Grand Metis Flower Gardens

Quebec
June 28, ‘82

It's 6 AM and I'm sitting in the kitchen of the youth hostel in
Matane, drinking coffee. Out the window is a beautiful view of the
St. Lawrence Seaway. I think the clouds will burn off as the day
progresses, but right now it's pretty overcast. So far the bicycling
has been excellent-- sun, wind at my back, and beautiful scenery. I
do not have a routine yet. The next youth hostel is 90 miles down the
highway. Maybe my routine is about to begin.

June 29

Today it's been overcast and wet—just a little sunshine. With a 15
mile per hour wind in my face it soon became apparent that I would not
make it to the youth hostel, so I set up camp alongside some power
lines. I have a nice view of the St. Lawrence Seaway, but the black
flies are bad, so here I sit in my tent, unable to move, and looking
forward to turning in early.

When I biked out of Matane, as I crossed the river, I counted 15 fly
fishermen. It was the last day of the town's shrimp festival. Last
night, I happened upon a group of musicians playing French Canadian music in
the town center. I think I'm really getting a feel for that music. I
like it. Oh, and I don't want to forget to mention the flower gardens
of Grand Metis. They were absolutely gorgeous. Rows upon rows of
yellows, reds, blues, you name it, the most beautiful flowers I have
ever seen. To bad the weather didn't cooperate. Also, in Mont St.
Pierre a huge cliff overlooking the water provided a platform for hand
glider take offs. I watched from a distance as a couple went airborne.
The town itself was nestled in a cove between two large mountains—very
beautiful.