"What is this? I am not sure I should let you in. You look like a bunch of ducks." That's how Emile Gautreau greeted us as we stepped over the threshold into his beautiful house in Amherst, Nova Scotia (!). We were drenched to the bone after 8 hours of biking in the pouring rain, though we did have a two hour lunch stop in Sackville NB to recharge.
In the process we had crossed into Nova Scotia— home. It was tough to take the requisite picture in front of the "Welcome to Nova Scotia" sign because of all the standing water on the grass.
After the tourist information person knew we were Nova Scotian, and when we explained that it was ridiculously wet here, his only response was "Welcome to Nova Scotia" (paraphrased it meant: "why are you surprised?").
We started the day with a rare and delicious home made breakfast in the beautiful warm home in Moncton and finally here we were at a new warm abode in Amherst, in between it was hilly and very wet with few stops, as stops were not fun today. We did not know quite what to expect because Emile simply said on the phone that "we will figure out dinner once you arrive" in response to questions about what we should bring. Well that was a front... as we dripped in the back hall, we looked through to the candle lit table in the kitchen to see a wonderful dinner all laid out, served aesthetically with contrasting colours of pickles on each plate.
After a tremendous meal of fresh haddock, we were indulged with lots of wonderful stories and a tour of the garden and house, giving us a window into Emile's doings of late. We realized that though Emile is 20 years older than the oldest of us, his physical and mental activity level seemed as high as ours of late, and obviously we are no slouches. For those who do not know him, Emile is a Meti/aboriginal elder who spends his life educating young and old about "Mother Nature's Book" and aboriginal culture and spirituality. He had just spent the last three weeks providing educational programs 10 hours a day in provincial parks to a wide range of visitors and Nova Scotian.
We walked through his garden/backyard forest, which had started out as grass 25 years ago like the adjacent yards, and now is a rich and varied garden forest. We admired the amazing elm tree totem pole with bear, wolf and eagle in the front yard— the tree had Dutch elm disease and had to be cut, so Emile cut the trunk 12 feet up in the air and went to work carving out the creatures that "were already there." We went down in the basement to see his new workshop filled with beads, tanning hides, drum hoops and talking and walking sticks in various stages of development. Then there was the certificate honouring him for contributing to preserving a large tract of land now owned by the Nature Conservancy in Pugwash and the cards commemorating the moment when he nearly killed himself last year by getting his leg hopelessly stuck in a hole while hiking alone below the high tide line. And all the while his values shone through, all the beads come from used clothing stores, all the compost and weeds go to building the backyard soil, everything is reused in tune with Mother Nature. We were tired by the end of it, though he had the energy to go much longer into the night. We heard stories from his youth when he paid room and board at 14 while working in the coal mine, one of 10 kids who survived on bread and molasses (it actually sounded good). Next month the coal miner's kid has dinner with the Governor General. There were reflections on Evalyn, his wife, who died last year, along with our sharing of some of our adventures of the the past three months. We were inspired by Emile's passion, energy, dedication and work, and thankful for another amazing and inspiring person along the way who has provided us with caring hospitality. Thank you!
Distance: 71.54 km
Time on bike: 4:07:52
Average speed: 17.3 km/h
Distance from Vancouver: 7127 km
Start: 9:00 am
End: 3:00 pm
Wind: south-east ( light-head)
Conditions: pouring rain!
Cheers
- The Warpotay Team
In the process we had crossed into Nova Scotia— home. It was tough to take the requisite picture in front of the "Welcome to Nova Scotia" sign because of all the standing water on the grass.
After the tourist information person knew we were Nova Scotian, and when we explained that it was ridiculously wet here, his only response was "Welcome to Nova Scotia" (paraphrased it meant: "why are you surprised?").
