Truro

EntryNine.

[August 2o1o]


the last night had to be the coldest yet. cold enough to have us up just before sunrise.. there was a thick coat of dew on the tent, the sun broke above the horizon as i poked my head out the door with a smile.

because of our location, we felt that moving as soon as possible was best. we shook out our soggy tent once again, and packed our bags. being careful not to be seen coming from the lot, we waited for the lady walking her dog to pass, made sure there wasn't any cars coming and booked it down the hill for the road.

it was probably about 8am by the time we started walking, we weren't quite outside the town limits yet. we stuck our thumbs out by nine, and hitched our first ride almost straight away. it was a short chubby awkward looking man who was on his way to the main highway. we didn't want to go so far, so we had him drop us off just before Bible Hill, a small town close to Truro.


we didn't know it at the time, but that first ride ended up being our last for the day. a good start to the day though, 40 kilometers covered by car which would have been well over a day's walk. the cold night was contrasted by a hot and balmy afternoon. the higher the sun rose, the slower we shuffled along the highway.

we arrived in downtown Truro around noon.. just in time to find a Timmies to grab some drink and snack and enjoy a little air conditioning. we hit the info centre [which unfortunately, the kids working in it that day gave us very little info!] and then the library. it's time to find a campground, and a shower!

we googled campgrounds nearby, and even found one on google maps that didn't really exist. i knew we had already walked past the place the map said it would be, and further research told me that there was indeed no campground just north of Truro.

we found one, 10 kilometers south in Hilden. the day was so warm, it was a little slow getting out of town. we took a break walking through the industrial complex out front of a stinky old factory. we figured no one would mind the smell of our smoke against the factory smell, so we hid out in the shade of a small tree by the road.


almost at the edge of town, we ran into a man about our age walking the opposite direction. he stopped us and asked us where we were from. we told him where, and where we were going, and about our journey so far. he was happy to run into other travelers while stationed in his hometown. he gave us five bucks to hit up the Avery's fruit market store up the road. he said it was his favourite place in town to get food and that we wouldn't be disappointed. he wished us well and we carried on to Avery's to pick up some fruit!


he was right, the store was great! a huge selection of fresh produce, and a big ol stand of fruit juice to choose from. we loaded up with blueberries, apples, fresh muffins and juice.. then continued on down the highway. this calls for another break! another 20 minutes down the road, we parked our butts on someone's front lawn in the shade of a short pine and slammed back some fruit and juice.

the small rural areas didn't leave us much room for hitching, we tend not to stick out our thumbs as long as there's sidewalk. once we made it to the end of Millbrook we put our thumbs out once again, hoping someone would give us a lift to the campground. lots of RVs passed us, we knew we were getting close anyways. the last 5km had to be the longest 5 ever, sooo hot. no clouds to be found that day of course.

we passed the sign for Hilden. so close... finally a sign. "Scotia Pine Camp Ground 2km". yessss! suddenly our packs felt lighter, though our feet were throbbing we didn't care. showers, laundry and a place to stretch out weren't very far now. we stepped into the office around 6pm, and the lady gave us a nice private spot in the back corner of the lot, close to the showers and in the shade of a circle of trees.


it seemed like a good day to grab some firewood. we cleaned up and relaxed in the shade to enjoy some more fruit, and fresh baked muffins we picked up. getting settled in for the evening, a cyclist pulled up a spot right next to us. after he was finished setting up, he came over to see what we're up to. you know when you see somone at a campground without a vehicle, they're on some real adventure.


his name was Neil. he's from England, and he had just biked all the way from Vancouver, on the other side of the country. this was his final stretch, he'd make it to his end point in Halifax the next day. he was just as interested in our hitching as we were in his cycling. we invited him for a fire but he wanted to lay down before sunset, tomorrow would be a big day.

it was a relaxing evening, fire crackling and the sound of a babbling stream just behind us. the start came out, and we caught a glimpse of the meteor shower once again. exhausted from a full day of walking in the sun, we hit the hay early. what a sweet day.