I am the second to arrive at the meeting point to catch the bus to the trail-head of Mont Jacques Cartier. I nod a greeting to the young man already there, then lower my pack down onto the slatted wooden boards of the wrap-around porch outside the visitor lodge in Parc-National-de-la-Gaspesie. It would be a... Continue Reading →
Eye-balling my map, somewhere between Grand-Vallee and Mont-Ste- Pierre is the most northern point of the Gaspe Peninsula. Having stood on the equator line in Kenya, please read What-Kenya-did-to-me, and the half-way between the Equator and North pole in Stewiacke, Nova Scotia, I am disappointed there is no sign indicating I just nudge over the... Continue Reading →
It is so bright out, I think I must have missed it. I jolt upright, pulling on my glasses and reaching for my phone. It is 4:02 am. "Yes!" I say aloud, throwing back the top of my sleeping bag and crawling out the back window of my truck cap. The campground is quiet as... Continue Reading →
Pulling out of the campground is no easy feat; these tourist are hard core. I put on my game face, squinting to pick up on the timing between vehicles as they whizz by. My internal stopwatch takes note that the next car approaching is moving a little slower. I jam the pedal down, the engine... Continue Reading →
My alarm blares, announcing my wakeup time of 2:45 am. I down some oatmeal, swig a protein smoothie, then dash out the door with my pack and drive to our rendezvous point in Morell Park, in downtown Fredericton. My co-worker Rene-Lynn has orchestrated this outing: three complete strangers she has plucked from various aspects of... Continue Reading →
