Cabot Trail - Day 3: Saint Joseph du Moine to Pleasant Bay (by bike)

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Second day of riding: Sarah drove the van, and brought us a lot of map advice and mobile support as we dealt with rain, wind, a number of climbs, and a descent on an unpaved road. We ended in a motel in Pleasant Bay. [38.2 mi]


in the morning it was raining

preparing to bike in the rain required a large amount of milling about and general panic

flags flapping in the rain

the clouds look ominous

south along the coast in the rain

the tops of the mountains are in cloud, but we head out anyway

we are super intrepid

us, looking intrepid (Sarah is not here because she is driving today. Intrepidly)

a house with blue shingles

the road ahead

coast view

houses in the foothills

a mountain lake

clouds

bicycle touring bingo: a picturesque church on a hill becomes visible in the distance

we think this is the turnoff for the Old Cabot Trail

lake in front of mountains

more lake

Scott on a bridge

lake, mountains, clouds

i stopped and went back for a picture of this stream cutting through a marshy area

this isn't fall colors per se, but it's definitely some colors

houses across the harbor from the road, near Cheticamp

closeup of glorious metal roof of that church we saw earlier

the Doryman Pub; we were much too early to hear live music from our bikes, but hold that thought

the end of the point across from Cheticamp; are those clouds a bad sign?

north along the coast from Cheticamp

south from Cheticamp

the clouds over the point still look pretty ominous

We stop at a bakery, where Sarah meets up with us, and shares a map of the national park we are about to enter. The forecast is for three small hills followed by an extended climb.

view approaching the first climb

the road ahead (Scott is in the distance, camoflaged as a tree with a reflective taillight)

the road behind

caution: cliff

looking south along the coast at the mouth of the Cheticamp River

the first hill, which we just climbed

looking back along the coast after the first descent; the view during the descent was incredibly beautiful, but i couldn't stop to take a picture

the road ahead after the second climb

north along the coast after the second hill; yep, that's our route

boy, those clouds look ominous, don't they?

Remember all that foreshadowing? Look, heavy rain and wind

we had to stop and walk along this stretch of road because the wind was blowing too hard to feel safe riding

north along the coast

south along the coast; that little hill by the water was our first climb/descent

some scenery while stopped

war memorial

the road behind

it's hard to tell where the ocean ends and the sky starts

the road ahead; we're on the big climb now, and you can see Skyline Ridge

hikers on Skyline Ridge

the road behind

the road ahead

a lake visible at the top of the climb

we're at the top now

Scott at the top of the climb

we skip the Skyline Trail for today because it's so overcast, but meet the van in the parking lot to walk the bog trail

this informational sign has information about bogs and fens, and also a helpful overview map

boardwalk through the bog

the bog is pretty neat

pitcher plants!

one of the characteristic colors of the bog came from these reeds, which were everywhere

water plants

more pitcher plants

more bog colors

more bog plant life, including cottontails

enough slacking, back on the road

view down to the ocean past some ridges

view up some ridges in the other direction

Scott approaching

my bike is still on this trip

Scott is still on this trip

a river reaching the coast

landscape

that river reaching the coast again, now with more clouds

an informational sign explaining the topology of Cape Breton

the sun made neat shadow patterns on the hills near the coast, but this is hard to see because of the clouds

me, by a scenic overlook

inland landscape

coast view while descending

better coast view while descending

our descent was on this surface, which was both steep and unpaved and wasn't particularly awesome

more coast view

more inland mountain view

Scott demonstrating the incline

north along the coast; last corner!

stream at the bottom of the descent

bridge over the stream, looking towards the coast

coast view

the ocean

the beach at sunset, seen from the Rusty Anchor where we went for dinner after checking into our motel

i told you to hold that thought; Scott and i drove back to the Doryman Pub after dinner to see the aforementioned show

south along the coast in full darkness, when we stopped on the way back from the Doryman to look at stars

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