The mall

Refills

In need of some stove fuel and an extra inner tube, we decided to check out the local mall in Roberval, the third largest city on Lac St-Jean. The only city on the situated on the shore of the lake. The city also plays host to the Traversée internationale du lac St-Jean, a 32km/20 swim across the lake. We found what we needed and the kids found a whole lot more.

Faces of joy. Try hard to find Leo!

Leo and Charlotte discovered the .25 cents machines during this trip. 

Making friends is easy!

Stops like these are pretty crazy. Leo and Charlotte are happy to be with each other again and love to goof off. They run all over the place, laughing themselves into fits. I totally understand their reason to want to run and play after having been on a bicycle or in a trailer for hours, and at times it's not at all relaxing for their parents, especially in a mall.

Crossing the river

Bicycle Parking

We’ve been on the road now for about two weeks and the biggest problem we have yet to overcome is parking our bikes. They’re heavy and long. I’m pulling a trailer and Julie becomes a tandem when she’s attached to Leo. My bike is easier to park because the trailer will swivel to about ninety degrees. Julie on the other hand doesn’t have that flexibility. The tow bar is kept from moving laterally by the bungee chords she has on the back of her bike that strap down her gear. We each have kickstands but with all the weight. They’re not reliable. There’s also the risk of our bikes falling because Leo or Charlotte bump into them or jump in and out of the Chariot. We like flat walls to lean our bikes on. Julie needs to gently guide her bike against the wall due to restricted turning radius.

At the beginning of the trip, I would find a good spot to place my bike, park it, and then wait for Julie to do the same. Of course we tell the kids to get out of the Chariot or off the bike, which is sometimes met with some resistance. Now, I wait until Julie parks her bike then I find a spot for mine, or just lean it up against hers. But, every now and then, her bike just doesn’t want to cooperate and starts sliding down whatever she leans it up against. Then she throws her legs out wide, bracing herself to catch the bike. Overall, I think we have managed quite well. There’s still room for improvement.

Re-routing the route

We have decided not to forgo the planned route through the ‘parc’ 175 for obvious reasons: traffic, lack of shade, fenced in sections, etc. We will now follow “la fleuve” until we get to Riviere du Loup, then take the ferry to St. Simeon (where we are now). From here we will travel up to Tadoussac and then along the Saguenay river to Alma and Lac St. Jean. We’re about two hundred km from the lake.

Lack of time to write

I originally thought I would have more time to sit down and write, but that hasn’t been the case. We’re usually in the tent with the lamps out by 9:30, exhausted. I have been taking notes and will try to get something out before winter!! Or I just post to the blog without too much effort in editing. We’ll see. What do you think?

Facebook Page

If you didn't know, we're also on Facebook. Just click the link to read shorter updates. Photos too.

Plessissville, Quebec

Day 6

Spent the last two nights at picnic tables on the bike path. We have had an enormous tailwind and the path has been flat. This morning we were given permission to use the internet at a public library while it's closed. What a treat. Good thing we were persistent. We sent Leo several times to the door and then someone opened it and let us in. Charlotte and Leo are reading books which is a well deserved break for them.

We've been doing roughly 30 -60 km/day (23/40/miles/day) It has been fine with us so far. We're adjusting to life on the bikes. Our bodies are in a state of shock. I'm just getting over the initial butt pain and can settle in for longer amounts of time before I have to get up.

It has been very hot. Sun block and water are our usual doses of comfort when we stop to take a break. Seems like we break once an hour, more if there are hills.

Leo and Charlotte are adapting real well. They switch between pedaling and sitting in the Chariot. At times, Leo prefers to stay in the Chariot while Charlotte cries to stay on the bike. She's big enough to sit on the bike.

We'll get more info up when we get to Quebec City.

Thanks for reading.

La veille du depart

Il est minuit chers amis,

Mon velo est dans la cuisine tout charge...  J'ai un tri a faire dans la nourriture... 

-"Are you gonna leave all that weight on your bike?" me demande Chris ;)

Non.  Biensur que non.  

Encore une selection...

L'organisation.

Je me dis une chose a la fois.  

Respire.

Ok.

Tot leve demain je ferai un cafe et j'eliminerai les denres.

8:00 am premier coup de pedale?

Bonne nuit...

Bons reves.

Julie

Preparation

Ici Julie.

Aujourd'hui lundi.  C'est en buvant un vin d'orge que je prepare mes paniers.  Chris fait la meme chose et les enfants dorment.  Je me joins a ce blog que l'homme a commence depuis il y a plusieurs jours.
Bonjour!
Je serai l'ecriture francaise dans cet echange internet.  (Vais-je mettre des accents?  Il faudrait...)
Tellement de choses a apprendre, a perfectionner, a vivre...
Je me lance dans cette aventure de la vie avec mon mari Chris, un passionne de velo.  Nous partons demain avec notre fils Leo (6 ans) et notre fille Charlotte ( 4 ans) pour 5 semaines.  Nous enfourcherons nos becanes (sauf Charlotte) et esperons faire environ 50 km par jour ce qui totalisera a peut pres 1400km.
C'est ca l'idee!
Je retourne a mes paniers...
Enchante!

