I went to bed last night a little more relaxed than I had been earlier in the evening. Might have been the company; sitting around a kitchen table with Greg and Frank shooting the breeze was fun. Then again it might have been the tasty beer along with some 12 year old Aberfeldy scotch.
The stars were out in a nice clear sky when I headed to the camper for the night. And the sun was shining brightly to wake me up. Rita and Frank were up already and we all sat around the same table having coffee, raisin bread and other treats to start the day. A BIG thanks to Rita for the hospitality (and the hug she sent me off with!).
After Greg got on the road to start his day, Frank and I got down to the business of getting the new belt on. The middle pulley is a really odd set-up because neither of the parts it connects to can be moved in order to adjust the tension. So VW uses a split pulley with 3 shims that widen the gap for a new belt or make it narrow for one that’s stretched. It’s awkward to put it all back together. Then again it was tough to get it all apart… there’s no way I could have done it at the side of the 401 in the rain yesterday so it confirmed getting a tow to Frank’s was the right thing to do.
An hour later we were all done including fiddling with the house battery to see why it’s not charging properly. Then on the road for me!
My first stop was at a Napa auto parts store to see if I could find a replacement spare belt. No such luck, they didn’t have anything even close in stock. I know there’s a VW shop in Beaupré which is where I’m headed tomorrow so I’ll drop in there to see if they have or can get me one.
The day was delightfully uneventful. Lots of sunshine and pretty sights (the south shore drive has a mix of mountains, lakes and the St. Lawrence). Frank told me about a new toll highway Autoroute 30) that skirts Montreal completely, what a difference that made!
So here I am, camped in the middle of a bunch of huge RVs but with a lovely little spot above some rapids on a river. I expect the sound of that will lull me to sleep later. And then it’s off to MSA tomorrow… on schedule despite the detour.
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| My spot in the Etchemin campground, solar panel in action |
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| A view of the river that’s through the trees |
Meanwhile, in more important news…
Catharine Pendrel won the Commonwealth Games women’s MTB race and Emily Batty finished 2nd. I look forward to seeing them in action this weekend at Mont Sainte Anne!
This is a photo Cycling Canada published to FaceBook.
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| Photo Credit: Cycling Canada |
Great narrative, Peter, as always. Thanks! (J.D.)