Author: Paul Rito (Page 13 of 28)

Monday, September 2, 2004, 46 miles: After breakfast at the motel, we took and a walk past the windmills dotting the landscape. It’s Labour Day in Canada as it is in the U.S., and we expected quiet roads and a pleasant and rain-free ride back to Parrsboro. We weren’t disappointed as we followed Routes 302 and 2, somewhat windy and mostly flat roads that took us the 39 miles back “home.”

Sunday, September 1, 2004, 66 miles: We had a mostly restful night, even with the wind. We packed up, loaded the bikes and headed for McDonald’s for coffee and free wi-fi, and to check out the weather report for the day. Didn’t look like there were going to be any downpours, but we might have rain for our morning ride to the Confederation Bridge.

Saturday, August 31, 2004, 44.1 miles: After a great night’s sleep, and a hearty Dalton breakfast (we didn’t plunge this time, but Dalton did), we headed off to the Summerside area for our last full day in PEI.

Dalton suggested we check out the indoor Farmer’s Market in Summerside and we did so, but didn’t find much we needed or could keep without refrigeration. We did, though, get approached by a couple of guys “selling” the “Love Summerside Community BBQ” at a local park. It was put on by area churches and open to everyone. As it was on the way to the campground we were considering, we headed that way. Free BBQ (for me, anyway) and ice cream and other food and treats and we imbibed.

Friday, August 30, 2004, 37.4 miles: After a restful night, we joined Dalton for his morning dip in the Gulf. Cool, but not cold, and very refreshing. Certainly got our blood moving. And what a beautiful, wide beach. With sand, vs. the rocks that make up the beaches in the Bay of Fundy.

After breakfast, the three of us took off for a 34 mile ride that morphed to 37 with a few sightseeing detours. Dalton, though he’s done a lot of touring, had mostly been doing 15 & 20 mile rides, so we tired him out a bit, but he was right with us the whole ride. We stopped for gorgeous views of the Gulf of St. Lawrence, little harbor villages, a rec center, and finally, to Kensington again for lunch. The Island Pub had a two hour wait, so we opted for the C&B Corner Cafe right across the street, and got our order in just under the wire as they were closing soon.

Thursday, August 29, 2004, 50.3 miles: Coffee in the room today, so no scramble to get going, and we have a host tonight! We eased out of the motel just before checkout time and headed back to the Confederation Trail heading west.

Wednesday, August 28, 2004, 31.1 miles: Another no coffee day, but we only had 15 miles to get to Charlottetown where we were sure we could get our caffeine. Rain was threatened for the afternoon, so we broke camp rather early and were on our way at 8.

Tuesday, August 27, 2004, 75.6 miles: Word of the day: Coffee! With an exclamation point! Coffee was on our minds from waking to morning ablutions to breakfast of granola and YOPs^* to packing up the gear and getting on the road. And we purposely had not brought coffee prep material because I assured Dana there was a Tim Hortons on every corner. Not today and not here.

Monday, August 26, 2004, 56.1 miles: Bob cooked us pancakes for breakfast, and “instructed” us in how to eat them: “A little plain yogurt first, then fresh fruit bits, and finally, a little maple syrup.” Glenda had her own style and just used butter and syrup. We liked Glenda’s, “Yeah, I’m doing it my way” attitude. However, the pancakes were great and we ate them up to fuel our trip to the ferry.

Sunday, August 25, 2004, 58.6 miles: We left Andrew and Kelly to the peace and quiet of Rockcliffe Dr. and started off on our tour to PEI. First leg was to Truro and a warm showers host. To start off, however, we first had to navigate two and a half miles of gravel road through Charlie’s development and a logging area which was closed to traffic. Going this way meant some gnarly gravel riding, especially fully loaded, but it saved 15 miles (and still 2.4 miles of gravel riding) vs. going into Parrsboro first. We averaged 5 mph for those first 2.5 miles, but also saved a hour and 12.5 miles. Fortunately, we had ridden that road in the other direction on our first ride, so we knew what was coming.

Saturday, August 24, 2004: Dana heard from a few people that Chignecto Provincal Park had good hiking and was a definite must visit. Dana wanted to ride, I didn’t. I’d been struggling with a ball of foot issue and wanted to be able to hike without adding 37 hilly miles beforehand (and 37 miles back!). So, off she went, and it was a hard ride as it was challenging enough in the car! 😉In the park, we checked out the various trails. Many were meant for two or three days with overnight stays, but we found a good option of about 6 miles with a mile of that on the low-tide beach. We started off on the beach leg to beat the coming high tide and a great, quiet hike. The cutouts I made in my insoles worked like a charm and I was able to hike pain free until the last 1/2 mile or so. All-in-all a win.