Brian caught a bit of stomach flu yesterday so he stayed home from work. Barb, the kids, and I, went out to run some errands. Along the way we stopped at a petting zoo/play place, so the kids could run around. Aside from all the baked goods in the shop, there was also tonne's of fudge. Mmmmm. The kids had fun petting all the animals, pigs, goats, sheep, ducks, horses, rabbits, guinea pigs, and best of all, Kittens. I don't think Melyssa put down a kitten the whole time we were there. Haha.

    We got back to the house later for supper, and then headed to Andrew's soccer game. He almost scored 3 times! So close. It's always funny watching kids play sports.

    The night ended again with a camp fire. The sky was clear and there weren't many bugs out. All of us sat around and made smores.

    Thank you so much to Barb and Brian! They're so kind and welcoming, and made me very comfortable in their home. Even with the 3 young kids, they were able to show me around and never was there a dull moment. You're welcome in my home where ever that may be.

    I said good bye to Barb and the Kids, and was off just after noon. The sun was shining and hot, a great day. I crossed the Confederation Bridge to get back to New Brunswick and then followed the coast north. Once I got to Campbelton, I crossed over into Quebec and continued north till the St. Lawrence river. The highway (#132) after Campbelton was really nice. It followed along side a river running through small mountains.

    Eventually I came to the St. Lawrence and was amazed at its size. It was getting cloudy and hazy out, and I couldn't see the other side. Wow! Maybe on a clear day?

    I then travelled along the river to Rimouski where I found a campsite. It's a nice wooded site on the outskirts of the city, with free fire wood! That's a first. I set up camp and headed to the city with my bike for an evening ride.

    Since it was dark out I didn't get to see much. Along the river though is a very nice boardwalk and bike path. I saw a group of younger bikers and went up to talk to them. Haha, I completely forgot that French is the first language, so here I am asking where to ride and if there are dirt jumps anywhere. The kids just stared back in silence. They didn't speak much English which made it a weird situation for us all, but it was all good. I said sorry and left. Then after a bit more searching around, i packed it in for the night.

    I was up early and on my way to Montreal. The drive was nice and sunny, but felt a lot longer than it was. I made it to Montreal just as rush hour was starting. Whoo. I slowly made my way downtown to the visitors centre to find hostel information, and after trying a few places I ended up at 'Hotel de Paris'. Basically it was a hotel with a small hostel tucked into the basement. It's alright, not the best but it'll do for the next few nights.

    I met some people here. Shaun for Australia, Evens from Montreal (originally Hades), Delphine from France (here to study 'slam' poetry), and a girl from New Jersey and her travelling partner from Spain. There are 2 guys also from England, Pete and Simon.

    I left the hostel to find a place to eat. After searching streets for about 45 minutes I found a sandwich place called Dagwood's. It was pretty good, better than Subway.

    Then it was back to the hostel to chat with who ever was there. Late in the night, Pete and I went outside and sat at the hostel cafe (which was closed). Out of nowhere a black cat jumped a fence beside us and ran down the steps, not once looking at us. About an hour later when we were walking to my truck, the cat was lying on the road dead. We felt bad cause if we had coaxed it for just a second it may still be alive, and so decided we better move it off the road so it didn't get hit further. We got a piece of cardboard to put it on. As we were standing there trying to figure out how to move it, a taxi pulls up and instead of changing lanes to go past us he just stops and waits, blinding us with his lights. We had no choice then but to move it onto the cardboard with our hands which was really weird. What a messed up situation.

    After note: I also paid $1.12 for a litre of gas. Ouch.

    Today I explored Montreal by bike. The first place that I stopped at was McGill University. The campus is big and very nice, but I was disappointed at the lack of things to ride on. Haha.

    Then it was down to Old Montreal and the harbor . The buildings were definitely old, and similar to Old Quebec, but not as clean. I checked out Notre Dame but I regret not being able to go inside. I didn't think to bring my bike lock and I'm sure they wouldn't let me bring it in. The outside of it though was definitely impressive. While at the harbor I met a guy named Felix, from near Val'Dor, who was also biking around and had a nice street bike. We talked for a bit.

