When we all give the power
We all give the best
Every minute of an hour
Don't think about the rest
And you all get the power
You all get the best
When everyone gets everything
And every song everybody sings
And it's life (nanananana)
Life is life (nanananana)
Life is life (nanananana)
- Opus - "Life is Life"
Trois Pistoles to St-Damase – Day 59
134 kms / 82 miles
The sound of rain pattering down on my tent is what I awoke to this morning – it’s a soothing sound but not a particularly welcome one when you have 134kms to bike..! I emerged from my tent with about 5 layers of clothing on including rain gear as wanted to be prepared for the wind, rain, and the cold. I managed to warm up with a huge bowl of oatmeal and take down my damp tent. Fortunately only the fly had gotten wet and the rest of my tent managed to stay relatively dry. By the time we pulled out of camp the wind had picked up and the rain cloud had blown away. Phew..!
The tail wind made life much easier once again and even though the terrain has become a bit more challenging with some uphills, it’s still a very enjoyable ride and incredibly scenic. There are rolling hills and the mountains can be seen rising up in the distance beyond the golden fields of wheat. We managed a very steady pace on Route 132 for the first hour into St. Fabien. Brendan had a great comment today at our gas station Pit Stop:
From St. Fabien we continued on through Bic and then to our next scheduled stop – Rimouski. Again, the ride was very scenic and the shoulder on Route 132 was well paved.
Debris on the shoulder...
We had a slight communication problem today. Just before the town of Bic Brendan, the trusted Navigator, called out a rather nervous ‘Careful’ and pointed down. Andrew had just finished pointing out a little pothole in the shoulder so I assumed that Brendan was referring to the pothole. Andrew then shouted another rather panicked ‘Careful’ to follow Brendan’s and swerved about foot to the left. I looked down expecting to see another pothole and instead saw a giant bloody racoon carcass laying across the shoulder. Gross…!! I quickly swerved to get around it missing it by only a few centimetres. I did managed to let out a yelp which Ian heard and avoided a messy wipe out as well. This is one of the first times that ‘road kill’ has managed to make its way, fresh, into the shoulder.
We made some great time into Rimouski, 59kms, and were sitting comfortably at a local café drinking lattes by about 10:30. The weather had also cleared up and although the wind was still quite gusty the sun had begun to burn off some of the cloud. The café was a perfect break to what had been a quick and progre
ssive morning. We had even more luck with the café because Ian spotted a Cannondale sign across the street – it was a bike shop…! Brendan had some problems with his pedals which he’d unsuccessfully tried to fix yesterday and I have a huge problem with my headset which is getting increasingly difficult to turn. No one in camp knows what the problem is and I don’t want to start to take the headset apart unless someone is there who is familiar with it. We wheeled our bikes into the bike shop and one of the guys there helped us out. It was cool to communicate with him in French – BC did a great job. Brendan got new eggbeater pedals and they adjusted the derailer on his bike. As for my headset, it got a VERY thorough cleaning and I was amazed at all of the dirt and grease and general ‘crap’ that came out of it. A rusty bearing was also removed and replaced. When they put the headset back together it was as good as new..! It really is amazing what a difference cleaning the bike makes as well as a few minor adjustments. 
Ian made us all laugh when he went to the back of the bike shop and asked the technician if he could have his bike (aka The Bus) turbo charged....
We spent about an hour at the bike shop and then took a side trip to the Empress of Ireland Memorial Museum. The museum was built in the shape of a ship. RMS Empress of Ireland was an ocean liner built in 1905 by Fairfield Shipbuilding and Engineering at Govan on the Clyde in Scotland for Canadian Pacific Steamships (CP).
The Empress was struck amidships by the Norwegian coaler SS Storstad; and the strategically damaged vessel sank very quickly in the early morning of May 28, 1914. This accident claimed 1,012 lives, making it the worst maritime disaster in Canadian history. Iit took only 30 minutes for the ship to sink in the icy cold waters.
We didn’t go into the museum but Peter gave us a brief synopsis. Unfortunately we were running a bit behind schedule and were keen to get back on the road.
We continued on Route 132 passing through St. Luce where we stopped for lunch at a fantastic boulangerie and Italian restaurant with great service. We all agreed that it had been a great rest stop and a perfect stop for lunch. We were a bit nervous though as there had been quite a bit of talk of ‘hills’ for the last 15kms and weren’t sure what to expect. I always feel a bit tired and lazy after lunch so hoped that the hills wouldn’t start just yet. When we left the restaurant I started to worry that our lunch stop had been a bit too long as off in the distance the sky had become even more overcast and dark clouds were looming on the horizon.
The next 20kms flew by even though we lost the paved shoulder and the wind started doing ‘strange’ things by swirling around us. We cycled through some lovely villages and continued on along the Gulf of St. Lawerence. The houses along the coast are gorgeous – they are mostly pained bright, contrasting colors which stand out against the dark water. Architecturally t
hey are also very different – some very modern with tall windows, some are shaped like lighthouses and others are more traditional in a Cape Cod style. One thing that they all do have in common is that they all have fantastic views of the Gulf.
