Days 61-64 Au bord de la Ste. Lawrence

Montreal -> Trois Rivieres 150km

I left Montreal guided by Giselle, she took me to the bike path so I wouldn`t get lost like the day before. Back on La Route Verte I headed out of the city. The path was wonderful nothing reminscent of the stressful day before! The only unfortunate part of the path is that because it stays off of the main road I was zigzagging all around which added time and km to the day. Once I was out of Montreal`s industrial area the scenerey was gorgeous, I followed along the St. Lawrence and then headed inland through the Mauricie region. It was slow going since I was battling a slight headwind and I didn`t arrive in Trois-Rivieres until the sun was setting. I decided that 150km definitley deserves a poutine so I had one. I ordered the small and when it arrived it looked large enough to feed four! I will never understand how the quebecqois can polish one of those off. The guys beside me were ploughing their way through larges. I took my leftovers to go and even though cold poutine isn`t very tasty I ate it for two more meals to avoid being wasteful! After dinner I rode the last few km to Caro and Matt`s place, the couchsurfers with whom I was spending the night. We had lots of fun playing an english trivia game which resulted in lots of laughing and misunderstanding because of the language barrier!

Trois-Rivieres -> Quebec 160km

My longest day ever! It was the equivalent of a century ride (100 miles) and I think once was enough, I will stick to shorter days or less weight from here on out! Luckily I had a tailwind so although the distance was farther I actually made better time than the day before. I rode alongside the river again following La Route Verte. The weather was perfect and there was hardly any traffic. I passed some familiar sights from the last time I had been in Trois-Rivieres as I pedaled out of town. One thing I have noticed since being in Quebec is the huge number of casse-croutes, otherwise know as fast-food. The big difference between Quebec and rest of Canada though is that everywhere else you see the giant arches or some other chain but here they are individually owned and family operated. I`m sure they probably do a mean poutine but being all poutined out I stopped for an icecream instead. I rode into Quebec about 5:30pm that afternoon in search of a hostel in the old part of the city. I missed my turn off and ended up in who knows where but being lost ended up being a blessing in disguise because as I was plugging away at my GPS I received a phone call bearing news of accommodation for the night! A friend of a friend had offered to put me up! Even better she lived straight back from the way I had come so instead of figuring out new directions all I had to do was turn around! Josée and her family were great and I was instantly jealous of her bilingual children who switched between languages without even realizing it!

Quebec -> Saint-Roch-des-Aulnaies 132km

I started the day off with a wrong turn which caused me to unneccarily go up the steepest hill I had seen all week! maybe next time I will check the map a little more carefully! I got back on track and headed for the bridge to cross over to the south side of the St. Lawrence. I had a great view of vieux Quebec and château Frontenac as I rode along the busy bike path. Eventually I left the chaos of the city behind me. I rode through many picturesque villages, many of which were hundreds of years old! The rest stops along the road were spaced perfectly, need water? a lunch spot? a bathroom? Pop! They would appear just as I needed them! It was great! For anyone deciding on their next Canadian vacation destination I would highly reccommend this area! I stayed with a family that I contacted through the website warmshowers.org (a website linking up touring cyclists) they were great, 2 new kittens had recently become a part of the family and were adorable! The kids didn`t speak english so it was a good opportunity to practice my french!

Saint-Roch-des-Aulnaies -> Rivière-du-loup 82km

The wind was so strong this morning I barely had to pedal, if I had a sail I would have been here by noon! Either way it was a fun and easy ride! I got rained on a little but had dried off before stopping for lunch so it wasn`t a big deal. I would officially say I have reached the sea today, I can smell the salt on the air! Although I think it is still officially considered the St. Lawrence the water is salty and there are huge tides. Eel fishing is a big thing here and I have been told I should try the smoked eel it`s supposed to be delicious, I think I may just take their word on it! I was in Rivière-du-loup before 2pm today, a change from the past few days that`s for sure! I am staying at a very nice hostel which seems to be quite empty and have just found the library which is where I am now! Tomorrow I was going to have a rest day but I think I may just carry on instead. Heading for New Brunswick!