The Hector, replica of 18th century ship

The town of Barneys River consists of a sign... and that's it!

Antigonish, NS August 18

Today 90km Total 1856 km

Pete didn't have the get-up-and-go this morning. Just one of thoswe days when you could pull the covers over your head. anyway, eventually the sounds of Barneys' zips and velcro fasteners roused him and we got into the eight-km ride to Pictou for breakfast.

Quick city tour, including a reverse one-way along the main drag, where we were greeted by a comittee of locals, many wearing white beards. One of these worthies turned out to be the mayor. All were very interested in our journey, and his worship presented us with official Pictou lapel pins to commemorate the meeting.

After our usual hearty breakfast, we did another tour of the city. One last reverse one-way, where I commented to the council that they seemed to have arranged the street system so that once you got into town it is impossible to leave.

Pictou is the real thing. Everybody seems to know each other, and although the downtown has been extensively renovated, it's still a living, breathing village.

Stopped at the tourist info centre to pick up some good maps, and some advice on how to organize our Cape Breton tour so that we will arrive in North Sydney by net thursday to meet the rest of the team.

We originally planned to get to Cape Breton Island today, but once we got onto the 106 highway, with its succession of long grinding climbs, we realized that this was not to be. After about 30km, we cut off on highway 4, which gave a much more scenic and pleasant ride away from the freeway traffic. This route was a really special ride, just rolling through the countryside. At one point I rode alongside a river for at least half a mile acompanied by a kingfisher that flew from rock to rock alongside me. He's my totem - gave me some legs today.

By the time we reached Antigonish, we were starting to run out of steam, so after a subway lunch, we checked the tourist info for a place to stay. Jackpot, a downtown campsite on Main street next to all the pubs and restaurants our hearts desire. The info lady told us that we couldn't miss it - Antigonish is so small that if we took a wrong turn we could just circle back and meet ourselves coming the other way!

Off now for some grub, and maybe a couple of brews.

Catch you later, Barney

Don't forget to check Pete's blog at www.transcanada09.blogspot.com