July 23rd - The Trail Complete/The Longest Day of Riding

Beside the East Point Lighthouse.

 
This has been the longest day of riding yet. I started writing this at dinner, where I ordered the most so far - fresh steamed mussels, and a fillet of hake with fresh fries. The Mussels were served perfectly and tasted amazing with melted butter, making me think that the hipster bar in Victoria can keep their bitter juiced mussels (actually, the thinking was more along the lines that the hipster bar in Victoria can suck it); there are some things that are best enjoyed simply.

Excellent Steamed Mussels - I recommend the Bluefin in Souris.

Forget bitter brine - this tasted amazing.

I'm now in Souris, completely exhausted. My decision point started after arriving in St. Peter just before lunch. I started to reconsider my plan of riding to Souris and then finishing the ride to East Point and the last leg of the Confederation Trail tomorrow. The forecast was still calling for rain for tomorrow, and I'd been making good time. I would decide when I reached Harmony Junction, I told myself, but kept thinking about it. When I got to Harmony Junction, the turnoff to Souris, my mind was made up to finish the trail and continue to East Point if it was feasible. When I arrived, it was not yet 3pm, so on I went.

Starting off in Mount Stewart

So that's what those holes are!

Fields of wild blueberries on the way to St. Peter's

In Morell, with the visitor centre in the background.

The shore, which the trail follows between Morell and St. Peters.

Arrival in St. Peters.

A tourist shop in St. Peters - I haven't seen many of these!

A neat wetland.

The end of the 241st km, and the start of the 242nd. Front of km 242, one might be inclined to say.

km 242 completed. Okay, the whole Front 242 thing was a music geek reference.

 I finished the trail around 4:30pm and was off to East Point after chatting with a couple who were cycling around from their campsite at Red Point, and filling the water bottle.

Nearing the end.

Train tracks! The end of the trail is almost here!

End of line, and end of trail.

The final community sign.

The road to East Point was relatively flat, and I quickly covered the 10km's, got my Tip to Tip certificate, grabbed some ice cream, and hopped the guard rail to explore along the shore (I may not be 100% the best role model in the world for rule obeyance).

The East Point Lighthouse.

 The road from East Point to Souris, however, is an entirely different story. It had a lot of rolling hills and, with how tired I was feeling, there were a few times I dropped down into the Granny Gear and accepted that it would take time to get to th top, and would be difficult to resume pedalling in any harder gear. There were a few times I wasn't sure if I would make it; wished for a car to stop and ask if I needed any help; or that I had chosen to ride back to the Trail and take it to Souris, even though this would be a longer distance. But, none of these happened. Instead, I made it into Souris, had a fantastic dinner at the Bluefin Restaurant, and even made it the extra distance to my motel room.

And then, after a shower and watching some of the kids playing around the motel, I went inside and tried to pass out.