glad i aint gould
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it was a grey morning and my mood was matching. but i trudged on as a sorry soldier headed to some hellish trenches. my mood brightened when i arrived at Terra nova and found that they had a store which sold hamburgers. I indulged. it was a bit pricey. but due to the remote location of the town it couldn't be avoided. Terra Nova the town is situated at the end of a very long gravel road, miles from the Trans Canada. Its mostly a cabin town for recreational enthusiasts. While i was munching my fries and trying to forget about slugs and bad weather, a group of ATVer's pulled up. They recognized me from the trail between clarenville and thorburn lake. Apparently they had passed me then. I was tickled a lighter shade of grey by the thought that i had beat a gas powered machine. it was a nice enough thought to motivate me to get up and utilize the rest of the day. so i hoisted my pack once again and started off into the misty gloom. It's a pretty sandy area by comparison to the terrain i had traversed earlier in the trip. Terra Nova lake has its own unique character compared to the ponds i had been used to. The entire lake can't be that deep as there are rocks dotting the surface. I crossed a trestle and made off into some more bushy areas.
My plan was to walk until i found some form of shelter that i could co-opt and get out of the rain. there are cabins everywhere out in the newfie bush. Breaking into one of those was not an option. as the thought of waking to an angry newfie shaking isn't that appealing. in addition the cabins have a very unfriendly looking sort of security systems. One had a welcome mat of nails, and another had its walls covered in fish hooks. A passing ATVer told me that it was more for bears than people which i find kinda interesting. Anyhow the same chap also told me of a snowmobile warm up hut just up the road. It being the summer and not the time for snowmobiling he said i shouldn't be bothered if i use it for one night. So i made for it.
Just before i got to the hut i was passed by another ATVer who invited me to stay at his home in Gloverdale. He was headed out to do some fishing and said he would pick me up on his way home. I told him i would wait for him at the hut i was told about. well i waited, and waited, and waited. my damp clothes started to make me shiver. so i lit a fire in the wood stove of the hut. in no time at all i was taking of layers. i always seem to forget that wood stoves have a knack for heating. especially when they are heating small confined spaces. the warmth made me extremely drowsy. so i took a nap.
it got really hot, really quickly. i started sweating while i was sleeping. and i started to dream some really crazy stuff. Me and Louis XIV were hanging out at the casbah talking to frankie who went to hollywood. It seemed as though Frankie had an ill repute and had gotten in trouble with Duke Ellington. We were trying to think of a way to off the Duke when the door to the hut flung open. there in the gloomy doorway was a sillouette of a drippy fisherman in wellies. It was hard for me to discern what was going on. i was sleeping and dreaming, and then i was awake with a man at my door who i didn't know. As my brain slowly reformed reality i realized what had happened. but not without giving a loud shout and being all disoriented. It seemed that the man who went fishing had finally came to get me. When i realized this i calmed right down and started laughing.
the Man who was at first a little startled came in and sat down.
I told him that i had become quite comfortable in the hut.
I wasn't in too big of a hurry to leave, as my pack sack's contents were strewn about the floor.
he understood and instead we talked about his luck fishing.
It seemed he had caught his limit of 3 river trout and even a few salmon.
He had to release the salmon however as he had already caught his limit ealier in the week.
after about 10 minutes he headed back out to his ATV to go back home, and i cracked the windows to let a little heat out.
The rest of the night was pretty cozy and i slept like a log.
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