Canada 2011
 
 

Day 08

August 1

 
   
  
 I have this thing about not holding anybody else up, so I'm up at the crack of dawn to get packed up and grab some breakfast at the restaurant next door. 
  
 I beat the hired help there before they open and am the second person in the door when they crank up at 6 AM. My server shows me to a booth, and the first order of business is getting a cup of hot chocolate. And boy, do they do it up right! 
  
 As I look over the menu, I see a 'Gaspian Breakfast' which looks like it has the requisite pork products and cackleberries included, so I go for it. And once again, I am not disappointed ... 
  
 as the fragments that remain clearly show.  
  
 

When I settle up with my server, I notice that she does not sound 'local', so I ask her -

"You sound English not Canadian."

"Yes, I was raised here, but my parents are English" she tells me.

"Well, I reckon a Gaspian breakfast is just like a fully cooked English, Scottish, or Irish breakfast" and we both laugh.

As I make my way back to my room, I notice this lovely building that appears to be some sort of university building or town hall.

 
  
 I packed up before I headed for grub, so I just have to grab my gear. Alain makes short work of his packing and we are ready to roll. 
  
 Soon Mac and Buzz come rolling in and we do a gas check. There's a gas station right around the corner so I let them know.  
  
 

I've already filled up, so as I wait for them to get what they need, I can't help but chuckle at the sign across the road for a restaurant named 'Dixie Lee'. Best I can figure out, I'm an awful long way from Dixie where I sit right now!

 
  
 As we pull out of Gaspe proper, the morning traffic is a little heavy. These poor folks are probably headed to work, and here I am headed to play. 
  
 The skies have that sort of 'iffy' look about them like we might get into some liquid sunshine, but only time will tell. 
  
 Farther along, I wonder if I should stop and put on my rain gear. But I figure I'll chance it for a while longer. I've got a rain suit with me, but by the time I put it over my riding gear, I feel like an overweight Michelin man. 
  
 Fortunately, the water stays up in the clouds and the biggest challenge I have is to follow Alain's taillights. Today begins my second week on the road and I have already fallen into what I call 'road mode'. It always takes me a few days to get my stuff situated to suit a particular trip, storing away what I probably won't need very often and figuring out what I will use daily. Once I get that noodled through, I can be unpacked and in and re-packed and out of a motel faster than most folks would believe.  
  
 Soon we are greeted by the perpetually occurring construction zone. I've been through so many now that I begin to actually understand the French on the signs. 
  
 The scenery is just lovely as we are never far from the water. 
  
 Once again it feels a lot like being on parts of Highway 1 in California. 
  
 As we go by the little blue house, I just wonder how cold it must get during the winter being out in the open and right on the water. 
  
 Off to my left is an old bridge that makes me wonder where that road goes to. The old adage 'So many roads, so little time' seems to fit this scene. There are probably some neat things to see across that bridge, but we need to keep cooking if we are going to get to Prince Edward Island before dark. 
  
 And the weather seems to be cooperating, as I see more and more blue overhead and less and less gray. 
  
 When I look ahead, I think I have been transported back to Ireland for a moment but we are approaching Ville De Perce - the Village of Perce. 
  
  This area is known for whale sightings and the plentiful sea life that frequents the area. And they have this very interesting rock ....  
  
  with a hole through it.  
  
 Our fearless leader pauses for a moment to snap a shot, so I snap a shot of him as he snaps a shot. 
  
 Soon we are back to the mile killing at hand and pass by several small farms located right on the cliff side of the road. The amazing thing is there appears to be no fences for the livestock to keep them from going over the edge. But I guess the gene pool thins out pretty quickly and the ones that don't go over teach their children well. 
  
 The pretty wisps of purple on the roadside grab my attention but I figure I'd better not look off too much or I'll be joining those cows swimming on the bottom of the gene pool. 
  
 We will pass through many little waterside villages like this one today. They each have their own style and look, very similar to New England fishing villages. 
  
 Traffic is a little heavy in spots, but at least it is moving right along. And I guess traffic is a relative term - as this is nothing compared to hitting a Dallas freeway at rush hour! 
  
 When we get to Port Daniel, we pull off at the welcome center for a little leg stretch. 
  
 It's a nice stopping place with a beautiful old house and church overlooking the scene. 
  
 And Mac, who spent lots of time in a submarine under the water, takes some shots of the top of the water. 
  
 But daylight is burning, so we mount our trusty steeds and push on. 
  
  Just as a matter of habit, I do check behind me to make sure Buzz and Mac are still there and doing okay. Stuff can happen on the road faster than you can say "What happened?". More than one person has failed to do that and then ends up wondering what happened to the rider behind them.  
  
 I can't help but admire the simplicity of this old church building that has served the area for many years, judging by the number of tombstones next to it. 
  
 There's a lovely palette of colors off to my right as an estuary makes its slow way to the sea. 
  
 As we pass through Paspebiac, I can't help but notice the sign for Bellevue - which happens to be the name of the area where I live. 
  
