Yet another Translab report... Owen and Mark do Labrador

[4badboyz]

we left Goose around 8 this morning and made Port Hope Simpson in 5 hrs. Not bad for 406kms including lunch and photo stops.A hard tailwind helped conserve fuel so we only had to top up with a couple of litres each. Had a quick lunch in PHS, gassed up and hit the road for the186kms to Blanc Sablon where we hope to get the ferry to Newf in the am. This part of the road would turn out to be the most challenging leg of the route yet. One section of about 25 kms is in poor shape with deep potholes, and most of the remainder is deep gravel. Never ending slow wobbles were the order of the day. Stand up and stay on the gas and let the bike do it's thing. The closer we got to the south shore, the stronger the wind got and the harder it was to keep the bike going in a straight line. A couple of times the bikes were blown from one side of the road to the other. It was a VERY tiring day and we are completly exhausted. We made Blanc Sablon just before dark. Turns out the winds were so bad today that the ferry didn't run because it couldnt dock in the wind. Tomorow the ferry should be busy. hope we can get on board.

about as far away from anywhere as you can get by road


and the closest Timmys is...




Port Hope Simpson fine dining...






you know you're up north when the biggest tree is...




view to the coast


Red Bay and the end of the gravel



windy day in Blanc Sablon







tomorrow, we're off to Newfoundland.

[4badboyz]

day 7

once again, the weather dictates the pace of our progress. The wind is so strong, the ferry boat can't get in to dock. They tried to tie up, but the wind takes the boat away from the dock and they can't get a line to shore We're sitting in the ferry office waiting for the wind to die down so they can try again. If not, we're here for the night.

[4badboyz]

so the ferry anchored a mile offshore and waited until 3:00pm to try docking again. by 4:30, we were loaded up and headed for the rock. In anticipation of a rough crossing, Owen and I took a couple of gravol. Smartest move so far people were hurling everywhere. Dishes were crashing in the kitchen and we had to chase our lunch all over the table, what a hoot

strapped down in the hold


rough crossing.


so by 6pm we were on the rock!
time spent in riding gear 11 hours, distance ridden.... 10kms

[C-Stain]

Originally Posted by 4badboyz

so the ferry anchored a mile offshore and waited until 3:00pm to try docking again. by 4:30, we were loaded up and headed for the rock. In anticipation of a rough crossing, Owen and I took a couple of gravol. Smartest move so far people were hurling everywhere. Dishes were crashing in the kitchen and we had to chase our lunch all over the table, what a hoot

so by 6pm we were on the rock!
time spent in riding gear 11 hours, distance ridden.... 10kms

This is one of the funniest posts ever.

Glad you guys made it to the rock. Where to next????

[nick949eldo]

Originally Posted by 4badboyz

Happy Valley is a complete shithole. We weren't in town for 30 seconds before the first native asked us to buy him a coffree followed by money for lunch. In the morning the same guy btracked us down to the hotel and was waiting outside for a handout.
Seemed like every girl nover the age of 12 was pushing a stroller.
Can't get outa here fast enough.

Too bad you bothered with this snap-judgement. It tarnished an otherwise enjoyable trip report.

Happy Valley is no more a shithole than a million other places on the planet. You had an unfortunately experience with one individual. Its irrational and a bit sad to let one person cloud your judgement of a place. My experience of Happy Valley was quite the opposite - everyone I met was friendly and helpful.

Perhaps you need to experience a few more northern Canada settlements before voicing this kind of opinion. Happy Valley stacks up pretty well.

Nick

[4badboyz]

we're all entitled to our opinions Nick, thanks for sharing yours.

[4badboyz]

I'm sitting here on the boat to Cape Breton right now, so I'll post up some pics while we wait. This trip is nice and smooth
It was getting late when we got off the boat so we head south down the left coast looking for a hotel. The locals warned us not ride at night if possible. Newf has the highest moose density in the world and records hundreds of vehicle/moose collisions every year. That's all the excuse I need.
The next morning we head south to Grosse Morne park. The road hugs the shoreline and the rocky seaside vistas are beautiful.


the salt sea breeze took me back to my childhood.



Grosse Morne earned its UNESCO world heritage site status. It's truly a beautiful place to see.
Grosse Morne mountain.






the park biologists are saying that the flora and fauna are being permanently damaged by the moose overpopulation. For the first time ever, there will be a moose hunt or cull, inside the park this year. 3500 licenses have been issued. Opening day might be a good day to stay out of the woods.

Norris point lighthouse. This is the last year that parks Canada will light this and 1,000 other lighthouses across the country due to budget cuts.










local wildlife

[4badboyz]

we camped in the park that night and got up and back on the road in time to stay ahead of the rain.

Port aux Basques, where we catch the ferry over to Cape Breton.

[Deadly99]

[4badboyz]

so were waiting in line for the ferry and guess who shows up? Baldy and his son from Michigan...


they left a couple of days ahead of us but had run into mechanical issues with the bikes. We stayed at the same motel that night, and shared a couple of drinks and some stories. The next day they were off to find a voltage regulator for the bike while Owen and I head for the Cabot Trail. We managed to complete the run just before the skies opened up once again

Cabot Trail








when the rain started we decided to cut our losses and jumped on the trans can slab and raced the 300kms to Moncton for the night. Tomorrow I need to find a new tire for the KTM, 4,000kms and she's done.

[BostonGS]

Originally Posted by 4badboyz

you will be fine next week. The roads are being repaired 24-7.
On the translab, just watch out for the grader berms, if you hit one on an angle, it will take the front wheel out from underneath you

For example:

[BostonGS]

Herman, the mechanic that owns the "other" gas station in Port Hope Simpson came and picked me up and took me to town (40km). It was 6 p.m. when we arrived so I went to my room to work on that bottle of wild Turkey. We met up the next day at 9 a.m. and got to work. I was on the road by noon.

Handlebar fix:

[BostonGS]

And lots of duck tape:

[BostonGS]

Mark,

Good running into you in Manic 5. I see you got your speed up. Certainly those roads are some of the better gravel roads I have traveled (I did dirt roads across Nova Scotia and the west section of the Newfoundland Trailway which where much worse) These pictures are from hitting a pile of gravel a grater left in the middle of the road south of Port Hope Simpson. I was going around 70 mph and I just couldn't accelerate out of trouble...my guess is that the slick center of the K60 wouldn't catch, but who knows.

Shit happens, but I had a great trip and managed to squeeze in Quebec City and Montreal after we parted ways.

[4badboyz]

We got into rain again today so we bombed it from Moncton to Fredericton then cut across the back roads of Maine to Bethel, where we'll crash for the night. No pics today, too wet
Tried to find a tire in Fredericton and Moncton, no luck. She's almost at the wear bar with 1,000kms to go. It'll be close.

Restored Railway station in Mcadam NB