cycleyogini

We spent five nights at Annapolis Royale hoping to avoid cycling in the rain. Zander barely walks in the rain let alone cycle all day! We sat out horrendous rain storms, a thunderstorm, and long, slow drizzles! Finally, I could take the inactivity no more–and we cycled regardless. Turns out that day was overcast and cool, but rain began shortly after we got a room in Bridgetown.

Annapolis Royale is this small village at the mouth of the Annapolis River, and I stayed at the Dunromin Campground.Our first day in the area was filled with sun and warmth. I decided to stay one more day to do laundry and shop for food–and then the rains descended and Zander seemed “down”. He suddenly became very subdued, not interested in leaving the tent, ignored people, and uninterested in walks. Checked with the local vet, but all the vital signs–temperature, eating, drinking, and pooping were normal. So, staying a day or two to seemed like a wise choice. I was able to do lots of reading, writing in the journal, and meditating. Zander slept or snuggled close. Each day we went into town (about 2 kilometres away) for food, to check out another part of the town, or just see what was going on. It’s early in the season, so the town is almost empty during the week.

A couple of times we ate lunch in town. One of the things I have appreciated in many of these small tourist destinations are the number of restaurants that have gluten-free options and Zander can sit with me on the patios or decks. The German Bakery and Restaurant made the best macaroons I have ever had–they were a daily treat!

Annapolis Royale encompasses land that was highly fought over by the French and English and the history of mistreatment and expulsion of the Acadians. Fort St. Anne is the major historical park, which Zander enjoyed walking and rolling in the grass. It now has a number of beautiful old, Victorian bed and breakfast places, some interesting restaurants, and typical arts and antique tourist stores.

Annapolis Royale lies close to the Bay of Fundy and is highly affected by the tides. When they built one of the first wharfs, it was a long ramp out to the middle of the river to accommodate the various levels of the 29 foot tidal changes. The Bay of Fundy is shaped like a deep funnel with wave patterns that are highly resonant with both sun and moon tidal effects. So, within 24 hours, the tides rise and fall about a foot an hour. Near the village, a tidal power generating station takes advantage of this.

We also discovered the French Basin Wetlands–about 15 hectares of pond, bog, and wetlands that help purify the local water. It has a 1.2 kilometre trail which we explored, chased chipmunks, and watched the various waterfowl including Blue Herons and mallards. We saw cormorants (either the Great or Double-Crested) near the tidal power station–they were huge.

Zander seemed to perk up and Highway 201 through Annapolis Valley is known for little traffic==so Sunday we left. It had rained the night before, but was overcast but no rain during the morning. We headed up the valley toward Wolfville looking for a motel with a warm bed, hot shower, and dry surroundings. The first section had some pretty steep rolling hills. I am not sure whether it is the myasthenia or what, but my legs seemed strong with my lungs struggling. We walked a number of the steep hills, which Zander loves because he gets to sniff so many new smells. However, some of the downhills were great and we reached 41 kilometres per hour on one! We had lunch at a small, old barn where they gather apples during the harvest. Passed a small store with apple jam–self-serve, leave the money in the till! The road passes mostly small, moderate homes. A number of people stopped me to ask about Zander’s seat, talk out of curiosity, or just waved. Eventually, I had panoramas of the Annapolis River, fields of crops, huge family gardens, vineyards, and apple orchards.

Bridgetown came in two hours–so I am averaging about 12 kilometres an hour, which is about the same average of my B.C. trip. And that includes breaks and walking time for Zander. It is part of the average on regular roads–the downhills provide a higher speed that increases the average over time. We got here before the rains started again. We were able to buy some food at the grocery store–all the restaurants were closed–and settle in for the night. Zander slept snuggled close to me; I think constantly being stimulated by new smells exhausts him. Supposedly, the weather will clear tomorrow–even if it is just overcast.

I felt good and energized when we reached Bridgetown and thought I could go on for a couple of more hours. Clearly, Zander’s seat makes these types of hills much more difficult–if not impossible even at the lower gears. And he gets very antsy after a couple of hours–so it is not clear to me how we negotiate longer distances. He seems to enjoy many of the aspects of camping, is comfortable being left in the tent alone, and explores when he is put down to walk alongside the bike. But some down days seem necessary for him. The next couple of days will be short, but we will move from place to place each day.

These “little towns” or villages along the Annapolis Valley include one grocery, one Home Hardware, post office, community centre and/ore recreation facility, a handful of restaurants, and some tourist shops surrounded by homes. Bridgetown has its own varieties of older, Victorian-like homes with more moderate or one-story apartment complexes. It does have a golf course which created a fair amount of business before I arrived Sunday afternoon. But by late-afternoon Sunday, all food places but Tim Horton’s were closed.

We will push on toward Middleton and Greenwood on Monday looking for a pet store and some kibble for Zander. Hopefully, the sun will actually appear, although I see thunderstorms are predicted for Wednesday.