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Quebec Day 12

Start: Tadoussac
End: La Malbaie
Mileage/cumulative: 47.82 / 520 
Elevation Ascended/cumulative: 4,088 / 15,998
Weather: Start – Cloudy 55 degrees / Finish – Drizzle 55 degrees
Flat tires (entire group) day/cumulative: 0 / 4

With the experience this group has checking weather apps and tracking conditions over a wide area, we should all qualify as amateur meteorologists.  Yesterday, the forecast called for rain on our entire route today. Then it changed to rain for only a small part of the day. Then it changed again to rain most of the day. All of that within an hour. When we went to sleep last night, everyone had their rain gear (helmet cover, waterproof gloves, rain jacket, rain pants, waterproof shoe covers) out and ready to go. When we woke up and discovered that the rain had blown through overnight, it was a big relief. We could stow the rain gear again, at least for now. 

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Quebec Days 10 and 11

Start: Riviere du Loup
End: Tadoussac
Mileage/cumulative: 26.76 / 472.18
Elevation Ascended/cumulative: 2,287 / 11,910
Weather: Start – Cloudy 45 degrees / Finish – Partly Cloudy 52 degrees
Flat tires (entire group) day/cumulative: 0 / 4

So here’s the thing about multi-day cycling trips. You can have an absolutely awful day, so dreadful that you want to get off your bike, toss it into a ravine, and swear off cycling forever. Then the next day you get back on that same bike you were ready to toss onto the scrap heap and you fall in love with it all over again. It may be the ultimate definition of a love-hate relationship.

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When In Rome…

You’ve probably heard the saying “when in Rome, do as the Romans do.”  It’s often used to rationalize overindulgence but the origin of the saying can actually be traced back to the 4th century AD when the Roman Empire was undergoing instability and had already split in two. St. Augustine, an early Christian saint, moved to Milan. Unlike in his previous church in Rome, he found the congregation didn’t fast on Saturdays. The older and wiser St. Ambrose, at that time the bishop of Milan, offered up some sage words: ‘when I go to Rome, I fast on Saturday, but here I do not…’

Really? When in Rome, I fast? Not “when in Rome, eat pasta and drink wine?” Hmmm. I guess we got that one all wrong.

We’ve completed the first leg of our Italian adventure, where we spent three days in the heart of Rome. We hit the ground walking on day one, knowing that we must keep moving to avoid succumbing to jet lag. After that, we only stopped moving to eat and sleep. Day One: the Pantheon, which was steps from our hotel; Trevi Fountain, cleaned and beautifully restored; the Spanish Steps; we even stumbled across the Presidential Palace. Day Two: the Vatican Museums, the Sistine Chapel, and St. Peter’s Basilica.  Day Three: the Colosseum, the Forum Ruins, and the Borghese Gallery.  No taxis, buses, or trains – just walking, which we believe is always the best way to experience any city. 

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Keep Them Doggies Rollin’!

I’ve always been fascinated with the American West but I can’t tell you why. It’s not as if I grew up on a ranch raising livestock or caring for crops. My family lived in a nice Southern California tract house, complete with the requisite swimming pool. My parents were white-collar professionals busy raising four children and, to my knowledge, nobody in my extended family ever wore anything resembling western wear. I spent years in the Boy Scouts and enjoyed sleeping under the stars, but so did many of my childhood friends and none of them grew up wishing they could climb on a horse and drive cattle.

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Missoula. Who Knew?

We discovered Missoula, Montana quite by accident. Due to the wildfires and heavy smoke on the west side of Glacier National Park, we cancelled the three days we had booked in Whitefish, MT and sought better air quality further south. The choices were limited and we landed in Missoula.

Before arriving, we knew pretty much nothing about this place, which meant one thing… we had to get out and explore! On our first night, there was a street festival downtown and just a few blocks from our Airbnb. We could hear the music from our back porch, so we had to check it out. They had art vendors, food and craft beer trucks, and live music on a very large stage. There was a sizable crowd with a mix of college students (the University of Montana is here), families, and oldies like us. Lots of fun.

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