Up Island

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Location:Vancouver Island

The Island, October 10-13

This was a vacation to see our son and some friends. We had decided to spend ten days in the west, mostly in Victoria. And so we did.

Flew out of Hamilton (at least the flight to Calgary still exists) at the early morning time of seven o'clock. Flew right out Governors Road before heading further south. Breakfast in the Calgary airport, then on to Victoria. Fortunately, the weather cleared and we are able to see the magnificent scenery of the Gulf Islands. And the day was clear and warm when we landed: much hotter than I had expected. I was way overdressed!

We got to the hotel, checked in and settled a bit into the room when the phone rang, and the manager was saying that Pat was downstairs waiting.

When we met, he informed us that he had prepared a supper for us, and hoped we would go with him. What a wonderful surprise! A vegetarian chili, which was terrific.

The next day we spent most of the day cooking our Thanksgiving supper. Pat had bought most of the stuff we needed, but we went up to the Market for a few add-ons. Again, a delicious meal, and even better to share it with our son.

Then on the Monday, Pat and I took bikes and went out towards Esquimault along the waterfront. Then we rented a car and we all went out to Sooke, and visited the Potholes, an awful name for a vey exciting landscape of cascading water through rock cuts. With some pools of water below them where we spotted some salmon swimming and probably breeding.

What a pleasant and satisfying first weekend.
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Location:Arbutus Crescent,Nanaimo E,Canada

Heading Home

Yesterday was also a long travel day. We had a short final walk with Champion and Bono, had our final breakfast, which had to hold us all day. Then packed, took pictures of the staff, handed out tips to everyone, and we packed off in the truck for our trip back.

Along the way to the Park Gate to check out, there was an elephant on the road, eating branched from a tree. They don't seem to be able to see us when we are in a vehicle, so we got quite close, and watched him for about twenty minutes.

After that was a bone-jarring, noisy long trip to the Zimbabwe border. About seventy kilometers, and no faster than about twenty at any time. And we had truck trouble: the trailer hitch broke and we had to stop and repair it; and we blew a tire and had to replace it with one which would have been thrown out in North America. So we got to Chirundu about two hours later than planned. Our driver, Trust, was to take us across the border where we would be met by someone from Zambia who would take us to Lusaka. But the Zimbabwean border guard at first wouldn't let us pass. We had to go get something from another person, then try again (and this time succeed). So we crossed the Zambesi River on a bridge we had canoed under two weeks earlier. And went through the re-entry stuff to Zambia, and were met by the appointed person in a comfortable and quiet van. That felt good.

It seems that in Africa, you have to have a lot of faith that things will work out, and they always seem to. The Zambian driver had waited at the border over two hours for us, having faith that we would show. And we had to have faith that there would be someone there to meet us, and he was.

After the trip back to Lusaka, they let me off at the Juls Guest House and,a after a bit of akin around, my room and my bag were found, and I was safely ensconced. Faith again.

That bed looked pretty good.

I benefitted from one aspect of African incompetence. My "24 hour" Internet connection from almost three weeks previously was still working, so I was able to phone Darlene.

Then I got busy organizing for today, and lost sight of time. I was late arriving at the appointed supper place with Charlie and Daphne, and was scolded for it. And the restaurant they wanted to go to was closed, so we had to go to another one in the plaza which was not as good.

But the night ended with hugs and handshakes. And we left as friends after a wonderful trip on the Zambesi!

This morning, I was up early as usual, had a real shower and was all set to go by six. By about six-thirty, I met the same driver, Martin, who had picked me up at the airport, and he drove me back to the airport. He told me he would like to go back to his family farm, but cannot afford it right now. He is living in a three-room house (kitchen, sitting area, and bedroom - the bathroom is outside) and pays $125/month for that, plus water. He has a wife and three children, and relatives who sleep in the sitting room. Such is life in the relatively prosperous city of Lusaka.

Getting through security and customs at the airport was easier than coming in, and after looking at a few of the shops in the airport, I border the plane to the UK.

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Location:Lusaka

Camp Vine, August 5

Today was a big day: we saw a pride of lions, pretty close; also saw some wild painted dogs.

We were not as early as we had hoped in getting going, and we had to drive to a place where we started to walk, so that we didn't end with too much for our weak North American bodies.

I continue to be amazed at how well these guys can see things in the bush. What to us look like little specks of dirt or perhaps a log, they can pick out as wild boar, elephants, or in today's case, lions. Bono was able to see a brown speck in the grass, and knew this was a lion. We worked our way downwind, and were able to get within about two hundred metres of a magnificent male lion, along with two females.

We stood on a termite mound to see them, and they came out from under their tree for us, before trotting away.

We then met the car, and were on our way to a lunch spot when they saw some wild dogs under a bush. Turns out to have been a pack of them, and we stopped and got some very good pictures of them.

Later, after lunch, we saw another pack lying under a bush along with several vultures, as if they were all friends.

So I think I can safely go home now.

On our way back to the camp, we spotted an occupied aardvark den (the aardvark was out at the time, and there was no hyena in it either), and also stopped to admire a Blue Pansy Butterfly, along with the skeletal remains of a tortoise.

So a productive day all told. We are now back in camp, there are elephants grazing about three hundred metres away, and life is good. But it is hot, so I will go and have a scotch by the river.


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Location:Camp Vine

Camp Vine, Day 3

Well, we had been asking to see a leopard, so I guess we shouldn't have been surprised. Last night, about two in the morning, there was a very loud sound from a leopard just behind the camp. It came several times, over about ten minutes, then seemed to move off. I was glad we have a toilet attached to our tents, 'cause I wasn't going outside at all.

Some lion sounds, as well as the hippos as usual. I finally was able to get back to sleep after the excitement of the calls. We were woken again at five- thirty, and got onto the trail shortly after six. We walked a long time, when Bono said: "there!", and there was a leopard in a low branch above the ground. They are very shy, so it jumped down immediately, with a growl. I saw it's body and tail, Charlie saw the paws. We looked for it among the low bushes for a while, the gave up and walked back home. Overall, we were gone about three hours, and came back in rapidly heating up sunlight, to get some breakfast, and now to lie down.

It's strange to think that this trip is almost over. I think I was a bit scared at first, quite unsure of what I would find here, and nervous that I would not like it at all. And I did not handle myself well at the airport in Lusaka: forgot to do things, didn't have the right money with me, and so on. And Lusaka is what you'd guess a third world city would be like, with too many people all scratching out a living, many by trying to seek things to you while you drive slowly down the busy streets. Even the downtown is a bit bleak and makes you nervous in it's busy-ness and disrepair. And the trip to Kariba reinforces your concerns with the stops for police checks, the border guards who seem to be on the take, and lots of things happening in a language you don't understand.

But the time in Zimbabwe (which I thought might be the scariest, what with Mugabe and all) has turned out to be quite wonderful. The canoe trip was hard at times, scary at times, but got us into the rhythm of the country. And the folks we have been with all this time (Bono, Champion, previously Scumbuzo, now Take, Sebastien, Nelson) have all been delightful, and open about their concerns and hopes for the country they live in. Their obvious determination to make this place work, and not give up on it, is remarkable and heartening. We have learned so much from them, and it is not all about the plants and animals of this National Park (as amazing and exciting as that has been). I would come back to Zimbabwe, and would do this again, or something like it. And I will come back to Africa, now with the knowledge I have garnered from this trip.