 The skies now are pretty blue so I am really glad I didn't put on my rain suit and 'bake in the bag' as I call it. 
  
 When I look out over the water, I try to count just how many shades of blue I can see. But pretty soon I run out of fingers and decide to leave my toes out of it. 
  
 The beautiful silver steeple on this church catches my eye as we get closer to New Brunswick. 
  
 It's just another beautiful day to be alive and I am really enjoying the coastal views as we move along.  
  
 Once thing is for sure - there are no shortages of magnificent church buildings in Quebec. And that, I think, is a really good thing. 
  
 

Soon we come to the great steel bridge that will take us from Quebec and into New Brunswick. I radio Alain -

"Hey, I'm going to stop and get the province sign."

 
  
 And I add another one to my list.  
  
  I get a bit confused as to which way they went, but I finally get it sorted. And I manage to see this lovely fountain along the way.  
  
 For a while, we'll be traveling mostly inland where green will be the color of the day. 
  
 And this sign reminds me of the size of the moose as compared to the average automobile. I sure wouldn't want to play tango with one of those big boys. 
  
 As we roll along, the riding order shifts back and forth with no certain reason, just the way it goes. 
  
 Soon it's time to fuel the horses and fuel their riders, so the blue top facilities beckon us.  
  
 And before we know it, it's time to de-fuel the riders! 
  
 Soon we cross over a bridge and are back near the water again which suits me just fine. 
  
 The rivers become more frequent and seems like prettier to me as we approach the sea. 
  
 I see a church way off in the distance and think how often that is the way most folks view God. They see Him as Someone in an unreachable location that they must strive to reach - which is not the case at all. You can bet that this church has an easy way to get to it, just as our Lord does. 
  
  I begin see more of the sea marshes again.  
  
 It's time for fuel and a break again, so our fearless leader heads to a nearby gas station. 
  
 This happens to be an area that Buzz is very familiar with and he decides that he wants to stay here for the night and check out the beach. Since he is camping and knows a camp site nearby, Mac joins him. He encourages us to stay for supper, because he knows of a really good restaurant nearby. But I figure that would put us too late into PEI, so we take a rain check. 
  
 As Alain and I already have reservations on PEI, we bid our traveling friends good-bye and get back on the road. 
  
 The scenery just gets prettier and prettier ...  
  
 the closer we get to PEI. 
  
 It's almost a water wonderland of high grass ... 
  
 and sea marshes which are a haven for birds and wildlife. 
  
 And thanks to Alain's leadership, we finally approach the Confederation Bridge which I had heard about for years but have never seen. 
  
 It holds the unique distinction of being the longest bridge in the world crossing ice-covered water. 
  
 It is a total of 8 miles long, taking four years to build and one billion dollars, using crews of more than five thousand local workers. 
  
 Once we're across, I catch my 'Welcome To PEI' sign to add to my collection. 
  
 Fortunately, Alain has done some research beforehand, and knows of an excellent spot to get a great picture of the bridge. As I always say, there is no replacement for local knowledge and again I am very grateful to my traveling companion. 
  
 There's also a little lighthouse nearby so we snap that while we are at it. 
  
 We are headed inland to Charlottetown for the evening, so we figure we'd best get after it. As we make our way, I notice there is a lot of agriculture going on on this island also. Which makes sense, since the island was only reachable by ship until 1997 when the bridge was finished. It had to be pretty expensive to bring stuff over by water, I figure the folks got into the habit of being self-sufficient as possible. 
  
 As we pass this inlet, I have to admire the folks who have the privilege of living on its banks. I've always thought it would be nice to live on the water, but I'm just not ready to leave my beloved Holler yet. 
  
 And we pass several marshes as we make our way to our destination for the evening. 
  
 Before long, Alain has us through the town and close to our motel. 
  
 The rooms are very nicely appointed and I unload SweetTreat in short order. We decide to take some time to clean up and rest and then we'll find a place to feed the beast. 
  
 We decide we'll just walk toward the restaurant area of town and see what we come up with. This place looks like it will work, so we give it a whirl. 
  
 It must be a great place, because when we open up the menu, it has a sandwich named after me - "AKA THE UNCLE PHIL". So I have to assume that they must have known I was coming.  
  
 But I order the scallops (which is my first choice for sea food) and pass on the sandwich. When they arrive, I am one happy camper for they are nice and large, not the small dough balls that I usually get if I order them back home.  
  
 

There are two couples sitting at the table next to us and I can see they are really enjoying their desserts. I tell them -

"Well, with a dessert like that, at least if it kills you, you die with a smile on your face!"

They all laugh and tell us that it is really good. Since I am still breathing, that means I can still eat. So I figure I'll just jump and give one a whirl. And yes, it is as good as it looks and only 10,000 calories to boot....

 
  
 With enough sugar in me to be able to leap small buildings with a feeble limp, Alain and I head back to the room. I know as soon as I fall off the sugar high, I'll be out like candle in a tornado. And that's just about the way it plays.