Day 96

We had the most amazing plan (maybe amazingly stupid?) that didn't actually come through! Apparently the Hopewell rocks were a 30 minute walk from the campground (we were told), and low tide was around 2am. Since, if we waited until morning to see them, it would be high tide, we wouldn't be able to walk out to the rocks. So we thought it would be cool to go in the middle of the night, with our headlamps, and walk on the floor. Then we would go back to sleep and wake up a few hours later and hit the road straight for Moncton. That plan was put in action, and we both woke up at 2am only to hear a thunderstorm going on outside. I went outside to bush it (the whole process taking well under a minute) and in that time, I saw three bolts of lightning. We therefore aborted our mission and went back to bed!
When we actually woke up again at 6:45 (after setting our alarm for 6), and took a while to get ready. We were too tired to shower last night so showered this morning. Finally we hit the road around 9:30 and went straight for the Hopewell rocks. After cycling there, we were extra thankful we didn't walk it last night because it would have been much longer than 30 minutes, and in the dark, we might have been scared we were lost or something, and that would suck! The rocks were pretty cool though! We were glad we came and saw them! It was a bit pricy just to see rocks, but neither of us regretted it! We walked as far as we could go to the ocean floor, but we weren't allowed on the sand itself (they only opened the gate at the bottom of the stairs when the tide was very low so it would be more than safe, for liability reasons).
We properly hit the road at 11am for Moncton. There was a decent tail wind (which turned into a head wind at the end of our north-easterly route). 40km and 1.5hrs later, we were in Moncton. Just as we were changing directions into Moncton, our headwind turned back into a tail wind! We went straight to the info centre to find out where we could find the Dieppe market. They pointed us in the right direction but failed to warn us it was closed today (the lonely planet also said it would be open today, but it's only open on Saturdays, apparently). We were so disappointed and HUNGRY! Across the street there was a subway, so we ate there then went straight to the airport to meet Agnes. She was just about ready, but was having problems with her front rack. Michael engineered them with his circuit drawing skills, and they worked! It was lucky she had already cycled across Canada because she was really quick getting her gear together! Michael and I are now quick as well, but thinking back to our Tofino days, we took FOREVER to get organized!!!
Alas, it was time to hit the road for Fort Beausejour. Although Agnes was fast, it still took some time, so we didn't think we would hit Fort Beausejour until after 5:30. We called the Lavallees and let them know and they offered to pick us up from there, so we wouldn't be late for dinner. We had a wicked tail wind (easily coasting at 40km an hour!). The closer we got to the fort, the less of a tail wind it became, until it was a full on headwind for the last portion. But it was a nice day, and we were all excited for lobster dinner tonight!!! (Isn't that amazing? Michael and I have never tried lobster, and Agnes has only had it a few times. I can't get over how nice it is of them to feed us lobster and let us stay at their cottage!!!). We made one stop in Sackville to buy some groceries for us (as we've been deficient for the past few days), and buy wine for the Lavallees as a thank you.
When we arrived at Fort Beausejour, Yvon and Hugh arrived soon after. They actually arrived before us, but didn't have cell reception there, so left to use a pay phone and just as they left, we arrived, so missed each other. We walked around a bit (the fort was really cool!) as Yvon and Hugh secured the bikes, then we headed into Nova Scotia for a feast! We were so pumped! It was a nice ride and Yvon and Hugh were so nice and funny!
When we got to the cottage, we went for a quick swim in the ocean (which was so nice! There was a cold wind out, so we initially weren't so keen to jump in, but we were glad we did! The ocean was so nice and warm in the channel!). We then quickly showered and headed to Hugh's cottage, where we met the rest of Lilia's family (who were in the area) and had the most wonderful dinner! Everyone was so friendly and a lot of fun! Luckily I was sitting beside Norene and across from Tanis because they literally gave me step by step instructions on how to eat a lobster! I was like an infant and needed instructions at every step! But it tasted so good! And the sangrias we had before dinner were also very good (and we were definitely drunk quickly!). I can't express how much fun we had today! And we couldn't believe how hospitable and friendly and fun everyone was! Words cannot describe! When we were heading to bed Yvon and Norene said we were welcome to stay another day and we looked over our schedule and figured we had a bit of time to spare, so we decided to do just that!!! Now we're off to bed to get ready for a wicked day of relaxation tomorrow!!! (Agnes was saying she didn't feel she earned the break, but she was more than happy to take tomorrow off. Michael and I haven't had a day off since Quebec city, without even realizing it, so figured it was the perfect time for a rest!)