This afternoon, after our now-usual nap and lunch, we walked a ways into the bush, and then were met by the car to bring us back. On this encounter, we met a sole male elephant, who came towards us in a mock charge.

I got some pictures, and it was kind of frightening at the time. As we were driving back, there were also elephants by the road, who came quite close. As well, the impalas, baboons, a few kudus, some verbet monkeys, and a number of storks and hornbills.

All in all, a good day.
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Location:Zambesi River

Camp Zambesi, Day 2

We had an early wakeup again today, about 5:30. Got breakfast, did our quick face wash, and we were off about 7:00. A slower walk today, partly because Daphne was with us, and partly because Charlie was not feeling well. Bono had the brilliant idea of lending me his shoes, which are called rafters, to try and see if I could walk any better. When I had woken, my heel was still sore. So I took along the other shoes, but wore Bono's. And they were great. We walked about ten km this morning, and my foot actually felt better at the end of it than the beginning.

Much of what we saw today was a sort of repeat of yesterday. We had hoped to see a lion, and went looking for one. But no success there. We saw many animals from a distance, but nothing too close. I think Bono was worried about our ability to run if we needed to, and he was right. However, it was still a great walk, and I was glad to have done it.

By noon, it was very hot, so we stopped for a packed lunch (packed, that is, by the staff, and brought to us by car). Lunch consisted of a green salad, a bean salad, and a chicken pie. They even had cold beer! Now, this is camping as it should be.

We did a small walk back to the camp, saw some elephants, and some elands, and then we had our showers and settled in to the evening by the water. And, oh yes, we got our laundry back as well, all neatly folded.

Supper was a butternut squash soup, followed by fish (local bream) and chips, with a green salad and mixed wonderful veggies, then a desert.

And all this done over a wood fire. I don't know how he does it, but the cook, Nelson, is terrific. The servers are Take (short for Take More), and Sebastien, with Papa Mike as the supervisor. We had a long discussion about politics, and the role of the religion and the influx of Muslims. Very interesting.

So a good day.


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Location:Zambesi River

Camp Vine, Day 2

We had decided last night to try and get up and out early to see the early animals. We actually succeeded, with some help from our Camp VIne friends, in getting up, having our coffee/tea and toast and getting away by six. A new record.

We were walking from the camp, and we had high hopes because there was a lot of activity around the camp last night. There had been elephants, lions, hippos, hyenas, and likely a honey badger in the area. So there was clear disappointment when we had seen nothing in our fist hour. Even then, the rising sun was wonderful to see, so we were not upset.

And the second hour was much better. We got a closer view of wart hogs than we had had so far; also saw five hyenas in a few groups, as well as the usual impalas and water bucks. So we felt pretty lucky. And then on the way home we ran into a group of Cape Buffaloes, and I think got some good pictures.

The two hour walk promised turned into three hours, and we got home to a wonderful hot breakfast prepared by the staff. The rest of the morning was lazy, reading, and sleeping. We were woken with the announcement that lunch was ready. They had prepared kapenta, a small fish about the size of a guppy, caught in nets, and fried with peppers and onions and tomatoes. It was to be eaten with sadza and with our fingers. And I tried it this time the traditional way. There was also some spaghetti and two nice salads. Boy, this camping is tough.

A shorter walk this afternoon, not too much seen. But it is very hot, so we are all looking forward to having a shower. I really like the outdoor shower.

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Location:Camp Vine, Zambesi River

Camp Zambesi

Our first day at the camp and it was great! After a fitful sleep and many dreams (the result of too much wine last night), I got up at the prescribed 5:30, and headed for the shower. The shower stall is a canvas enclosure, about five feet tall, with a bag of warmed water overhead, and a shower head to let the water out onto me. As I showered, itself a wonderful experience, I was able to look over the wall of the shower stall and watch the sun rise through the trees. It was incredible!

And this place has laundry as well, and they will even iron the clothes if you wish. So I put all my dirty clothes out, and by the time I got back to camp, the were washed and on a large bush, drying in the sun.

Unfortunately, Daphne got what Charlie had had, and was very indisposed. She remained in bed, while the rest of us had breakfast and prepared to go for our morning walk. Bono and Champion led the way, and Bono had acquired a rifle for everyone's protection. We spent a fair time looking at the droppings of various animals - impalas, elephants, wart hogs, buffalo, zebras, water bucks, and so on. Even saw some scat from a lion. We were in an area where there was likely a lion, so we took it quite slowly and carefully.

We decided that it was better not to provoke whatever was in one group of bushes we passed (we had heard something large move), so went around it and kept going.

After a bit, we came across a hippo sleeping. He was a fair ways above the water, sleeping on his side, and we were able to get quite close to him. We got some pictures before he opened his eyes, raised his head, and spotted us.

He was on his feet and facing us, looking like he was about to charge. We backed off, and he went the other way to the water. Whew!

Then on and across some very interesting terrain. Some of it was like typical savannah, some of it muddy flats, dried and deeply fissured,

some of it was sandy riverbed, some of it was more like a forest. Very unusual for an Ontario boy. We saw lots of impalas, some water bucks, a few wart hogs, and some zebras. And then we saw some elephants. There was a family of them, with a mother, a cub, and some other mothers in the vicinity.

And there was a lone, young, male. He seemed to be disoriented a bit, came over towards us and looked a bit like he was going to charge towards us. Bono told us to back away slowly to a nearby tree, and we didn't need to be told twice. He stayed forward, and yelled at the elephant to scare it. It worked, and he turned away, but it took a while for our hearts to slow down.

We also came across a Snake Eagle which was on the ground, alive, but clearly dying. We thought perhaps it had been bitten by the snakes it was trying to catch.

We walked a long ways after this, going altogether about eighteen km. Then stopped for lunch. My foot was hurting by this time, so I decided not to walk the afternoon. I came back in the car with Daphne (who recovered enough to join us for lunch, although not for walking at all), stopping along the way to see water bucks, kudus, baboons, impalas, zebras, and so on. Also stopped to look at the skull of an elephant who died two years ago in an outbreak of anthrax they had here.

Then back to camp, I sat by the water and read while the sun went down. Chatted with the guides when they got back, had a wonderful supper complete with Mopone worms, sadza, beef stew, and cooked veggies, and have come to bed. I understand that this is a bad area for hyenas, so we are careful to bring all our things into the tents.

Tomorrow we will see if any of us can walk with Bono: Charlie went to bed early feeling unwell; Daphne is just recovering from her gastro; and my foot is now sore from today. So it may be a very lazy day tomorrow.
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Location:Mana Pools

Off the Zambesi, August 2

Today would be characterized by travel. We had only about five km to go to the take out point at Kanyemba, and half of that was through a back channel. Our breakfast was fast and was local sausages (yum), along with toast and coffee, and beans. Then we were off, among the native Morning Glory and Scrambled Egg plant, until we got to open water.

I forgot to mention that last night after supper, Scu had told us a story of the River Goddess, complete with a carving of the story made from local mahogany. I was mightily impressed and we talked at length about myth and its uses. Through the night, the wind had come up, so I mentioned to Scu that the goddess had some tricks still for us. As we talked about it, he said that he would like to give me the carving. After some protest, I agreed to take it, and was very pleased.

