Airstream Time

In the morning we set out for a hike to Lac Vierge on the north side of Lac Normand. We walked through the campground and down by a great playground ship that is built like an old sailing ship, then down to the beach. At the end of the beach, the trail begins and is nicely marked with a map. Following our pacesetter, Martha, I took pictures then scrambled to catch up. She isn’t particularly fast, but she never stops. Like the Energizer bunny, she just keeps going. She is pretty good at finding her way and knowing where she is, but I always bring a trail GPS. It comes in handy whenever there is a question of where you are, how far you are from somewhere or if you are headed in the right direction. I am still learning how to use the device (a Garmin GPSmap 62stc). 

This is another beautiful trail, and the park does a great job of marking the trails and yet you feel you are in the wilds. There is no better way to become familiar with this park than to walk it. This forrest is just stunning! Following the Energizer Bunny, I took pictures then tried to catch up. There is a beautiful view of the lake at the top. Along the descent, there is a series of three ladders and the middle one is broken. This is a new one for me, as I have never climbed down a ladder on a hike. Martha thought it was very cool. Then where do I put this dangling camera around my neck? I didn’t want to step on that broken part, but on further inspection realized it was wedged against the rock wall. This is another fantastic hike! We didn’t take the whole loop, but when we got back to the beach, three hours had past and we were spent. We ate our lunch there, and I would have taken a swim if I had a bathing suit. Martha waded a bit. Back at camp, Martha discovered blueberry bushes right in the campsite and was picking a bunch when I returned from the shower. 

Thursday, August 11, 2016

60 ℉ at 5am and mid 80’s middle of the day

We broke camp, did the necessaries, filled the water tank and set out for Parc Du National Mauricie about 10:00. Mont-Tremblant is a wonderful park. Six days is not enough time to really get to know the park. We did all the usual things, hiked the most popular hikes, biked, and swam in the lakes. A beach to us is Nags Head on the ocean with large sandy beaches and salty waves. In Canada a beach is a smaller sandy beach on a lake with water so pure you could drink it. On a hot day, it is so refreshing to take a swim. Just like our ocean beaches, the water can be cool or cold at first, but once you get in and swim around a bit, it is wonderful. There are no sharks or crabs or sea urchins, but brook trout and smallmouth bass. It takes a while to change your mindset, but once you do, it is quite wonderful. Mont-Tremblant has so many beaches, you can have one to yourself, just kayak over to it, of float along the Diable River and take your lunch. My very favorite part is hearing the loons cry at night. We got one taste of the real park when we went up to Lac du Bois Franc and had a medium-sized lake to ourselves for just an hour with two loons swimming at the other end. You could smell the forrest and the clean air and feel like you are in the wilderness. How incredibly beautiful. I would love to come back.

Driving the back roads, mostly 348 and 350 and then 157 north to Mauricie. I felt like I was driving the highway to Stewart in British Columbia as we drove along the incredibly beautiful St. Mauricie River. It is a very large river with blue waters. I kept watching for salmon running. There were lots of boats, sailboats and lots of fishermen. Campgrounds along the river were chock full, so there must be salmon! Finally arriving at a teeny park office that was so small, we thought it was just two bathrooms, which we needed badly. I turned around and headed back to the car when Martha called me back. A very nice lady helped us. The only hookup available in the entire park is water, and Martha wanted it. I assured her water is not our issue as we have no power source to recharge the batteries. She signed up for three nights, but I knew we would never make it. I got a park fishing license and bought a book on fishing regulations. So much to get in the park, so much to camp, so much to fish, and then $12,50 to cross the bridge over the St. Mauricie River. If you wan to fish Lac Norman, you put your name in the hat at the campground where they have a drawing at 9pm each evening. You must then pay $20 to fish that day! Then you have to drive 41K up a dirt and gravel road. Sheez! Crossing the bridge and heading up the very dry and dusty road, a huge truck, loaded with logs comes barreling down the road. This brings bad memories of our former fishing trip. These guys must get paid for speed as they just fly down these roads making a huge cloud of dust. We will need a new air filter for the truck. The nice lady told us to stay on Rt. 1 the entire 41K to the campground. There are many turns along the way. Periodically you get a view of another big lake surrounded by forrest, and now and then a moose bog. This washboard road with rocks in it and bumps and dips will shake everything loose. This was a first for me as I have never taken the Airstream this distance on this kind of road. Surely all the rivets would pop out, or the kayak would loosen as we bounced along. Fortunately we only passed two logging trucks, but we passed several of what looked like food trucks. Then there was the occasional Toyota car or a Kia driving right down the middle. What kind of people would be camping in this spot? Who would drive this road? Why?

We finally made the campground about 4:00 and set up in a beautiful site. This campground with a small office has 70 campsites. Maybe it is 60% filled, but it is Friday and a weekend. Our kitchen sink cabinet door hinge came apart, but otherwise no apparent damage. I found a screw on the floor. Mostly people are in tents, and they are families, having driven their family car. Children are everywhere. There are also campers and pop-up campers, and people who towed a boat up here. Martha’s other requirements were flush toilets and showers, and they are here, the shower house being powered by a big solar panel. We walked down to the beach, which is the biggest we have seen. There were two young boys carrying their paddles, chairs and towels back to camp. There was a parking lot at the beach, a volleyball court, picnic tables and a dock where maybe 15 boats were tied up. Martha tiptoed into the water, reporting that it was much like the lake at Mount-Tremblant. This lake is huge though. I thought I was on Lake Superior! Of course there are ones much bigger, but this is a very big lake to us. Canadians think nothing of driving these roads, and everyone seemed quite happy to be here. It’s a pretty strenuous drive to get to Nags Head too. 

