D Day! This calls for the Lumberjack Special Breakfast: omelette, bacon and toast. Then, we each carry our three “stay dry” bags: one for the sleeping bag, our warm down jacket and our sleeping pad; one for our dry evening clothes to change into once we get to camp each day, and one for our day stuff (solar cream, toilet paper, toque, etc) to be tied to our kayak. We take the kayaks down to the beach and we start loading. Not an easy task as the waterproof cargo compartments are so small we’d need Houdini to fit everything in there. Notwithstanding, after much effort, everything is stowed away. Ready to go? Not so fast, all this work has made us hungry and it’s lunch time. Our kayak guides and cooks, Jessica and Denis, have concocted VEGEPATE sandwiches. ‘What’s that?’ cries Jordan. It’s a mixture of all sorts of veggies with sunflower seeds and soya. ‘Sure tastes good’, he says after the first bite. Even Julia goes for it as she eats her sandwich with a strange smirk. The sun is out but the wind come in and increases in intensity to storm level. Héléna and Denis keep contacting the weather station. After long and arduous discussions with the Coast Guard comes the verdict: SORRY GANG, WE’RE NOT LEAVING TODAY.
We are disappointed but we understand as the waves remind us of Virginia Beach. So be it! Hugo, Francisco, Cass and Julia decide to go swimming. Strangely, the water is warm and we all romp happily in the waves. The rest of the team goes on a tour of the tree houses. Hey! That’s quite high and… swaying! Back on the beach at Cap Jaseux, we call a caucus. JF suggests we do a camping dry run. We’ll set up the tents and sleep on the beach. Wait! Where are the tents? In the Zodiac waiting for us at the campsite where we should be. TOO BAD! We’ll sleep in the log cabins, again.
After a wonderful dinner of sausage and vegetable couscous (no complaints here!), JF builds a nice campfire and we share the reasons why we embarked on this voyage and what we expect to achieve. It was a highly touching moment filled with self-reflection. Breanne tells us she needed to do something by herself, away from her family and that she hopes to overcome her shyness. Émilie says she wanted to share with friends who have survived similar difficulties in an adventure where everyone would be on the same footing. Jessie says her objective is to leave this beach, which has us all laughing. Cass says he has a bet with his parents who keep telling him that he spends all his time in front of his computer. After that, we all go to bed, hoping to leave tomorrow. Wake up call is 6 a.m.