Towards Montreal

Hello this is Nancy,

So here I am loaded up like a pack horse I was pointed in the direction of highway 102 towards Truro, where we joined the Trans-Canadian Highway 104, to Sackville New Brunswick Having stopped at Tourist Information for a map and lunch, we decided to visit the Gaspe Peninsula, rather than go direct to Quebec City. Travelling up Highway 2 and 11 rather than go to Fredricton the capital of New Brunswick.This is where we stopped at a camp site at Miramichi, the black fly capital of the world and called for drastic steps to be taken to avoid ingesting them with every in breath

Beat a hasty retreat in the morning around the Acadian Peninsula to the Caraquet and Bathurst looking for indigenous art, but unfortunately the summer season had not yet begun and it was closed. We then followed the coast road up to Campbellton, where we crossed into Quebec Province.

The roads here in Canada leave a bit to be desired for great riding. The Cabot Trail is a wonderful scenic experience, but a very bumpy one, and I have to be vigilant for lumps and fissures in the tarmac. The speed limit is 85km/hr on none-highway roads which we tend to keep to, which is quite gentle on my liquid refreshment, and gives us about 450kms to the tank, which is a great boon given that fuel stops are few and far between then pop up like British buses: three in a row.

Hi David here,

The scenery changes in New Brunswick. It began with miles of drained marsh land across which the wind howled, before getting in to yet more more trees; oh! and then more trees. We came across marooned dinosaurs looming on the horizon, which we discovered were closed paper factories. People told us that the unions and demand for higher wages had priced them out of the market, in a place where there is an abundance of raw material-trees.

There wasn't anything distinctively New Brunswick. It was a pity to miss the Acadian Historic Village in Caraquet

Unfortunately our Autocom lead broke in Halifax so it is difficult to communicate with Jill and share our observations, when on the bike. I ordered a new one which will hopefully arrive at my friends house in Montreal, where we will be able to collect it.

Finally the weather, oh! the weather is warm and sunny.

Nancy here again,

Travelled on towards the Gaspe Peninsula and managed to wild camp (that is for free)
in a place called Nouvelle

An early start at what we thought was 7am but turned out to be 6am due to a time difference between Provinces, and we were on the road to Gaspe in temperatures reaching the high 20's-wonderful! About 50km down the road, the bike thermometer dropped to 20 then 15 then 10, then 5 and we were in fog. We stopped by the side of the road whilst my venerable passengers changed back into their Winter warmers including thermals and heated jackets.

The roads were of the usual standard: pot-holed but the scenery was beautiful. At Perce we took a photo of an island with a hole in it


I was beginning to run a bit rough having ridden about 3500kms since leaving Plymouth. I was trying to signal to my owner that I was feeling a bit fragile, but apart from cleaning my plugs, balancing my carbs and looking at me wistfully, he didn't pick up on the hint.

Hello Jill here,

I only have one experience to offer at present. It concerns wild camping. It is one thing experiencing the joys of camping for free, albeit on a camp ground which is closed, but it is quite another when one needs to do ones ablutions. I am happy washing in babbling brooks, peeing behind a bush, but when it comes to other matters of elimination, it is a very sensitive issue. Needless to say the call of nature took my skills of bush craft to new dimensions!! A first for me. Now this may be too much information, but I feel it is necessary to share in my more than minor accomplishment!! Sorry no photo.

David here,

We arrived at Gaspe where we found a wonderful real coffee, rather than filtered brown water

Rode out to Cap-des-Rosiers the tip of Parc National du Canada Forillon


Along the north coast in plunging temperature and lowering clouds. At 6pm our time 5pm local time, while looking for a place to camp, it started to rain, and at 2 degrees centigrade we didn't take much persuading to stay in a Motel


A very decent Motel, with restaurant, with spectacular views across the leaden sea, which is fine from the comfort of four walls, where I enjoyed 'cod's cheeks' and Jill succumbed to a steak!!! The vegetarianism has slid somewhat!

ttfnxx