The Beatings Will Continue Until Morale Improves...: May 2022

Gong Show 2022 - Part V

After narrowly missing the crazy storm, we set off early from Quebec, after yet another MacDonald's curbside breakfast. Did I mention that the app helps avoid horrible or even just unfortunate accidents in other languages involving food allergies?

Plans quickly again went awry. We had hoped to visit friends near the border, but the combination of crappy weather, nasty bugs, and our predilection for only outdoor visits could not be reconciled. Shortly thereafter, we received word that the family we planned to stay with for several days in eastern Ontario were "not feeling well" and "had a bad cold that was going around".

Of course it turned out to be COVID, after my sister the Nurse helped them with a rapid test. With our lodging plans up in the air again, we then hoped to spend a few days at the family cabin, but had to wait for other family to leave first, as they were currently turkey hunting.

We thought we might visit Ottawa for a bit, as Jane had never seen Parliament etc., but the weather was not good for walking around town. We decided to stall for time and tour the Cornwall area to check out the Long Sault Parkway, a series of islands connected by causeways just west of the city....a lovely area that needs more attention in future travels.

To kill time and figure out new plans, we decided to visit my wacky uncle in Prince Edward County. He didn't have COVID at least, but he did throw peanuts at us (literally), in spite of me reminding him of Jane's deadly allergies. They were meant for us to offer as treats to a dog he was baby-sitting, but regardless of intention (and repeated warnings) I ended up with a lap full of peanuts and peanut dust that needed to be dealt with before we got back in the car together.

In the end, the hunters left The Cabin early, so we spent a few mercifully quiet (and free!) days amid the healing pines in the Ottawa Valley. We saw some crazy tree damage in the vicinity in the aftermath of the Big Storm, and even days later parts of eastern Ontario were still without power. Luckily The Cabin doesn't have power anyway, so you can't take it away!

We did some walks and some reading and relaxing on 67 acres of Canadian Shield, in the cabin in which my grandmother was born. We had also hoped to see my Dad there, but he ended up cancelling on short notice under mysterious circumstances, so we headed for home.

After two weeks away in favourable spring weather, the lawn was almost as happy to see us as were our eight captive felines. Thanks Heather for the wonderful cat care!

Series of Islands west of Cornwall

Long Sault Parkway

Back at The Cabin

Two beautiful days of R&R

Rural Route in The Valley

A very special place

A hike back over the hill

Lakeside Inn, Orillia

Our view of Lake Simcoe

Farewell to The Cabin...

....and Hello to the hay field!

Gong Show 2022 - Part IV

The ferry back to PEI left at 7am, meaning we had to be up at 515am to be at the terminal by 6am for pre-boarding. This time, however, we took advantage of the ridiculously cheap (relative to the ferry itself) private cabins on board - complete with two beds (four if you fold the bunks down) and a washroom and shower. We spent most of the crossing in our room, catching up on some lost sleep after the early start and a rather windy night in the camping trailer.

Back in PEI, we returned to Rachel's Cabins for two more nights.....and received another $100 gift card! Our latest cabin was a little more modern and larger, resulting in another pleasant stay.

We squeezed in a few more outdoor visits with our friends, with thankfully great weather, explored the southeastern part of the island, and took on a few more hikes in the general area. The Confederation Trail was forged from the former rail lines across the Island, resulting in 400 km of nice level trails through all parts of PEI.

One such place was Harvey Moore Wildlife Sanctuary, where we not only walked to trail but had a great discussion with the current caretaker, the son of naturalist Harvey Moore.

After making the best of an unfortunate situation, we bid farewell to our friends and headed back to the bridge and the mainland. Speeding through New Brunswick, we saw both moose and deer at several spots along the Trans-Canada.

After a mostly beautiful but long travel day, we stopped for the night in St. Eulalie, Quebec, where we raced to to the Motel Marie-Dan to beat an incoming storm . Despite tornado warnings, we spent a relatively calm night as the same storm system wreaked havoc on parts of Ontario.

Au Revoir to Cap-aux-Meules...

....and Hello to Souris!

Some hikes along the Confederation Trail

Rail to Trail!

Some local takeout

Return to Rachel's Cabins

Two more beautiful evenings at Rachel's Cabins

Harvey Moore Wildlife Sanctuary

Walking the Wildlife Sanctuary

Harvey Moore

Farewell to PEI on the 25th Anniversary of The Bridge

Gong Show 2022 - Part III

For some added adventure, we decided to visit a part of Canada we'd never been to before - les Iles de la Madeleine (aka the Magdalen Islands). A series of islands connected by causeways in the Gulf of St. Lawrence, these islands belong to Quebec but are most easily reached by ferry from PEI.

We caught the boat in Souris, and after some boarding chaos (steep ramps and sharp turns!), we settled in for a five-hour crossing. Apparently the ferry had come from Spain, where vehicles are generally much smaller. Considered public transit, masks were still mandatory on the ferry, though we spent most of the crossing on the outdoor deck areas to enjoy the sail.

There were also some great comfy lounges that were eerily empty given the number of vehicles we saw waiting to load....until we passed the pub. That is where everyone (but us it seemed) was, crammed full of people taking advantage of the rule that your mask could come off if you were eating or drinking. As one of the very few people out on deck, we were also rewarded with a breaching whale beside the ship.

We arrived just after 6pm in Cap-aux-Meules, the biggest town on the islands, and made the short drive to our rented accommodation. We had booked someone's camping trailer for two nights through airbnb, fairly centrally located at Pointe-aux-Loups for maximum exploration. We got by on some local takeout, as well as some groceries we had brought from "mainland" PEI.

We spent the next 36 hours exploring the islands by car and on foot, driving the length from to bottom and back again. I'll let the photographs below do the talking....but basically imagine PEI's red sand and beaches mashed up with some of Newfoundland's random ruggedness.

A very short visit, but a great scouting trip - a la prochaine!