Hopewell Rocks - Edmundston

The night was not as bad as feared. Although the walls are so thin that I could hear the person above me snoring, there were also some quieter intervals where I could sleep. However, I will skip breakfast this morning - I don't really miss out on the experiences of previous travelers. And so, my last glance goes to the probably best accessory of this accommodation - the swimming pool. But I didn't use it.

Before me lies the longest leg of this journey - almost 500 km across New Brunswick. The first 300 km I cover quickly on the highway, and what stands out is that the leaves are slowly changing colors. The Indian Summer is starting. I am very excited about the next few days, where hopefully I will get to experience many more of these impressions.

After 300 km, which passed completely problem-free on a fairly empty highway, I have had enough and set my navigation to avoid the highway. Promptly, it takes me off the next exit onto a smaller road, where there is also the possibility to stop. And that's a good thing because the scenery is simply spectacular. Even now at the beginning of the changing colors, nature presents itself in a way that leaves one amazed. Combined with the landscape, it is one of the most beautiful experiences here. If the distance hadn't been so long, I would have loved to drive everything outside the highway. It's just beautiful.

Of course, the speed slows down drastically, and the construction sites also increase considerably. And so, it takes me longer for the last 200 km than for the 300 before. But it was definitely worth it. Edmundston is not a place you necessarily have to see. But I didn't want to drive any further, and there is a possibility here to spend a night in an apartment. And what a contrast to the loveless accommodation yesterday. Even though there's a pickup truck with 2 stoners in the parking lot behind the house.

After a short unpacking, I drive to the bridge here, on the other side of which the United States is located - just a stone's throw away. It's already surreal. So close and yet not allowed in. A customs officer in uniform explains to me that it would not be good if I were to go on the bridge. Because then I would have to present a PCR test again when entering (i.e., coming down from the bridge). I ask where I would have to do that. She says in the USA. I reply that I won't be able to get in there. And with a laugh, she says, that's exactly the problem. I would be trapped in a circle. Totally bizarre.

I decide to end the travel day without any further adventures and stay away from the bridge. Tomorrow I will complete the second circle - after the one in Truro, Nova Scotia - when I return to the St. Lawrence River. Then the last part of my journey clearly begins. The third circle. And I'm very excited about that. It feels a bit like starting the vacation all over again. Because this part is completely unplanned.