June 29, 1989
Port Williams to Steubenacadie
We were greeted from the innkeeper this morning as we emerged from our rooms with upbeat news: "Well, I ordered three days of good weather for you". The storm passed in the night, and the forecast was promising. We had another pleasing breakfast and visit. With each stop I gain a better appreciation of B&B's as an institution. We had a delicious and attractively served meal of bacon and eggs, and enjoyed our visit with our host, a sixth grade school teacher native to Cape Breton. He had a distinctively Scottish accent - in our lodgings here, we have received a lot of evidence of Nova Scotia's ethnic diversity.
We did not have a clearly defined destination for today's right. We were aiming for Highway 236 to Truro, which is the most direct route but has no campgrounds on the way. We planned to just pedal until we were pooped and then stop for the night. Our first leg of the day took us south to Hantsport, first through rolling hills on quiet roads and then on the freeway for about five or six miles. The weather had indeed improved - the sky was mostly sunny and we were boosted by a strong tailwind all day.
In Hantsport we stocked up with enough food to last us the rest of the day and the next morning as well - cheese, bagels, peanut butter, raisins, cookies - since we couldn't tell if there would be any services for the next day. Loaded down with food, we headed off toward Highway 236. It proved to be a delightful cycling road - occasional steep hills, but mostly modest terrain with very little traffic, pretty wooded scenery and an occasional village to tempt us off our bikes for a while. Together with the strong tailwind, this proved to be one of the most enjoyable stretches of our vacation. This surprised me - I had been afraid that that the day might be a bit of a drudge, with bad hills and bad traffic.
We took several breaks during the day - once in Scotch Village, where we stopped for drinks and licorice (one was green - spearmint!); in Kennetcook we took a lunch break and then a nap behind the town chapel (and next to the cemetary); and at South Maitland, for drinks and a short visit to a 'two holer' outhouse next to the visitor's center.
We have a few bodily complaints today. I am having digestive problems as well as perhaps the early symptoms of a cold; and Rachael fell over downshifting up a steep hill and bruised the heel of her hand breaking her fall. When she got back on her bike I gave her a jump start by running behind her, pushing her up the hill.
We found a spectacular location for our campsite - up on top of a bluff overlooking the Steubenacadie River. We had a great spot for observing the tidal bore when it came in at about 8 or 8:30. it was really a very impressive show - the river abruptly began flowing swiftly upstream, changing in a short time from a shallow, lazy stream to a loud, deep and wide full fledged river. It was quite amazing to watch the rate at which the banks disappeared under the deepening waters. We watched and listened to the show for nearly an hour, finally giving up at dusk when it became too dark. The current showed no signs of abating so we retired to the night.
Our tent site was located at the top of the bluff. There was no road leading up to it, so we had to carry all of our camping essentials to the top, and locked our bikes to a tree nearer to the highway. Just below us was a small spring-fed marsh; and into the night we were entertained by various interesting animal noises. Two in particular stood out - a weird buzzing sound that reminds of a loose base fiddle string - and a grouselike drumming.
Today's ride: 70 miles (113 km)
Total: 762 miles (1,226 km)
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