fabio bumped into this fellow again, then myself as I was making my way to the head. Low and behold, we found out he was good friends with Christine Storozuk and Barry Oliver. It's amazing the connections we've been making this trip. This fellow, Gord Legacy, knew them from years back as his mother used to work with Christine. (I think I have that story straight) Gord then introduced us to his girlfriend and her friend, as she was from PEI and probably knew of some plces we could stay at once we departed the ferry. We hadn't really looked into where we were actually going to end up today. She mentioned a motel right near the tourist info center, but that didn't pan out as we found out it had closed down. The next closest motel was another 23kms down Hwy 1 towards Charlottown. We didn't feel like camping again tonight, so we opted to continue on to the motel.

Osprey nest after exiting the fairy

Surprisingly enough, the wind was mostly in our favour heading west along Hwy 1, until we turned slightly north towards Eldon. I think we made it there in about 1 hour, which is a pretty good time, depending on the weight we're carrying.

Jim and Fab booked the motel while I made a beer run another km farther down the road from the motel. No wi-fi tonight, so that's why this'll be posted the next day.

The weather is still calling for rain tomorrow, so we'll have to wait and see how far we want to go, even though Charlottown is only about 40km or so from the motel.

Gene

**

August 30
Day 9, Belfast PEI to Charlottetown PEI
Total 49.13k, 3 hours and 29 minutes, average speed 14.1 kph.
Odometer reading 672 Kilometers.

Out of bed at 8 am. outside was windy, rainy, foggy and cool, apparently it had rained most of the night. Breakfast this morning consisted of wraps with PB & J and a banana each.

We suited up with total rain gear from head to toe and onto the trail we went. It was 35 km to Charlottetown and it would take us over two and one half hours. We were buffeted from the left the right and right in the face and the rain would not let up until we got closer to Charlottetown. This was not going to be a stellar day, it could not get much worse, but it did. Fabio's rear tire had had enough and blew out the side. This was a top of the line Schwalbe tire and were considered the best money could by be all touring cyclists. He had purchase a spare the previous day in New Glasgow and we installed it with a new tube. He was now without a spare. Once on the outskirts of Charlottetown we chowed down at a Subway, Fabio's favourite eatery. We were soaked and soon we got the chills, more dry clothes were in order.

The rain had subsided but the wind was still relentless. Once into the city we found the tourist center and checked out what the city had to offer. In order of importance we were looking for a bike shop (new tire for Fabio), a beer store, and accommodation, we were whipped and this would be our overnight town. Fabio had success at the bike store (new Schwalbe tire)
the beer was purchased and on to the outskirts of town to look for accommodation, we new there was a Super 8 and a Howard Johnsons but at $120 a night we thought we could do better. We managed to find a local Motel and the owner took pity on us and gave us the room for $89. A laundry facility was part of the complex so we took advantage. We dined at Pedro's a nice local restaurant. On the walk to the restaurant the skies cleared and the sun came out but the wind was still blowing. It was a brutal day we were not interested in any scenery it was all we could do to keep the bikes in a straight line and upright. I have enclosed a couple of pictures but without any sun shining they look drab. So far we are not impressed with PEI.

Today's blog by Jim.

The roads and shoulders here on PEI are something to be desired... rating out of 5, maybe 11/2. We also haven't really found too many drivers who like to give cyclists a little extra space by moving over a bit.

**

August 31
Dist: 58kms Avg: 17.9 Time:
Charlottetown to New Underland Farm (Murry Corner)

We left our motel at the crack of 9:30 in a light drizzle - another broken promise as the forecast called for beautiful, sunny skies today.  Fortunately by the time we left Pedro's restaurant for breakfast, the skies had cleared and our spirits soared.  We don't need any more chsaracter building days - we've got character up the ying-yang.  Most days we'd readily trade 'character' for a good plate of pork and beans and a hunk of break to sop up the sauce - and a beer.  The route out of Charlottetown was a steady climb followed by a great downhill, followed by - guess what?  More climbing.  The downhill run was negated by several construction zones with loose, dangerous gravel sections so progress was a bit slow.

About 20 kms out at Desable we finally caught our first glimpse of what we had come to PEI for - the beautiful red shore meeting the deep blue ocean framed by the azure sky.  Again we were climbing steadily - this part of PEI is definitely not flat and the traffic is very heavy.  With poor shoulders, we couldn't wait to get on the road less traveled.  We soon turned off on High 10 to escape the noise and traffic and were rewarded with peaceful roads, mild rolling hills and beautiful scenery.  This is the PEI you see in travel brochures.  The wind was virtually non-existent, not like the gale force winds of yesterday which could rip the chrome off a bumper hitch.

Upon arriving at Borden-Carleton we had lunch and paid our shuttle fees ($8.50 ea) to transport us across the Confederation Bridge - an amazing site and a marvel of modern engineering. On the shuttle we met a lady who seemed to be asking way too many questions.  It turned out she was a reporter for the Charlottetown Guardian and said she would have loved to have write a story about us, but she was on her week off unfortunately.  She mentioned we could have been famous.  We replied 'we're already famous.  We're legends in our own minds'.  Anyway, she took our blog address and we may get some ink yet.  At any rate, PEI was behind us and New Brunswick was welcoming us in.

