Day 70: Bathurst to Miramichi

Yesterday, I rode into downtown Bathurst from the west side and had a breakfast with eggs and sausages at Papa Joe and Evy’s. Then for the next 30 miles I cycled without stopping since there weren’t any rest areas on the road.

I took Route 134 until it merged with Route 8. The speed limit was 100 kmph, or about 60 mph, the fastest speed I’ve seen on a road in Canada. At least there was a wide and smooth shoulder so I felt safe.

I decided to have brunch at Bonne Route, a restaurant that’s tucked inside a convenience store. Since I’ve been eating a lot of fries lately I chose a salad to get some vitamins.

After this pre-lunch break, I continued riding. There was a road closure on Route 8 as I reached Miramichi city limit so I had to take a detour.

I also saw on my map that I had to go 5 miles farther west of the Centennial Bridge in Miramichi because that bridge doesn’t accommodate bicycles. Michel, my Warmshowers host in Matane, also warned me about going on that bridge. Why would people build a bridge and only cars can go on it and not anyone else, I wondered.

Before crossing to the other side of Miramichi I had a pita at Pita Pit. It was surprisingly good for a casual dining restaurant.

I was a bit upset that I had to ride 5 miles away from my destination, cross a bridge, then ride 5 more miles to get to my host’s place. But what can I do, such is life. Sometimes there are detours.

After riding 61.1 miles for the day I arrived at Rodrigo’s apartment at 2:45 PM. I was able to store my bike in his apartment on the second floor. I decided to buy the plane ticket to Europe and ended up choosing Edinburgh as my destination rather than Paris since I’ve been to Paris before and haven’t been to Edinburgh or any place north of London. Also the weather will be cooler there. My plane leaves Halifax on July 24.

I took a shower, then Rodrigo and I went out for a tour of Miramichi. There are two downtowns, one on the north side, where I came from earlier, and one on the south side, where we are now. The Miramichi River separates them.

We walked to the promenade, then stopped by the visitor center where Rodrigo got some pamphlets. Then we walked up to Saint Michael's Basilica Catholic Church before coming back to do some grocery shopping. I bought a rotisserie chicken and a pasta salad for both of us for dinner.

As we ate our dinner in the apartment, we chatted about our lives. Rodrigo is an immigrant from Colombia and is now a permanent resident in Canada. He studied at the community college in Miramichi. He also obtained his master degree in Italy before that. As it turns out, he’s friends with Mike and Paul, my future Couchsurfing hosts in Prince Edward Island where I’ll be going.

After dinner, I went to bed. This morning, I woke up at 6:45, a bit late. Since I only have to ride about 33 miles to Saint-Louis de Kent so it was OK.

Rodrigo is making breakfast. I will leave after having breakfast with him.

Arriving at downtown Bathurst

Salad for the vitamins

100 kmph zone, with a nice and wide shoulder

This is the Centennial Bridge, where I was told to not ride my bike on.

The back of my shirt after a day's ride

Sculpture by the promenade

The Miramichi sign

Looking out from the promenade

The other side of the promenade

Downtown Miramichi

Saint Michael's Basilica Catholic Church

Me and Rodrigo