“La Route Verte” continues to impress us. While the main highways b-line from town to town, the green route winds along the St. Lawrence River, taking welcome detours through the quaint neighbourhoods of these historic towns.
The Saint Lawrence river is so wide at this point that we couldn't even see the other shore. We were excited to visit Trois Riviere, the second oldest city in North America, until we discovered that it was virtually destroyed by a fire in 1908. The result is that there is a stark contrast between entering Trois Riviere and any of the other river towns. Most of the historic buildings have been replaced by strip malls composed of Walmart, Zellers and Costco.
After wolfing down many a sample, hot dogs, burgers and sundaes at this Costco (we didn’t feel like cooking) we were actually led to some pretty cool surviving historical buildings by that trusty zig-zagging, sometimes confusing but very well loved, “Route Verte.”
We headed out of town in the general direction of an established campground that we knew we’d never stay in. Especially when we caught sight of an almost too good to be true, waterfront park complete with bathrooms and a nice cliff to shelter it from the highway (and the eyes of any neighbours). After two days of riding without amenities we figured a sponge bath in the bathroom (of questionable sanitation level) was definitely in order. It’s amazing what standard of living you can come to enjoy after a few months on a bike.
B&K
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