We hop on the plane early tomorrow morning for the long series of flights back home. Ending a trip like this is always bittersweet. We've really enjoyed the adventure but are tired and ready to get home to see family, friends and critters, and start taking care of things at home. It has been an absolute pleasure to be able to travel again after nearly three years of hiding. I'm sure where not done with this whole pandemic just yet, but maybe we are figuring out ways to live with it?
For Lorie and I there is just nothing as pleasurable as riding our bike with all of our stuff from one place to another, fully self-contained. It is such a different, slow "view" of the countryside that we find alluring. We always meet people when we're on the bike and enjoy many long conversations. The bike always starts a conversation, and there is always time to talk. Maybe over coffee during a morning break, maybe when we stop to have a bite for lunch, or at dinner. The mode of travel and the people we meet leave us anticipating the next trip.
We have ridden around 2,550 km (about 1,600 miles). That's an average of about 100 km per day, though several were longer and several were shorter. We have climbed over 20,000 m (over 65,000 ft). And we've done it all at a remarkably slow pace! We've had all sorts of weather, from perfect warm sunshine to blistering winds and nasty cold. After all of that, I have some thoughts:
Nova Scotia: this is a province that is all about the ocean. Everywhere, everyone and everything focuses on the seas that surround this land. Fishing, lobstering, crabbing, scalloping, seafaring, it is just impossible to even think about NS without the sea being central to it. Nova Scotians are wonderful, warm people. They have welcomed us into their homes, shared their meals and families with us, offered to drive us to Ceilidhs down the road when it is too rainy to ride, and even to drive us to our next destination when the weather was really fowl. Lobstermen are happy to sell us a lobster or two when the markets are closed for the season, and proud to tell us what to do with the lobsters. On the road they are careful with and generous to cyclists (happy honks, always a wave).
If you visit NS, which you should do, visit at the right time. If you're coming by car, then April through September should be good. Expect bad weather in the shoulder months, but mid-June through mid-September will be glorious. And who cares about bad weather when you're in a car? Expect serious crowds in July and August, we are told.
If you're on a bike, don't come before mid to end of June. Early May was much too early. I think that we knew it when we arrived, but that was our travel window and we don't regret it. First, very little is open in May (this goes for the entire province, except Halifax). Second, it can be very very cold. Expect freezing temperatures overnight and in the morning. Third, most days are very windy. For some reason explained only by bad luck and physics, the wind is always in a cyclist's face. Fourth, the black flies and mosquitoes are pretty thick until mid-June, ish. We got munched pretty good a few days when the wind wasn't blowing or the rain wasn't falling. Even riding slowly up hill didn't keep the black flies away. We tried to ride fast enough to avoid them, but some things we just couldn't do. So if you are cycling, come later in the summer. They say that Cape Breton is beautiful in September when the leaves change color. That might be a good time to ride the Cabot Trail. Be sure to plan way ahead and make reservations if you're not camping because it is pretty booked up that time of year and there simply are not that many places to stay.
Food: seafood is the one word that covers it. Haddock, crab, and of course lobster and scallops. Too much of it is deep fried in my opinion, but it is always very fresh and delicious. Outside of urban Halifax, this isn't a fancy foodie place; the food is prepared in traditional ways. That's part of what makes this a beautiful province as it retains what it has always been. Craft beer is happening here as it is everywhere else. You can find a craft brewery in nearly every village with more than 10 or so inhabitants. Wine is burgeoning, too, and you should go to visit the Annapolis Valley to taste the local wines made with grapes adapted to this climate. Wolfville is a wonderful, if touristy town. We'd go back there any time.
The entire seaside is awesome. The Bay of Fundy is one of a kind in the world. Lunenburg is magical. Peggy's Cove is worth a stop.
Halifax: this is the urban center of NS with a growing population and reputation as a foodie place. We didn't try any of the fancy restaurants, preferring to cook at our apartment, but from the look of things along the wharf, the restaurant scene is going full on! We heard some grumblings about the rapid rise in the price of housing. A few locals didn't hold back in complaining that people from Ottawa (mostly from the Hamilton area) are flocking to NS and pushing the price of real estate through the sky, making it unaffordable for everyone. There is even a big real estate company called EXIT Nova Scotia -- folks cashing out and moving to parts unknown. Cynical, I guess, but who knows. I jokingly said to one guy that "Ottowans are to Nova Scotia what Californians are to Oregon." He laughed and said that he was glad that I said it because he couldn't.
Prince Edward Island: everything that I said about NS goes equally for PEI, except that the good weather window is shorter (July and August) and the extreme temperatures and winds are worse in the shoulders. The Northumberland Strait freezes every winter starting in mid-December and lasting until March or April. Summer is the best time on PEI, I think. And skip Charlottetown altogether -- it isn't worth your time.
Isle-de-la-Madeleine: our foray into Quebec. The archipelago is charming and the people are wonderful. Expect to speak only Quebecois, or at least try. During the summer it is probably a mad-house, but in late May it is perfect (weather exceptions apply here). If you're cycling, just watch out for the drivers!
That's all I can think of. I still have some bike disassembly to attend to.
We're looking forward to seeing all of you back home. Until then, thanks for reading. I hope you enjoyed it.
