Day 7 – Ingonish Beach to Meat Cove

I am at the edge of the world. It’s a tough place to cycle to. I spent half the day in granny gear.

If this trip ended today I’d be satisfied. I got exactly the rugged, dramatic and rocky coastline views I was hoping for. And for a quick minute, it looked like it might abruptly end!

Have I mentioned how hard it is to swing my short little legs over the back of my bike all loaded with gear? Well, this morning I was a little short on my high kick and bruised my calf. That should’ve been a sign of things to come.

I rolled out of camp this morning at 10 to start my 80 km ride. I skipped breakfast because I knew there was a store about 15 minutes away… which doesn’t open until 12 on Friday’s. Ah well. Next store was only an hour away in Neil’s Cove. And one of the campground workers told me I should get off the main highway at Neil’s anyway to take a more scenic route.

Those first ~2 hours were amazing. Every single corner revealed a new, beautiful view of ocean and mountains and rocks and trees. The pictures do no justice, but here are a few anyway.

Then I landed back on the main highway and the climbing started. No problem, I knew it was coming. What I didn’t know was the detail. The elevation charts showed 2 sizeable climbs but not all the mini climbs in between. Those rugged shorelines are expensive it turns out!

I have learned over the last few days that shifting with my bent ring requires finesse. Unfortunately, I don’t have any of that. But I’m learning. Yet sometimes a delicate touch isn’t possible. Like when the difference between 5 and 40 kph takes seconds. On one such abrupt shift I busted my chain. Thank goodness for YouTube! I was back on the road in ~30 minutes. I hope it holds. I’ll never travel without a master link again.

Anyway, at some point I diverged from the main highway again towards meat cove and the northern tip of this island. The houses got more dilapidated, the yards more strewn with old machinery, the road more rough and eventually just gravel, and the terrain more unruly. The last 10 km probably took more than an hour. At various points I was going under 5 kph. That’s walking speed if I’m not mistaken. (For the record I also exceeded 60 kph today while riding the brakes.)

And it was worth every pedal. This is the most incredible campsite I have ever stayed on. If any of you are ever in this area you must come to Meat Cove Campground. Pitch a tent or rent their little cabins. It is stunning. And Justin, the manager, is everything a sweet and gentle east coaster should be. This campground is also know for its chowder, though I opted for fish and chips again and have no regrets.

As I was getting my site two people behind my said ‘some drive in, huh.’ And I said ‘you should try doing it on a bicycle!’ Then Justin told me that this is a dead end so to get out of here I get to do it all in reverse. Sigh.

He also broke the news that my ride tomorrow indeed involves 3 mountains including the toughest one on the island. The ride is almost 6000 feet in total. He said most people break my 106 km ride up into 2 days. And he told me he’d pack me a lunch if I needed it. ❤️

Wish me luck?!