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TRAVEL - CANADA
NADINE ROBINSON
THE URGENCY OF EXPEDITION 51
Steve Butler ’ s KTM1090R purred confidently as he maneuvered through the final stretch of Expedition 51 , through the provinces of Quebec and Labrador , in Canada . The road , a mix of rugged unpaved and paved stretches , twisted and turned , towards a series of tight switchbacks near the towering Manic-5 hydroelectric dam . The urgency of their mission : reaching the Baie-Comeau ferry before the workers ’ strike shut it down in a few hours time .
Behind Steve , his son Blake rode a KTM1290 , Will McMullin ( Blake ’ s brother-in-law ) was on a Triumph Scrambler 1200 , and Will ’ s father Dave McMullin rounded out the procession on a BMW1250GS .
The alternative to making the ferry ? A grueling three-day backtrack to another ferry or an indefinite wait for the strike to end , neither option was appealing .
This six-day journey started months earlier over a weekly family dinner with the pizza oven cranked to 300 degrees Celsius . Blake was telling the guys about having read an article that they paved another stretch of the Quebec-Labrador highway , and he suggested that they needed to get there before it was all paved . Between mouthfuls of homemade barbecue chicken pizza , he outlined that it would mean a trek from their homes in New Brunswick , through four Canadian provinces , including Nova Scotia , Newfoundland and Labrador , and Quebec , testing their endurance .
For Steve and Dave , both seasoned riders , this was an opportunity to bond with their sons , Blake and Will , and experience the raw beauty of the unpaved stretches that have long defined this legendary route . Steve has always been a fan of offroading , and was looking forward to : “ Hiking on two wheels , embracing the challenge , savoring the freedom ,
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