Saint John is an awkward place to negotiate. Needed gas before I left and the nearest Irving Station proved to be on the wrong side of the road near a major intersection. Not only was the gas pricey but resuming my journey in rush hour traffic proved impossible so I had to turn right and nearly return home to get on my way turning left just past that very Irving Station. Saint John was engulfed in fog which persisted until I’d climbed the hills north of the city. The drive was pleasant enough though the highway petered out as I passed major construction until I reached Oromocto and Highway 2. Stopped in Woodstock for a break and to find Subway, then later in St-Basile near Edmundston for a second fill-up before I hit more expensive gas in PQ.
After some exploration found IGA Extra in Rivière-Du-Loup and got a few essentials. So-called cream for cooking most approximates the table cream I’m accustomed to putting in my coffee but here it is 15% butterfat against the 18% I’m used to. I suspect another conspiracy to sell one less for more. The cream proved to be less than fresh as well. Went to the well once too often at St Hubert. My Gallic Waitress was polite but surly, my cruet of sauce half full, the portion of fries niggardly, and service slow. I didn’t feel like tipping.
Was glad to settle into my campsite after negotiating a rather bustling office where the gal told me to wait, quote, for someone to put me in my place. I was thankful to lie back and sip a glass of sangria and nurse my tired eyes which had just stayed alert for 300 miles. It was hot for this neck of the woods despite the clouds overhead and the fog off the Saint Lawrence. Remained in camp for the next day while showers blew through.
Saturday Morning set out reluctantly still not feeling rested in warm temperatures at 7:30 in the morning. With my air vents set I was able to endure the heat in shorts without the added expense of running A/C. A cross-wind called for constant vigilance all day as a gusting wind made driving erratic. Stopped once just after Quebec City for a pit stop and refreshments. Ignored my GPS to find Camping Aloutte and walked into a darkened office to learn they’d been without power since a raging storm with hurricane force winds had dropped hale and heavy rain knocking out power at 3 PM the previous day. After parking reported back paying my fee in cash. Turned on the generator thankful once more for its presence and ran the A/C to beat the heat. After getting something to eat and reading most of the comix I’d downloaded before leaving the Loup had a 2-hour nap despite the noise. When I got up and went outside discovered power had been restored.
Went for a walk and discovered two books in English in the ‘library’ I was interested in reading. Apparently Jo Nesbo is popular in Quebec. A musty mass-market paperback copy of Ayn Rand’s Atlas Shrugged running to nearly 1100 onion-skin thin pages with tiny print probably won’t be missed. A gusty wind that was rocking my RV has died down to dead calm but banks of cloud still mass in the sky to the south as the sun sets early over the hill to the north-west. Had to close up my windows and turn on the A/C again as one of my neighbours is burning ancient much-painted boards and producing very noxious fumes. Learned later that the same storm system that killed a woman in Boucherville where I was camped spawned another tornado in Grand Lake near Fredericton past which I drove 2 days earlier.
At 7:00 AM Sunday morning drove over to the next interchange and stopped to buy enough $1.47.4 gasoline to get me out of Québec. Early morning traffic on a Sunday was light as the locals were all recovering from the storm and their hangovers as I crossed the island of Montréal. Stopped at the En Route Welcome Centre and was welcomed by two young lads who came out from behind their counters to greet me. Stopped at the Canadian Tire outlet there to fill up at $1.37.4/L. A few miles later drove into Lancaster to have breakfast at Dennys and discovered Flying J was selling for 4¢ less. This Dennys was the first in 5 years on both sides of the border to serve decent coffee but their three-egg omelet must have been made with small eggs and the remaining portion-size was niggardly. Service was slow and coffee refills had to be requested and were slow to arrive. No tips for that kind of service.
With breaks the trip home took 8 hours under the watchful eyes of La Sûreté De Québec and the OPP. Both were busy writing tickets and at least one officer was out with a laser unit monitoring oncoming traffic. Stopped for a pit stop before crossing Toronto around 11:00; two RV parked under an overpass causing the only slow-down in that transit. Was thankful to find my parking space unoccupied when I got home, grabbed my laptop and tablet and a few other essentials and made it home by 3:00. Turned down the A/C, got sommit to eat, climbed into a full tub of water, dried off, and went to bed.
