#CycleTour2021 Day 7: Hot ‘n Hilly

 Today was a good day, despite it being much longer and even harder than yesterday. At least the ride went relatively smoothly, even if it did have its literal ups and downs. It was also the hottest day of the tour, 

Knowing it would be a hot day, we got an early start and were rolling by 8:30. The first 20 kilometres of today’s ride was along the bike path that follows the lovely Rivière Massawippi from Lennoxville to North Hatley, a path we had taken a few years ago with my nephew Kyle. This part of the ride went by in a flash. We stopped in picturesque North Hatley for second breakfast and to rest a little, knowing that the easy part of the day was behind us, and it was only 10:30! We also know North Hatley well. Sonia’s late father, Jean-Guy, played saxophone for 60 years in the Harmonie de Granby, and they would often give summer concerts at North Hatley’s cute bandstand. Indeed, the last time we were in North Hatley, it was to come and hear Jean-Guy play.

Then it was up and away, with emphasis on the up. The Route Verte follows the road out of North Hatley, and it is a famously steep grade. I had to stop halfway up to give my legs a rest, but ultimately, it was easier to pedal that to push the bike up. The Route Verte turns off the road after several hundred metres, but keeps climbing, albeit on quiet country roads. What goes up must come down, and there was a lovely long descent down the other side. Flying 40-km/h down a gravel country road on a loaded touring bike is not for the faint of heart, but I recommend it! This up-and-down theme continued all the way to Deauville, at the top of Lac Magog. (Confusingly, there is a town in Quebec called Magog too, and it also is at the top of a lake: Lac Memphrémagog). Deauville has a cute little public beach, and it seemed the perfect spot to stop for lunch and, in Sonia’s case, for a refreshing dip in the lake. We had lunch, performed our tour tea ceremony, and had a little lie-down in the shade before topping up the water bottles and heading out 90 minutes later. 

Hi We followed the Route Verte through some lovely forest land toward Magog, still very much in up-and-down mode, but we left the RV early and skirted the northern end of the town to save quite a few kilometres off our day. Magog is a lovely town, but we’ve seen it many times. Our shortcut took us instead through the industrial part of town and along some fairly busy roads, but this was the only way this day was going to happen, and it all went smoothly, aside from a school bus driver who decided to give me a scare. 

Our destination was Parc du Mont Orford, where there were still many available campsites on this Thursday before the May long weekend. We rolled up to the service centre and got a site booked and then were on our way again, with another 5 or 6 kilometres through the park to get to our site. A grand total of 70 kilometres and, more significantly, 745 metres climbed. Nothing special for the serious cyclist, but both touring records for us. 

We found our site, dug into our panniers for whatever swim gear we had, and immediately walked down to Lac Stuckley for a swim. The water was bracing but a welcome refreshment on this hot day.