Adventure You Bet! The Staging Area (4th day)



Float Plane moving smoke jumpers

The Relais Gabriel (general store) is the only sign of civilization around here. It is nearly half way between Baie Comeau and Labrador City. (about 187 miles) This is were the action is. This morning we counted 50 tractor trailers (TT’s) parked here because of the forest fire ahead of us. Down the road at Manic 5, there are another 50 plus TT’s parked. The motel down there is full of fire fighters. They are shuttled up here by “Beaver” float plane. Helicopters land here to refuel also. I guess we are lucky we have accommodations with our truck camper.


Over 50 Trucks waiting for opening of road

No one seems to know how long the road will be closed. We do know that the fire has jumped the road and is heading north paroling the gravel roadway. We talked to a lot of people here and they all have different stories especially about the fire. One couple who live in Labrador City said that the road is also closed from Labrador City to Churchill Falls. Another truck driver told us it took a week to make it over to Happy Valley Goose Bay…because of road closers. The question is do we go forward or back track and alter our plans? The wind has shifted now and is blowing nearly in the opposite direction. This they tell me is going to help suppress the fire.


Helicopter with water bag refueling

It is now 1:30 pm and the last Bell helicopter just came in and said the fire was getting close to a wooden bridge on the north side. If the fire takes this bridge out everybody will be forced to head south back to Baie-Comeau. Man!… it’s decision time for us. If they do open the road on this end, there are at least two more major fires between Labrador City and Happy Valley. I have said often that we are in a canoe without a paddle and we’ll see where the current brings us. I believe the canoe is telling us to head south from where we came. There are too many obstacles to over come if we go north! At 1:45 this afternoon we notified some of the people at the staging area that we were leaving for Baie-Comeau, a short 187 mile back track. We hope to take a ferry in Baie-Comeau over to the Matane, Gaspesie and drive to Nova Scotia reversing direction of our original plans. I am writing this post in the Wall-mart parking lot in Baie-Comeau. We arrived here at 6:45 pm.
I must say that being at Relais Gabriel, the general store/staging area was an experience that we will probably never be able to duplicate. We were able to talk extensively to a bunch of truck drivers both French and English. We were there nearly 24 hours to the minute. I was able to talk to the Huey helicopter pilot about the aircraft of which I was a Technical Inspector during the Vietnam war. Of course, he didn’t call it a “D” Model Huey. It is now a 2005  A-1 Bell. It is the same 40 year old aircraft with all new parts. The hourly rate for the fire water drops is $2,900.00. I could go on and on with wonderful stories from a to z, but maybe when I stop traveling long enough, I’ll write a book. Just another short foot note... we emailed our daughters about our situation, but with over a hundred people at the staging area it took me four hours to get on line to hit the send button. I hope that tomorrow I’ll be able to upload a few of the dozens of pictures of the staging area congestion.
That is what we saw and did! 

Manic-5 and the Forest Fire (3rd day)

I wanted adventure and adventure is what I'm getting. Let me start by saying that we stayed down close to the marina, a beautiful spot. We did have kids drive around and make noise around midnight, but they departed and the rest of the night was peaceful. Morning was bright and sunny with high tide in and the St Lawrence clear and calm.
We had fueled up last night and got most of our last minute provisions for our 7:30 am departure. We drove by Manic One (this is referring to the Hydro Quebec Electric producing dams). The road was very well paved, but it was again hilly with many curves. The terrain was forested, but you could see that not much earth covered the rocky ledge just below the surface. The abundance of lakes also enhanced the scenery.

Manic 5 Tourists!

