Ile d'Orleans

Saint Francois, Ile d’Orleans

In my camping guidebook the only 5 star campground in Quebec is on the Ile d'Orleans and decided I would find out what that looked like. It was a fine drive down from Shawinigan until the outskirts of Quebec City.  The construction was endless, especially getting onto the bridge to get to Ill d’Orleans.  When I booked the campsite I didn’t understand the scale of the island. The campground is at the far end, almost another hour of driving at 50k or less the whole way. The traffic to get on the bridge going back to the city was lined up at least 5k.  They tell me it is apple time and everyone comes out on the weekends to pick apples.  There are roadside stands selling apples and fresh produce all along the way.  Tonight I had apple pie, fresh strawberries, home made raison bread and cheese for supper.  

I’m not enamored with the 5 star campground.  It is manicured, small sites and crowded.  The washrooms even have lace curtains on the door and windows. The saving grace is the river, the little village and the melodic sounds of people speaking French all around me.  

                       Once your in them these campsites feel better than they look

                                     I must say the washrooms are beautiful

Day two

Thankfully most of the park cleared out this morning and I moved down to a site by the river.  It is very nice when it is mostly empty. The river must be 3-4k wide and the tide is out a long way from earlier today.  The barges and cargo ships go past soundlessly. Tonight a cruise ship slipped by.  It’s hard to believe this can all freeze over.

It has been a productive day.  I figured out how to use my hotspot and finally loaded my maps and writings for the past week as well as more pictures.  I was going to go exploring but it is so quiet and pretty here I chose to stay put and walk the countryside around the campground.  

Tonight as I start to write up the day I realize that what I really needed was some time for reflection. I am nearing the end the section of the drive across Canada on my own.  Tomorrow my friend Hope will arrive to do the Tadussac, the Gaspe before stopping at her place in New Brunswick.  I will appreciate having someone to help with navigating, finding CBC, podcasts and music. I have enjoyed being able to research out what to see and where to stay but it takes time.  This is Hope’s part of the world and she will have lots of good ideas.

I have learned a lot travelling on my own. The places I’ve seen and things I've done have been important but as much or more so are the friends I’ve spent time with and the people I’ve met along the way.  I’ve also learned that between texting and talking with the important people in my life it is easy to feel close even at a distance.  Mind you it has only been three plus weeks, we will see if I say the same in 3 months.

I think I have been very lucky, even with my little disasters.  They have tested my problem solving skills and forced me to systematically think through things like how electrical systems work.  I’ve learned to appreciate the value of OCD. Forgetting one little thing can have big consequences.  Checks and double checks do matter.   

I’ve learned that when I am travelling life is lived in compressed time. Opportunities and challenges happen all day every day.  There isn’t much downtime for recovery and familiar routines.  The familiarity comes from the road so it is important to have ‘be good to me days (or half days)’.

I’ve learned or had it reinforced that I enjoy time on my own.  I like eating when and what I want. I like not being on any schedule. I like being able to change my mind about where I’m going and what I’m doing. I like being available to others for special little shared moments, with or without being able to speak the same language. I like having time in the evenings to write this, work on the day’s photographs and read.  I like this life. 

I've also learned I do better in the wilds when I'm with others. Between bears and boogie men or more realistically falls or sprained ankles when I'm by myself I feel safer on beaches than in the forest and either way a 3 hour walk is about my limit. I'm more confident on my bicycle, less fearful of dodgy places and happier with an empty road ahead of me. Since I'm expecting more wild, fewer beaches on this next stage and it will be good to have someone to hike them with.