Now this is where we had some heavy decisions to make.  The only accomodation (B & B) was only 8 kms further ahead and we only had 50 kms. under our belts at this point, but the next town (Shediac) was out of reach, there was nothing in-between and the forecast for the next 4 days stinks.  So - we checked-in and it turned out to be a great decision.  The joint was beautiful, the owners very friendly, the food  excellent and the other guests were extremely sociable and intetesting.  A great find.  The home-made beer was a wonderful treat as well.

Anyway, it's been a great day despite the low mileage, a far cry from some of the beauties we had last week.  Fingers double-crossed for fair skies ahead, but the weatherman is telling us otherwise.

This blog posted by Fabio.

**

September 1, 2013
Day 11 Dist: 89kms Avg: 21.7  Time: 4:06   Ttl: 825 kms
New Underland B&B to Moncton

Had a great sleep last night, woke up really refreshed and ready to start the day. Looking outside the window we noticed it had rained sometime during the night, as the roads were still quite wet. At least it wasn't raining any more.

Went downstairs and had a very nourishing breakfast of mixed fruit, scrambled eggs, cheese, fresh garden cherry tomatoes (yellow and red) and three kinds of homemade bread followed by a nice cup of tea. We polished that off in no time flat. We also chatted with Hanz and Elka again during breakfast.... they mentioned they were going to go to Shediac to the street market, about 50 kms away. That was where we were headed to.

We packed up the bikes and climbed aboard them ready to hit the road, but first Hanz wanted a photo of us before we left. We said our thank you's and good bye's to Brigette and Markus then headed down the highway towards Shediac. About 20 minutes later Hanz and Elka passed us in their car, waving out the window as they went by.

Hwy 955 wasn't the best road, as it was full of patches and small bumps like washboard. It even got worse farther down, turning into the roughest chipseal we've ever encountered. This made Hwy 588 back home feel like a smooth road. This lasted for 5 or 6 kms then finally stopped and became quite nice to drive on for the last few kms out to the junction of Hwy 15.

Hwy 15 had huge shoulders which made the rest of the trip into Shediac a dream. Believe it or not, the wind was actually in our favour :) We made it there with two and a half hours, our average just a little over 20kph. Following the tourist info signage saying 2 km, we ended up coming into Shediac from the north side. Once we hit the T intersection at 11/2km, there were no more tourist info signs... huh.... what gives????? When we asked where to info center was, we were told it was another 4 km down the street. I think someone needs to look at the signage there again.

We stopped in at a Dollarama to pick up some chocolate bars for deserts and snacks before having lunch at the T info center. While there we bumped into three people from Thunder Bay. Fabio was actually distantly related to them. Go figure!!! That's the third time we've bumped into TBay folks :)

Heading back onto Hwy 15 for the last stretch into Moncton, the weather held out and the wind was still in our favour. We flew along and made it into town in record time... our average just under 22 kph. This was only the second time we've had advantage wind.

There were only two hotels near the highway, so finding a reasonable rate at the second one we booked in for the night. First things first, we went to have a beer at the bar. The young barmaid asked us if we were in Shediac that day. Saying yes, I recognized her as one of the people we saw coming out of Dollarama when we were there. Now what are the odds of that happening... meeting a perfect stranger twice in one day in two different locations.

After a wonderful shower and a huge supper we were ready to retire for the evening.... and maybe another chocolate bar before bed :)

It's about 175 kms to Fredericton from here with absolutely nothing in between.... so-o-o-o-o there probably won't be any blog tomorrow or maybe even the next day if the weather turns bad making it harder to get to Fredericton. Might be some wild and wet camping going on.

Gene

**


September 2nd, 2013
Day 12, distance 92.79k, time 4 hours 17 min., average 21.6 kph., Odometer 910 kms.
Moncton NB. to Youngs Cove NB.

Had an excellent sleep in Moncton but no breakfast was available in the Hotel. We gathered our bikes from the storage locker and headed out doors. Overcast with a light drizzle again. The wind was still out of the north west so this would help us today. We went down the street to Cora's, a high end breakfast and sandwich joint. We had an excellent breakfast which should hold us for a few hours. We wanted to find a grocery store to stock up for the day but being Labour Day everything was closed. Back out to the highway we found a Subway open at the next exit. There would be no services today until the 90k mark.

The wind was at our backs only the third time since our start in Newfoundland. The road was divided with nice wide (10 foot) shoulders and in excellent condition. we were able to maintain an average speed of over 20 kph. We were now away from any large bodies of water and the terrain was rolling and all bush just like in our area. The traffic was not too bad and with ear plugs installed the road noise was cut to a minimum. However in the early afternoon the rain started and as the afternoon went on we got wetter and wetter probably from sweat rather than the rain itself.