We took advantage of the showers and settled in for cocktails and dinner. It is supposed to rain for the next two or three days, so we prepared for it. You always have to prepare for it as it can be blue skies one minute and a passing storm the next. The gentle rain came in the night and was still raining in the morning. I got up in the night and turned the battery off, hoping the refrigerator would stay cold. Through the night I kept thinking about power. Where are the energy leaks? Martha did well to get a site with water as we would not have to use the water pump. Hopefully we wouldn’t need the furnace. Was there water in the batteries? Did it all bounce out on the drive up? Would our Canada National Parks pass have gotten us in? 

Wednesday, August 10, 2016

Wednesday, 60℉, 87 at 3:00 and that’s very hot here

We took the 2-hour hike L’Envol right up the mountain, which I think is rated moderate or easy, but it’s a pretty good climb. Chip Grobmyer would do it in a breeze, but I needed a sweat towel. The reward at the top is a spectacular view of the park and the way lakes run like rivers. A couple of cute families were in front of us and took pictures of the children on a bench designed for that purpose. I could see they do this often and were quite familiar with the hike. They will surely have a series of pictures of the kids on this bench through the years. Coming back down on a steep, gravel path is maybe as difficult as going up as there is the chance of sliding to a fall. 

A swim in Lac Jolie was soooo refreshing. We enjoyed a leisurely afternoon in camp.

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Some of you know the story from our last trip about crossing the border, so I was nervous. How many pocket knives do I have? You can only carry two bottles of wine. I had been using a tarp to cover the bikes in the truck and to also cover the cook box, but I figured this is an invitation to get searched, so I removed the tarp. Thankfully it wasn’t raining. We had a four and a half hour drive to Mont Tremblant, but then you have to add time for driving with a trailer, or getting lost, or being old and having to stop more than once. Then I allowed for one to two hours at the border, so we were off about 8:15. 

There was a short line at the border. I was worried about looking nervous, so I turned the air conditioner up a bit. Were my pupils dilated? Then it was our turn. “Bonjour” she said. “Where are you going? How long are you staying? Can you roll the back windows down? So I see you are camping, fishing, kayaking and biking. What else are you doing” All said with a pleasant smile. When I told here we were staying four months, she said, “Ah, four months in Canada. Good! Do you have fresh fruits or vegetables? How much wine?” When I told her two bottles, she asked why only two with a smile. Now I am smiling. She said you can bring two bottles per person, or it could be four bottles of vodka. A bit more friendly conversation and she wished us a great time and let us go. What a pleasant and nice lady! At 8:45 we were in Canada and on the road to Montreal. 

As we approached Montreal, traffic got busier. Then I felt like I was in DC with people driving crazy, zipping in and out of lanes, cutting in front with feet to spare. I thought when we picked up 15N it would be better, but it got worse and people were driving more madly. When we stopped to get some lunch and gas up, there were lines at the pump and the parking area was overflowing. I suspected a holiday and it’s Friday. It was still nuts as we got into the mountains and the parking lot was filled at the campground office. By the time we checked in, I asked what holiday is this? She said it is construction holiday, the busiest of the year, when all construction workers get time off. 

We found our campsite and I set up while Martha fixed some sandwiches. We were both tired and hungry, but it is a very nice campsite with electric and water. Our fresh water still tasted a bit funny from sanitizing it, so we decided to drain it. Martha said there was a path right across from us leading to the beach, so we walked down to the beach. Looking across Lac Chat you could see what I assume is Mont Tremblant. There is a stream flowing out of the lake where it looks like a perfect fishing spot. Across the lake I could see canoes in an obvious rental location. I would later learn it is $47/day to rent one and similar for a kayak. I should have bought the bike rack and put the canoe on top! Could have run a little business!

We came back to camp and I had a glass of wine and Martha promptly fell asleep in the camp chair. Still sweating from setting up camp and the short hike, I decided to go for a swim. there were probably 25 people on the beach and all of them happy. The water was cold at first, but once all the way in, it was great! I swam out a bit enjoying the beautiful scenery all around and felt refreshed. Back at camp we enjoyed watching four young men setting up a large tarp and tent, then chopping firewood. They had gear, but not exactly top of the line stuff, and a couple of them looked like they were totally new to camping. Then a middle-aged couple came in next to the boys. We couldn’t believe the amount of gear they had in the back of a tiny car, but they certainly knew what they were doing and set up a good looking camp with a tent and big tarp. Then it started to rain. Soon it was raining very hard, so we came inside and even had to close the door as it was coming down sideways. We had to close most of the windows. It is then you realize the importance of two more awnings. One, they keep the sun out and two, they keep the rain out. We felt for the boys, sitting under their tarp at the picnic table, now starting to put on more clothes. We felt very cozy in our Airstream. Then the power went out. At first I assumed it was our site, and our plug was bad, so I checked all that out, turning the breakers on and off. The fellow who sold us the trailer had a voltmeter plugged in by the door. I thought that was a great idea, so I bought one. Now as I tried different thing to restore power, Martha kept watching the voltmeter, but there was nothing. I walked to the campsite behind me and knocked on the door, scaring the poor lady to death, I asked if they had power. All their lights were on, and the nice young man at first said, “yes”, but then said, “let me check”. Then he said no, he was running on batteries and thanked me for alerting him. As I walked back, a young lady from another site asked me if we had water. She couldn’t get water pressure. Now I could tell her it was a bigger power outage from the storm. 

Now I checked our batteries and we were at 12.5, which is about half power, so I plugged the trailer into the truck and started the engine for a while. No solar, no generator!