We’ve just made it to Prince Edward Island after about eight days in New Brunswick where we saw plenty of nice scenery and met some nice people, families and a canine puppy the size of bear cub.

In New Brunswick we were able to basically follow the coastline highways and avoid the high traffic routes. It made it more picturesque and much, much quieter.

And the views weren’t limited to the day time when we were riding. Got a beautiful sunset at a campground in a place called Bartibog Bridge near Miramachi on Saturday night.

Then it was off to Kouchibouguac National Park for two nights. The campground was about 13 kilometres from the park entrance. There were bicycle trails aplenty though, and even on an off day I put in about 45 km either circling the main part of the par or going back and forth between some of the gathering places. Here’s what it looked like from South Kouchibouguac Bay at a place called Ryans near the campground.

The views of South Kouchibouguaac Bay from an area called Ryans near the campground.

One of the features of the park is you can buy a permit to dig for clams for four dollars. Clive decided to give it a go and provide a feast for dinner that night.

But the clams proved elusive to begin with. Just as Brody and he decided to move to another beach, a thunderstorm broke out. But they were persistent and determined. After the rain subsided they went back out and kept on digging while I vamoosed back to camp for dinner.

I was fortunate to run into a family from Quebec that we first met at a campground in Beresford and they invited me over for clams and hamburgers. A kind of surf and turf. The clam, however, came with a seasoning of sand and it was hard to avoid not ingesting a few grains. They weren’t that tasty either. That was something Clive and Brody found out when they finally cooked up their collection of clams as the sun was setting.

The coast has provided many nice lunch spots as well. We’ve also stopped in our fair share of Tim Hortons along the way too, mostly for breakfast but during the rides too.

Seeing people we’ve met en route hasn’t been confined to the one Quebec family.

It’s happened several times. One of our favourites was a couple from Sarnia, Ont., who had a Pyrenean Mastiff named Bearen, who wasn’t even a year old but was already about 140 pounds. He was a sweet, gentle giant but don’t let him near a wolf or he’ll take him down. We first saw them in Caraquet, N.B., and then a few days later we were sitting by our tents at the Parasol Campground in Shediac when the husband happened by and recognized us. I didn’t recognize him because when we first met I’d been so fixated on Bearen. Fortunately he brought Bearen around a few minutes later to get reacquainted. What a lovely dog, but I’m not sure I’d want to pay for his food.

Then it was off to the Confederation Bridge to spend a few days being tourists in Prince Edward Island. It was a windy day with big gusts, especially on the New Brunswick side. Fortunately bikes aren’t allowed on the 13-kilometre span so we took a shuttle across. When we got to the other side we had an awesome ice cream cone at Cows. Noriko would have loved it.

Kilometre count

Day 70: Charlo, N.B. to Beresford, N.B., 78 km; Total: 6,166

Day 71: Beresford to Caraquet, N.B., 82 km; Total: 6,248

Day 72: Caraquet to Bartibog Bridge, N.B., 101 km; Total: 6,349

Day 73: Bartibog Bridge to Kouchibouguac National Park campground, 78 km; Total: 6,427

Day 74: Rest but still rode about 45 km in the park but did not count for the trip

Day 75: Kouchibouguac campground to Shediac, N.B., 99 km (including a couple of short misdirections; Total: 6,526 km

Day 76: Shediac to Borden, P.E.I., 72 km; Total: 6,598 km