The view above is from our room at La Normandie Hotel in Perce, Quebec. It is likely the most famous "Rock" picture in all of Canada (like Ayre's Rock in Australia, the Rock of Gibralter and Alcatraz "the Rock", Rooster Rock in Oregon). And we ended up here contrary to our best intention otherwise.
You see, the roads were horrible, like a roller coaster with steep inclines and declines, sharp turns and sudden stops and starts. However, imagine no rails, only railway ties. The shocks got a real work out and we hit so many pot holes and frost heaves that we were jarred and jolted so much we felt like we were riding off road. There was so much road work being done (but not where it was really needed) that we were stopped by flagmen (not women) every 20 km or so. At times there were long stretches of gravel or, worse, freshly watered clay (mud). Neither of our bikes do well in that stuff. So, after 10 hours we stopped in Gaspe, Quebec, at the most easterly tip of the Peninsula for which it is named. No rooms in town at all. We had never called ahead on this trip and thought it must have been the road workers who had made our ride less enjoyable who were occupying all the rooms.
Next hotel: Perce. 1 Hour away. It started to rain. We took off only to hit the longest gravel/mud section of road work yet.
But the rain soon stopped, the roads improved (slightly) and the shoreline and scenery were dramatic. Still the small Francophone (we struggle but get by with my high school French) towns sprinkled all along the coast (don't know what sustains them - maybe road work!). Soon we were at the hotel (booked from Gaspe) and opened the curtains to find our sliding patio door (the open one) frames a perfect vista of Perce Rock. Breath-taking.
So, after all the demands of one of our longest days (11 hours), although we only traveled 720 kms (450 miles), we ended up with a beautiful spot we could not have planned. We enjoyed a later supper watching the sunlight illuminate the Rock and took a deep breath. All things do work together for good (and it shortens tomorrow considerably)