Champion and I had a long talk about politics, and the state of Zimbabwe and Africa, while we were traveling to our designation. So I did not paddle a lot (can't paddle and talk at the same time). Champion did most of the paddling, and we reached the take-out point in lots of time. Got the truck which was waiting, packed and we set off about 9.

The trip over to Mana Pools was very long and somewhat interesting. We at first, near Kanyemba, passed several small villages with their round houses and kitchens, their raised granaries and chicken coops, and then a lot of not very much. There were some wonderful baobab trees, some of which must be several thousand years old.

And then we stopped for lunch. A small town site, with a school, three stores (a pub, and two grocery stores), along with some stalls which were selling clothes bought in Harare. We bought a cold drink, they fixed the truck, and we were off again.

Once we got to the Park, we were to switch vehicles and had to say goodbye to Scu. We had a different staff for the shore camp, apparently.

Overall, it took ten hours to get to where we are tonight. This is a mobile camp, and "camp" is really a misnomer. We are in walled tents with beds, and rigs on the floor. There is a shower, and toilet stall, and a full kitchen. We had supper by candlelight, sitting at a table, with wine glasses and all. It's quite surreal!

On the way in here, we stopped for several minutes to watch a mother and baby (about three month old) elephant grazing in the grass beside the road. Also saw some warthogs, wild dogs, impalas, and zebras. And that's all In the first hour. This will be fun.

Tomorrow we walk about twenty km overall. Hope my foot holds out.


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Location:Camp Zambesi

On the Zambesi, August 1

Today was characterized by wind, and lots of it. While yesterday had been relatively quiet, today made up for it. We have had wind on most of the days, always in our faces, and often quite strong. But this morning took the cake, with winds of over forty, and gusts probably up to sixty. With the river being as wide as it sometimes is (at times over three kms) there were waves to contend with. I got wet and my stuff got wet from the spill coming over the bow of the canoe. And in spite of the current being about seven km/hr with us, having the wind against us meant that at times we were working hard and getting almost nowhere. I was a wet, miserable, and just plain grumpy.

We had had a short breakfast at the Ranger Station, then took off, and paddled over seventeen km before stopping for a short break. Then back in the canoe, paddled again for over ten km, and stopped for lunch and a siesta.

About three, we took off again, and paddled until almost dark. Total of over forty-seven km today.

One very pretty area is a bunch of cliffs called the red cliffs, named, as you would expect, for the colour of the rock face.

We also passed through another area which is called a gorge, but is nothing like the gorges we have at home. It is narrow, but the hills on the sides are not steep or rocky, and the water is faster, but not bad.

Right now, I am sitting on a mattress pad at the side of my wet tent and being glad we have stopped for the night.


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On the Zambesi, July 31

Today was a sick day. After the best sleep I have had in a long time, I woke with the first light. It was a clear sky with cloud at the horizon, and the sand was wonderful. I had treated my foot for a thorn that I had picked up, and had been walking barefoot again, and loving it.

But Charlie woke feeling awful. Everything hurt, and he felt nauseated. So we had our usual coffee and biscuits, and he got up very slowly. Evntually, he was able to get to the bathroom area (by far, by the way, the best bathroom on the whole trip, on a hill at one end of the island looking out over the river), and promptly threw up. In the end, we paddled only a few kilometers to the ranger station where we had to pay our fees, and spent the rest of the day there. We didn't really know what was going on with Charlie, but he was weak and sleepy and nauseated.

The day was not a waste. Daphne sat with her husband much of the day, getting small amounts of liquids into him, along with Gravol. I sat with the guides, talking politics and cultures, and reading and sleeping. And because this was a Ranger Station, there were wives here as well. This station is supposed to have running water, but they let a lot of water out of the dam a few weeks ago, and they did not give enough notice to this area. The resultant rise in the water level washed away their pump. So the women were doing the laundry in the traditional way, down at the river. They came in groups of two or three, sometimes with a baby attached to their back in a wrap, and worked ceaselessly. Then they carried it back up on their heads, in a display of balance and swaying hips that was wonderful to see.

They also came with large barrels to get water, and carried this also on their heads. I am told by the guides that this a woman thing, and if a man carried water or wood that way, they would be considered a woman.

Charlie got better, then worse, and it began to look like a flu type of illness. In spite of that, we agreed to try some cipro and see if it helped. We have lost most of a day's travel, but we can make it up tomorrow and the next day. So we will camp here, on a sand bank well above the river, and await Charlie's progress.

Supper was cova (a green veg like collard cooked, then with peanut butter added) and sadza (corm mush thickly cooked with a beef curry stew for sauce). Both very good.

We have a tough day tomorrow to try and make up some mileage.


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On the Zambesi, July 30

Today was to be an easy day. We woke as usual about 6, and watched the sun come up through the haze of the dusty sky. We were on an "island" on a side channel of the Zambezi, very muddy and difficult in many ways. One of those was that there was no discreet place to go to the bathroom. However, we managed somehow, with the wake-up snack done and the packing finished, and we were off down the river.

Once we got into the river proper, we realized that there was a significant wind to battle. Even with the river current of 4-5 km/hr, the wind meant that we we were barely moving. And the waves were coming over the bows of the canoes. So it was not pleasant, and after an hour or so, we stopped for breakfast.

Bono let us sleep for a while, and we waited a bit until he felt that the wind was in fact going to settle down. We got back on the river, fought the wind for a while (so I doubted his thinking about the wind), but found that he was right (again), so went on. It then became quite nice, taking our time to go along the river, seeing some impalas, once an elephant, and lots of hippos as usual. After a while we stopped again for lunch, and had quite a nice site. I found a trench kind of hole, which turned out to be the former tunnel of an aardvark, now abandoned and collapsed. And lots of elephant dung, about the size if a soccer ball, dry and eaten by termites.

I am interested in the vegetation as well, and we saw the Bob Marley tree, the milk weed (with it's fruit which leads it to be known colloquially as the old man's balls plant). Also the winter thorn acacia, many ebony trees, and now again some baobab trees. I am told that baobabs which are three metres in diameter are a millennium old! And there is one in Zambia which is thick enough that they have put a bathroom into the base of it.

The island we are staying on tonight is in the False Gorge area, just before the final Gorge of our trip. The Zambian shore and the Zimbabwean shore are closer than we have seen for a week. This is a sandy island with a rocky part to it, some trees, but mostly sand. It is safe from the hyenas and the lions, although there are a multitude of hippos just off shore. And the water is faster here, so I have the sound of running water to lull me to sleep.

A vegetarian supper tonight, and I had some conversation with Scu, the youngest of the guides. He has just got a dog, is about to marry the mother of his son, and is working to get his guide's licence. An interesting evening.


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Location:False Gorge

On the Zambesi 3 (July 28, 29)

I write this as the sun sets on the 29th. We have had a long day - 34 kilometers. And we are all tired. The guides are making supper and I have taken this time to write a bit.

Yesterday was like many days, but Bono had told us it would be a bit easier, that we would only be doing 20 km. So after the usual coffee and biscuits, we headed out, paddling a fairly short while and then stopping for breakfast. The next leg got us to a wonderful island in the middle of the river, with trees for shade, and a sandy area for Lunch. We were relieved to not have to work quite so hard, and took the time to have a real siesta. I slept soundly for an hour or so, had a read, and relaxed very nicely. And then we were off again. I can't remember whether I mentioned that I had been in the stern of the canoe, and I was very tired from the previous day.

