Friday, July 4, 2014

Day 42: Montreal to Trois-Riveres

Distance: 147km
Total distance: 5278km
Average speed: 21.4km/h
Weather: cloudy turned sunny

Another lazy start on the road at 10 this morning and it was about 25km before I finally left the Island of Montreal. I followed Sherbrooke Street which eventually turned into Highway 138 and got to pass by the botanical gardens and the Olympic Park. The road followed along the St. Lawerence River for a good portion and I took my first break in Lanoaire at a nice spot right by the water. Some time after the northerly headwind got pretty strong and I felt myself getting low on energy so I pulled into the first Frites Maison that I saw for some poutine, which gave me the power to go all the way to Trois-Riveres. The landscape in this part of Quebec is again very different from Ontario in that there were almost always houses on the side where I rode, never far from civilization. On the way to my host Richard and Sylvie's house on the east side of tr city passed through downtown, which to my surprise had quite a bit going on! There was the Festivoie with many free performances as well as a Friday evening market. After a fabulous dinner, Richard and Sylvie took me back to the city for a tour in the car and told me all about the history. Trois-Riveres is the second oldest city in Quebec after Quebec City and I got to see all the iconic apartments with their spiraling outside stairs. There are two little islands which divide the St. Maurice River into three so Jacque Cartier gave it this name when he first saw it, but it's a bit of a misnomer because there aren't actually three rivers! 

I cannot believe that after miles and miles of riding I've come to the other side of the country and tomorrow will reach my final destination. It really has felt so much longer than 40 something days and what I post here only touches the tip of how unbelievably incredible everything has been. 


No comments:

Post a Comment