We started the day with a rare and delicious home made breakfast in the beautiful warm home in Moncton and finally here we were at a new warm abode in Amherst, in between it was hilly and very wet with few stops, as stops were not fun today. We did not know quite what to expect because Emile simply said on the phone that "we will figure out dinner once you arrive" in response to questions about what we should bring. Well that was a front... as we dripped in the back hall, we looked through to the candle lit table in the kitchen to see a wonderful dinner all laid out, served aesthetically with contrasting colours of pickles on each plate.
After a tremendous meal of fresh haddock, we were indulged with lots of wonderful stories and a tour of the garden and house, giving us a window into Emile's doings of late. We realized that though Emile is 20 years older than the oldest of us, his physical and mental activity level seemed as high as ours of late, and obviously we are no slouches. For those who do not know him, Emile is a Meti/aboriginal elder who spends his life educating young and old about "Mother Nature's Book" and aboriginal culture and spirituality. He had just spent the last three weeks providing educational programs 10 hours a day in provincial parks to a wide range of visitors and Nova Scotian.
We walked through his garden/backyard forest, which had started out as grass 25 years ago like the adjacent yards, and now is a rich and varied garden forest. We admired the amazing elm tree totem pole with bear, wolf and eagle in the front yard— the tree had Dutch elm disease and had to be cut, so Emile cut the trunk 12 feet up in the air and went to work carving out the creatures that "were already there." We went down in the basement to see his new workshop filled with beads, tanning hides, drum hoops and talking and walking sticks in various stages of development. Then there was the certificate honouring him for contributing to preserving a large tract of land now owned by the Nature Conservancy in Pugwash and the cards commemorating the moment when he nearly killed himself last year by getting his leg hopelessly stuck in a hole while hiking alone below the high tide line. And all the while his values shone through, all the beads come from used clothing stores, all the compost and weeds go to building the backyard soil, everything is reused in tune with Mother Nature. We were tired by the end of it, though he had the energy to go much longer into the night. We heard stories from his youth when he paid room and board at 14 while working in the coal mine, one of 10 kids who survived on bread and molasses (it actually sounded good). Next month the coal miner's kid has dinner with the Governor General. There were reflections on Evalyn, his wife, who died last year, along with our sharing of some of our adventures of the the past three months. We were inspired by Emile's passion, energy, dedication and work, and thankful for another amazing and inspiring person along the way who has provided us with caring hospitality. Thank you!
Distance: 71.54 km
Time on bike: 4:07:52
Average speed: 17.3 km/h
Distance from Vancouver: 7127 km
Start: 9:00 am
End: 3:00 pm
Wind: south-east ( light-head)
Conditions: pouring rain!
Cheers
- The Warpotay Team
Location:Amherst, Nova Scotia
Hope You are all enjoying the warmer, DRIER, and sunnier weather in NS today! I've decided I'm actually going to take the trip up to Wolfville afterall, sometime next week (17th, 18th, or 19th) will you be in town at that Time? Would be great to have another visit - perhaps a bit more relaxed - off the road! Maybe I could camp chez vous? Feel free to email me at yogabrenna@hotmail.com, or text my phone: 204-797-5688. Happy home-coming, and congratulations! ~ brenna
ReplyDeleteOops 204-797-5678 is the one :)
ReplyDeleteSo happy to finally check into your blog. Looks like you've all been getting along quite well. Enjoy your short return home! I'm in program most of next week but let me know if any of you will be around for the next little while or in town. Would love to be able to catch up and hear some stories.
ReplyDeleteFoxtail
Hey! Can't believe you are this close. A beautiful day in Nova Scotia and here at Lorax. Getting your room ready for your arrival home. Enjoy your last few days on the Bike.
ReplyDeleteHi Everyone!
ReplyDeleteHave been reading about your adventures and it almost felt like I was reading a book. I find it hard to believe that people I know can be physically so tough and courageous! Three months is a long time. The pictures have been amazing and I'm sure all of you have had an experience of a life time. Would love to hear of your adventures first hand sometime whenever we meet next.
It must have felt great to touch Nova Scotia again. Shane - looking forward to having you here with us!
Love and regards,
Rita