Day 77. Monday, 15th July, From Gaspe to about 20 ks from Campbellton and the border with New Brunswick

I made the most of the comforts of our motel room this morning  A bathmat to step out of the shower on to, instead of a muddy floor. A coffee machine. These sort of things don’t bother Dennis, but from a lady’s point of view, such little details are important!

The previous evening we had taken advantage of the Motel’s laundry. Very welcome as my wardrobe was practically all in the dirty washing bag! A small contretemps developed while doing the washing. An argument with an Israeli couple. They had put their washing on and gone off and left it. I had taken it out of the machine so I could use it. They did not like it and made a great fuss. 

Weather wise it was a much better day than yesterday. Overcast with occasional bursts of sunshine.and a couple of heavy, but brief showers, in the afternoon. Yesterday, when we climbed some steep inclines into the cloud you could barely see over the bonnet.

Today the coastal scenery was beautiful. On the land side pockets of bright purple and pink lupins. We have seen these in many parts of the country. Apparently like the ones there are in Otago, Dennis tells me. I have never been there at the time of year they are in bloom, so have never seen them. On the ocean side, sweeping bays with deep red cliffs. Fishing villages with piles of lobster and other pots. We stopped at one point to climb a steep path and take some shots of steep red cliffs. 

I had read somewhere that it is not unusual to see whale activity off the coast. Despite long periods of staring at the ocean, I saw no sign of any whales blowing.

This southern side of the peninsula seems more affluent than the north. The houses are smarter and there is more commerce. More tourists too. Especially when we reached Perce. The prettiest village we had seen in the last couple of days. Smart hotels, restaurants and souvenir shops.

Out in the ocean the reason for the abundance of tourists. A cruise ship at anchor. Why this little village? Because of the famous Rocher Perce. It is apparently one of Canada’s best known land-marks. It is an 88m-high, 475m-long chunk of multi-coloured limestone, accessible only by boat.

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Each year some 150,000 tonnes of rock debris detach from the big rock. There used to be 2 holes in it. Now there is just the one, as the other collapsed in 1845. In 2003 100,000kg of debris fell at one time.

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Nearby is Ile Bonaventure. This is home to a colony of 100,000 gannets. We have seen them in swarms diving into the ocean catching fish. The restaurants in Perce are advertising  lobsters and other fishy delicacies. We will be indulging one evening soon. Can’t come to this part of the world and not sample the lobster!

We have passed a number of art galleries. It would be nice to stop and have a look. We have no spare space to carry any souvenirs or purchases, so I don’t want to be tempted by looking.

Tonight we are not too far from the border of Quebec with New Brunswick. We have stopped reasonably early on a pebble beach. It is quite narrow and strewn with drift wood. When we first arrived at was quite windy and we wondered if the tent would stay up as the pegs weren’t holding very well in the pebbles. Now there is not a drop of wind and it looks as if someone has pulled out the plug. The tide has gone out and the water has receded around 500m. A full moon has risen and although it is not a pretty beach it looks very serene in the moonlight.

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