I had previously loaded the hand held GPS and there were more geocaches than I could imagine along this road. Our next surprise was driving around this curve and seeing Manic Two. We stopped but the tours were not available for a couple of hours, so we marched on down the road. The road was still paved and I must say in very good condition. At about 11:15 am, we drove up to Manic Five. (Manic Three was off of the main road and they never built Manic Four). Amazing! This is the word I have to use. This dam is the largest “buttress dam” in the world. It is a mile long and 750 feet high! We pulled into the visitor parking and checked in for the scheduled 11:30 tour. The tour took us into the turbine building. We were even taken into the concrete portion of the dam itself. The final icing on the cake was a bus ride on top of this mile long structure. We were able to take many pictures outside, but none inside for security reasons.


Manic 5!

SmWe filled the truck with $6.06 per gal gas and headed up Route 389 to Relais Gabriel. As soon as we left the Manic 5 site the road turned to gravel. It was good in spots and it was bad in spots. I just adjusted my speed and took it easy. Next comes the unexpected at Relais Gabriel (a one and only general store very close to the giant meteor formed lake). The road was blocked! Forest Fire ahead! At 11:30 am, back at Manic 5, we had asked security about the road and they looked on-line and it was open. The fire had shifted and had jumped the road. The smoke jumpers (fire fighters) had to pull back and aircraft water tankers were flooding each side of the road. There were helicopters, fixed wing aircraft flying around. We are here for the night, more to come tomorrow.

Smoke Jumpers returning from the fire

That is what we saw and did!

Road to Labrador ~ We are on the March!

The adventure became a reality at 9:15 am this morning. It is always a rush to actually get going, but we are off and running to a good start. The ride to the Canadian border was uneventful. It is pleasant to drive through the small Vermont village towns with their green well kept lawns. There is always yard sales along the way with people out and about doing their thing.
I prefer to cross the border at the Derby Line village crossing rather than the I-91 crossing. (less traffic and no waiting)



St Anne De-Beaupre Basilica

Next order of business was a stop at the first visitor center to get a current map of the Province of Quebec. The attendant went out of his way to help us. We told him that we were headed for Happy Valley Goose Bay, Labrador. “Oh”! he said, “I’d better check the conditions. Yesterday the government had closed the road for a forest fire”. His computer was giving him answers in no time. The road was open, it was hazy in Happy Valley from the smoke. If the road does close again, we could alter our route and take a ferry over to Nova Scotia. He also told us that there is an RV rest area right across the street from St Anne De-Beaupre, our destination for our first night.
The weather was sunny with an outside high temperature of 88’ F. We arrived at the RV rest area AKA (campground) at 3:45 pm well head of my anticipated time. We paid $8 for the  camper and $2 a person which included guided tour of the Basilica. For a first day, we had plenty of things to visit.

That is what we did and saw!         

St Anne De-Beaupre to Baie-Comeau (2nd day)

For some reason, I usually sleep very soundly in the truck/camper. Maybe I am tired from the days adventure, or maybe just relaxed from being away from the daily routine. The day started out with a temperature of 63’ and soon it was a bright sunny day.

St Anne De-Beaupre and Campground

Helen wanted to checkout the other church on top of the mountain. I drove up this 21% grade hill to find out that the church was really a monastery and not open to the public. We did get a great view of the Basilica and the campground (across the street). 
A friend of mine (Ron) told me that road to Baie Comeau was good, but up and down many hills. He was so right. We went from sea level to 2,140 up and back down to sea level. My gas mileage went from close to 13 mpg to a low of 6.5 mpg. The price we pay for adventure. I put in $217.88 with an average price of $5.05 a US gal.

Our night parking spot!

Now for the good stuff! As one drives further up the St Lawrence Sea Way, the seaway gets wider and the views are also more dramatic. We stopped at several lookouts to take in the cliffs, birds and the terrific amount of boulders that are visible at low tide. I was completely blown away with the size of Baie-Comeau. It was a sizeable town with many bike paths, walking trails along the bay. The tourist information center directed us to a cozy spot overlooking the marina and walking paths. We are here for the night. It is 8:51 pm and the locals are still out walking and enjoying the summer evening.

That is what we did and saw

Moving Forward…The Labrador Adventure Gets Closer!

