The Gaspé, June 9

As we were leaving Tadoussac, of course the weather cleared and was warmer. We had had cool, windy, sometimes wet weather for the last three days, but the next several were predicted to be sunny and warm. But a nice day for a trip.

We talked with our friendly waitress over breakfast, and she suggested that we stop at the Canadian Whale Observation area just north of Tadoussac. We did this, and enjoyed a lovely walk through the woods to the ocean/river front. The rocks were smooth and sloping, the sun was bright and warm, and

 the day was perfect. But we didn't see any whales. Sigh! So on to the Ferry at Les Escoumins, and the wait for our departure time. The ferry runs only twice a day, and we were afraid we might not fit onto it. But there was lots of space, and the trip across (which took 90 minutes) was uneventful, and again free of whales. There were some ocean boats in the channel, but relatively few. And the water was calm.

Trois-Pistoles was a pretty little town to arrive in, with a downtown which looked as if there had once been some money there. And it was lively, with people out enjoying the sunny warm weather. We looked for and couldn't find, a picnic area to have our lunch in. Eventually, we drove towards Rimouski and went off the main road (which was a lot busier than anticipated) to find a small area for our lunch. Then on and across the peninsula from Mont-Joli to Matépedia, then to Campbellton. The last past of the drive across along the river was like a piece of BC, with the river wide and shallow, and the valley like a canyon. It was beautiful to see.

As was the part of the Restigouche that we drove along.

We found our way to Pointe-à-la-Croix, and crossed into New brunswick there, changing time zones as we went. So we met with Barry and Nancy's friend Bruce an hour later than we had thought (we forgot the time zone difference). He had a glass of wine and some cheese, and we were happy. Lots of talk and planning for tomorrow, and the we walked to a small pub through the streets of a town down on its luck, to a meal which was less than gourmet. And the hockey game was on in French. Mon Dieu!

Bed was welcome, although we had not done a lot of exercise. It will be nice to get back on the bike tomorrow after three days not biking.