HUGH C2C: July 28 - Day 54 - Pouring into Quebec City

This would be the second day in a row where all we had to do was follow Highway 138 along the north shore of the St.Lawrence, leading us today to Quebec City, then heading south across the river to our camp at Saint Romuald, for a total of 110km. All went well, with continued great views , and great riding on these roads. I still can't say enough about the accommodations made for cyclists on the secondary roads in Quebec.

Fairly soon we were on the outskirts of Quebec, and noticed a separate trail leading off 138, with a map showing it continuing well past the city for miles.

We decided to give it a try, knowing 138 would be only a short distance north so we wouldn't/couldn't get lost. It was an interesting run along a rural road, but still nicely paved, bordering the river, and dotted with pockets of really nice cottages and vacation homes.

It was then that the day got interesting. Sid was unable to change gears, with his chain rating in the highest (hardest) ring on the cassette, so we stopped to take a look, thinking it might be something like what happened way back in BC when some wire picked up from the road screwed up the works. Not this time. Our best guess was that his shifter cable was snapped or snagged somehow, and after a call to Chris at Kamikaze, Sid adjusted the cassette so it was at least in a sprocket that was 2-3 gears easier. It was still a bitch pedalling up hill in that tough gear, and to make matters worse, the rain that had been toying with us all day, was now falling steadily and getting heavier by the minute. We had made our way into town, and by chance, Sid stopped a lady in the parking lot of a Metro, and in the midst of getting directions to the bridge, he mentioned he would need a bike shop. She said there was one just a few hundred yards down the street, lucky lucky lucky, and we were off. Great bike shop. Sid rolled into service, and the mechanic dropped what he was doing immediately, and started to work on his ride. Turns out it was a cable, which was replaced, and we were ready to go.

While the repairs were being made, I struck up a conversation with a nice guy, and fellow cyclist named Claude. He warned me strongly that trying to ride across either bridge to the south side, especially in this weather, would be a big mistake and quite dangerous. A ride across was offered, so we gladly accepted. It was clear on the ride across that Claude knew what he was talking about.......would have been scary.

Our camp was just a short distance down Highway 132 which follows the southern shore of the St.Lawrence, much the same as 138 does on the north side. The rain did not let up, and in fact was getting even stronger, but nonetheless, we dried off, had a snack and made preparations for our trip into town.

Quebec City is beautiful, but in a torrential rain on those narrow streets, you were just trying to not get sprayed by the passing cars. Jon, Sid, and I decided that one restaurant in this tow was probably as good as the next, so we ducked into one that looked quite full, thinking that all those people could not be having a bad meal. We were ushered back into a side room that was crammed with 6 tables, in fact the entire restaurant seemed crammed, and I immediately noticed that this room appeared to be a shrine to Gilles Villeneuve. We never did find out, but the owner is a race car enthusiast, and had picture of cars the restaurant had sponsored all over the place. Tons and tons of memorabilia and pictures everywhere.......I mean everywhere. I will post some pictures below for the F1 fans.......JC, RV, TC......but here is a sample........