My analytical brain can’t resist the urge to look at a few stats from our Grand Gaspé Cycling Tour. Naturally I kept detailed notes on the trip, and Rich was amazed and amused at some of the obscure information I was able to assemble. Here is a sample:

Days and Mileage. We planned to cycle an average of 60 miles a day and take one rest day a week for a overall average of 50 miles per day. In reality, we weren’t very good at taking rest days, but we did take some “rolling rest days” with short mileage. We also cut back on miles when cycling the tough stretches with hills or headwinds.

• 54 total days, 2,354 miles
• 5 rest days with NO cycling
• 43.6 miles per day total, 48 miles per cycling day
• longest day 74 miles (rainy ride to Machias, Maine)
• shortest day 9 miles (finishing day to Exeter, NH)
• 6 days with rain – only one of those was a rest day

Lodging. We hoped to camp 1/3 of the time, use Warm Showers1/3 and stay in motels 1/3. We were disappointed not to be able to camp more, but cut back when each of us got sick and when the weather turned cold and wet. We were pleasantly surprised how well we did with Warm Showers, given that many areas were very sparsely populated.

• 7 nights camping
• 15 nights in Warm Showers homes
• 5 nights in Inns, gîtes or B&Bs
• 26 nights in motels

Repairs. We fared extremely well in this department. Our bikes were trusty steeds indeed.

• 3 flat tires – inner tube replaced (Rich)
• 1 tire ripped – replaced (Rich)
• Slipping gears – derailers fixed (Molly)

Weight we propelled. It wasn’t until the night before the last day of our trip that we thought to ask for a scale to weigh our gear. We knew we were traveling light, but had never quantified it before.

• Molly – 30 lb gear + 27 lb bike = 57 lb
• Rich – 33 lb gear + 30 lb bike = 63 lb

The fun stuff.

• 11 lighthouses visited (we saw a lot more than this)
• 18 ice cream stops (we fell behind on this when it turned cold and we began to substitute soup breaks)
• 7 coffeehouse stops (lattes for me)
• 1,045 pictures taken (keepers)
• 106 blog posts (between the two of us, to date)

Overall rating. No matter how you slice and dice it, it was a fantastic trip.