But a short ride to the overnight camp. This was a place which was not as nice as the lunch spot. It is called Devil's Thorn Island. But we had a pleasant enough supper, again in the dark. We're getting used to that, although I don't know how the guides manage to cook so well. This was the first time that the sky was quite clear, so we marveled at the stars before the moon rose in a brilliant orange. I had been paired with Dave, and we decided to go to bed early after our supper. I read for a while (an African author named Chinua Achebe). The sky was clear all night, and it got quite cold for here. We were glad of the liner in the sleeping bags! But I slept well and woke early ( going to bed at 8:30 will do that).

This morning we were up before the sun. We shook off the cold and had something warm to drink. Since the day was to be quite long, we were going to have a full breakfast before leaving. The sunrise was amazing, everything they say about African sunrises.

And we got off pretty early.

I forgot to mention that we entered Mana Pools yesterday, and camped inside the Park. So today was also the day Dave left us to do a walking trip on the land. And, wonderful day!, it was also a day when we had a shower. We were to stop at one of the camps for letting Dave off, and for restocking our supplies. But they had a shower with poor water pressure, but warm water. It was great! The place was crawling with Verbet monkeys, who managed to steal some of our fruit before we got them.

After a long paddle we stopped for short lunch, and paddled until almost sunset. We passed a group of loud, drunk South Africans, and were glad to be a ways beyond them for our camp. Saw some zebras and some water bucks toady, as well as impalas, baboons, and the monkeys. And lots of birds: egrets, storks, eagles, plovers, and something called the Jesus bird ( look it up).

I'm glad the paddling is done for the day, tired and looking forward to supper and bed.

For supper, we had a wonderful chicken curry, with rice and gem squash. But before that, they served us mopane worms. These are the larvae of moths which grow on the mopane trees, are boiled, then dried, then fried with chili, salt, pepper in a bit of oil. They were very good, once you forgot what it was you were eating.

We stayed up to about 9, then were off to bed.

Had a few interesting conversations with our guides yesterday. Over lunch, we talked with Scu about the recent elections. He described how the government forces in his area knew how people voted, and punished them accordingly. His best friend was a supporter and organizer for the opposition, and was taken to jail for two weeks, then released. He was afraid to vote, fearing for his life. But he said that the police did their job well, and pretty impartially. He said that the police were also in the majority for the opposition. They seem to remain hopeful that things will change.

The other conversation was with Champion, about guiding. You have to have one thousand hours on the river before you can write your exams to be a River Guide. And you can go on from there to work an additional four years to be a Pro Guide, which allows you to guide on land as well. And ther is, as part of that, knowing how, and actually shooting, the animals. They have troubled animals that have been a real problem in the area, that they shoot. But when you are guiding, you have to be prepared to shoot to kill. Charlie and Daphne's guide had to shoot a buffalo on their first trip, one which was charging them. It is a man's job at this point, but that may change. Apparently, the training here in Zimbabwe is the best in Africa, so their guides are sought after throughout the continent.

During the evening, and through the night, we heard the eerie sounds of the Ghost Snipe, a bird who, when it flies, makes a sound like the wailing of a ghost with it's tail feathers. We also heard, a few nights ago, Bell Frogs which sound like small bells when they croak. And then there's the Blacksmith bird, which makes the sound of a smithy hitting his anvil when he cries. Interesting fauna.


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Location:G Island

On the Zambesi 2

These last two days have been quite eventful. As usual for this trip, we got up and had only coffee and biscuits before packing and leaving the campsite. Paddled quite a while (probably 8 kilometers) before our real breakfast, this time an English breakfast of bacon, eggs, potatoes, onions, beans and bread. Also good, but to my taste not as good as the other one. We then had to paddle to Chirungu to pick up our fourth tourist, a man named Dave originally from New York and now working in Harare for a press organization there. A man of forty-five, in his second marriage to a Kenyan woman, and hoping to stay for longer in Africa.

We had to go to the market in Chirundu to get some things, so went in the back of the truck which had brought supplies from the safari company. Chirundu is a border town, so there are lots of trucks waiting for hours (or days) to cross the border. And the hookers that go with them. But we went around all that and went to their local market. It was small, but remarkably colourful and vibrant, with fresh veggies and fruits, and some clothing for sale, lots of people sitting around, and some baboons trying to steal things. I did not feel right taking a picture, so forewent that. In the end, they did not get what the sweet potatoes they were looking for, so we headed back to the canoes. At the side of the launch area, there're was a group of Zimbabwean guards sitting around joking and passing an open wine bottle among themselves. Makes you wonder about the security. They told us that there had been sixteen elephants poached in a park at the south of the Zimbabwe, near South Africa. We were all saddened by this.

We paddled a while, then stopped under a tree and up a bank of sand for some lunch. We had passed a herd of elephants on the way, and were pleased to see that they were easily visible from our lunch place. A short siesta, and we were off again. The Zambesi is a broad, winding river at this point, with a fair bit of water going down it. At points, to avoid all the hippos, we would take a side channel, which was always a treat. Partly because it avoided the wind, which was quite high on the open water.

A short paddle and then to a campsite, on a muddy plain, and difficult to access. But the food and the company was good as usual, and I was ready to go to bed after a long paddle. We went to bed with the serenade is of a multitude of frogs, which was fortunate because it drowned out the distant radio we could hear from the Zambian side of the river.

Today was special. After breakfast, we got on the water, and went through a small channel. We had seen some elephants from the campsite, and were very pleasantly surprised to see the along the channel. We go within thirty feet of them, and they just stood there while we took their pictures. At one point, one of the males lift his trunk and smelled us deeply. It was thrilling, to say the least.

Then on for a long paddle until breakfast, which was traditional again, and much enjoyed. Lots of hippos along this section of the river. And after going a long while though the river's open areas, with the wind, and passing lots of hunting lodges and camps, we finally stopped for lunch at a shady spot with a nice entry. And there was a pod of hippos, a herd of elephants, and a few buffalo at the site (all a ways off). And, for the first time, we saw a baby elephant with its mom, and the baby suckling the mother.

With the arrival of Dave, I have been promoted to stern one of the canoes. This is sort of an honour, but it was hard work, and I am not as strong or as fit as the guides. So I was very glad that, not long after lunch, we settled in to our next campsite for the night, a place with a large sand bar we can camp on. Along the way here, we went down a side channel again, and this time, there was a dead buffalo in the water, perhaps killed by a croc recently. Our guides said it must we quite recent, since food like that is not left uneaten for long.

As I sit here in the fading light, there is a lion calling in the distance, as well as the rude sounds of the hippos, and several birds calling. The guides are making supper and joking (maybe about us) in Shone, their language.


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Location:Mana Pools

On the Zambesi 1

The last two days have been filled with adventure. We were picked up from the hotel at 8:00 Zimbabwe time, which means about 8:45. A jeep arrived with Bono and a driver. We were informed that we would be going to the Natureways office and then shopping before we got onto the river. And this is what we did. We stopped at the Natureways office to pick up the equipment and food, and also the two other guides, Champion and Scumbuzo. This of course took some time. We passed some baboons and the evidence of elephants (dung), along the way to the stores. These stores were what you might call a secondary mall, not in the centre of Kariba. There was a central square, with stores on both sides of it. We went into the supermarket to get some supplies: I wanted to get some more batteries. Again, this took a lot of time, but finally we were off.

