Day 13: Norris Point to Blue Beach

I rested very well through the night. The sound of the rain drove softly at the windows and the ward smelled rich of sea air.

When I awoke, the sun was just rising, the air was damp, cool and breezy. I made some tea and a cup of oatmeal then went out on the balcony in my pajamas.

This community garden was open game for us. Steve had a huge salad that day for lunch but I didn't take any. It is interesting how few vegetables are served on menus throughout the Maritimes. I have no doubt they are common on the home dinner table.

The view across Bonne Bay to the tablelands.

Shortly after I was granted a rainbow!

I decided to take my time waking up and go for a walk down to Norris Point.

This old ship engine was rusting away in the grass.

I packed up my dry gear and rode comfortable out of the park in the bright sun. It was such a welcome change from the previous day's rain.

I pulled in to Timmies in Deer Lake for some coffee and wifi. No surprise...Steve stopped in as well. The queue was hell so I gave him half my coffee and off he went. Just how long was the line? Ask this guy who is halfway through a chapter...

This Ski Slope is right beside the road along Deer Lake just north of Corner Brook

This water station was one of many I saw in small towns. Residents getting drinking water for homes without public water or a quality well.

I practically slabbed it out of Corner Brook and set my sights for Cape St. George. It was grey and I nearly missed a few big storms around the area. The Kippins River near Stephensville has these neat hoodoo like sandstone stacks.

The small spit of land connecting Cape St. George and the mainland.

The road around Cape St. George is incredibly scenic. It would be good in just about any vehicle. The sandstone cliffs drop 20 - 50 feet to meet the crashing waves below. Here and there, the streams jump off the cliff in glorious waterfalls cascading to the rocks below.

I spotted the most beautiful green beach down off the road. I rolled down the rocky ATV path to get a shot or two.

The trail dead ended in the pond in the background. Not good. I attempted to turn around but to my surprise, the surface was large rocks on top of loose sand. Great :eek1

Off come the bags and let the digging begin.

I'm digging furiously and have only succeeded in moving her forward a few feet when I hear the burble of an ATV. A honda three wheeler quickly materializes above me on the trail. The weathered man with ripped baseball cap turned backward, mismatching flannel pants and shirts and a semi-toothless brown smile yells "Fuck buddy! What'd you do here?!" We hook up the GS to his ATV with my straps and attempt to pull me out.

The ATV just digs into the sand. He says "I'll be right back" and hops on the three wheeler and disappears over the berm.

Great...now I'm really stuck here.

3 minutes later he returns with a bunch of old 2x4 boards :clap We built a small road to get the GS back onto a harder packed gravel.

We're not outta the woods yet though! I yell for him to stop but he doesn't hear and keeps on riding up the hill towing me behind. Keep in mine the straps are connected to my front forks so turning is interesting and the jerkiness of the terrain keeps throwing me one way or another. The rocks are quite large in one section and I am towed directly into a boulder big enough to stop the bike, cut the wheel and dump me off onto the hill. He of course is jolted to a stop as well. Looks back and says "Well what'd you do that for?" I was just laughing through the whole ordeal and shrugged it off as a hilarious fall. Without his help it would have taken me much more time to escape. Thanks dude. Before I could give him my bottle of whisky he was gone.

I ride up the road a few miles till I see a sign for a hidden waterfall. Sounds good! I park in the lot and walk the short trail to the falls.

The island of Cape St. George is bilingual and was settled by French fisherman in the 17th century. This doghouse is proof:

I picked up some whisky and chocolate at a small store and chatted for a while with the owner. As I was leaving, he ran outside and gave me a free postcard of the Cape. He said he took the photo himself then painted the watercolor. It was a beautiful picture and is hanging on my cubicle wall.

This bread oven operates every Saturday. I bet it is delicious!

The wind was blowing at least 35mph sustained. It was fast enough that if I jumped in the air, it would blow me downwind a half a foot. Riding the GS on the rocky soil was made even more treacherous by the wind as it kept throwing me off course. I had intended to camp here at the cape but it was too damn windy. I decided to continue on North and see what kind of sight I could boondock.

The road leaves the Cape and winds up into the highlands along the coast.

This area is full of twisty roads, sharp rocks and short pine.

Looking down the coast, I believe JD Rocks has this same pic from his RR

The small town of Mainland, ironically set on an island beside a larger island, was home to some distinctively French homes. I couldn't tell what was up with these yard art fence things all over town. Anyone know :ear

Did some exploring on down the road.

I rode up along the coast to Lourdes and stopped for gas. From here I continued north up Long Point to the seasonal fishing community of Blue Beach. Since it was out of season, it was absolutely deserted.

I rode to the end of the road where it became much more rocky. I didn't really need to go on and get stuck again today so I chose to set up camp near this old truck. It was being consumed by the soggy soil below and salty corrosive air.

I've never seen a truck this rusted.

Proof it runs on flower power.

Time for some dinner: canned tuna and wild rice washed down with a Bud Light Lime on the beach. I spent about an hour just relaxing here thinking of how good this feels and how many rainbows I keep seeing.

I picked up a rock and put it in my pocket. It is now on my window sill

I chose to set up my tent on the third highest berm along the beach just in case the tides rise or a storm swings in. Here is another Rainbow.

Some sights in the window of one of the old shacks.

Newfie Flag

Another rainbow!? That is the 7th one I have seen on just this day - a record for me! Who says trip day #13 wasn't lucky after all!?

I made a fire out of driftwood and watched the full moon rise on the Gulf of St. Lawrence.
.

The blustery wind sent me in to the tent early. I purposefully set it up on the leeward beach on the island and under the rocky lip of the beachhead. This kept me pretty comfortable and much quieter without the rainfly flapping. The soft lapping of the gulf and the sound of running water on rocks as the wave retreated was the best natural lullaby of the trip. I slept and dreamed all night.