We had a few steep climbs into Ste. Flavie and wondered if these were the ‘hills’ that had been promised. Unfortunately this was not quite the case… As we turned off of Route 132 we were met with an alarming sight – a MONSTER hill. Actually, 3 monster hills and the last one looked like it was about the size of a ski hill..! This was the beginning of the Gaspe peninsula, the north end of the Appalachian chain of mountains. The hill was definitely a challenge to get up and my legs were burning with lactic acid as I came over the crest of the hill… only to see another hill off in the distance. These hills were definitely the steepest gradient that we’ve seen on this trip so far. After that hill came another… and another… and another… and another. Every time one hill ended another seemed to begin and seemed to be steeper and longer than the first. It was tough but at the same time quite fun because I know that we’re all hurting and it feels good to see how much we have all improved in mastering these hills. Everyone has become so incredibly strong and whilst we all struggle, there is a feeling of satisfaction when the hill has been ‘conquered’. It was also a good feeling knowing that camp was not far away and that as soon as we all arrived at camp the sore legs would be forgotten and we’d all have a laugh and lots of stories about the day. That is generally how it always goes – it’s great to share the days stories, experiences and laughs over a beer, after a shower when your tent is set up and as the Galley Crew makes dinner. Happy Hour biker style.
We were all relieved to see the sign leading us into camp and even more pleased to have made it there dry. Rain was definitely imminent and I quickly put up my tent and prepared for yet another tasty dinner served by the Galley Crew. The dinners (especially the salads) are becoming increasingly creative and delicious – today we were treated to a Waldorf Salad thanks to Jan who is a real master in the kitchen and always has great food ideas. By the time were just sitting down to eat the heavens opened and the rain began to come down. A bunch of us all crammed into the back of the truck sitting on giant tins of kidney beans, detergent, peanut butter containers and on plastic tarps to eat our dinners and listen to music. It was very cos
y and fortunately, one of the few times that we’ve had to resort to these measures to stay dry over dinner. Overall I think that we’ve been pretty lucky with the weather. Hopefully this will continue – apparently there is 60% chance of rain for tomorrow and I really, really hope that it will not fall until later in the day and at least give us a nice sunny morning to start. I can only be so lucky..! 
We all give the best
Every minute of an hour
Don't think about the rest
And you all get the power
You all get the best
When everyone gets everything
And every song everybody sings
And it's life (nanananana)
Life is life (nanananana)
Life is life (nanananana)
- Opus - "Life is Life"
Trois Pistoles to St-Damase – Day 59
134 kms / 82 miles
The sound of rain pattering down on my tent is what I awoke to this morning – it’s a soothing sound but not a particularly welcome one when you have 134kms to bike..! I emerged from my tent with about 5 layers of clothing on including rain gear as wanted to be prepared for the wind, rain, and the cold. I managed to warm up with a huge bowl of oatmeal and take down my damp tent. Fortunately only the fly had gotten wet and the rest of my tent managed to stay relatively dry. By the time we pulled out of camp the wind had picked up and the rain cloud had blown away. Phew..!
The tail wind made life much easier once again and even though the terrain has become a bit more challenging with some uphills, it’s still a very enjoyable ride and incredibly scenic. There are rolling hills and the mountains can be seen rising up in the distance beyond the golden fields of wheat. We managed a very steady pace on Route 132 for the first hour into St. Fabien. Brendan had a great comment today at our gas station Pit Stop:
“We’ve done 26 kilometers in 1 hour, without stopping – no prizes for
guessing what our average speed has been”.
From St. Fabien we continued on through Bic and then to our next scheduled stop – Rimouski. Again, the ride was very scenic and the shoulder on Route 132 was well paved.
Debris on the shoulder...
We had a slight communication problem today. Just before the town of Bic Brendan, the trusted Navigator, called out a rather nervous ‘Careful’ and pointed down. Andrew had just finished pointing out a little pothole in the shoulder so I assumed that Brendan was referring to the pothole. Andrew then shouted another rather panicked ‘Careful’ to follow Brendan’s and swerved about foot to the left. I looked down expecting to see another pothole and instead saw a giant bloody racoon carcass laying across the shoulder. Gross…!! I quickly swerved to get around it missing it by only a few centimetres. I did managed to let out a yelp which Ian heard and avoided a messy wipe out as well. This is one of the first times that ‘road kill’ has managed to make its way, fresh, into the shoulder.