As I talked to people around town about the upcoming trip into Labrador I received comments from people who haven’t gone as far, but a few of them have been fishing in remote parts of Quebec near the big hydro dams and the abundant lakes…This is on part of our route of travel. One fellow got his boat motor stolen along with some gear. I was uneasy about this and contacted the Bureau of Tourism for advice. They assured me that Labrador is safe. My other concern was availability of gas along the road. They sent me an excellent link http://www.happyvalley-goosebay.com/home/files/pg/trans_labrador_highway_guide_may_2012.pdf This fifteen page document gave me everything a truck camper navigator would need to travel the great Labrador Circle route.

Another couple of other stories that I have come across concerning this remote land to the North comes from local fisherman here in New Hampshire who many years ago would travel 600 miles to northern Quebec. The first story involved my neighbor when I lived in the town of Gorham about seven miles south of Berlin. My neighbor was a fisherman and often charted a float plane to take him and a fellow fisherman to where the big lake trout were abundant. The plane landed on the lake and the two anglers got all of their gear off for a week of fishing. They had a boat of some kind and plenty of supplies for the week. The tent was up and the two fished until late afternoon. My neighbors buddy started to feel terrible after supper. To spare all of the details (which I don’t really remember, his buddy had a heart attack and past away during the night. This happened a long time ago before cell phones, even today there is no cell phone service. My neighbor Bee Bee was stuck on  shore of the lake for the rest of the week until the float plane came back.

The other story retold to me recently was also a tragic event taking place on a distant lake in the vast northern Quebec Province. Two Berlin fisherman were fishing in a boat when one of them spotted something red floating in a distance. It looked like a red gas close to an island. It was too far out of their way to investigate. They continued  fishing on their planned route. Later in the afternoon they would head closer to that island and pickup that gas can. Approaching the island one of them took his binoculars and spotted the red object. He said, “that’s not a red can it’s a life jacket”! “No” said his fishing partner! “It’s a life jacket with a man looking right at me”!  This guy drowned and he was hung up on a branch. They secured the life jacket to a larger tree and headed back some two hours away. The authorities were notified and a helicopter was dispatched. It was later discovered that the man was to meet three of his companions across the lake. His kayak  flipped over in the rough waters of the lake and rest is history.

I wrote about these two moments of tragic history to remind myself that this adventure trip might not be for the faint hearted. The medical facilities are few and far apart. Some parts of Quebec Province and Labrador are very remote. I really don’t know how much civilization we will encounter. There are mining camps, but not a lot of towns along the way. At least that is what I am expecting.

One thinks that Alaska is a vast remote land which it is, but tourist in Alaska travel mostly main roads that have a fair amount of vehicle traffic. If your in trouble someone will come around sooner or later. Labrador is not so well travel at least that’s what I’m thinking at this present time. I am doing my home work and researching the pro and cons. It’s call a calculated risk, an Adventure!

The above map gives you a sense of our Circle Tour. We will leave New Hampshire and head to Quebec City. There we will follow the north side of the Gulf St Lawrence until we reach Trans-Canadian highway 389 up to Labrador City. TCH 500 will bring us to Happy Valley-Goose Bay. From there it’s route 510 over to Port Hope Simpson. This last leg is the longest between towns (250 miles). From here it is a short drive to Blanc Salon, a ferry will take over to Newfoundland where we will to this island. A five hour ferry is next for our tour of Nova Scotia and famous Cabot Trail.
That is what we are planning!

Truck Camper Modifications….Generator & Bikes

Generator Frame Mount in the Works

When one travels with a truck camper or anything else one keeps his eyes open for ways to make life easier. This philosophy is what I’ve been doing this past year as we traveled from Alaska to Florida. This is not to say that life was not easy. We had a comfortable ride and living quarters. The need to improve things comes from my military training. It’s called position improvement.
Well, enough on philosophy! Here’s what I’ve been up too. On the road everything ran as it should and we were able to have electricity for the day and night demands. The problem encountered was when we stayed put for a couple of weeks in Key West at a Coast Guard RV campground.

