Down in the Valley

Although I have taken the train through the Matapedia Valley in years gone by, I did not grasp how extremely beautiful it is until riding down the 132 from Amqui on my way to New Brunswick on a wet and windy day.

Fortunately this was a Saturday as the level of traffic was greatly reduced, which allowed for stretches of time where it was just me, the road, the river and the surrounding hills.

Still,  the river was littered with fishermen waist deep in the swift waters from the recent rain. Many were tethered to a pole that they had driven into the river bottom to prevent them from drifting downstream if they lost their footing.

Sometimes, the only sign of man was a strange artifact of our modern age: plastic bottles filled with urine tossed onto the side of the road by drivers in too much of a hurry to stop for a break.

Three cyclists went by heading north, all smiles though it was cool and rainy. 

The headwind made the rain more uncomfortable as it funneled up the valley but I eventually reached Matapedia. 

I crossed the bridge into New Brunswick shortly after and followed the 11 and then the 134 into Campbellton. 

The dinner pickings were pretty slim (Trip Advisor lists the #1 restaurant as Tim Hortons) but we ended up at Chez Wes. In honour of my mother, since we were officially in the Maritimes now, I ordered the Club Sandwich. The sandwich was not up to her standards but the coleslaw was reminiscent of her own recipe and the corn chowder I had beforehand was excellent.