We had a fair ride through the town, and then turned off onto what we would call a farm path. This led to the Park Office, where we were to pay our fees. Of course, it was an uneven number, so there was a great scramble to get the proper change. And it is paid, as everything is, in US dollars.

After that, we were on the road again to get to what I would call, generously, a cowpath. This was to lead us down to a place near the water.

Bono gave us last-minute safety instructions, and we loaded the canoes and set off down the gorge. It was quite different from what we would be used to, much more rounded. But the river had some rapids and some tight spots. Vegetation went right to the tops of the hills, and was like a tundra or savannah. We had eighteen kilometers of this to do before camping for the night. Along the way, we saw some hippos, some crocodiles, some baboons, and some monkeys, along with many types of birds which I will never remember. And we stopped for lunch along the way, at the side of the river.

Being a safari, they had brought a table, and a stove, and stools to sit on. And a cooked lunch as well, which was much appreciated.

A short nap, and we were off again. After a short while, we left the gorge and made our way past an abandoned hunting camp to an island called Crocodile Rocks. There we put up our tents, they cooked a supper for us, and we ate in the dark and talked (it gets dark here about six). We discussed Canada, Zimbabwe and its politics, and general affairs of the world. We were accompanied by the grunts and bellows of the hippos. They make almost all the disgusting noises you can think of, so if you do something like that yourself, you can always blame it on the hippos.

The hippos went on all night. But we were tired enough to sleep in spite of all of their noise. The moon was almost full, so there was a fair bit of light as well. Before we went into the tent, we saw some elephants across the river, drinking. Too bad it was so dark. The night was a good sleep.

This morning, we were up at 6:30, had a light breakfast of coffee and biscuits, and got on the river. We were to have about eighteen kilometers of paddling and in was to be broken up by a full breakfast stop as well as a lunch stop. We were on the river by 7:30, paddling what was now a much wider and less rapid river. The gorge of yesterday had given way to a much flatter topography. I have to say that the paddling got quite tiring, although the commentary of the guides (I had Champion in the stern of my canoe) was very informative about the local flora and fauna. Saw a number of birds again, as well as more crocs, a herd of warthogs, several more pods of hippos, and some deer-like animals. Also a lizard, about 50 cm. long, which apparently eats crocodile eggs. That must take courage!

Breakfast - the real one - consisted of a cornmeal porridge (called Millimil) which had peanut butter stirred into it. We also had what they called sweet potatoes, although they grow underground and have flesh a lot like in colour (but not taste) of our regular potatoes. Breakfast was delicious. A short rest and we were back on the river, paddling a long way until about one o'clock when we stopped for lunch. This country grows avacados, tomatoes, lettuce, carrots - all the things we might use and did for a salad. Again, it was great. And it was followed by a siesta, which was not too bad either.

Interestingly, the place we stopped had been frequented by elephants, evidenced by large footprints in the mud, and large piles of dung aroung the site. But it served our purposes, and I even had a little sleep.

In places here, we could see some of the villagers on the Zambian side, down bathing or cleaning their clothes. There was a certain primitiveness to this which was quite exciting. And there were many Zambian fishermen in their dugout canoes, with long paddles, minding their nets. On our side of the river (which at times was 500 meters across), there were lots of hippos and crocs.

There was a strong north wind, and with the amount of water in the river at this point, the waves were hard to battle. We took on a bit of water, but were generally okay. The water level was down, so we had to make some detours, but we got eventually to a campsite on the Twin Logs Island, named after two dead tree trunks paired at one end of the island. We pulled up the canoes, worked our way through the reeds to get to the sandy centre of the island, and set up camp. Supper tonight was a thick corn porridge called sadza with a beef stew on top. The way it is eaten by Zimbabweans is ti take some of the sadza, roll it in the hand to a small ball, and dip it in the stew. I wasn't yet prepared to try that, so ate it with knife and fork. And a kale-like vegetable dish, also quite tasty.

Charlie says he will take a picture of me writing on my iPad in the wilderness. I think that would be neat! When we are on the river, I am leaning against the side of the tent with the iPad on my lap.

And so to bed. It is 8:30, but I am quite tired. And the morning comes early. Bono warns us that tomorrow will be a long day. We are picking up another tourist for the trip, in the town of Chirungu.
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Location:Twin Logs Island

Kariba

Today was a travel day. I had arisen at about seven, folded the mosquito net, and began to pack finally. I decided to leave with the guest house my knapsack full of various things not really needed. But decided to bring this iPad along with me, to keep some notes and to keep the pictures. I am hoping that the charge will last.

Met a nice man at breakfast, as well as two women from England. The women were here to look into a cooperative venture between their organization and on of the universities here. The man was from South Africa (although he had been born in Zimbabwe), and was here to promote some agricultural products. He and I talked about what I was hoping to see, and also about the differing cultures in South Africa and Zimbabwe. He said that the South African culture was more violent, but also that travel was pretty safe outside Johannesburg

I was due to be picked up at ten, so I got finished my meal and my packing, and went to the office to see the beautiful Dorcas again and settle my bill. This I did, and she took my knapsack to put in a safe place.

Charlie and Daphne arrived about 10:20, which is really ten in Zambian time. I met the driver, Martin, and we were off. But of course we had to stop for some shopping, at Martin's insistence. We wove our way through the downtown of Lusaka, with it's incredible traffic and lots of people. Then out towards the country to what would be called in Canada a strip mall, with a large grocery store in it. We bought some bananas and olives and buns for lunch, and set off again.

Once out of Lusaka, we fairly quickly got into an area of more hills (Lusaka itself is quite flat). There were often people at the side of the road, selling produce or wood for fires, or large containers for water. The communities we saw began as flat-roofed houses with tin for roofs, then became more and more circular houses with thatched roofs. And the number of houses per community began to drop as we got further from the city. The hills got bigger and the roads got worse. Pot holes which would swallow my smart car with lots of room to spare.

There were two stops for police patrols, and on one our driver passed over some money, and then we moved on. Occasionally we would see some goats or cows. They would amble onto the road, cross slowly, and we would stop for them (the driver would have to pay the owner if they were killed by the car). We climbed and took some hairpin turns to get to the top of the hills before coming into the Zambesi valley. There was a moment of awakening when we passed beneath a sign which proclaimed the "Sinoelectric corporation", and in fact the Chinese are now in control of the major electric generating plant in the country. As we came down to the river valley, we realized that the road actually crosses the dam itself.

Lake Kariba is the result of this dam, originally built by the cooperation of Zimbabwe, Zambia, and perhaps Malawi. It was built in the late 50's, and is now run by Chinese.

Crossing the border was interesting. We had to do it on both sides, to allow us to leave Zambia, and to allow us to come into Zimbabwe. And of course there was money involved: $75 per person. I didn't have a $5, so gave them $80, expecting change. They claimed not to have any bills for change (although as Charlie points out, if they are charging $75, they must have some $5 bills). Fortunately, Charlie had the right change, so they didn't get to pocket my money today. Our driver had said that we would see more native animals in Zimbabwe than in Zambia, and sure enough, after passing through the border, we spotted some baboons - mother and child - at the side of the road. Saw a few more along the road to the lodge we are at, the Cutty Sark on Lake Kariba. And also some large dung piles which the driver said were elephant dung, and that the elephants are a problem along the roads at night. I'll keep that in mind.

The lodge is very nice, and very quiet. There are only ten guests tonight, so there are more staff than guests. And, apparently, we have to pay for our own suppers tonight, which we had not expected. But we are finding that the rules change seemingly at a whim, so we were not totally surprised.

