Day 27

here one of the videos from last week's post: http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=HEEzPHnjALw&feature=youtu.be

We left on May 21st from New Maryland towards Moncton and eventually PEI. We had the wind at our backs and a relatively flat road so the riding was very smooth and enjoyable. We had lunch and dinner already in our bags thanks to John and Jennifer, so we also did not waste anytime in grocery stores or restaurants. All of this combined into 135 kms, our personal best to date. We eventually camped on an abandoned lot behind a house that looked like it belonged in a horror film, like the Texas Chainsaw Human Centipede.

The next day we were in high spirits because of the personal best the previous day. We were also on the way to PEI which we had only heard amazing things about. We had about 200 km to get to Charlottetown and 2 days to do it so we didn't go too hard, and we finished the day after 100 km and in a small town called Cap Pele. We visited the local pub to watch some of the Memorial Cup, then called it a night by camping behind a large fence.

Will found a way into a washroom facility that was locked up for the season.

Is it wierd that after going in, Will went out of his way to make sure he was technically using the men's facilities? Na, I think thats just respect.

We finally hit the Confederation Bridge the next day around 1:00. We had to take a shuttle because no pedestrians or bikes are allowed on the bridge (even us... professionals... I know, it's crazy) something about the winds being too much and road being too narrow and us looking too professional. Once we hit PEI the wind decided to pick up and it became very cold. It took us nearly 4 hours to do 50 km to reach Charlottetown. We eventually decided to pay for a room at the University of PEI residence. For dinner we hit the Gahan Brewhouse in the downtown area and had an amazing dinner. Overall the town has been a highlight of the trip thus far.

We both only took one picture on the island.

We passed this sign and different times, and both decided this was worth taking a picture of.

We are both very mature.

It was tough to leave PEI the next day because we only got to spend one day on the island and it was such a nice place. Additionally, we had to bike 50 km to get to the ferry by 1:00 or else we would be a day behind schedule. We left our dorm room at 10:00 and made it to the Wood Islands ferry by 12:30, which was impressive in our books. The ferry ride was about an hour long. When we arrived in Nova Scotia we still wanted to bike another 30-50kms so that we could reach our goal of getting to Cheticamp by Saturday. We finished the day by camping on the side of the 104 highway.

Nova Scotia has Celtic roots. The river-dance may be considered celtic-ish, by some, maybe.

Our second day in Nova Scotia was quite eventful. We made it to Cape Breton around 4:00, and decided to bike until we had no more sun so that the day after to Cheticamp would be that much easier. We also saw two other bikers (presumably doing a trans-Canada trip) heading west. We decided to take the road along the coast because there would be less hills, and we were amazed by how amazing the ocean already looked before we hit the famous Cabot Trail. We finally finished in Judique, the first Scottish settlement in North America, across the street from the St. Andrew's church.

The next day we had significant tailwinds and we rode 110 kilometers into Cheticamp.

photo op, take 1

take 1

take 2

We didnt have a take 3, because Harry probably would have given himself a concussion.

Originally the town of Cheticamp was considered a "maybe" destination for us. Will's good friend from University, Andree, is from Cheticamp, and Will had heard about it from her and seen pictures of it before. Before making up our decision on whether we make make the detour to Cheticamp, we decided to do a little research and found out that Cheticamp isn't just some town in Cape Breton, it's The Town in Cape Breton. A small, 3000 person fishing town right along the famous Cabot trail between high hills and the ocean is a must-visit. We were happy to take the detour and it has probably been the best decision we've made. We also had the chance to have some fresh lobster. It was amazing. We were treated like family by Bourgeois family, and we are very grateful.

The Cabot Trail is beautiful. And we saw a moose!

Here is a video the us on the cabot trail: http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=4Yk5lSZDcUQ&feature=youtu.be