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QUEBEC & the MARITIME PROVINCES
OF CANADA
Aug - Sept 2011
Furthest East in North America
Canada was
much more expensive than the U.S
and we were glad that we had
stocked up on fuel, food and
liquid refreshments.
The changing
of the guard on Parliament
hill in Ottawa, Ontario
was a bit of British pomp and
then in the Province of Quebec
we enjoyed the French culture,
especially the cuisine.
The
Diefenbunker, Canada ’s
Cold War Museum, was built near
Ottawa in 1959-61 as a
subterranean place of safety in
case of nuclear war. The 4
levels of thick steel and
concrete has a blast tunnel,
decontamination area,
ministerial offices, federal
warning centre, and a Bank of
Canada vault (to prevent the
gold supply from being
radioactive afterwards!).
In
Montreal we spread out in
the lovely home of good friends.
The temperatures were high and
the pool a welcome refuge. They
showed us the historic
Lachine canal of the
fur-trade era as well as the
tower and grounds of the 1976
Olympics.
Quebec City
is
perched on a cliff within
fortified walls
overlooking the St Lawrence
River . We took a tour of the
grand old hotel Fairmont le
Chateau Frontenac. On level
3, the chef has a garden and
hives to supply the kitchen with
fresh herbs and honey. We had
dinner and celebrated the
arrival of a new grand daughter,
Jana Leoné Olivier. (To Ingrid
and Gerhard). We followed the
road right around the Gaspe
Peninsula . Tiny villages,
punctuated by silvery church
spires, crouch around coves.
Each little community has a
picturesque picnic area for
travellers to stop at.
We entered
New Brunswick on a balmy
Sunday. Children were frolicking
in water sprays. There was a
band playing and couples were
dancing on the banks of the
Salmon river . It was difficult
to imagine the same area in
winter under 3m of snow.
“Lobster
Season”-signs were up. For lunch
we had to stop for a Big Mac…McLobster!
The 13km
Confederation Bridge took us to
Prince Edward Island. We
noticed red earth peeking out
from under corn and potato
plants; culminating in sienna-colored
cliffs and golden beaches..
The book
“Anne of Green Gables” portrays
19th Century farm
life and the landscape around
Cavendish. The author Lucy
Maud Montgomery grew up and
wrote there. The Victorian
farmhouse which inspired her
writing is still standing.
From Nova
Scotia to Newfoundland
was a 6-hour ferry journey. We
landed in the night. Road signs
warned: “Slow down for moose!”
As everywhere in the Maritimes,
it was easy to find wild
camping. A coyote sauntered
through our chosen spot.
We stopped at
Gander Airport , where
during the 9-11 attacks, 47
planes had been commanded to
land. A town of 10 000 people
had to take care of 7000 crew
and passengers.
St John’s
on NFL’s east coast was founded
in 1528. Above the strategic
harbour, we watched the
re-enacting of a battle between
British and French regiments.
Soldiers in period costume
marched, then fired muskets and
cannons.
There, in
1901, the Italian inventor,
Guillermo Marconi, received
the first wireless transatlantic
message.
Dipli,
however, wanted to be at the
“furthest East” in North
America . Cape Spear is
the Eastern most point
and lies on a scenic peninsula.
By the direct route, it is 10
000km from “furthest West by
road” at Anchor Point in Alaska
, where Dipli had been in 2008;
but we did it in 37 000km.
The drive
back to the ferry was 900 km.
There were continuous forests
with lakes and rivers. Side
trips were to linked islands
with bays and pretty fishing
harbours. A few vendors had rare
Cloudberries for sale. The fruit
resembles a yellow raspberry and
tastes like apricot.
Nova Scotia
Alexander
Graham Bell
was a teacher to the deaf and he
married a pupil of his. Mabel
was an inspiration and
participant in his research. In
Baddeck they had bought a
peninsula and there he schemed
and experimented. He designed
the tetrahedron and hydrofoil
and invented the telephone (the
patent awarded to him in 1876.)
It was time
for a maintenance stop. The
seats were out; the engine
compartment and holds were open
and tools spread out. To escape
from the horseflies, Leone had
to perch in a rear corner of the
camper, just below the ceiling.
TLC for Dipli: Fitted brake &
clutch master cylinder kits on
the RHD side (in anticipation of
the UK ); did 10 000 km service
(since new engine). RH rear side
shaft needed replacement after
140 000 km (since Mossman ,
Australia ) but LH was badly
worn after only 36 000 km (since
Tok , Alaska )….?
We loved
Cape Breton Island, NS with
its vast central lakes. We would
have stayed longer but radio
warnings about approaching
Hurricane Irene, sent us away
from the coast. At a Walmart
parking lot we (and 7 other
motorhomes) waited out the
storm. Strong winds rocked Dipli
throughout the night and the
next morning.
A member of
the “Maritimes Organization of
Rover Enthusiasts” invited us to
the annual Labour Day long
weekend on a farm near
Wolfville, Nova Scotia .
There were 20 Land Rover
vehicles of all vintages. The
challenging drives were through
brooks on muddy tracks in
forests. A steep rocky ascent
led to a picnic on a beach.
Meals were provided and were of
traditional Nova Scotian fare.
The highest
tides in the world (up to 15,8m)
are recorded on the Bay of
Fundy . We were on a beach
near Parrsboro and at low
tide could walk to the
lighthouse on the other side of
the bay. At high tide the sea
almost touched the base of the
lighthouse on the hill.
At Truro
we watched how the high tide
came in behind a vertical wave,
“the tidal bore”.
The rugged
Atlantic coastline of NS has
beaches and charming fishing
villages, serving delectable
clam chowder. We parked at the
pretty bay of Chester.
We were still considering
whether we would bother to
contact friends of friends who
live there, when, can you
believe it!, they happened to
come shopping, and spotted Dipli!
They fetched
us later and took us by boat to
their idyllic house on an
island. We were spoilt with
lobster and fresh vegetables
from their garden.
Dipli was to
be shipped from Halifax
to Liverpool , UK . The booking
had been made and freight paid
for on the internet but the
Forwarding Agent had to be paid
and provided with the paperwork.
The undercarriage had to be sort
of clean. Before loading a
certificate had to show that the
propane cylinders are empty and
had been flushed with nitrogen.
Shipping
costs are calculated by cubic
meter. We were irritated when
the agent turned up with a short
tape-measure marked in inches!
(And Canada is supposed to be
metric.) Not surprisingly, he
got the volume wrong!
The cheapest
fare from Canada to the UK is
with Iceland Air. While Dipli
was at sea, we spent a week in
Iceland ; touring by
hired car. In mid September the
fields were still green but
families on horseback were
herding ponies and sheep to
their winter shelter.
People live
next to active volcanoes
where there is evidence of past
eruptions; lava, ash, spewed
boulders, and flood- damage. We
saw glaciers, spouting hot water
geysers, bubbling mud pools, gas
vents and a geothermal Power
Station. At a volcano show we
were astounded to witness how
close to erupting volcanoes,
vulcanologist-photographers fly,
drive and walk! Every village
has a hot pool but the ultimate
one is The Blue Lagoon.
Dipli arrived
at Liverpool docks. We
had to wait while 2 customs
officials searched 1½ hours (for
drugs). At the caravan storage
site in Bedford we had 3
days, where we could sort and
pack. Jan changed the steering
from left-hand to right-hand
drive. On 1st October
2011 we flew back to South
Africa (for 6 months).
This journey
up to October 2011:
Time on the
road (excluding home visits): 6
years, 4months
Kilometres
driven: 258 000 Countries
visited: 88 (with Dipli).
US States: 49
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