and we were on our way again. Listening to the news, we found we had just missed being in the tornado that ripped through Goderich, ON by a day. Te next day, again listening to the news we found that, as we were travelling through Toronto, an earthquake was going on and shaking things up a bit. Of course, we were concentrating on the highway signs and attempting to avoid as much of the traffic as possible, so we didn’t notice any shaking. We found a toll highway that whistled us right through Toronto with no trouble at all. Spending one night at a relative’s place in Uxbridge, we started the big move to the Maritimes. We planned for a long day of driving and it was. Due to construction AGAIN we got re-routed and the GPS got confused and so did we. Had minor adrenalin rushes with three idiot drivers but no real close calls. Managed to get onto Hwy 7 east to 401 and then to Montreal. We stopped at the PQ Info Centre and were given instructions on how to bypass Montreal traffic as we got to the edge of town just at rush hour. Well, the instructions were a little vague and we missed a turn somewhere, but managed to find our way right to the proper bypass route aſter a bit of a tour through the countryside. Are we ever glad we took that route as we could see many major highways and bridges jammed up like parking lots while the highway we were on moved along quite well. Aſter 10½ hours we made it to Drummondville, PQ and found a campground that was too close to the highway, but we were exhausted so we picked a spot and stayed. We had been dodging severe thunderstorms all aſternoon but really only battled with one directly. Just managed to get supper eaten by 8 p.m. and get a couple of bills paid online before heading straight to bed. Our plan was to get to New Brunswick the next aſternoon. Well, back in Canada, New Brunswick that is, aſter travelling
for a day and a half through the foreign “country” of Quebec. Te fuel prices there were very high, which gave us great pleasure in the fact that we could drive right through it without having to fuel up thanks to the big tank and the very efficient Cummins. We stopped at the Welcome Centre in NB and found a Provincial Park campsite right away and that’s as far as we got that day, about 500 km. At that point our plans were changed for us. Hurricane Irene was headed right for the Maritimes, so we abandoned our plans to see Newfoundland. Two long ferry trips over rough water did not appeal to Pat and we felt that the possibility of being stranded on Te Rock for longer than we wanted to be there was not worth the risk. So, we had lots of time to explore the rest of our eastern provinces, which we did. Camping on beachfront sites was a regular occurrence, exploring tidal pools, watching fishing boats and enjoying the seafood made the days go by very quickly. We did leave New Brunswick early to avoid the hurricane by going to Lunenburg, NS. We were camped in the Lunenburg municipal campground when the storm hit. Only a ten-minute severe downpour and
20 RVT 147 • MAY/JUNE 2012
a day and a half of wind were all the effects we experienced. Aſter visiting the re-construction site of the Bluenose II and taking lots of pictures of this colourful little town, we decided to explore Cape Breton Island. We feel that the scenery here is probably the most outstanding that we have seen anywhere outside of BC. Te bluest of water, skies, and magnificent cliffs and shoreline will always be in our memories. By September 1st, we had been on the road for exactly five
weeks. Our route for the day was the Cabot Trail around the coast of Cape Breton Island. Would like to have stayed one more night on the Cabot Trail, but the weather forecast was not good and we wanted to see a bit of PEI before the rain hits. Got to the ferry slip as they were loading and thought that maybe we could be real lucky and get right on. NOT! We were six camper units away from that sailing and had to wait a couple of hours for the next one. It was a gorgeous day, so the wait was still pleasant and the voyage to PEI was slow but enjoyable. Got a campsite within 2 kms of the ferry dock and again were
right near the water. We could watch the ferries go back and forth from our window at the kitchen table. Te next morning started off foggy as had many other days, but the sun burned it off quickly and we got to spend the morning walking along a beautiful red sand beach and watching our dog, Gizmo, play in the water for the first time in her life. We were just blown away as our dog hates water! We leſt for East Point in the aſternoon and took in the tour
of the lighthouse that received the first distress call from the ill-fated Titanic. Lots more history there too. Although we had planned to spend about five days on Prince Edward Island, coastal scenic roads were so rough that we were too tired of beating up our truck and ourselves any longer. One more night on the north shore and then through Charlottetown to the Confederation Bridge. Tis is a must to see if you are anywhere near this area. As we were in a truck, we were sitting high enough to see over the concrete sides of the bridge and had a good view during the crossing. What a tremendous engineering feat this is. Next we were on our way back to New Brunswick to see the
sights we missed earlier. Te reversing river in St. John, the Hopewell Rocks on the Bay of Fundy, Cape Enrage and the huge mud flats of the Bay itself are beyond any words I could use here. We have some great pictures and lots of video help with the description, but even these aren’t really close to the power and sounds of these natural wonders. We could have spent a lot more time there enjoying the scenery if it wasn’t for the very poor roads along the scenic routes. It was finally time to head west. Again, our feelings about the
attitude of Quebec Separatists took over and we drove through the whole province, non-stop, arriving at the Ontario Tourist Centre at 1:00 a.m. Aſter a noisy night beside the freeway, we
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