Days 9-12 - Welcome to Gaspésie

Day 9 - distance: 44 km (Kamouraska to Rivière du Loup)

Riders: Danielle, Emma, Leslie, Meghan, and Sheila

After a relaxing morning at the Caddell home and a filling lunch at Pizza Mag in Kamouraska, we got going around 3 pm. Thankfully we didn't need to cover much distance today since we had a headwind for most of the ride. We rode in a peloton and took turns in the lead, rotating every 3 km or so. When we arrived at our campsite in Rivière du Loup, Victor was very surprised to hear we didn't get rained on considering he drove through rain on three separate occasions, but somehow we managed to miss it. Camping du Quai is located off Highway 132 E and is right across from "Noël au Château," which manages to stay open for business until 10 pm in August. Very random! While Danielle, Leslie, Sheila and I explored the Château, Meg and Victor went for a run.

Victor, Sheila, Danielle, Meg, Leslie, Emma

Nine-fingered Santa Claus

Danielle and Leslie rescue Emma from the whale

Moon rising in Rivière du Loup

Day 10 - distance: 106 km, 1 flat tire, 1 tire bulge (Rivière du Loup to Rimouski)

Riders: Emma, Leslie, Meghan, and Sheila

The biking was interesting today with a mix of paved and unpaved roads and paths. We got to cycle along the water and through residential areas. This gave us a good feel for the area. We had some mechanical issues including a flat tire (Leslie) and a tire bulge (Sheila), but on the bright side, we got to stop for lunch and wait for Victor to come to the rescue with a new tire for Sheila at the most beautiful site yet: Saint-Simon-sur-Mer. Danielle took a rest day and met up with Kyle, who arrived by train at 2 am, at a hotel in Rimouski. The rest of us stayed at a campsite that included a hot tub with disco lights, which felt pretty good after a full day of biking.

Bulge in Sheila's tire

Sheila, Leslie, Emma, and Meg

Saint-Simon-sur-Mer

Day 11 - distance: 105 km (Rimouski to Matane)

Riders: Danielle, Emma, Kyle, Leslie, Meghan, and Sheila

Today we officially crossed into Gaspésie and are noticing the route is getting hillier and more challenging. We also had to bike on sections that the Route Verte map considers "undeveloped" since they consist of little to no shoulder and medium to heavy traffic at high speeds. Considering we're riding on week days during non-peak hours, we haven't had much trouble with these sections.

Kyle has arrived making us a group of six cyclists

Thursday night in Matane we saw the UCI qualifier for the world cup paralympic cycling, which left us feeling both humbled and inspired.

Emma, Meg, Leslie, Sheila, Danielle, and Kyle

Day 12 - distance: 89 km (Matane to Sainte-Anne-des-Monts)

Riders: Danielle, Emma, Kyle, Leslie, Meghan, and Sheila

The route continues to get hillier and hillier. Today we climbed a total of 900 m. Of course this means there are also some steep downhills. Sheila and I are particularly happy to have mirrors connected to our helmets in these cases since they enable us to know when cars are approaching. We arrived at a beautiful campsite right on the water - think crashing wave sounds and lots of wind - in Sainte-Anne-des-Monts. We made a delicious dinner while the sun was setting. We're all happy to have the chance to sleep in, since Day 13 is a rest day.

Kyle and Danielle (back)
Meg, Emma, Sheila, and Leslie (front)
Heading out of Matane

View from camp in Ste-Anne-des-Monts

Bike storage, food bins, clothes line and tent