Day 14
Drove a mere 85 miles today. Left Hawkes Bay and drove to Western Brook for the Gros Morne fjord tour. It was awesome!Had to walk two miles to the boat and two miles back, so that felt good. The walk and the tour took all afternoon. The weather started off cloudy and very windy, but cleared up throughout the boat tour.
After that we drove back to Cow Head for their Lobster Festival. It's an annual thing for Canada Day. Found a great B&B right on the ocean. Then we walked to St. Mary's church hall for their lobster supper. It includes lots of homemade salads, a whole lobster, then tea biscuits and homemade jam for dessert. (Good thing we walked more than we rode today!)
We read about a community card game at the community center, so we stopped there and had fun with the local folks. They invited us to their church service tomorrow, which includes a special tribute to their WWI group that lost 700 men in one battle.
Another great day!

Day 13
St. Anthony to Hawkes Bay
Drove to Fishing Point in St. Anthony where we saw whales and two icebergs. COOL!
Then we drove to L'Anse Aux Meadows. They have an archaeological site where the Vikings lived about 1,000 years ago. Ran into our friends from Clarkston, MI (John and Nora) again. Saw whales in the bay and a moose in the brush. On our drive out of the park, a bull moose ran in front of us!
From there we stopped at Norstead, a living history site with Vikings buildings and characters. They actually do things like one-needle knitting and sell the items in the gift shop. They had looms for weaving and a blacksmith shop. It was interesting.We were behind John and Nora again.  Decided to have lunch together.
It started to rain, so we headed south. Saw another moose on the way. Rain, cold and wind together made us stop in Hawkes Bay.

Day 12
Labrador to St. Anthony
Got up and headed to the ferry dock. We had rain overnight, trailer was wet inside, so we were delayed a bit. When the ferry was loaded, there was no room for us! Instead of leaving at 10:30, we had to wait until 3:30. Went back into town for lunch. Met a very nice couple from Nova Scotia. They were also waiting for the next ferry. We were invited to wait at the dock with them in their truck camper. We were really impressed with the amount of room inside - not to mention their hospitality! But that's how folks are here.
We visited with them on the ferry for a while. Saw whales in the straits just off the ferry.
It was getting late, so we drove right to St. Anthony and got a room.

Day 11
Little Internet service on Labrador. Would have had to sit outside the public library in the rain on a motorcycle to post. Sorry - it was not that important!

Took the ferry to Labrador. Rode all the paved roads in Labrador's south! Stayed at a very small B&B where the 80-year-old operator watches whales and icebergs from her window. Started to rain hard just after we got in for the night.

Day 10 Tuesday, June 26
Rode 170 miles today.
Got up to a beautiful, sunny day. Left Rocky Harbour, drove along coast north as far as St. Barbe. Stopped at a nice spot and walked to the beach. Had lobster lunch at Cow Head. Dennis had some moose stew, which he loved. I finally tried a fish cake today. It's made with dried cod and mashed potatoes.
Continued up the coast to Port Aux Choix. It's a national historic site that has archeological artifacts dating back 7,000 years. Amazing! Hiked to Crow's Nest lookout to get some exercise. Then rode into the village to the burial grounds.
Ended the day at St. Barbe. Stopped at a gas station/convenience store. Asked about local lodging and restaurants. The clerk pointed across the street to the ferry terminal/motel/restaurant. We booked a room and asked the desk attendant where to find a grocery store. He pointed across the street to the gas station/convenience store! We chuckled. While we were eating a sandwich in the motel/restaurant, Dennis ordered a piece of partridgeberry pie with ice cream. Two minutes later, I saw our waitress running across the street to the gas/convenience/grocery store! The restaurant was obviously out of ice cream, so she ran out to get some! Obviously this is a REALLY small village. By the way, gas is highest here so far - $4.98/gallon.



Our motel room overlooks the harbor. We catch the ferry to Labrador in the morning.

 Day 9 Monday, June 25
Rode an incredibly beautiful 320 miles today.  WOW!
Weather at Port Aux Basques was cold, rainy and very windy. Almost stayed there for the day until the hotel manager told us the weather improved greatly 15 minutes north. She was right.
We drove the Port Au Port Peninsula. It was simply gorgeous.Almost no traffic. Everyone we saw waved! Very warm, friendly people.

Finished the day at Rocky Harbor. Found a nice cottage, but had no Internet.

Day 8  North Sydney, Nova Scotia to Pte. aux Basques, Newfoundland
Today was different. Rode a total of ten miles on the bike, just from the motel to the dock and the dock to the hotel. Good thing, because it was rainy and cold.
It took a couple of hours to load the ferry, then six hours on the water. It was relaxing, but not very scenic on the water.
Ate dinner at the hotel, great fish and moose.
Met a nice couple from Clarkston, Michigan at the dock. Nora and I plan to meet at the Bay of Fundy next week to ride the tide in a raft. Sure hope that works out!

