After another big meal and a tour of the house and grounds, our tour guide Rob Dickenson arrives with Darla and Syl. We enjoy a relaxing 70 km into Montreal, with a lunch break in Hudson and Syl joining us for the last hour. Finally out of Ontario! Quebec is a breath of fresh air after 19 days of cycling in Canada's widest province. Andrea is elated as we cross onto Ile de Montreal and her hometown. The Senneville cheering squad is out with Darla Petryk and Sally and David Ogden greeting us. Time for a couple days off.
Saint Sulpice to Saint Anne de la Perade
140.8 km td 5,951.7 km
The day feels like a dream; we are still in shock about having our own bike shoulder, our own bike signs, even our own potholes.
Quebec is more unique than I could have expected- the english language has disappeared from the planet, watertowers signifying approaching towns have been replaced by giant steepled churches, depanneurs everywhere with beer and wine. At one point we stop at a local cafe and are served biscotti, cafe latte, nachos with homemade salsa, and a dark malt ale. The rest of this country would have offered burgers and fries.
We spend the night in a hidden gem- a 300 year old farmhouse turned into a B&B and renovated to a museum-like completion. We are served a five course meal of extravagant proportions, absolutely five star except for the price.
134.1 km td 6,212.4 km
Snapshots of a pleasant day cycling the Quebec countryside:
-stopping at a Bisque store for a morning cookies and coffee
-endless colours of well maintained homesteads by francophones who take great pride in their homes
-10 km ofdedicated bikeway along the tidal flats of the widening Saint Laurent
-drafting from a tractor at 30 kmh for ten minutes
-Coasting through floodplains turned farmland on fresh pavement with a gentle tailwind (the way the prairies should have been.)
-Watching the sunset over the north shore mountains with a dinner including fish soup and local wheat beer.
96.4 km td 6,308.8 km
The morning greets us in out tent with pouring rain, so we ignore it for half an hour hoping it will taper off. Suddenly Andrea notices a small puddle by her feet, so I jump out to assess the damage. I am shocked to find the tent in a small lagoon! We dry out in a covered area and plan on a B&B for the night.
The day is wet, misty, and dark as we bid farewell to the Saint Laurent at Riviere de Loup and head up the hills towards New Brunswick. The bike friendly old railway bed is too soft and wet for us, so we join the endless speeding traffic on the transcanada and cover some kilometres.
