Day 69 - Transitions, to the Edge (Englishtown NS – North Sydney NS)

Downsizing

Posted Sept 4th from Argentia NL

Our last sunny day of cycling on the mainland took us off Cape Breton and onto the mainland of Northern Nova Scotia. Today was a day of transitions as the 5 ton truck which had carried our gear from Vancouver across the continent was not making the trip across the Gulf of Saint Lawrence to Newfoundland.

That meant repacking our stuff from the two laundry baskets we had for the last 10 weeks into our main baggage, so everything could fit in the van and trailer.

Since today’s ride was a short 26 miles, I took the opportunity to do one final wash, and sleep in before heading out around 11:00 A.M. with Serge, Pierre-Alain, and Jacques.

Bras d'Or Lake

Once on the road we had the usual great views – this time of Bras d’Or Lake on Cape Breton and the bridge across it.

The Bras d'Or Bridge

Fully loaded!

One of the fun aspects of today was to load all (well 30 out of 40) bikes onto the trailer and van for loading on the ferry.  It made for quite the sight.

Camping on the Gulf

Our “campsite” tonight was aboard the ferry which would take us 266 miles across the Gulf to Newfoundland – 14 hours of time at sea. Departure was scheduled for 1:30 AM so it would be a long day. I did manage to stay up to watch the bow of the boat close after the last of the tractor trailers was loaded on. The boat itself was about 300 feet long so it made for pretty smooth sailing. Thankfully Hurricane Earl will miss us, at least for the ferry crossing.

Day 68 – Why Not !!! (Dingwall, NS – Englishtown, NS)

Cape Breton

Today was another sunny day with a relatively short (only 66 miles) route, so we decided to do some extra sightseeing at the beginning. It seems that everyone is getting up earlier with each day, and today was no exception. I still get up at 6:15 A.M., but by that time at least half of the 40 riders had already departed on the route.

White Point

We left camp shortly after 7:30 and within the first 10 miles Marc, Trevor and I opted for a descent off the main route to see the village of White Point, a place Marc had visited last year but the views were shrouded in fog. Our rationale was that it wasn’t even 8:30 so we could afford to see things. The views were much better than last year.

Why Not !!!

Before leaving the port, I saw a boat with a name that seemed to fit the mood for the day. You can see behind us, the climb we had to make to get back up to the main route.

North Shore of Cape Breton on a nice sunny day!

We continued along the Cabot Trail, with spectacular views of both Cape Breton and the Gulf of Saint Lawrence.

The road seemed to fall off the face of the earth.

The climbs today were a lot easier than yesterday, b ut the descents were wicked steep. I think I will need new brake pads when I return to New Jersey.

Temperatures were in the high 90s, low 100s but the riding was great. After a ride into some very strong headwinds, we arrived in camp shortly after 2 PM, set up camp and showered. Everyone is pretty excited tonight because we are having a meal with meat – hamburgers.

We have a short 24-mile ride to the ferry tomorrow, and our big truck which has carried our gear for the last 9 ½ weeks will not be making the voyage, so we are madly repacking our stuff so that it will fit into a small minivan. A bit of a hassle, but we will manage, as we have for the last 68 days.

It is hard to believe that after a year of planing and preparations, we have only 3 days left in our adventure.

Day 67 Hummingbirds (Lake Ainslie, NS – Dingwall, NS)

Threatening skies

Today was billed as the big climbing day and lived up to its name. We arose to rain and threatening skies, and headed out of camp around 7:30.

Coastal Views

After a short 20 mile ride, we joined up on the Cabot Trail, a spectacular route which hugs the coast of Cape Breton, except when it heads inland and up the 1,300’ to 1,500’ hills.

More of the coast

Where's Waldo?

Along the coast we passed by a lot that had about 100 “scare crows” on display so we stopped for a photo op.

After the first long climb

The route today was 92 miles but the fun began after mile 60 with two steep climbs, one just under 4 miles at a consistent 11% grade, and the next just over 2 miles at a 13% grade. We were pouring sweat on the climbs as the weather was hot, sunny, and in the low 90s. After the first of the climbs, we stopped to refuel, mainly Gatorade and PowerAde for their high sugar content, and an ice cream cone. Since our fuel for the day is mainly sugar and water, I mentioned to Marc who I was riding with that we were like hummingbirds, looking for nectar at every possibility,

The road below.

After some fun, steep descents, complete with switchbacks, we got into camp ahead most of the group – bonus because it meant no wait for the showers!