A night in Parc Yamaska: A practice run (PART 2)

SLEEPING ARRANGEMENT

Nemo Losi 3 person tent
Believe it or not, we were able to comfortably sleep four people in a three person tent. Instead of placing our four bedrolls parallel to the length of the tent (which wouldn't have worked), we set them up perpendicularly to it. What this did was cover the entire floor with our bedrolls, except for the space below Charlotte's bedroll. She had a three quarter length pad. In this space we kept our handlebar bags which carried our most valuable items. This was one of my concerns, regarding equipment, and whether I had made the right decision by going with a tent of this size. In fact, when I set it up in the living room, last Christmas, and again in late spring (the latter being outside), I had placed the bedrolls parallel to the tent walls and placed Charlotte's pad by our feet. It wasn't until the tent was set up at the campsite, and while Julie was setting up the sleeping positions that I realized that the positioning could be placed differently. What a relief! Kudos to Julie who didn't even think twice about setting up the bedrolls this way, in fact, she didn't know I was concerned about it.

EQUIPMENT OVERVIEW

GSI Outdoors French Press

Another one of our newly purchased items that proved its worth. In my opinion a must have item if you like to have fresh coffee while camping. It’s lightweight, BPA free, and easy to clean. Julie and I love coffee and on previous trips we were never able to make two cups at the same time. All that has changed now.

A HELPING HAND

Water

Leo and Charlotte were the first ones out of the tent this morning. When I crawled out of the tent, I saw Leo and Charlotte sitting quietly on the picnic table. I’m not sure what was going on in their minds, though I knew what I had to do; coffee!

Leo was excited to fill up the water bottle (probably should have filled up the pot instead, hmmmm) and jumped at the chance to ‘lend a hand’.

Breakfast was fast and easy: oatmeal. Since we forgot to bring bowls, we all ate out of the pot. Who can complain when you only have one pot to clean? In the future, this task will assuredly be one that no one will want to do.

As we packed up, and put our gear back in our bags, Charlotte got an early start. She collected a bunch of sticks, that would eventually find their way rubbing up against my rear tire and the occasional spoke, and sat down in the Chariot.

TAKING BREAKS

Sports and massage, Chez Les Ouellet

We backtracked to the park’s welcome center where we stopped to fill up our water and use the bathroom before heading out onto our first and last stretch of paved road. Yesterday, it made me laugh to hear Leo, at age six, talk about longing to bike on roads that were smooth and flat. “Get ready son!” I told him in my best Foghorn Leghorn impersonation.

Along for the ride was Leo’s soccer ball, a size (two) for those of you who know the difference between professional (5) and others. The Jabulani came out whenever we stopped to apply sunscreen, consult nature, or snack. On this particular occasion we were taking shots at Julie, our willing and devoted goalie. On the bright side, she received a massage from our masseuse 'in training'.

About 15 km from home we stopped at Leo’s school mate’s house which butts up to the bicycle trail (route verte). We didn’t stay long, just enough time to eat an ice pop, check out their remodeling project, and let Leo and Charlotte run around. One would think a six year old who had just pedaled 10 km would be tired; no way. For the next twenty minutes we played soccer. And we had to win by two!

STARING OFF INTO THE FUTURE

The last 15 km home

From the time we left the campsite until we reached Chez Alexandre, Leo had been attached to Julie's bike, then detached, attached again, and now he wanted to be detached again. The process of attaching and detaching the bike isn’t a tedious one, although under certain circumstances, such as, being eaten by bugs, in a downpour, alongside a busy highway, etc. it isn't too appealing either. But for now, initiated by Leo, it was perfect. A stretch of paved road, uphill all the way to Waterloo lay ahead. Leo took off with moxie. He spent most of the time ahead of us, turning around from time to time. With each recognition that we were gaining on him, he would get out of his seat and peddle faster. Charlotte fell asleep in the late spring sun soaked afternoon.

REFLECTIONS

Team effort

We knew that this was a practice run for the month long summer trip and so, we weren't expecting an all out "what can I do next to help the team' approach from our kids. And let's not forget, they're six and four. What we did notice though, was an willingness to participate. A curiosity towards new tasks: setting up and taking down the tent, getting water, finding a good spot to put the tent, etc. In time, these tasks will become routine, and we'll approach them one day at a time.

Rhythm

Leo, either rode in front of us or in between. I never rode ahead, being too heavy and all. We're definitely in the 10km/hr (6mph) range which is fine for us. We'll see how this develops over time. Leo and I were the only ones with a bell and we played 'call and response' type games while pedaling. In the next week or so, we'll add a bell for Julie and Charlotte.

TOTAL DISTANCE

                         

Leo:  40 km

Julie/Chris:  60 km