July 6, 2011 on the coast of Maine near Bar Harbor

July 6, 2011, on the coast of Maine near Bar Harbor

A moose by any other name is still a moose. As a new friend pointed out, “Maine elk are actually moose.”  As you might have guessed, we have neither moose or elk in Florida, but I can tell the difference between a ‘possum and a coon.  But now I also know that an elk is about the size of a horse and has branched antlers; a moose stands 6 ½ to 7 ft tall (the size of a SUV) with antlers 4 to 5 ft that you could use to shovel snow.  We also do not have snow in Florida.  Oh yeah, a moose can more aggressive and less predictable.  As I said, I really do not want to meet one on my bike.

Amazing what food and rest will do.  Next door to my motel in Houlton, Maine, was an Irving Big Stop, a Canadian chain of restaurants in truck stops – they serve very good home-cooked food AND the best desserts you’ll find.  A short walk for a couple of meals there, a nap, and a good night’s sleep, and I was back on the road on July 5.  I headed back across the Canadian border, in route to New Brunswick and Nova Scotia, and was again confused by the border patrol.  It doesn’t matter what answer I gave, he acted as though it was the wrong one.  One of his questions was “Are you going to leave anything in Canada?”  I thought of that string of things I’ve lost since Florida — a tent, one shoe, my sleeping bag, a ball cap, my cell phone charger, and my dental floss.  Could he see that crumb trail on his computer?  I responded, “Not on purpose.”  He didn’t smile as he touched the screen again.  He had questions about my last, brief pass through Canada, and then after several more minutes of being displeased with everything I said, he waved me through.  My best guess – they try to trip you up.  And it works.

I stopped at a Welcome Station in New Brunswick, loaded up with good information, and even made reservations at a B&B near the Hopewell Cape Rocks on the Bay of Fundy. But when the lady unfolded a map to give me directions, I began having visual auras, my precursor to a migraine.  (Most of the time my migraines are limited to the auras and nausea; other times they include intense pain and sensitivity to light and noise.)  So I took my medicine, sat in the shade awhile, and when the auras faded without pain, I got back on the bike heading east.

Why was I making this eastward detour from my four corners ride?   In 2002, I woke up on my birthday and spent a few minutes just looking at the ceiling, thinking of life, things I’ve enjoyed, and things I want to do.  And I said to myself, “I want to go to Nova Scotia.”  Hmm.  OK.  “And I want to ride a motorcycle to Nova Scotia.”  Interesting suggestion, since I’d never put my feet up on the pegs of a bike.  But I knew what to do about that minor detail; I called and scheduled myself for the Basic Riding Class.  I had fun with the class and the instructors were awesome; then I bought a Suzuki SV 650.  After riding it for about a year, I knew it wasn’t comfortable enough for long distance rides, and I bought a Yamaha FJR 1300.  I loved the FJR and put 50,000 miles on it before a deer totaled it in July 2009.  I next bought a Suzuki Vstrom 650 – great bike but not comfortable for long rides.  Finally this January I bought the Goldwing GL1800.  And on July 5, 2011, I rode it to Nova Scotia.

I continue to meet amazing people, including Uncle Bobby at the Nova Scotia Welcome Center.  He struck me as a friendly old man who is retired and a little lonely; he enjoys telling people about his home province.  He had his car full of stuff; he gave me several lapel pens (Canada, Nova Scotia) and a CD of gospel played on a ragtime piano.  It was getting late and the wind was blowing hard.   I basically touched base in Nova Scotia and then headed to the B&B “next door” in New Brunswick.

This was my first night in a B&B on this trip – a nice change from the $40 a night, including tax, motel 😉 The Chimera Farms B&B is 7.5 km from one of the prime spots for viewing the tide changes.  I enjoyed getting to know something of the hostess, Marg, a lady with a large heart.  Over the years she has helped raise 13 kids — not foster kids. When a child needed a home, she and her husband simply put another plate on the table.  The child understood he was welcomed, so long as he followed the rules.  She laughed and said, “Almost all of them stayed on, and I have something over 50 grandkids now.”    She’s innately kind, very organized, and hard working.  She also seems to have a knack for saying the right thing. I was the only guest in the house, so this morning there was one place set at the large dining room table.  I felt awkward, and asked her to sit and eat with me.  She declined, but stood at the door and talked.  I had another round of visual auras; my vision cleared more quickly than yesterday.  When I finished my elaborate breakfast that included homemade apple pie, I picked up the dishes to take them to the kitchen; Marg quickly took them from me with a smile and  “It’s my house and my rules.”

I rode the bike to Hopewell Cape Rocks on the Bay of Fundy, home of the world’s highest tides. http://www.thehopewellrocks.ca/

The vertical change in water level can be 50 feet or more!  I got there at low tide and walked out on the ocean floor.  My Pixs are at

http://s1141.photobucket.com/albums/n595/gypsyjudge/?action=view&current=IMG_1563.jpg

I also watched a Peregrine falcon fledgling on a ledge high above the muddy flats.  What an initial flight she will have!  Crossing the prairies somewhere in the Midwest, I watched an eagle flying low as she was being pecked at and harassed by some more earth-bound birds, like sparrows or crows.  I thought that the more earth-bound birds were probably furious with the eagle, for being an eagle – and how like people that is.  The Peregrine fledgling, after learning to fly over massive cliffs and the raging ocean, would never be happy flitting from bush to bush in someone’s back yard.   There is such incredible diversity in our world; it’s time to stop pecking on those who are different, for they may have seen more than we’ll ever know.

Back at the parking lot, I was eating a sandwich when I met a group of Canadians.  I spoke with one lady and gave her my postcard; she called to her friends to come over, and we all talked.  They are an out-going, fun-loving bunch.  They insisted on taking my picture and then checking out my bike.  One of the men explained that his grandchild had been seriously ill and his son and family had stayed at a Ronald McDonald House; he told the others how important it was that the family be together and wonderful the experience with the Ronald McDonald House was.

I could take another four months on this ride, and still not see everything.  The list of “undone” for Nova Scotia and New Brunswick is enormous, but it was still time to head back to the states.

Before I got to the border, I studied for my exam – & it helped.  The officer asked several questions and then made the statement, “So, you were in Canada three days.”  Aha!  I quickly corrected him, “No, I came over yesterday at Houlton.”  He actually smiled and said, “Welcome back.”

I stayed the night in a motel and will go to the Habitat Affiliate in Evanston, Maine tomorrow.  Then I head towards my sister’s in Pennsylvania.