Day 7
Inverness to North Sydney 
Got on the road early, drove 175 miles. Saw this moose ready to cross the road before 8 A.M. - That's before 6 A.M. at home! Was barely awake until then. She did stop so I could take a couple of photos.
Weather was cool, overcast with a few sprinkles. Certainly did not dampen our enthusiasm for this ride. It was amazing! The views were incredible. (I have over 120 photos if you want to see them!) Again, no traffic.
We finished our oat cakes, biscuits and strawberry jam on the beach.
Our motel turned out to be great. The lady at the desk upgraded us to a suite. It turned out to be right next to the laundry room and a washing station for motorcycles. We got busy and washed our clothes and the bike. Ate more great fish at the motel restaurant. I was tempted to have fishcakes for breakfast, but I'll wait until I am hungrier in the morning than I was today.
On to the ferry tomorrow, then a 6-hour ride to Port aux Basque, Newfoundland.

Day 6 Miramichi, New Brunswick to Inverness, Nova Scotia
Drove 355 miles today. Weather was overcast and cool with a few showers. Roads were good, very little traffic. Most driving was inland today. Had a long detour for a fatal accident near Antigonish. Stopped at an information center. They were very helpful. Made our reservations for rooms for the next three nights. We also reserved the ferry to Newfoundland for Sunday morning.
We needed help connecting to the Internet, so walked to the motel office. The lady at the desk had a sister stop in to deliver biscuits and strawberry jam made by her 93-year-old mom. She was VERY generous. Guess we know what's for breakfast! Let's hope for good weather in the morning.

Day 5 - Gaspe' to Mirimichi, New Brunswick.  Drove 320 miles today.  This probably sounds boring, but the weather was perfect. Started the day at 64 degrees, later got up to upper 70s, except when the wind was right off the ocean.  Stopped in Perce' to check out the artist shops and walked along the boardwalk.  Amazing scenery there! Had lunch at a quaint spot in Bonaventure. We have a room at a really nice hotel in Mirimichi on the river. The sweet lady at the desk upgraded us to a room on the water with a deck. Georgeous sunset on the first day of summer! Had fish and a lobster roll for supper...can't wait to see what tomorrow is like!

Wednesday, June 20


Day 4. - Just had one of the most beautiful days of riding ever! Rode 270 miles from Rimouski to Gaspe' - the easternmost part of Gaspe' Peninsula on the south side of the St. Lawrence Seaway. The weather was perfect - 70s and sunny. The road was right along the shore.  There was one small village after another all the way. Rode many miles yesterday and today at 1-2 meters (3-6 feet) above sea level! Near the eastern side of the peninsula, the terrain turned mountainous with rises in elevation as much as 1000 feet and grades as steep as 18%.
Went by the location where Marconi sent his first signal. Saw huge piles of driftwood all along the beach.  Learned that's for St. John the Baptist day June 24.
Had nice lunch at a quaint village near Marsoui, then supper at an outdoor cafe overlooking the Bay de Gaspe'. Gas prices across Ontario averaged $4.55/gallon and $4.95 across Quebec.
Watched some type of birds diving into the water to fish. Not sure what they were, but there were hundreds of them.

Day 3 - Tuesday, June 19
Another great day! Started off in Montreal, ended in Rimouski, Quebec.  Rode 360 miles, mostly along the St. Lawrence Seaway.  It's much like Cape Cod and Door County. Much more farming than I had expected - large farms. Many small artist shops.  There was very little traffic, so we went slow and enjoyed the views. Very interesting architecture and decorating on their homes.  Great lawns with tons of flowers.
 Weather was warm and overcast. Ran into rain for about 40 miles.  Next time I will listen to Dennis when he tells me to put on my rain gear!
Rimouski is right on the water.  Nice downtown area with many restaurants.  A walk felt great!

Day 2 Tuesday-Long day today. Early start from Blind River, then rode all the way through Montreal.  Rode 540 miles. Drove along the Ottawa River much of the day. Went through Ottawa at rush hour - always exciting!  Decided to continue through to the East side of Montreal since the weather was good and it was later in the evening.  Maybe tomorrow I can learn how to post some photos!

Day One - Great day for a ride. It was about 75 and mostly sunny.  We rode 435 miles - Ironwood, MI to Blind River, ON.  Took H58 from Munising to Grand Marais - great motorcycle road! Saw an eagle on Lake Superior.
Dennis had a great piece of wild blueberry pie at Bobbers in Bruce Mills, ON.  Just his size (filled the plate and stood two inches high).  Gas is $5.05 a gallon here.

Day 27  Flushing, MI
Drove 20 miles
Dennis had the bike serviced. That's as far as he drove today.
Today we spent with family. Heather and Bryce were at Carol's. Tina and her girls, Christopher and his family, and Chris and Grandma all came to Carol's house for a cookout. Rachel and Ben were able to join us so we could meet Rocco.

The kids swam in the pool. They were really good, and we had a great time! It was great to see everyone.