We got here just before four o'clock, so I sat with Daphne under a thatched roofed cabin and read my novel, sipping on some local white wine. Very colonial!

That evening, we were met by Bono, who was to be our Guide through the entire trip on the Zambesi. He went over some of the things that were going tom happen, and some of the concerns we might have. We had to reiterate that we wished a guide in each canoe, which is what we were promised, but not what he was initially suggesting.
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Location:Kariba

A Day in Lusaka

When I got to the Guest House, they were ready to meet me and show me to my room. It was spartan, the toilet only works sometimes, the electricity is there most but not all of the time, and the shower is a hand-held apparatus you have in the tub. But there was hot water, and I had a bath and cleaned myself enough to be presentable, then went off to the Arcades Shopping Centre on foot. It is about a kilometer altogether and pretty easy walking. I finally found the store which sells sim cards, lined up (as you do everywhere here) and got the card with a bit of time on it. I got the card in okay, but couldn't figure out how to get the time on it, so had to go back into the store. I was startled when I realized that the person just ahead of me was about twenty, in fatigues and was carrying a sub-machine gun on his shoulder! You don't see that in Canada! And he was just a regular one of the customers.

That accomplished, I called Dr. Margaret Mainbolwa, the assistant dean of the medical school (who was a trained nurse midwife, with a Ph.D in it from Sweden, of all places), and we arranged to meet at her office. Took me a while to find a cab, but I got there and finally found her office. Of course she was not there, but people are nice, and someone went to find her. She welcomed me warmly, and we talked about her research and the medical school. She helped me by arranging for the next interview which was at a different location, so I got another ride with two of the staff, and met with Dr. Fastone Gomar, a cardiologist by training and practice, but also a researcher and one of the founders of Zamfor here in Zambia. He has been involved in human resources work in health care, as well as tobacco reduction strategies. A very interesting man, and one whom I would like to spend more time with.

It turned out that the third person I thought I would see today was out of town, so I came back to Juls and slept. I took a cab with a young man who said of course he knew where Juls was, but when we got close, it turned out he didn't know, so we had to stop and ask a few times. Fortunately, we had agreed upon a price for the total ride.

I had forgotten how fast the sun goes down in the tropics. I woke about 5:50 and thought I should get going to meet Daphne and Charlie by 6:30, and by 6 it was already dark. I had been assured that walking around here was okay until after 8, but it felt a bit scary walking down the dark streets (no street lighting), on uneven roads with cars which don't always drive well, and being the only white person in sight. And the houses here are all behind high walls with razor wire on top of them, so getting help there would be impossible. But I made it safely, had a wonderful reunion and dinner with the Maurers. And then came home by taxi.

I have decided to take this iPad with me on the trip, so we will see how well it does. I am fascinated at the prospect of using it to keep a diary while out.


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Location:Lusaka

London and Beyond

I have not been writing too much over the past few days, so I will do that now.

We arrived in London, were met by Daniel, and went back to his place, as I mention in my other posting. Saturday was a day for getting time-shifted. We slept twice through the day, and felt pretty good that evening, so went out to a South African restaurant for supper, where I ate ostrich and wildebeest meat - both pretty good. We had some good conversation with both Daniel and with Electra, and returned fed and happy by foot to his apartment.

Sunday we went on a walk to the local town of Barnes, walking through the commons (which is a huge area of open or forested land, with cricket pitches, football fields, and wild areas). After a stop for a pint, we took the bus back home, and celebrated Dan's birthday, complete with presents and a meal cooked by the two of them. It was wonderful - tasty, filling, and just plain good. And how nice to be served a meal by your children!

Dan was off to work the Monday morning bright and early and on his bike, and Darlene slept in a bit. So when we got up, we decided to walk over to the High Street and find some breakfast. Found a good place at the local pub, and then took the bus into downtown London, ending up at Covent Gardens, and Picadilly. Lots of walking and the occasional stop for a rest. We tired ourselves out, and were glad to get back on the bus for home. We got home before Dan, and when he got there we went out for a supper just down Richmond Street from his place.

Tuesday, again Dan was off to work, and we this time decides to take the bus to the High Street, and then on to Kensington, to visit a Museum. We got a wonderful breakfast sitting outdoors in the Kensington area, watching people. Then on to the museum. All the museums in England have free admission, which is wonderful. We decided to go into the Natural History Museum. The Museum is housed in an enormous, architecturally fascinating building which dates from the 1800's. And it contains a number of large collections of animals and insects, as well as exhibits about the human body. I was intrigued (Darlene perhaps a bit less so), and we spent most of the afternoon there.

We had decided that evening to go and see a film (Toy Story 3) with Dan, and did this, getting home late. But we got to meet Alfie, his roomie, and that was pleasant. Alfie is from Mississauga, and is going back there soon. He had kindly lent us his bed for the first few nights we were there.

Then Wednesday, which was to be our travel day. We took the morning to repack and get ready, then went to the airport. Darlene was to leave before me, so we had a bit of lunch at the airport. I saw her off, had to transfer to a different terminal, then waited for my own flight. Got on it finally, only to learn it was to be delayed a bit because of a strike in France which meant we couldn't fly through their air space. But in the end the flight was uneventful, and I even got a fair bit of sleep. Arrived in Lusaka just after sunrise, and of course waited in lines to get through the immigration process (complicated by my own ignorance of the fact that you have to pay to enter the country, and of course you pay in US dollars, and my US money was in my checked bag on the other side of customs). But they are pretty laid back here, so they let me get my bag and pay them. And enter their country. I was met by a man from Juls with a sign for "Robert Brown", but we got it figured out and I am now at the guest house.

First impressions: beautiful sunrise, very pleasant people, lots of poverty and some wealth. Reminds me a lot of Cuba so far. But I have a room, and it has power and water, so I am happy. Got some Zambian dollars out of the bank (300,000, which seems like a lot but is only about $60, I think). I will get a phone card soon, and walk over to the University and/or to the shopping plaza. Likely meeting the Maurers later tonight.

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Location:Lusaka

On my way

So here I am in Merry Olde England, visiting my son in Putney. This trip has been easier to get here than have most of the previous ones, due to an expensive choice I made earlier. I had decided that I was tired of being a zombie when I got here, so went for the "Executive" option on the plane. This allows for a horizontal position while sleeping. And it works! As well as the extra perks you get: earlier entry to the plane, faster trip to get your luggage and through customs; you get to assume a better position while trying to sleep. You still only have about three hours of sleep, but it is better sleep.

Yesterday in London was cool and there was a bit of rain. When we got to Heathrow, we met up with Dan, and decided that we should take a taxi to his place. We did not expect that it was going to cost us £60! Such is London, I guess. In spite of all, we had to sleep a bit in the morning and again in the afternoon. But in between these sleeps, we walked to the Thames River and along it for a while, then along the High Street in Putney, admiring the houses and the shops. Then back to Dan's place to have an early celebration of his birthday, and then for upper at an (appropriately) South African restaurant.

Home to bed and up this morning early. Out to find coffee, a paper and some internet. And now doing some more blogging on the iPad. Hope this works: I am thinking of taking this machine with me to Africa, and leaving the laptop here in London. We'll see.


