Sara's Wedding and Gaspe continued

Hey all,

Sorry for the delayed post, I spent the weekend up in the Muskokas for my sister-in-laws wedding. Everyone had a good time, it was a beautiful setting. Just to satisfy you readers, I'll post a photo of the happy couple, I'll wait before posting the others

The night before the wedding, my husband and I wandered around outside, taking photos of the sunset/moon. Here is one of him and the moon

So, that was my weekend in a very small nutshell. Back to the Gaspe trip.

The next morning, since it was pouring rain, we took a cycling hiatus and drove to Forillon provincial park. It a point near the end of the Gaspe peninsula with cliffs and shorebirds. Its a beautiful area to hike through. We saw whales (sorry no photos) which was really cool and the general landscape is very pretty. Here are a few photos, I'll have to go and get some more when its not dumping rain and foggy.

The rock formations there are really neat, most of the cliff edges look like they are sliding into the ocean

A thick forest we walked through on the way to the point

When we got to the top, we were greeted with a small black bear, we never saw the mother so it was a little nerve-wracking. Didn't stop me from taking photos though. This photo has had the fog filtered out for clarity. It was so thick up there that we couldn't see a bit of the ocean.

A sparrow that was singing away despite the rain.

The rest of the afternoon was spent biking to the city (town?) of Gaspe to get Lisa's bike repaired. We arrived at Camp Tete d'indienne which provided a few good photos the following morning.

Driving pt 2

More photos as promised. Waiting for the cyclists, we parked at a lighthouse (after getting some ice cream; ice cream and cheese are in abundance in Gaspe) and spent some time taking photos. I found some neat rocks with the water crashing in, and there was a steady stream of sea birds making a run for Cap Gaspe (a large cliff point where sea birds hang out) so there were plenty of things to keep me occupied.

A wave pelts a rock, with two Common Eiders hunkered down in the background

Just a Gull, but they are much more majestic and less anoying by the ocean than in McDonalds parking lots.

A sparrow on a fence post

Three Double-crested Cormorants making their way to Cap Gaspe

And finally, human photos. Erin rounds the corner. Welcome to Cap du Rossiers.

Tina flying down a hill

Lisa heading down a hill, dont be deceived by these photos, these girls were going faster than 70 km/hr down these hills. Shortly after this photo was taken Lisa hit a pothole (at 83.6km/hr) and cracked a rim; leading to a nice little non-cycling morning the next day, and an opportunity to get more photos, look forward to those tomorrow!

Day Two of Gaspe: The Drive

So, as mentioned, I spent the second day of riding, riding in the support car. It was a pretty good decision on my part, as this section of the ride was incredibly hilly. Now that Im looking through my photos, most of the days have blurred together, so I may have included a few from other days, but not that you care really. So, onwards.

The day before, we had been caught in the rain, having set our cycling shoes outside, they began to mist.

The road through the inland, I think this hill was about a 11% grade. Notice the huge windmills in the background

A close-up of the windmills, in some areas they just cover the hills

A Black Guillemot, a sea bird that is pretty common in the area. They have bright red feet and nest in the rock faces

I stopped at a rest station to get a few shots, this was a beatiful area, with the ocean coming into the inland and forming a lake.

I drove 4km on a dirt road to see a historic Marconi site. Sadly, all the tours were in French (which Im not so bad at understanding, but no so much as to get a whole tour). So that trip wasnt very eventfull, but I did get a good photo of a Spruce Grouse. So there you go.

I realize that because I drove the entire day, I have many photos to share. I will post some more tomorrow.

The first day of cycling

The camping Saturday night was great, and I awoke to a pair of loons chatting to eachother out in the river.

We started our first day of cycling on Sunday. We had a support vehicle which would be driven to a meeting point along the way. I drove the first day and biked out to meet the others cycling. Here are Lisa, Alex and Erin starting their ride.

A view of the landscape on the North Coast through the car window, very beautiful, very windy. Notice the looming clouds.

Stopped at one of many lighthouses along the way. I didnt stay out of the car for long, it was incredibly windy and pretty cold on the camera hands.

Another shot of the landscape on the north coast, facing west (meaning we were cycling away from the beatiful blue sky)

I wish that I had a photo of the cycling from the afternoon. I switched driving and cycled the remainer of the day. The flat coastal road suddenly turned inward, into the mountains and I was left facing the biggest hills I have ever cycled up. My 7 weeks in Arizona didnt help me here in the least. Never in all my active life have my legs just decided to stop working, but they did this time. Still, having walked a few metres up one of the larger hills, I got back on the chariot and finished the day. However, this climb put my knee out quite nicely, so I ended up driving the following day, it gave me a good chance to get some great photos though, so I was greatful for the opportunity. Look forward to those tomorrow!

Back from Gaspe

Hello everyone,

Its been a long week of biking, rain and no internet access. The biking trip was lots of fun, though very tiring and very wet. I did get a chance to get some pretty good photos, which Ill share with you over the next few days. I figure I will do them chronologically, so here they are.

The first day we drove from Peterborough to Montreal, which takes about 4 hours. The next day was the long haul (10 hrs) from Montreal to Saint Anne-du-Monts in the Gaspesie. These are photos from our first campground which was right on the shore of the St Lawrence river. The owner didnt speak a word of english, but he was really great, and kind enough to let us leave the other car there for a week while we cycled around the penninsula.

Our bikes locked to the flag poles, flying the Maple leaf and the Fleur de Lis

One of the many things Quebec is known for is cheese. There are plenty of Fromageries to stop at along the way, with good bread for snacking. We learned however that cheese, though delicious, bungs up the digestive system very nicely. Our diet for the rest of the week consisted mostly of bran, granola and prunes. Nuf said.

We took a stroll along the beach before dinner, lots of fun rocks to play with. This is not a rock however, its a poetic look through glass. My retinas suffered getting this shot so appreciate it :)

An artistic look at a dead crab

Our first sunset. Little did we know it would be a rarity to actually see the sun on this trip.

Heading to Gaspe

Hello all (of those who are still reading this blog),
Tomorrow I will be heading off to Gaspe, Que. on a 10 day cycling adventure. I wont be bringing my laptop with me, so I wont be able to post everyday, but look forward to some good photos after I get back!!

Powerlines

Hello all,

Got back from spending two days in Peterborough, it was nice to be back in my university town. I didnt get very many photos however, just too busy running around. I did get a few great photos of the sunset as I was walking to the place I was staying. If only the clouds had been this awesome in AZ. Rather than being frustrated with the powerlines in the way, I intentionally included them. Cant beat em, join em.