Day 15 - To the north shore!

miles today: 86 total miles: 947
km today: 139 total km: 1525

We knew it was going to be a bit of a push to make it to the ferry in time with 65 km to ride, so we jumped up at 5:45 am, only made coffee and had cold bagels that Chandra heavily dosed with cream cheese the night before for breakfast, and hit the road before 6:45 am. We knew we would have a headwind and it was the coldest temperature we have experienced, totally socked in with fog. There was a bit of a headwind as well, but we got to grinding and had a pretty uneventful ride to Riviére du Loup in plenty of time for the ferry.

I don’t have any pictures from the morning ride, but wanted to talk a bit about the feeling of the air here. Once we left Quebec City a couple days ago, as Chandra mentioned, the smells are not like the Great Lakes or a river, but the sea. The saltwater line is just past Quebec City and the air is different, clearly what’s growing in the water is different. And this feels important in a couple ways. First, it was always our intension with this ride to reach the Atlantic (since we had reached the US border in every other main direction) so now that the water is salty, I feel a sense of having arrived. It’s an exciting feeling, and also marks a transition from being in a Great Lakes environment to the ocean. Also, when I worked with the Bad River Band of Anishinabe in northern Wisconsin, they often recounted their origin story at big meetings. They talked about starting out in Lake Superior, going east until “the water got salty”, but returning to their homeland in Wisconsin driven by the memory of wild rice growing there. It occured to me the other day that this might be the very spot they were talking about. I wrote lyrics for a Searchlights song about this (kinda :) called “Home” and had it in my head much of the day.

Anyway, back to the day. We got on the ferry, pulled out our puffy jackets in hopes of going out on deck and maybe seeing a whale, but the fog was dense (the loud foghorn blew every 2 minutes for the hour we were crossing) so we worked on the blog and slept as we made our way to Saint-Siméon.


When we got to Saint-Siméon, we were greeted with a short climb at 11% grade - welcome to the north shore! Here’s a view of the signs from the top.

We weren’t necessarily expecting this climb right off the couch (although you can see the little steep blip on the profile) but the climbs after that we were expecting. Having crossed the Rocky Mountains and ridden short steep climbs in West Tennessee and Kentucky, climbing doesn’t scare us, and Chandra even noted how it can be a relief to have something more to think about than just flat pedaling for a change. That first big climb was a little nuts though - topping out at more than 12% grade! We had lunch at a cafe before starting the climb and just as we started riding the sun came out.

The character of the North Shore is so different from the South. The remnant Appalachian Mountains give way to the Canadian Shield. Super old (1-2 Billion Years) volcanic and metamorphic rocks, boreal forest, steep terrain - it was like we nearly instantly were transported to the mountains! The descents were like in the mountains - 10% sometimes. We hit 65 kph on one and then I started being a little more conservative with the drag brake to keep us under 50 KPH.



After a couple hours passing lakes and gorgeous terrain, we reached Bai Ste. Catherine and the final ferry of the day - a quick jump over to Tadoussac on a super modern electric engine ferry powered by natural gas.


We reached Tadoussac and the home of another colleague from Laval Unversity in Quebec City - John Molson. I met John at the same PhD defence where I met Jean-Michel last year in Quebec and he told me about some great biking adventures he had had in this area. We corresponded over the past year and he provided incredible insights and ideas that had a huge impact on our route and plans - including his invitation to take these several ferries and visit Tadoussac where he has a cottage. I am so glad he invited us! The terrain and history of this area are engaging and beautiful and John’s full house (his wife, two adult kids with partners, two grandkids, and three dogs) was full of energy and they all welcomed us for a lovely evening with dinner, some great local beers, and a walk around the peninsula including a gorgeous sunset looking up the Fjord. I noticed, from time to time, John seemed distracted, looking off in the distance, toward the sea. Whenever this happened, he would quietly say “Beluga” - and once again he had spotted a whale surfacing off in the distance. We walked past the site of the first Jesuit chapel in North America (!) with the current building being built in 1737 or something crazy old like that. This area is where much of the conquest of North America took off and relations with First Nations and Champlain were codified. It’s a place to pause and think about how many world events hinged on those times.



Like so much about this journey, seeing this gorgeous village and surroundings, I’m left with a desire to learn more of the history of the area and, in turn, Canada and North America.

But for now, with a full belly and warmed by family generosity, I look forward to rest and another long ferry tomorrow back to the South Shore and, the day after, over the Appalachians to the Atlantic proper! We’ve been told the Ferry for Les Escoumins to Trois-Pistoles is one one which people often see whales. Let’s hope!