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Location:Putney, London, England

The End, June 17

Perhaps not exactly, but in reality, today is the end of the vacation. Tomorrow promises to be a long day in a car to get from where we are (near Quebec City) back to Dundas.

But today we woke at the "Belle Blanche" to a gray day with some rain, and had a leisurely time over breakfast. We did not want to leave, but packed the car, and said our goodbye's in the end to Marie, before heading onto the 132. This was to take us all the way to Saint-Antoine-de-Tilly. We stopped even before leaving town at the patisserie, but passed up having anything to eat there (having just, after all, had a wonderful breakfast at the gîte). But we met there a couple who had just returned from a three-year journey around the world on their motorcycle.

Then on through other towns, some just as goof as Kamouraska, others a very pale imitation. Barry and Nancy were looking for a coffee shop that they had found years ago on their trip to the East. We stopped when we found it, in the very pleasant town of Saint-Vallier. And there we indulged in coffee and croissants (or, in my case, Pain au Chocolat). It was noon by now, so we felt okay about this.

On through to Lévis and then to our destination only 25 km or so past this. We met again with our hosts, Carol and Dianne (Carol is male, by the way), and recounted to them our adventures since we had started our trip almost three weeks ago.

We quickly settled into our rooms, and soon moved out to the back garden to read and to write, with Barry falling asleep under a tree in his chair, Nancy engrossed in her book inside, and me at the computer under another tree. I can hear the water of a fountain as I write this, and see the poppies, the iris, the astilbe, the phlox all in bloom. And the sky overhead is clear, with a pleasant breeze.

And I began to think of the couples that we had met along the way, in the various Gîtes and Auberges we had stayed in. Carol and Dianne here in Saint-Antoine-de-Tilly, Philippe and his wife in the Canard Huppé on Ile d'Orléans (and their little daughter), Cathérine and Martin in Saint-Félicien at the Manoir Banville, Marc-André and Nicole at the Maison Hamilton, Normand and his wife in Metabéthchouan, and Denis and Marie at the Belle Blanche. All of these couples were extraordinary in their own way. They wee cordial, al felt that they were privileged and happy to be in the homes that they shared with strangers, all tried hard to please their guests, and all shared happily their stories with us. It takes s special kind of person to do this, day after day with humour. And they all seemed to have it.

So it's been a wonderful trip, full of surprises and pleasures, with few downsides. We will return.

Kamouraska, June 15-16

Ah, the name even sounds magical. There was a rather racy (as I recall) movie from the 1970's by that name, based on a novel written by Anne Hébert. And we had decided to go there for a night.

Our night in Pointe-à-la-Frégate was a bit scary: the wind picked up from the water, and blew hard all night long. We were by the water, and there was nothing to slow down the wind in its path. So I lay in bed hearing the wind blow both over and under our room for much of the night. It was a strong and long blow! Amazingly, the power did not go out, and there were no trees down that we could see. The morning brought a slight amount of rain, but it was still the wind which worried us.

We had waken at 4:30 to get a picture of the sunrise over the Saint-Laurent, and it was beautiful, with the sky quite clear at the time. But when we woke for the second time at 6:30, it was cloudy, and menacing. We decided to eat quickly and leave, which we did. With some relief.

The drive down the coast was wonderful and a bit scary all at once. This area of the Gaspé is quite mountainous—more than I had expected. At times, the road would climb a hill at a 15% grade, the descend with the same speed. At other times the road was right by the river/ocean, with the water's waves slamming against the rocks by the side of the road and spraying up into the air; the other side of the road was an almost sheer cliff going up a thousand feet or so. I had no idea this type of topography existed in Eastern Canada.

Then it changed. We got out of the Land's End part of the Gaspé and into the Haute-Gaspésie, and there was some farmland between the hills, and sometimes between the mountains and the sea. And when we left the Gaspésie, there was even more farmland, with the mountains retreating to the East.

We had left our motel in a hurry, and were anxious to find a good coffee place. In the end, we did not find one until we got to Matane, about two hour's drive from our start. And it was a good one, so worth the wait.

And by this time, the sky had begun to clear, and the wind died down, so it was a much better day. With the weather, and the coffee, all our spirits rose significantly. We went on the Rimouski, where we did some shopping, then proceeded on to look for a place for the night. After Rivière-du-Loup, we stopped at a few places, and rejected them, and then got to Kamouraska. We had wanted a place with internet and washing facilities, and thought we would have to settle for a motel. But we found, in the centre of town, and place called "La Belle Blanche" which had a suite for a good price, and included use of their washer and dryer, as well as internet. So we were all happy. And the couple (Denis and Marie) are charming: he is cabinet-make, and has redone what was his grandmother's house into a magnificent Gîte; she is a gentle woman who seems to cook and do the rest. And they have son who lives in the house as well.

I have to admit that I have fallen in love with this town. It is over 325 years old, has many homes along the main streets which date to the early Nineteenth Century, but have been well-maintained. And it is a farming community as well as a fishing place. There are large tractors going through the streets. And we ate last night at a poissonerie with an adjacent bistro, of fish caught by the owner, and well-prepared and cheap. It was delightful. We decided to stay an extra night before heading off, and doing a day of biking today if the weather held.

I woke this morning at 6:30, and was pleased to read my Globe on my iPad before breakfast. Breakfast was wonderful, as all the Gîte breakfasts have been, and we got ready to go biking. this seemed to take a longer time than usual, but finally all was ready and we headed off on the Route Verte upstream along the river (actually on Route 132). Our trip was actually in the end almost 90 km, to bring us up to about 644 km total, not quite what we had done in BC, but not bad for some old farts. We passed through the town of Saint-Denis, where Barry was again mistaken for a Frenchman, or a Belgian, so something. He was very pleased. The rest of the trip out was largely along the river to La Pocatière, then inland (and up a massive hill) on the search for a town we wanted to visit just because of its improbable name: Saint-Onésine-d'Ixowrth. This town turned out to be a disappointment—it had had a fine wooden church, which burned down in the 1960's due to a malfunctioning furnace, and the replacement was not worth mentioning.

Back along the Highway 230 to Saint-Pascal (the patron saint of cooking), then home to Kamouraska. We were all tired after our 90 km., and after each took his or her shower, we set off in search of an early and well-earned supper. We found this at the western end of town, in an auberge called the

Auberge Des Îles. A fine day indeed.

The Last of the Gaspé

Today was to be our last day at this end of the province. We woke at about 6:30, with Barry's obligatory run from bed to washroom stirring us all to life. The sun was up, but the sky was hazy; not that it mattered to Percé, which stood magnificent and tall with the gulls circling around it and diving from it into the ocean.

We had decided yesterday that we would take an easy time to get to the north shore of the peninsula, but Nancy woke with a mission to get us packed and out. So we were in the car and down into town at just after 8, having already had breakfast, and hungry for a good coffee. The patisserie that we had been to the previous day unfortunately did not open until 8:30, so we decided to go up the hill for more pictures of the "Rocher" before going back to the shop for our coffee. This task done, we left the town of Percé, up the hill and through "La Grande Crevasse", on our way up north. The land was awesome, going from barechois to flat farmland to hilly forests. And the sea is always present. Houses were less well-kept than on the South Coast, but still good. And the towns did not look as properous, at least until we got to Gaspé (the town). there we stoped for another coffee, a brief visit to the jacques Crtier cross and the curch b uilt near it, and then to the Gaspé Museum for a pleasant visit and course in the history of the area.

