Cold Rain to the end

Thursday, August 16, 2018
Dildo Run Provincial Park to Gander

During the night the weather changed.  Tom was awake and he says he could hear the wind start and feel the temperature instantaneously dropping.  By morning the temperature was 25 degrees (F) colder than it was the night before.  We quickly packed up and rode out of the park.  We made a stop at the library to use their wifi and publish the backlogged blog.  By the time we finished, a very cold rain was falling hard.  About 20 minutes later, we were flagged down by a car....Tom had accidentally left his tablet computer in the lobby as we scrambled to get packed up in the rain. The administrator in the Summerford town offices chased us down.  We cannot express how grateful we were.

Our Gros Morne climbing companions, Wenke and Julia, surprised us when they pulled over and jumped out of their van as we rode in the wind and rain!  It is amazing how small the world can be at times.

Look who found us!

Our original plan was to ride up toward the town of Farewell and take the ferry over to Fogo Island for some touring.  We hoped to camp at Joe Batt's Arm in the town park.  But with a prediction for four days of rain and increasing cold we decide to ride on to Gander and get the bus in to St. John's.  It is a very long, hilly, cold and exhausting ride to Gander.   We don't stop for lunch because there is literally nowhere to stop.   Route 330 is just a long lonely stretch of highway lined with forest.

Along the way we encounter one gas station and I go in there to take off my soaking wet shirt and put on a dry fleece under my raincoat.  My raincoat failed about two miles into the ride, so I have been drenched since then.  I  have to put my wet coat back on, but the dry layer plus a cup of hot tea are warming and help to keep me going.   All afternoon we keep eating Clif bars for energy and steadily riding through the rain.  Eventually the rain turns to mist and then just grey cold.  The temperature is 12 degrees C - perfect for hypothermia which thankfully we avoid somehow.

We make it to Gander about a half hour before the bus is scheduled to leave for St. John's.  There is only one bus a day heading east.  We change into dry clothes, buy some sandwiches, stow our bikes under the bus, and gaze out onto the soaking wet Trans-Canada highway.  The rain has begun again.  The hotel in St. John's is going to be a welcome sight.  And, once we ride out to Cape Spear our trip will be done.  It feels odd to be at the end so suddenly.

Ignore the last part of the profile and the maximum speed...I forgot to turn off my tracking until we were 10 miles down the road on the bus!

Friday, August 17, 2018
St. John's

rest day - we visited "The Rooms" which is the province's museum and also had a look at the Basillica.

The interior of the basillica was one of the most beautiful I have seen in all my travels - it was built by Irish immigrants and the stone for the exterior was imported from Ireland.  

We had lunch in the museum's cafe on the top floor which had great views of the city, the harbour and the narrows, and Signal Hill (on the left side of the photo).

St. John's is known for its brightly colored row houses.  The green one holds a yarn shop featuring Canadian yarn.

Saturday, August 18, 2018
St. John's

The sun is out today and we are going to ride to Cape Spear.  It is only about 17 kilometers and we plan to explore town a bit and make a stop at the Farmer's Market for lunch.

Root vegetables rule in this climate.  

Cape Spear has been our endpoint goal on this trip because it is the easternmost point in Canada and in all of North America.  It is close to St. John's and there is not a flat road in this city so you can guess the road to the Cape is hilly.  Take a look at the profile below.  It was ridiculous.

Outside the market there is music and entertainment

Crepes for lunch today!

This is the start of a very long uphill climb.

Looking out over the Atlantic

In this view from Cape Spear, Signal Hill can be seen at the mouth of  St. John's Harbour.  (center)

Throughout our trip we have been blessed by support from our family, safety on the road, the hospitality of strangers, and our deepening love for each other.  God is good.  We are both filled with gratitude and excited to face the next chapter in our lives.

We are proud and happy to make it the easternmost point in North America!

Some of the greatest climbs of our entire trip occured on this last ride to our goal.