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July 18th. - Ruddy computers!Sorry for the last blog.Something went wrong and a whole week of letters were jumbled up into what looked like one long spiel.Hours were spent in the van composing and paragraphing so that it would look neat.But when it transferred to the blog at the Hearst library, what a mess.Hopefully things will improve.Unfortunately, my poems were ruined.Last night the mozzies harangued us so badly that Pat and Jenny went to bed with their mosquito net hats on.Awaking this morning, it was agreed that whilst camping in this muskeg area, we would choose "in-town" sites, away from long grasses.Tonight finds Marigold parked at Walmart in Timmins, Ont.Walmart is a first for us - they supply a quiet corner and even electricity!
In the tiny village of Mattice this morning we went to visit some friends of Jenny's, but upon arriving, found a pile of charred wood.After much detective work, they were found living in Hearst, so we back-tracked for half an hour.It was all worth while as Jenny had not seen them for almost fifty years.The fire occurred in January and was caused by the heat from the just used snow-blower.
As the Quebec border approaches, the more common it is to hear the French language.I can "bear" it, but the other two haven't a clue.
P.S.When posting a message on the blog's message board, don't forget to do the stupid sum at the end, otherwise you will lose all you have written.
July 19th. - From Timmins to Kirkland Lake and many stops in between.Jenny lived in this area during the late 50's, in particular the very small gold mining community of Holtyre.Both her children were born locally.Holtyre hasn't changed much - population steady at 200 approximately, as the mines are gradually making a comeback.The house she lived in is still there and owned by the grandson of the former landlord.He prefers his children to be living here in the bush with wild animals than to be in the large towns with all their problems.He has just bought the house next door for a whopping $350 due to a tax sale.Apparently, the mozzy problem has been caused by a very wet spring and summer - today was the best in a long time, we were told.
The border crossing into Quebec was at Virginiatown.So out came the French/English dictionary right away.Made it to Val-d'Or, where Walmart is hosting us for a second time.
July 20th. - Last night a couple of high spirited youths stopped close to us and started to chase a rabbit that had emerged from the grassy field next to us.Pat stepped out side and called "It's only a rabbit" to which they replied "No speak englaise".Jenny got closer and one said "I love the rabbit" and they left.To cut a long story short, the rabbit was saved, hoorah!
Guess where we are staying tonight - yes, Walmart again - Sainte-Agathe des-Monts, in the Laurentians.This is becoming a bad habit however, coincidentally these spots are always next to the gardening and auto repair sections! I'm sure Quebec drivers are the worst in N.America.It must be their artistic nature - the road is their canvas.They are also a funny bunch altogether.At a rest stop a woman went to the men's toilet and a man went to the women's!Jenny was confused - " Where do I go" she said.
Driving south on highway 117 through Reserve faunique La Verendrye ( park ) was beautiful.There are many lakes, one of which we stopped at for lunch and a swim.The whole Laurentian area is very scenic.It is obvious that this is the playground of the well off from Montreal as ski runs and lakeside homes abound.
July 21st. - What a to-do last night!At around midnight the Walmart staff started a major reshuffle of the garden section using forklifts etc.There was no way to get some sleep, so Pat got up and dressed to move the van away while Jenny had a "discussion" with them about whether this was a camping spot or not!They said "no", the plug-ins were for the store.At last the light bulb came on in my companions heads - they had been setting up camp in the wrong area.They were always wondering why the other campers did not take advantage of the free electricity and stayed out in the main car park.Continuing east found us on the north shore of the St. Lawrence river traveling through farmland and lots of veggy growing.It was fun crossing to the south side at Trois-Rivieres as it was a huge bridge and we could see the ships below.The first ice-cream since leaving home was had at Gentilly - a quaint village, as were several others passed through today.However, a fellow camper told us it has a nuclear reactor!He was a local man and a wealth of information.He said Quebec realized that they were losing so much business and tourism due to separation fears that they are now trying to improve their image.Tonight sees us staying at a small campsite in Leclercville on the bank of the St. Lawrence.
July 22nd. - Jenny has picked up a brick she found in a field that has "special" initials on it.Pat is grumbling as she plans to take it home - 12,000 km!!A girl we got talking to said she had been to the Paul MaCartney ( ? spelling ) concert in Quebec City, which is celebrating its 400th. anniversary.She said it was free and there were 270,000 people there.We are beginning to enjoy Quebec more and more.It is fun trying to converse, but luckily the people are friendly and understanding.Even though it was a miserable day due to a storm building off Nova Scotia, locally grown strawberries, cream, butter, cheese and hot freshly bakedbread made it all worth while as we headed up the Gulf of St. Lawrence.Being flat, this road is very popular with cyclists and walkers.Another feature of this province is that every village, even small, has a large Catholic church.
We have come inland to New Brunswick now, but as there is thick bush and the bugs are bad, tonight again finds us at Walmart in Edmonston.While parked here, one man came over to chat because he saw us sitting outside the van having wine and cheese, and thought that was a great way to relax.Another man showed up right after, as he was interested in Marigold.He ended up giving us valuable information and a map about Newfoundland - he traveled for a living.Another time-zone change means we are now four hours ahead of Vancouver.
July 23rd. - Weather good again, and heading south, following the St. John River.At Grand Falls there was a pretty impressive waterfall, but we were saddened to hear a man had jumped over them last night and was presumed drowned.Divers were being called in to search.Checking emails in Perth Andover, I am annoyed to hear that while I'm on holiday, a real black bear has come into my garden yet again.This happened once before when I was in Alaska.At Hartland, there was the world's longest covered bridge and pictures were taken.Tonight finds the motley crew camped just outside Fredericton in a cozy spot next to the river.
Au RevoirMr.Ted.
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