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2018 07-15> Sainte-Felicite


To sum up today; the cycling was wonderful; the weather just moderately warm, the beer was tasty, the people interesting, and our lodging is nice.  So where to start?

We left our hotel around 8 a.m after a full breakfast and headed north east on route 132…the only route around the peninsula.  For those who know that we are compulsive early risers and like to hit the road before most even think about waking, this must come as a surprise.  Yesterday’s ride, was short (but unloaded) allowing us to ride at 15-17 mph. Today, we had all our gear loaded on the bikes but still managed 13-15 mph.  The ride was mostly flat with just a few short climbs. 

Route 132 currently bypasses most of the small towns that it once bisected.  While the traffic on the highway was relatively light, every chance we had we diverted to the “old” road thru the towns and along the St. Lawrence Seaway.  The towns were mostly just housing with folks sitting on porches saying “Bon Jour” as we passed.  When we stopped for coffee, we met 2 cyclists doing the same trip but in the opposite direction.  They chose the opposite direction because the climbs were easier, but they had encountered head winds which were challenging.  The boys were in their early 20s, one a high school science teacher the other and oceanographer.  They wild camped and mostly ate fish that they caught and crabs that the picked. 

Cycling thru the city of Matane was our only real encounter with traffic. The town contained the first of the micro-breweries on our tour.  We got close to where we thought it should be but none of our 3 GPS or cell phone maps could provide a precise location.  After some consternation, one of us looked up and saw a highway sign that read “La Farique (the micro-brewery) .5 km to the right.  It is good that we were not early explorers of Gaspe.  The beer was very good, the food enjoyable and the wait staff a delight.

We are staying in the town of Sainte-Felicite at a hostel.  While the building is old, it is well maintained and staffed by some of the nicest people who are also hot babes.  The down side of the hostel is that they do not serve dinner or breakfast and no close by restaurant options are available.  HP decided to utilize his mountaineering skills and went to a nearby (but not well stocked) grocery to scavenger for food.  He made us dinner, served wine, and closed out the meal with some fruit.  Jeff did the laundry, and Joe worked on completing the day’s logistics and getting our route ready for tomorrow. 

Good night family and friends.


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