We made some great time into Rimouski, 59kms, and were sitting comfortably at a local café drinking lattes by about 10:30. The weather had also cleared up and although the wind was still quite gusty the sun had begun to burn off some of the cloud. The café was a perfect break to what had been a quick and progre
ssive morning. We had even more luck with the café because Ian spotted a Cannondale sign across the street – it was a bike shop…! Brendan had some problems with his pedals which he’d unsuccessfully tried to fix yesterday and I have a huge problem with my headset which is getting increasingly difficult to turn. No one in camp knows what the problem is and I don’t want to start to take the headset apart unless someone is there who is familiar with it. We wheeled our bikes into the bike shop and one of the guys there helped us out. It was cool to communicate with him in French – BC did a great job. Brendan got new eggbeater pedals and they adjusted the derailer on his bike. As for my headset, it got a VERY thorough cleaning and I was amazed at all of the dirt and grease and general ‘crap’ that came out of it. A rusty bearing was also removed and replaced. When they put the headset back together it was as good as new..! It really is amazing what a difference cleaning the bike makes as well as a few minor adjustments. 
Ian made us all laugh when he went to the back of the bike shop and asked the technician if he could have his bike (aka The Bus) turbo charged....
We spent about an hour at the bike shop and then took a side trip to the Empress of Ireland Memorial Museum. The museum was built in the shape of a ship. RMS Empress of Ireland was an ocean liner built in 1905 by Fairfield Shipbuilding and Engineering at Govan on the Clyde in Scotland for Canadian Pacific Steamships (CP).
The Empress was struck amidships by the Norwegian coaler SS Storstad; and the strategically damaged vessel sank very quickly in the early morning of May 28, 1914. This accident claimed 1,012 lives, making it the worst maritime disaster in Canadian history. Iit took only 30 minutes for the ship to sink in the icy cold waters.
We didn’t go into the museum but Peter gave us a brief synopsis. Unfortunately we were running a bit behind schedule and were keen to get back on the road.
We continued on Route 132 passing through St. Luce where we stopped for lunch at a fantastic boulangerie and Italian restaurant with great service. We all agreed that it had been a great rest stop and a perfect stop for lunch. We were a bit nervous though as there had been quite a bit of talk of ‘hills’ for the last 15kms and weren’t sure what to expect. I always feel a bit tired and lazy after lunch so hoped that the hills wouldn’t start just yet. When we left the restaurant I started to worry that our lunch stop had been a bit too long as off in the distance the sky had become even more overcast and dark clouds were looming on the horizon.
The next 20kms flew by even though we lost the paved shoulder and the wind started doing ‘strange’ things by swirling around us. We cycled through some lovely villages and continued on along the Gulf of St. Lawerence. The houses along the coast are gorgeous – they are mostly pained bright, contrasting colors which stand out against the dark water. Architecturally t
hey are also very different – some very modern with tall windows, some are shaped like lighthouses and others are more traditional in a Cape Cod style. One thing that they all do have in common is that they all have fantastic views of the Gulf.We had a few steep climbs into Ste. Flavie and wondered if these were the ‘hills’ that had been promised. Unfortunately this was not quite the case… As we turned off of Route 132 we were met with an alarming sight – a MONSTER hill. Actually, 3 monster hills and the last one looked like it was about the size of a ski hill..! This was the beginning of the Gaspe peninsula, the north end of the Appalachian chain of mountains. The hill was definitely a challenge to get up and my legs were burning with lactic acid as I came over the crest of the hill… only to see another hill off in the distance. These hills were definitely the steepest gradient that we’ve seen on this trip so far. After that hill came another… and another… and another… and another. Every time one hill ended another seemed to begin and seemed to be steeper and longer than the first. It was tough but at the same time quite fun because I know that we’re all hurting and it feels good to see how much we have all improved in mastering these hills. Everyone has become so incredibly strong and whilst we all struggle, there is a feeling of satisfaction when the hill has been ‘conquered’. It was also a good feeling knowing that camp was not far away and that as soon as we all arrived at camp the sore legs would be forgotten and we’d all have a laugh and lots of stories about the day. That is generally how it always goes – it’s great to share the days stories, experiences and laughs over a beer, after a shower when your tent is set up and as the Galley Crew makes dinner. Happy Hour biker style.
We were all relieved to see the sign leading us into camp and even more pleased to have made it there dry. Rain was definitely imminent and I quickly put up my tent and prepared for yet another tasty dinner served by the Galley Crew. The dinners (especially the salads) are becoming increasingly creative and delicious – today we were treated to a Waldorf Salad thanks to Jan who is a real master in the kitchen and always has great food ideas. By the time were just sitting down to eat the heavens opened and the rain began to come down. A bunch of us all crammed into the back of the truck sitting on giant tins of kidney beans, detergent, peanut butter containers and on plastic tarps to eat our dinners and listen to music. It was very cos
y and fortunately, one of the few times that we’ve had to resort to these measures to stay dry over dinner. Overall I think that we’ve been pretty lucky with the weather. Hopefully this will continue – apparently there is 60% chance of rain for tomorrow and I really, really hope that it will not fall until later in the day and at least give us a nice sunny morning to start. I can only be so lucky..! 
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