The bug cover should help!

They had everything except electrical hookups. Our 50 watt solar panel wouldn't keep up with our heavy demand at night. With two laptops running, camera batteries, cell phones charging and camper lights it was a little much for the one camper battery and solar panel. Our generous neighbor (Lauren) graciously aloud us to plug into his Honda Eu2000i generator at night. This would be my "must have unit" addition for the camper. I spent a couple of weeks thinking…would I store this 46 pound generator on the roof? Would it fit on a bracket somewhere in the outside rear of the camper. I was thinking that would add additional weight which I didn’t need aft of the rear axle. I noticed that all of the other campers had there generators secured on the ground to there RV in one way or another. No, the way for us to go was  to mount the beast in the front of the truck.

Trial fit with mountain bikes

I already had fabricated a removable front hitch receiver which mounted on the existing Fisher Snow Plow mount. This receiver hitch mount is secured with two padlocks and two 1-1/4x8 inch harden nuts and bolts. The hitch was created for our two mountain bikes. I  wasn't impressed with bike racks in the rear of the camper. Back there the bikes get full of dust, dirt and they are always in the way when entering the camper. I have no problem wiping off an occasional dead bug. Back to the generator bracket. I had to design the location so it wouldn't interfere with the headlights and the bikes. I came up with a solution! It is strong, sits above the bumper and clears the bikes. The generator is secured to the truck frame and can stay in place at night. I just need to walk the camper electrical cable around to the front of the truck, plug in, set the choke pull the cord once and turn on the lights.

Well there is always a little more to the story! Remember position improvement. The existing bike rack worked flawlessly all the way to Alaska and back, but as I watched it on bumpy roads the bikes would yaw and roll gently fore and aft. (maybe I don’t have the proper naval wording) I discovered this movement was caused by an Aluminum H beam I used in the original fabrication to save weight (actually it was because I had the beam in the shop). This was the excuse to redo the bike rack and eliminate the roll. I would also move the bikes forward three to four inches further away from the truck. This made me think of possible additional stress on the hitch receiver. Ah! if the bike tube extended further back into the plow super structure it would double the strength and further prevent up and down movement.

I finally rebuilt the whole thing using thicker angle iron. Luckily I had all of the materials laying around the shop. Of course there is my time, but when your semi-retired you are suppose to do the things you want to do right?I’ve had the pieces on and off the truck a dozen times. Everything fits perfectly. One of the last things to accomplish is to spray paint the works with Hammer Rite paint to protect the project.
That is what I did!

“Baby” Boomers On The Move…Logo Update!

I added the “Baby” to the Boomers On The Move (Logo) on the truck camper today. Some people that we met on our adventure trips actually thought that our last name was “Boomers”. This should clarify that we are of the (World War II) “Baby Boomer Generation”.


The "Baby" added to the "Boomers
On The Move"

I also worked on increasing the lean-to height in back of the shop. That is where the camper sleeps when its not visiting across the country. The increased height is necessary because I added a couple of Max Air shrouds over the existing vents. Now we can leave the vents open for ventilation without the danger of rain coming in. My little modifications are not a must, but do make life a little easier.
I need to work next week on that front mount for the future generator. It will be June before I know it and I want to be ready for our little jaunt to the Northeast up into Nova Scotia, Saint Johns and possibly into Labrador. Several factors will decide if and when we try to accomplish this journey. Family health, future work commitments, weather and of course the unknown! I don’t expect to be gone for a long time, maybe a couple to three weeks. It’s always open to change, that’s what good about being semiretired.We could have sun, a rainbow or maybe arainy summer. We are in a canoe going down the gentle river without a paddle. We’ll see where it will take us!
That is what we are planning to do and see