Day 25: Tatamagouche, Nova Scotia, Canada

Day 25: Tatamagouche, Nova Scotia, Canada

July 7, 2016

Miles: 33

Truro to Tatamagouche


We deliberately set the alarm because we planned to hit the road early this morning.  We had changed our route to be able to ride the Sunrise Trail (an ocean front road) on the nouthern coast. This increased the mileage by about 20, but it was supposed to be a spectacular ride to see the coastal beaches and beauty.  So, we said lets do it.  The mileage now estimated at 61, and since we had the day off yesterday we thought why not!  We felt that we could make it through Tatamagouche, across the Sunrise Trail and into Pictou before the rain if we started early.  So we were drinking coffee by 7:10a and were on our bikes by 9:00a this morning.

Okay so, we didn't quite make it to Pictou today.  We ended our day in Tatamagouche, as the Day 25 blog post title suggests.  An unexpected adventure was ahead.

Breakfast this mornng was outstanding!  We both ordered veggie skillets and a bowl of fresh fruit just like yesterday.

Breakfast just yummy!

It was still cold this morning when we left the hotel.   Probably upper 50s.   After a few miles we warmed up enough.  We decided to take Truro Road this morning.  A straight shot to Tatamagouche.  The most direct route and Google Maps suggested this road.  After about five miles we hit dirt in the road.  So the dilenma was this ...  We just road 5 miles on a road that was beautiful until this point.  We had no idea what was ahead other than we knew the elevation would rise and we would have a steady climb over a mountain.  All suggested routes had us climbing, so this was not really a factor.  Do we turn back and add, about 3 miles, to an already long day.  The dirt road ahead was hard packed; it would certainly slow us down, and we didn't know how many miles of dirt we would encounter.  Worst case scenerio would be 23 miles riding on dirt all the way to Tatamagouche.  We really didn't think it would be a dirt road the entire time.  So we went for it!

Steve checking seat

Before we started on the dirt road, Steve checked his seat because he thought it was slipping again.  At this point, it was still OK, but after another couple miles on this road with the vibration, indeed his bike seat started slipping a bit with every bump.  During the course of the day, Steve tightened the seat clamp, which held, but long term he wants to swap out the old clamp for the new one that he bought at the bike shop. Steve decided not to mess with it today given the dirt road we were on just in case of an unexpected problem.

The road all to myself

The road got progressively worse with every mile.

As we continued on this road we rode deeper into the forrest; we saw steep drop offs on the side of the road and at other times just thick forrest and hills.

Drop off

The vibration from the road was never ending and we were riding anywhere from 3 to 5 mph.

High in elevation and alone

At this point in the ride, Steve started singing loudly.  Both a habit and for our safety.  We didn't know what kind of wildlife was beyond the perimeter, so he wanted the animals to know we were there.  Something that he learned while hiking; it is better that we make noise so the animals do not think we are a threat.

The roads got worse and the climb got steeper.  We climbed very slow because the road was in bad shape and our tires were slipping from beneath us.  It was getting dangerous, but we wanted to keep moving because we didn't know what might be lurking around the corner.

It was slow riding.

At one point, we both had to get off the bikes and walk up the hill.  Our tires were sinking in the thick dirt stopping our tire traction.

It was about 12 miles and 4 hours into our ride. We had not seen a car in a long while and we no longer had cellular phone service, but we were almost over the mountain.

Once we crested the mountain, it got easier but no less dangerous.  We had to brake all the way down and because of the loose rocks, pot holes and thick dirt we were all over the place.  I was happy to have the new brakes the bike shop had replaced yesterday.

After a few more miles down the mountain, we saw our first car in 5 hours and a few cross roads also dirt.  Then we stumbed upon this brown beauty.  Just gorgeous!

We finally hit a cross road that was paved so we took it.  After another 6 miles we finally rolled into Tatamagouche.  Our bodies shaken from the ride and our muscles tense.  I realized at this point my jaws were locked from tension.  We rode straight through for 5 hours without a rest or break.  The town was ahead and we immediately located a place to eat lunch; we wanted off the bikes and we were hungry.

Before I could enter the restaurant, a few local folks asked me about our ride.   They saw the bags on our bikes, so they knew we were touring.  They were excited for us, and real interested in what we were up to.  Very nice people.

For lunch, I had my typical lettuce wrap turkey breast and Steve a turkey wrap.  I ordered tomato and cheddar cheese soup that was very tasty.  We both had Ginger Ale in a bottle.

We were exhausted, and our legs hurt.  I said it first ' lets stay here tonight'.  It was now 2:30p and the rain forecast said at 4:00p.  We would not make it to Pictou about 33 miles east before the rain.  I didn't want to ride in the rain after this morning's ride and Steve didn't either. 

We found the nearest motel;  it had good reviews so we checked in for the night.   There was a food market across the street, so this would make it easy for us to walk even in the rain.

I did a load of laundry and then we checked the Tour de France standings and Wimbleton, then we took a nap.  A couple hours passed, so we headed across the street to buy some food for dinner.  We ate a variety of food - some hummus and chips, red grapes, turkey sandwich for Steve and chicken salad for me.

Tomorrow we are off to Pictou about 33 miles east, via the Sunrise Trail.   The forecast has the rain stopping at 9:00a.  From Nova Scotia, the only way onto Prince Edward Island is via Ferry about 6 miles from Pictou.  It runs 8:00a, 11:15a, 2:45p, 6:15p.   If we can make the 11:15a or 2:45p Ferry we will take it, but only if we can find lodging on PEI for the night.  Otherwise, we will stay in Nova Scotia one final day.

Whew ... what a day!  In hindsight, three miles would have been nothing, but if we had turned back, we would have missed out on today's adventure!