The finale! It’s a wrap…

We’ve got some numbers for you. Jim compiled all the info and came up with final stats.

LODGING
19 camping, 17 motel, 5 B&B, 7 AirBnB, 1 WarmShower, 3 Friend

RIDING/MILES per Province
23 days (18 riding / 734 MILES) QUEBEC
6 days (3 riding/173 MILES) NEW BRUNSWICK
23 days (17 riding/658 MILES) NOVA SCOTIA

Total Days: 52 days

Total riding days: 38

Layover days: 10

Travel Days: 3 bus or bus-busted! 1 pre-ride prep day

Average Miles per day: 41
Average speed: 10.3 mph

Total Miles: 1587

AIS: 152 hrs and 25 min

Elev. gain: 53,660 ft

Then there’s the anecdotal facts in no particular order:

Bike repairs: 5 bike shops, 2 self repairs

Flat tires: 0!!!!

Rainy days on the bike: 4

Hottest day: Quebec construction day. Sweating outside the construction office off the side of the road and trying to figure out how to get through the construction

Coldest night: camping along the P’tit Train du Nord, Quebec. It was still August.

Coldest day: Fog along the St Lawrence to Riviere du Loup . Hats, gloves, booties, tights for the early morning ride.

Best campground hospitality: Merigomish Nova Scotia. Gave us a empty cabin out of the fierce wind

Best campground shower: Merigomish NS

Worst campground: Shubanacadi. tent site was deep wet grass, bathroom was pretty rustic but the water was warm.

Best hotel motel bnb coffee and breakfast: Bed and breakfast Digby NS

Worst hotel motel bnb coffee and breakfast: Pictou, NS.

Best dinner: Digby scallops but Quebec City was a close 2nd with the crepes.

Worst dinner: Donair at Shubenacadie

Best motel customer service: Mount Royal in Temiscouata, Quebec. Fluffy, white towels at the doorway when we arrived at the office soaking wet

Biggest laugh: Jim carrying 6 beers out of the liquor store without a bag in Edmunston, NB.

Biggest shock: bus to Halifax being sold out!

Biggest disappointment: not seeing Halifax city.

Steepest hill that we had to walk: Sherbrooke to the bike shop. Quebec City was a close 2nd

Steepest hill that we did climb: North Mtn, Cabot Trail

Road kill: A few raccoons and porcupines. Very, very little…Don’t know why.

Bike path roadkill: 1 chipmunk

Rock kill: 1 skunk

2 dead moose… back of a pickup trucks ( hunting)

Best Good Idea: Andre at VeloMax shuttle. Velomax.ca

Arriving back home to Billings, Montana. Flight out of Denver, CO to Billings

I find myself looking out the window on the flight from Denver CO to Billings MT and reflecting on the landscape of eastern Canada versus the landscape of eastern Wyoming and Montana. The plane photos show the landscape in eastern Wyoming, the Bighorn River valley and near Billings MT. There are few to no trees… sharp gullies and some mountains, both forested and dry. It’s a stark contrast to the trees I’ve been in for the last 50+ days. The deep, thick, dark forests of conifer and deciduous trees… trees that change into beautiful yellows, oranges and reds. Both terrains are wildernesses of a different type. You can get seriously lost or hurt in either of these places. But it’s the color of the land that strikes me most.

Many people would say that this Wyoming/Montana landscape is barren and ugly but I don’t think so. I like the fact that you can see forever…You notice the clouds and The Big Sky! That the starkness and simplicity of plants has its own special quality. You can really see the little things… not too many other things to distract you. There’s a subtle change in colors. You notice the rocks and the soil.

It makes me marvel at the generations before me that endured the wildness of both environments and carved lives, businesses and brought families. There’s no way either of those places to live was easy when they first arrived. In one, they would spend most of their time clearing the forest so they could have some open space. As a matter of fact they still spend a lot of time clearing those forests or maintaining those clearings… so they can have open space and sunshine.

In the other more stark environment they spent time making homes… trying to minimize their exposure to wind, near some trees and most importantly near a source of water, so they could exist. Neighbors could be miles away… yet they stayed and scratched out towns and business and families.

I can’t help but find the beauty of such contrasting landscapes. Perhaps that is why I enjoy seeing places by bicycle. The landscape is everything…when you must get yourself through it by your own muscle power and at such a slow pace. You notice every hill, gully, and valley. There are not many things that escape your attention.

Then there’s the inhabitants of the places you choose to see by bicycle… their homes, vehicles, barns and outbuildings. Their pride of home ownership, their farms and their businesses. Communities that show pride when they welcome you into town and thank you as you leave with their little parks or perhaps bike trails. The convenience store workers that are friendly to their customers. Motel owners, campground owners and restaurants that are proud of their places. (The kinds that are local and not chains along the interstates). You notice these things on a bicycle. They make me feel good about visiting them.

There’s the random person you meet that asks you questions… where have you been? where are you headed? Offers up ideas of good restaurants or helps you out if you have questions… draws you a map because you don’t speak the language.

I like life traveling by bicycle. I like the simplicity of the day. Eat, ride, eat, ride, eat and sleep. Time to let your mind wander and reflect on what you see.

But I also like being home! Warm, comfortable, familiar, family and friends. Life is good my friends. Make sure you take some time to enjoy yours! And thank you for enjoying a few weeks of mine/ours!

Until the next ride… take good care of yourself.