End: Baie Sainte Anne, near Miramichi, NB.
Distance: 555 km Total to date: 2421km
Gas: Matane, QC; 15.05 @1.394 Total: $20.98
Campbellton, NB 14.5 litres @ $1.379; total: $20.08
Miramichi, NB; 14 litres @ $1.365; Total:$19.07
Weather: Temperature started at 61 degrees, went down to 54 degrees. Later, at our camping area , temperatures went back to about 72 degrees.
When we started out from Matane, riding along the St. Lawrence River on Hwy 132, we saw many wind turbines and quickly found out why...the cross winds were extremely strong and many times we were riding on an angle to counter balance the cross-winds.
DOUBLE-CLICK ON IMAGE TO ENLARGE
We turned up Hwy 195 and went into the wind and also away from the coast, so the winds were no longer an issue in the morning.
So, today was all about the weather and not so much about the scenery. The whole day was rainy, windy and cold. We didn't stop to take many photos as the weather was bad and we could not appreciate the scenery given the rainy and misty conditions.
It was difficult to get a handle on the scenery as it was a bit no-descript as we started off. As we got more into the interior of the area, there was more farming and a bit of forestry.
A thing I found interesting in this area of Gaspe, were the cemetaries, where almost every tombstone had flowers on them. It must be a tradition in the area because most cemetaries were adorned like that.
We got a bit off track out of south of Amquai as we took the Hwy 132 South and ended up on a dirt road. We made our way back to Amquai and took the 134 East. Along this highway, the hills got larger and we came to some very nice scenery as the highway ran parallel and seemed to meander along the Saumon River. The road was in very good shape along this route. We saw a few covered bridges.
We had to wear rain gear most of the day as it rained from Amquai to Campbellton, NB and even later as we rode from Campbellton to Miramichi.
Campbellton, NB was a very nice and scenic town but the downtown area traffic is a bit chaotic. There is a lot of angle parking and for many streets you cannot make turns. The town has a very nice display along the water front to celebrate it's salmon fishing and the view across to Quebec was gorgeous.
We decided to take the scenic route, Hwy 134, from Campbellton, along the water's edge, but a lot of the scenery was so-so. I guess were were spoiled from our previous days rides. It was also raining and we seemed to tire a bit faster.
We decided to get to Miramichi to look for a place to stay. We took Hwy 8 which was just a very busy freeway and was just a road to get from point A to point B the quickest. We don't want to ride roads like that. From Miramichi, we took Hwy 117, the Acadian Trail, or the Star Fish route as we called it. It went along the coast of the Miramichi River and ended up near Baie Sainte Anne. The roads in this area are very bumpy with many cracks, so you can't ride too fast. It seems they just fill or patch holes, they don't repave them. It also demonstrates the poorer economic conditions in this north east part of New Brunswick. The area is also adorned by the Arcadian flag to reflect the local heritage. The flag is a French flag with a star that is a symbol for saints.
We found a campsite called Sandy Beach Campground. We paid $45 for the site and set up camp right away in case it would start to rain again.
Once set up, we took a ride down the road to the "wharf" and had some local seafood. The people there were very nice and the food was very good.
A local girl who used to work in the tourism industry, gave us tons of information about the area, Moncton, Halifax and the Cabot Trail. In this area, many people stopped to ask us if we needed any help. People in the area are very friendly. Tomorrow, we are heading to Halifax as Al's wife will be there and will be riding with Al on the way back home. Distance 07/18: 258 km total 1867.4 km
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