Roller Coaster

Days 84, 85, and 86: I took Wednesday, Thursday, and Friday to play hooky. It was a pleasant respite. However, just those three days made it a little difficult to get back in the saddle. I rented a car at the airport. When I returned it, I then had to pedal to the other side of St. John and the Hillside Motel.

Day 87: St John, New Brunswick, to Bridgetown, Nova Scotia. 45 mi. 5,198 Mi TTD. 2900 ft elevation. Warm, dry, and a nice tailwind.

I was up at 6:00 a.m. and getting ready to pedal over to the ferry terminal in St. John. You have to arrive at 7:00 for an 8:00 departure. Of course, after you check in and get your ticket, it’s about 7:05, and then you stand around for 30 or 40 minutes while the cars load.

The lady in the top photo, in front of me on the ramp down to the ferry, became my best friend while we waited. She was a bicyclist, so we had lots of conversations about where and what in biking. Goal number two accomplished:-).

Being an expert at riding fairies, I immediately beelined for the cafeteria after parking my bike. Unfortunately, the cars had already passed me, so there was a line. Regardless, I was able to get a good breakfast, then relax and even sleep a little on the way across the Bay of Fundy. It is always remarkable to me how many cars and trucks they cram onto these ships. I was the only bicycle, but well-treated.

Miraculously, getting off the ferry at sea level did not require an immediate climb. I did, however, pay for it later. The mileage today was short, but I was on the rail trail for about 20 of those miles, so the nearly 3,000 ft of elevation gain was done in the first 20 mi.

It seemed that Nova Scotia had nothing straight along the X or Y axes. Other than the video, I did a very poor job of recording those first 20 miles. Some of the hills were so steep I had to walk. Some of the downhills were so steep that you literally could not see the bottom of the hill because it sloped so steeply downward. I have to say, I was a little discouraged as I began to think I had a week of this kind of riding ahead of me.

Then, around mile 20, I came on the Annapolis Valley Rail Trail. It definitely wasn’t on the New Brunswick or Quebec caliber of trails, but it was generally quite rideable, and being a rail trail, it was very pleasant from an x and y-axis perspective. The dips in my emotions earlier in the day were soon replaced by rises, but this time in emotions, not on the road.

I was able to pick up some lunch in one of the small towns along the way. As I pedaled forward, I hoped to find a nice rest area where I could stop and eat, as I had become accustomed to doing. Eventually, I gave up and just sat in a shady spot on the trail.

Not surprisingly, about a mile later, I came upon a picnic table and a chair right next to the water. There wasn’t any shade, so it was probably better to have eaten my meal previously. I did, however, take my own advice about pausing, and stopped to wade in the water and enjoy a beautiful afternoon doing something other than pedaling.

In the mountain and Prairie provinces, whenever I was on a remote trail, I almost always saw bear scat. Interestingly, despite this being an area with a fair number of houses and farms, I saw bear scat frequently on the trail. I’m not sure if anyone knows, but I’m pretty sure bears use the trail too.

Eventually, I came to the quaint little community of Bridgetown. The people are very pleasant, and the motel has a nice, laid-back atmosphere. I did have one weird experience while doing laundry. I was only wearing shorts and a T-shirt, so I could wash everything. I walked out of the washroom, and there was a lady sitting at one of the outdoor tables. She commented on my “nice tan.” She was joking, I think, as my feet are entirely white with a very sharp line around my ankles where the tan begins. Right as she said it, her husband walked up. I explained that I’d been biking for 3 months. I got a smile out of her, so goal number two was accomplished. I’m not sure whether her husband was smiling or not …