    After meeting Felix, I zig-zagged around till I found the Olympic stadium, possibly the coolest looking modern building I've seen. It must have been quite the task to build. In the surrounding parks I met some local riders. They showed me a good launcher on the side of a nice grassy hill. I hit it a few times before heading back to the hostel. The exploring took about 4.5 hours so it was nice to get back and relax.

    Once back, I met 2 girls from Toronto (Gina and Kelly), who were staying in Montreal for a bit of a vacation. Gina, Kelly, Delphine, and I went for a walk to a near by park for something to do. They were funny girls, lots of energy. Delphine and I took off a bit later. We went back to the hostel, got Shaun, and sat at the hostel cafe for some drinks. It's definitely a neat experience talking with so many people from different countries. Everyone relates well but all have their uniqueness from where they're from. It's been such a blast with all of them.

    I woke up and headed out to get a coffee. Right when I left the building I saw Delphine, Gina, and Kelly at the cafe. They called for me to join them for breakfast. How could I say no to 3 beautiful women?! Haha. I sat down and had cinnamon toast with banana,cinnamon, and sugar mixed inside. Wow was it good! We all talked, took a bunch of pictures, and then I had to say good bye. They said I'm welcome to stay with them in Toronto any time. I'll have to try and make it back one day.

    Then I left Montreal heading north. The first 2 hours of the drive were very scenic. Pine forests covering small mountains, with many small towns and ski resorts mixed in. Lots of lakes too. Then the land changed to more of a country side with lots of farms.

    I arrived in Val'Dor but only stopped for gas and supplies. I didn't have a good feeling about this place for some reason, and was itching for an English speaking campsite. So on I drove for a couple more hours into the night and made it to Ontario before I stopped.

    Esker Lakes Provincial Park was where I ended up. It's dark out so I'm not to sure exactly what the sights look like. From what I can see is a nice forested campsite with a lot of sand.

    I left the campsite before noon and drove all day. As I passed through Hurst, I stopped to take a picture of some massive statues at the visitor centre. 2 moose and 2 wolves, all together in a dramatic scene, looking like they're about to fight. There also must be some sort of biker festival going on cause Harley-like motor bikes were everywhere.

    After Hurst, I found Fushimi Lake Provincial Park and set up camp. I had just enough time to set up before it started to pour, but 30 minutes later the rain stopped and the sky cleared up. Right away I got a fire going so I could cook up some hot dogs. Aww yeah! Nothing beats campfire cooking.

    As I sat by the fire the park Warden came around making sure everything was good, so I took the opportunity to talk to him about becoming a warden. He told me how he became a warden and gave me some tips. Also, he told me he loved the job.

    The rest of the night was spent around the blazing fire. Oddly the first big one I've had.

    Midway through last night the rain started coming down and didn't stop till past noon. I didn't sleep to well and was forced to pack up the tent in the rain. Boo! Non the less, I was off, heading back to the Thunder Bay area.

    During the drive I noticed a lot of leaves are starting to turn yellow. Fall is soon to be here and it is definitely cooler than when I passed through going east.

    I made it early to Sleeping Giant Provincial Park and set up my site. This place sure is nice, with so many leafy vegetation. And wild raspberry plants are everywhere. Mmmmm. The campground is called Marie Louise Campground. The Provincial Park is huge so the campground just takes up a small bit of it's space. I can see the lake from my site about 30 feet away.

    Soon after I was settled, the park Warden came around and was more than happy to chat. Saun is his name. He's moved into the warden position by working at parks and volunteering. He said volunteering is a great way to get in. He also gave me his email and said if I ever want to try it out let him know, he'd help me out if he can. Wow! What a great guy.

    After supper, the weather clouded up again, but doesn't seem like it's going to rain. The forecast calls for a clear night and sun tomorrow.

    After note: The night was dark and cold, but I had a good fire tonight. A few points in the night I could hear rustling in the bushes around my site. I flashed the area with my light and saw some deer munching away on some plants. They couldn't have been more than 8 feet away!