Storyline: Atlantic Canada, Take 2
Sun, May 22
Oh right, day four on the road and all kind of things have already happened. The planned 3+ months trip was supposed to start May 22, however we couldn’t wait and left as soon as Doranya was ready to take us on route. As a first stop we decided to try the Heritage Trails Campground near Marmora. It’s been a rainy and cold spring following extremely cold and snowy winter and a hellish health journey for Alex.
Perhaps some of you remember that the last summer and fall were not exactly the best for us. Doranya was all loaded and ready in early June after all Covid lockdowns were lifted. But Alex’s health wasn’t. And after we finally managed to get out of this big noisy city, aiming to complete a fraction of the original itinerary and enjoying what’s left of the summer, we only had a few days before another health disaster lurked around the corner, or sooner the mountain of Gaspésie. If you are new to this blog, you can find the entire story at Storyline: “Thinking in Autumn Colours”
It was a difficult fall with Alex not being able to swallow even a sip of water, spending a month in hospital, coming home with a feeding tube (G-tube) inserted directly into his abdomen and gradually gaining some strength back to the point that he could get into Doranya for a short trip. Then a few spoons of chicken soup, and with the SLP’s encouragement, a few bites of starchy food, gradually increasing the real food intake and decreasing the G-tube use. By mid-December he was completely off the G-tube. This was a miracle that few thought would happen. Thanks to his hematologist and the prescribed medication! The drug is a daily targeted chemotherapy, which on the downside makes him immunocompromised. His G-tube was removed in January, just in time for the heavy snow. Then came Omicron. It was a long and cold winter. Avoiding any inside contact, it also was a lonely winter. We used every sunny opportunity in the cold spring to have some friends visit outside.
During the dark winter days, I had time to develop a few itineraries, anywhere from 3 to 6 months. At the end we decided against taking the Labrador Highway from Baie-Comeau to Blanc-Sablon and crossing to Newfoundland from there, because of its remoteness. Although it would have been an interesting drive. Since Alex developed some side effects from his chemotherapy, proximity to a town or city with medical centre became essential. That’s how our current itinerary was chosen.
I am also glad I had the time for all the details that usually are not necessary for a class B like Doranya. After 2 years of Covid lockdowns and restrictions, suddenly everyone is on the road. And since Covid is still around many people decided to take road trips within Canada and avoid flying. Then there are people like us.
Being immunocompromised sets the boundaries for many activities. We still don’t dine inside with anyone, for example. Since everybody is on the move, this year was named the year of revenge travelling. At certain point of time in March I realized all this. It was time to pick a departure date, align all the places I considered staying and start booking Newfoundland (NL), which was the bottleneck.
Usually we will do wild camping (boondocking) at least for a few days. But if the campgrounds are booked to the brim, with everybody on the move, the possibilities for boondocking may also be marginal. By the beginning of April, I was trying to secure sites for July and many were already booked. Managed a few provincial and national parks on the way to NL, but not much left in the Gros Morne National Park. Grabbed the last unserviced sites.
The story would continue like that. Some places didn’t have even unserviced sites left. Had to adjust dates. Eventually, the jigsaw puzzle fell into place. Just to give you an idea how far in advance all is booked: We decided to treat ourselves to a dinner theater evening in Shallow Bay. I booked it in April. A few days ago (mid-May), I received an e-mail with the menu and a request to select our dinner as soon as possible. I looked the dates – it was about two months in advance. Then there were 2 ferries to be booked. Ok those of you who know about my severe motion sickness will appreciate that the ferry wasn’t for me. I’d fly.
But Alex and Doranya have to take the ferry. Well, the return ferry from Argentia to North Sydney ferry didn’t have room for our van on the date we wanted at the end of July. This again required some changes, but we found a spot for a few days earlier.
All in all, by the end of cold and rainy April, I had most places in NL booked, ferries and flights (for me) too. New Brunswick and Nova Scotia, as well as QC are mainly not booked so we can still have some freedom and spontaneity. Time will tell if this is the right strategy.
Back to the Heritage Trails Campground. The grassed campsite I’d booked was drenched and somewhat overgrown. Having been so rainy recently, the new owners hadn’t had a chance to cut the grass. Ingrid (she had bought the campground a month and a half ago) gave us a gravel pull-through site next to a platform. That helped since it rained again the first night.
Drenched or not, by Friday evening the campground was full. Even the tent sites. With the weather forecast for rain on the 22nd in Smiths Falls, our plan to meet Alex’s sister and brother-in-law on a restaurant patio was in jeopardy.
And so, we cut short our stay at the campground and here we are visiting Alex’s sister and brother-in-law in a rural enclave near Ottawa. Glad we did. Just as we pulled the van into the driveway it began to rain. It wasn’t just strong rain; it was a horrendous thunderstorm. Apparently, this happened all over across Southern Ontario. The power here and for over 300,000 other households went off. It’s been over 24 hours now and the power is still off. Being in the wilderness they have a generator and a huge propane tank to keep it going. So, inside the house we have power. No other connections though. Even our cell phones don’t work. I guess Rogers towers are down too.
And just to spice it up, this morning Alex found a tick on his leg. The only place he has walked in grass was at the campground. So, it’s been there for a while. We couldn’t take it out, and off he went to emergency, where they removed it and gave him antibiotics. Hope this is the only hiccup, because we haven’t even really started our trip yet.
Good wishes 😊
Thank you Rupali!