Gene had phoned ahead and booked us a room at McCready's motel and by late afternoon we were at our day's destination. Happy Hour started upon our arrival and soon we had forgotten about the days aches and pains. Funny how Happy Hour will to that. All the wet clothes were hung to dry and the heat was turned up to aide the drying process, soon it was too hot and the door was flung open. McCready's had a small diner attached to it and a fine meal was had by the Amigo's.

Not one picture was taken today, I had thought of taking one of rain drops in a puddle but that would make the day even more depressing, hopefully there will be brighter days ahead.

We have had more dirty weather on this trip so far than we had in all of the last years trip and we are only about one third done.

Jim....

**

September 3
Dist: 82.3 Avg: 19.9 Time: 4:07
McCready's Motel to Fredericton

We got up this morning to -- guess what?  Cool, damp, overcast skies.  Quelle surprise!  We had a pretty good night's sleep at the Fleabag Hilton so we were in good spirits and hopeful we could stay one step ahead of the rain.  With bricks in our stomachs for ballast from last night's meal, we set off at 9:20 - one of our earliest departures yet.  By virtue of Gene's big pistons, Jim's newly-found young legs and myself flailing like a spastic chicken trying to keep up, we made pretty good time on a good road with wide shoulders.  At about the 20 km mark, the sun actually peeked out for a brief spell as if to say 'I'm still here boys - keep up the good work'.

Saint John River

By 11:00 the weather turned kinda nice and we were favoured by a bit of tailwind even. It was sweeeet!. Another hour and a half of good cycling under increasingly gloomy skies took us to our lunch stop - The Guardrail Cafe.  Out came the second half of the subs we bought yesterday at Subway and lunch was on.  Delicious.  We thought for sure we were going to get soaked again within a few kilometers so the raingear was kept handy.  Mercifully, by the hair of our chinny-chin-chins we managed to avoid the rain and steamed into Fredericton by mid-afternoon, happy to get off the busy and noisy highway.

While purchasing a pop and chips at an Irving Gas Bar we noticed a pretty decent hotel across the very busy street so I walked over to investigate.  What a great find - room $85.00/night (one of the cheapest so far), excellent dining room on site, laundry and strong drink  available.  What more could we ask for?  We immediately went for liquid fortification after showering and putting on a good load of laundry.  Then a fine supper which left everyone satisfied - except for G and J who had to cross the street to the DQ for further gluttony.

Anyway, without further ado suffice it to say we are now a happy trio of campers.  The forecast for the next few days calls for sun and warm temperatures, we are about one third of our way through our journey and our early troubles seem to be behind us.  Even Gene's flugelbonker is looking better.  A few days ago we were so down we had to reach up to touch bottom - today, life is great again.  Gotta love it.  What will tomorrow bring?  Don't know.  Don't care.  Que sera, sera.  No point in quibbling, fussing and fretting over stuff you have no control over.  Three ugly bearded guys on bikes don't have much say in the way the world works anyway so whatever comes our way, we'll deal with  as best we can. So far, things have worked out pretty good.

This blog posted by Fabio

**

Sept 4
Dist: 76kms Avg: 16.5 kph  Time: 4:35 Ttl: 1076 kms
Fredericton to McAdam Station

We finally woke up to a pleasant morning again with light winds and sunny skies. After eating breakfast at the hotel restaurant we packed and headed to Subway to pick up lunch for later, the Dollar Store for chocolate bars and soft drinks for desert and refreshments. While we were heading to Hwy 640, Jim remembered he hadn't paid for the hotel room, so he headed back a few blocks while Fabio and I waited at a gas station.

Sitting on a cement curb outside the station, we started talking to a young lady who owned a red Honda Civic Sport. She mentioned that she also was a cyclist and former eco-challange contestant.

When Jim returned we resumed our trek out Hwy 640, which we soon found out was constantly up and down.... BIG UPS and downs. We encountered one hill that must have been 22 or 23%. ( I got my first flat on my front tire just as I started the climb. Over 4500 kms on that tire and it still has plenty of tread left) The last section in bull low and standing to get over the top... whew!!!! This continued on until we came out to Hwy 3 which headed SW. To our disappointment 3 was not any better than 640, plus our friend Mr. Headwind decided to pick up the pace and knock us back another notch or two. I knew we were going to encounter headwinds because of the direction we chose to do this trip and a few hills, but both have been totally overwhelming so far, and according to the lady that looks after the campground were in tonight, there'll be more fun and games tomorrow.

Backing up a bit, we stopped in Harvey to check out a large fiddle replica that is a tribute to Don Messer (1909-1973) of Don Messer's Jubilee a television show that aired back in the 60's.

We didn't make it to the US border today because of the conditions we encountered, but we're only 9 kms from it, so wwe'll be working our way through the first part of Maine tomorrow. We'd like to make it to Linclon, but again conditions might not allow us to accomplish that distance.

Setting up camp, we polished off a brewski and the sub sandwichs we purchased this morning in Fredericton. The showers here were quite decent and refreshing, which will allow us to have a slicky free sleep tonight.

Gene

This was late due to no internet last night.