Day 20-23 - The road to Port-aux-Basques/Sydney

After 48 hrs of snow and rain in Corner Brook I was anxious to get going again. I wanted to be on the ferry by Monday or Tuesday. On my way out of Corner Brook I was thankful to the Comfort Inn for providing me with a complimentary night at their hotel. Their hospitality was excellent. My feet were feeling much better today. I had picked up a new pair of running shoes one size bigger which along with some good bandages seems to have helped alot.

I had made an attempt to visit the Corner Brook S.P.C.A. but when I got their it was closed and no one answered the door. They didn't answer their phone. Their web site had said open between 1-2:00pm but it was closed when I got there. They were pretty far from the T.C.H. so I never got another opportunity to get back there. I was dissappointed about that.

It was still overcast and wet when I left but the further I got out of Corner Brook the dryer the roads got. I wouldn't see the sun for a couple more days. The thought of getting on the ferry in a few days motivated me more now than ever. I would keep going till it got dark.

At one point I reached the Pinchgut Restaurant and made a pit stop. Here I met Liz and her son Darren, Nina and Jane and their two dogs. They were camping beside the restaurant and had a fire going. I stopped and chatted a bit. They were curious as to what I was doing. They signed my flag and off I went. A few more people stopped to chat. Judy and Jane from Stephenville made a U-Turn to stop and say hello. We chatted a bit and off they went.

My feet were doing much better and I was going to push on as far as I could. All I could think about was getting on that boat. It was early afternoon and I had already covered alot of miles. I kept going till almost dark and knew I had gone along way. The evenings were still cold and flurries. While I was laying in my sleeping bag I thought about how far I had come. I knew I wouldn't beable to keep this pace up for too long but I just wanted to get to Port aux Basques. I was very close. For now I just wanted to sleep but once I get to Sydney I would get back to 42 km a day.

In the mornings I could see the snow on the ground and the moisture on the tent. There would still be flurries and always cold & damp. I had to talk myself out of my warm sleeping bag and kick myself to get moving. In the mornings I could tell I had visitors in the night after they picked at my garbage bag. As long as they stayed away from my tent it didn't bother me. I never kept food in my tent.

The countyside in Newfoundland is spectacular. The mountains, valleys, waters and winding roads were breath taking. I had stopped at gas stations for water and snacks. People continued to wave and honk their horns. Very soon I would be leaving the province that had been my home for the past three weeks.

Just this side of the Wreckhouse (just before P.A.B.) an SUV stopped and picked me up. It was too dangerous to go through the Wreckhouse part of the highway on foot and once it was explained to me why I was very grateful for the ride. The wind comes over certain areas of the mountains in gust up to as much as 200km an hr and has picked up transports and thrown them in the air and hundreds of feet. Not a good place to be. Once thru the Wreckhouse (and there were warning signs along the hwy) there it was; Port aux Basques. Beautiful piece of country. The mountains and ocean. It was a beautiful sight. It was late and tomorrow I would be on the ferry to North Sydney. On one hand I was a bit sad to be leaving Newfoundland but on the other hand I was looking forward to getting to the mainland.

I got on the ferry at 10:30am. Here I met Denis and Arlene from B.C. They were also vacationing in the Maritimes. The Caribou left the port at 11:30am. I thought about the past three weeks and when I talked about it it seemed a bit unreal. One of the crew members took me up to the bridge and the captain signed my flag. It was a pretty smooth ride. We arrived in North Sydney 6 hours later.

Tomorrow I would be leaving Sydney on the T.C.H. in Nova Scotia. The temperature will be in double digits and the sun will be shining. I can finally put my mitts away. The Cape Breton Post was going to meet up with me on the highway for an interview. I was looking forward to that.