From here to the Parc National de Farallon, at the end of the peninsula ("Gaspé" come from the Mig'mag word for "land's end"), and through that to have lunch by a wonderful area of the park called the Cap de Bon Ami (named after M. Bonamy), a spectacular place at the end of the Appalachian chain of mountains, as the tumbled into the sea. We ate well, stayed a while to admire the flora and fauna of the area, then went off, stopping briefly to photograph the lighthouse at Cap-des-Rosiers and talk to a retraitée who very pleasantly talked with us about the caiplin fishery there, the number of older folks in her community, and so on.

But the land had changed a lot: we were now into mountainous areas, some of them topped by large windmills slowly revolving in the high winds of the area. Hills were often at 15 degree grades, and the poor Lexus struggled a bit to take us all to the top before racing down again to the fishing villages at the sea. There was a large and clearly commercial fishing fleet at Rivière-au-Renard, and a wonderful church at Saint-Maurice-de-l'Échouerie.

We pushed on, but were enticed in the end by a lovely building in the town of Pointe-à-la-Frégate. Nice motel, no internet or phone service, so this entry will wait until I can post it later.

No biking today.

The Rocher Percé, June 12

Yesterday was again a clear and sunny day. I got up early (about 6AM) and went to write my blogs to catch up. This took some time, since we had not had internet coverage for a few days. But this place had one of those 3G "sticks" to get this computer onto the net, so I thought I should do my duty.

The house is grand, and there are large windows in it. So sitting by the front window upstairs in what had been the master bedroom was a delight. I quietly listened while the house awoke, typing away happily and watching the front garden and its birds. The sun gets up in this area about 4:30, so it was pretty high in the sky when I got up. And that gave me lots of light.

I did get on the web and posted a few days' worth of information, and by then Barry was up and around. It was not long before we had the (I'm sure) unenviably task of eating yet another fine breakfast. So we went downstairs, after a bit of packing.

Breakfast consisted of whole wheat pancakes with fruit and maple syrup, with wonderful coffee and fine juice. And all spiced by tales of the area told by our host, about the past life of this town, and the various goings-on of that time. And also told us about the families and types of people in the various towns. They are still static enough culturally that you can tell where someone is from by their family name.

We went from there to biking, agreeing that we would do about 80 km that day, and probably ending up in the town of Chandler. Most was to be on the highway, so we hoped the traffic would be low. And it was, with fairly good shoulders most of the way. Some hills, and a fair bit of wind. And, as predicted by Nicole, the temperature dropped significantly about five km west of town. We started with a t-shirt, and began to pile on the clothes as we got colder in the wind off he ocean.

As Barry pointed out, it was almost one town stretched out along the ocean between New Carlisle and Percé. There were a few areas of farmland, and some scrub bush, but mostly there was settlement spread thinly along the highway. Many of the towns had active fishing areas, with many fishing boats and piles of nets and traps apparent (they tell me that there are so many lobsters being caught this year that the price is quite depressed). Along the road, there was the usual bits of garbage, but this time mixed with bits of lobster shell thrown from windows.

Went again through Paspébiac, then on through Hope (where there is a large number of Basques), and to Saint-Godefroi, Shagwake, and on to Port Daniel. There we were stopped by a wonderful building beside the railway tracks, which turned out to the Hotel LeGrand, now a library and municipal office,

and looked around it in awe. Turns out to be one of the first places that Jacques Cartier found on his journey of the 1630's. And still a beautiful place. After a short stop by the Church, and a view of the Manse-turned-gîte (another stunning building), we went off on our way to the east.

We met Nancy for lunch after Newport, and she warned us that the road ahead was not pretty in any way. And besides, the wind made it quite cool. So we decided to take a ride through that mess and restart our ride in Pabos. We rode, somewhat tired, then on to around Cap d'Espoir, completing our 80 km, at about 5 PM.

Nancy had out-done herself. She had found a little cabin on the peninsula which ends in the Rocher Percé. We have a view outside our window of the Rock, and watch as the tide comes and goes, with the gulls flying up and down it. It is spare, but adequate, and the view is worth a lot.

Supper last night in Barachois, in a restaurant called the Café des Couleurs. Then home to an early bed.

New Carlisle, June 11

A terrific biker's breakfast of eggs, spinach, croissants, coffee, potato pancakes, followed by a farewell to Bruce, who was driving back home this day. So Nancy was to reprieve her role as den-mother. She went off for food, and to do the laundry, and also to visit a second-hand bookstore she had found.

Barry and I took off, stopping soon to repair a broken wire on his bike computer. We were along Highway 132, and it was busy in the morning, but the shoulders were good. We went towards New Richmond, and the the Route Verte took us into the town through some pleasant scenery but rough roads, and conveniently by a coffee shop and patisserie. So of course we stopped and indulged. Met an 86-year-old man having coffee with a bunch of younger men, all solving the problems of the day. Barry broke his (new) rule and had a coffee (it appears to make him pee an inordinate amount of times), but all was well with the world as we sat in the sun, outdoors, sipping coffee (and carrot cake and cookies).

Then back on Highway 132 for about ten km, before heading north to the 2e Rang, which we followed quite happily for over twelve km. A few twists and turns through variable land and some difficult dirt roads, the land being mostly for farming, down a wonderful hill where I got up to 64 kph, then past the Bonaventure airport to the town of Bonaventure.

By this time, I had lost any cell signal I had had before, so had no way of contacting Nancy (we had agreed that we would use the phones to arrange a meeting for lunch), and the two of us were tired and hungry. But a miracle happened: we had stopped to rearrange our energy, and were wondering how we would contact Nancy, when she drove around the corner! She had come to the same conclusion that we would not be able to use the phones to make contact, so decided to drive as much of our route as she could, and there we were.

Lunch by the side of the road, and we went on, unfortunately then over an old bridge and along some pretty tough dirt and gravel roads for many kilometres. But eventually back onto pavement and back to the highway. The ride to New Carlisle was easy and smooth.

New Carlisle is the birthplace and youth home of René Lévesque, and they have a statue of him in the park there. We learned later that the statue was life-size, and had been meant to go in Quebec City, but the folks there were shocked at how small it was (he was only about 5'2"), so refused to display it. The claimed it for New Carlisle, and there it sit, in a children's playground.

Slightly further down the road was the Maison Hamilton, and Nancy had found us a place there. We had done about 81 km (the phone ran out of power, so it was not all captured by the cyclometer).

The Maison Hamilton was built in the mid-Nineteenth Century by a judge and merchant named Hamilton, entirely out of stone, and in a style which is apparently quite unique in Quebec. The couple who now own it (Nicole and Marc-Andrée) bought it two years ago as a derelict building, and have spent a lot of time and money (with little help from the Government of course: they were even hesitant to designate it as an historical building, and there are no tax or other breaks for people maintaining such buildings). Nicole regaled us with stories of old buildings in New Carlisle which had been left to neglect then demolished. This area was the main area for the southern coast of the Gaspé during the last century and the first part of this century.

Then the daily question of supper. Nicole suggested, and we took her up on, the restaurant at Paspébiac (which had been a major area for fishing, particularly cod, in the old days; they had had stages for drying and salting cod in great number, but now have a fishing industry without the cod). Interestingly, this area was settled by a number of people: Acadians [we saw a number of Acadian flags], basques, British, and so on. Dinner was delicious, and we returned to our beds, and soon to sleep.