July 31 - From Montreal to Berthierville

The weather report last night was rain this morning but the sun was shining. We started the day with a delicious breakfast at an outdoor cafe. I usually order oatmeal most mornings but never has the presentation of a bowl of oatmeal been so elegant. Leaving Montreal was easy as we followed the route verte 5 signs.

After lunch the clouds moved in and by the time we had traveled only a few miles, we had to seek shelter. The closest shelter was a bakery and we stayed there for over an hour until the thunder and lightning stopped. After staring at the cookies and pies for a long time, we purchased a raspberry pie and I figured out how to carry it in the rain in my pack. We dressed ourselves in rain pants, rain jackets and warmer clothing for the heavy rain, wind and cooler temperature before leaving.

When we arrived at our hotel, we were drenched. Later we found out that if we had waited two hours like the other group, we would not have had to ride in the rain.  Our reward, however, was the raspberry pie that we did not share with the group!