Racing Against the Storm

New friends in Gagetown

Our evening in Gagetown was hands down the best evening of the ride. The locals we met at the Gagetown Grill were quite concerned about us getting caught in a big storm today. One couple even offered to host us at their home until the storm cleared. They were genuinely worried and wanted to ensure we wouldn’t get stuck, providing us with their contact information in case we ran into trouble. The weather apps, which have been quite accurate, forecasted heavy rain and thunderstorms for the afternoon.

Although we loved our time in Gagetown, we were starting to feel a bit pressured to finish the ride on schedule. We decided to race against the storm, aiming to leave by 6:00 AM, and that’s exactly what we did.

Weary and tired, we woke up at 5:00 AM, packed our panniers, quickly drank a cup of coffee, outfitted our bikes, and by 6:00 AM, it was light enough to ride. The experience was surreal; we had never ridden this early before. The roads were empty, and the sky was ominously filled with thick clouds and fog. Our pace felt slow since the first part of the ride was mostly a long, grinding climb. Knowing that the route included two ferry crossings and hills far more challenging than our mapping app indicated, we realized that the storm could win the race unless we maintained a consistent pace.

The floodplains along the river

We rode through the most remote areas we had encountered so far. It was an eerily beautiful journey, and after almost six hours on the bike, we safely arrived in Sussex, New Brunswick, just in time to beat the storm.

Today marked our seventh consecutive riding day, and our legs definitely needed a break. We are hoping for reasonable weather tomorrow so we can reach Moncton, where plan to take a day off.