CAPE BRETON ISLAND

We were driven to Cape Breton Island (CBI) from Halifax by Laura's parents. It was a longer drive than we expected and given the undulating hills we encountered earlier on our tour (and our struggles up them) we decided to shorten our overall distance on CBI. Making that decision, we were dropped off at Cheticamp in the evening for a short pedal to the campground.

Riding into Cheticamp.

Arriving at the campground, we were given the last spot in the overflow camping area. It was about two miles further down the road, with no facilities except a pit toilet. Good enough for us. We set up on our spot next to the road, exposed to all the elements. There was a cliff looking up to our east, and we could see the ocean to the north alongside the steep, but short climb to start our ride the next day. Those elements were in the form of a very strong wind. We ended up tying our tent to the bike as we watched our neighbor's tent start to come unstaked and blow away. As the owners were not there at the time, we were kind enough to try and save their tent. Borrowing a hammer from our other neighbor we attempted to pound the stakes back into the ground. Unfortunately the ground was just too hard, and the stakes not strong enough to get through and hold. As a last resort, we pulled out the poles and laid the tent flat. After we were in bed, we heard them return and gasp at what had happened to their tent. If they only knew what could have been, but we just kept quiet and fell asleep. The wind blew all night and continued blowing the next day. We packed up quickly in the morning and began our day of climbing through the Highlands National Park.

Camping in overflow area, Highlands National Park.

Tying down the tent with the bike.

Watching the wind blow the tents.

We altered our itinerary once again when we found there was a lot of construction on the road through the park, and heavy rain was in the forecast. We rode the eight miles from our campsite to Skyline Trail. Eight miles does not seem like much, but it was mostly up, up, up, and we are on a tandem, a fully loaded tandem! While we did take a few breaks, we managed to ride the whole way. Some people on single bikes did catch us, but given they were not carrying gear, that would be expected. Overall, we were quite proud of our accomplishment. Those undulating hills previous complained about seemed like nothing now, and future hills began to become just another minor obstacle to get over.

Taking a break from working our way up the hills.

The hills we are climbing.

So far so good...no walking for us.

Still climbing.

The road we climbed.

At the Skyline Trail, we hiked out the two miles to the overlook and nearly got blown off the boardwalk. The view was great when we weren't hanging on, and as the rain started to fall we headed back to the bike. We came across Pam and Don on the trail, got to the bike, loaded it on the truck as the heavy rain started. As we drove away we looked out the window at the other bikers struggling through the rain and the construction, and felt a tinge of guilt, but knew we made the right decision for the bike. The roads were rough and surely would have caused issues.

Getting blown around on the Skyline Trail.

We were dropped off at Broad Cove campground on the other side of the Park. We set up camp in the pouring rain, cooked dinner in the forward vestibule of our tent, and hunkered down for the night. The next day was sunny, so we dried out as we repacked. We were off again, knowing we had a big climb over Cape Smokey ahead of us. The views were picturesque, and the day was beautiful. We ate lunch at a small dock watching a couple of sailboats and fishing boats tied to the wharf.

Drying out after the rain.

Getting re-organized and re-packed.

At Broad Cove Campground.

Lunch on the wharf.

The view during lunch.

After lunch we tackled the climb. Once again we made it to the top riding all the way. We wondered, who are we, that are able to accomplish such feats? We managed fine, but the bike was starting to make a lot of creaking noise in the back. Checking the cassette, we found it was starting to come loose. Not much we could do on the side of the road, but we knew we needed to get to a bike shop. We raced down the other side of Cape Smokey, glad we didn't have to come up that side as it was a steep and windy decent, and gently pedaled to our next campground. We tried to check in at the office, but it was empty. We decided to find a spot and come back later to pay. Turns out there was a bike tour group already there, so we joined in with them for the night. There were a couple of other tandems in the group so we enjoyed chatting with them for the evening. The next morning we arranged for Don and Pam to pick us up after crossing the little ferry at Englishtown and off to a bike shop we went.

Checking out the bike and realizing there is nothing I can do to alleviate the cassette noise.

Sharing the campsite with other bicycle tourers.

Sunrise at the campground.

On the ferry to Englishtown.

Fortunately the cassette and free hub were not too far gone and the mechanic at Pictou County Cycle & Repair was able to get us back in working order, although likely on borrowed time, but we'll take it. We were dropped off at Caribou Provincial Park to setup camp once again in the rain. Tomorrow it is off to Prince Edward Island via the ferry. The change in itinerary on CBI now allows us a couple more days on PEI.

Another wet day.

Life in the tent when it rains.

Waking up to dryer weather.

Click HERE to see more photos on Flickr.
See the route map HERE and HERE.