The ground here is too dirty to warrant kissing but I did feel thankful for a safe return.
After some exploration found IGA Extra in Rivière-Du-Loup and got a few essentials. So-called cream for cooking most approximates the table cream I’m accustomed to putting in my coffee but here it is 15% butterfat against the 18% I’m used to. I suspect another conspiracy to sell one less for more. The cream proved to be less than fresh as well. Went to the well once too often at St Hubert. My Gallic Waitress was polite but surly, my cruet of sauce half full, the portion of fries niggardly, and service slow. I didn’t feel like tipping.
Was glad to settle into my campsite after negotiating a rather bustling office where the gal told me to wait, quote, for someone to put me in my place. I was thankful to lie back and sip a glass of sangria and nurse my tired eyes which had just stayed alert for 300 miles. It was hot for this neck of the woods despite the clouds overhead and the fog off the Saint Lawrence. Remained in camp for the next day while showers blew through.
Saturday Morning set out reluctantly still not feeling rested in warm temperatures at 7:30 in the morning. With my air vents set I was able to endure the heat in shorts without the added expense of running A/C. A cross-wind called for constant vigilance all day as a gusting wind made driving erratic. Stopped once just after Quebec City for a pit stop and refreshments. Ignored my GPS to find Camping Aloutte and walked into a darkened office to learn they’d been without power since a raging storm with hurricane force winds had dropped hale and heavy rain knocking out power at 3 PM the previous day. After parking reported back paying my fee in cash. Turned on the generator thankful once more for its presence and ran the A/C to beat the heat. After getting something to eat and reading most of the comix I’d downloaded before leaving the Loup had a 2-hour nap despite the noise. When I got up and went outside discovered power had been restored.
Went for a walk and discovered two books in English in the ‘library’ I was interested in reading. Apparently Jo Nesbo is popular in Quebec. A musty mass-market paperback copy of Ayn Rand’s Atlas Shrugged running to nearly 1100 onion-skin thin pages with tiny print probably won’t be missed. A gusty wind that was rocking my RV has died down to dead calm but banks of cloud still mass in the sky to the south as the sun sets early over the hill to the north-west. Had to close up my windows and turn on the A/C again as one of my neighbours is burning ancient much-painted boards and producing very noxious fumes. Learned later that the same storm system that killed a woman in Boucherville where I was camped spawned another tornado in Grand Lake near Fredericton past which I drove 2 days earlier.
At 7:00 AM Sunday morning drove over to the next interchange and stopped to buy enough $1.47.4 gasoline to get me out of Québec. Early morning traffic on a Sunday was light as the locals were all recovering from the storm and their hangovers as I crossed the island of Montréal. Stopped at the En Route Welcome Centre and was welcomed by two young lads who came out from behind their counters to greet me. Stopped at the Canadian Tire outlet there to fill up at $1.37.4/L. A few miles later drove into Lancaster to have breakfast at Dennys and discovered Flying J was selling for 4¢ less. This Dennys was the first in 5 years on both sides of the border to serve decent coffee but their three-egg omelet must have been made with small eggs and the remaining portion-size was niggardly. Service was slow and coffee refills had to be requested and were slow to arrive. No tips for that kind of service.
With breaks the trip home took 8 hours under the watchful eyes of La Sûreté De Québec and the OPP. Both were busy writing tickets and at least one officer was out with a laser unit monitoring oncoming traffic. Stopped for a pit stop before crossing Toronto around 11:00; two RV parked under an overpass causing the only slow-down in that transit. Was thankful to find my parking space unoccupied when I got home, grabbed my laptop and tablet and a few other essentials and made it home by 3:00. Turned down the A/C, got sommit to eat, climbed into a full tub of water, dried off, and went to bed.
The ground here is too dirty to warrant kissing but I did feel thankful for a safe return.
No comments:
Post a Comment