More Madawaska

I know, you've already seen my picture in front of the Madawaska Post Office.

But, like a NASCAR driver, I have supporters to please. You might notice that I am wearing a different shirt than the official trip shirt worn in the earlier post. This shirt is from Chuy's, Ray and my favorite Tex-Mex joint in Austin, Texas. Ray gave me the shirt, and has extracted a pledge from Chuy's that if I send a photo of me wearing a shirt in an exotic location, Chuy's will post it in the restaurant along with the Elvis memorabilia and car parts. Oh, and the fish. The Madawaska Post Office probably doesn't qualify as exotic in a lot of schemes, but I figure it is about as far away from Austin as one can get and still be in the lower 48.

There is a trend here with the shirt. My friend Glenn Tucker and I climbed Mt. Ranier in Washington several (lots) years ago, and I took along a shirt from my favorite Columbia spot, Yesterday's, and had my photo taken on the summit with the shirt displayed on my ice axe. I am happy to say that the photo is displayed in Yesterday's in Five Points in Columbia. In my dotage I didn't think to go get one of the shirts to take on this trip.

I mentioned that Madawaska is planning a Four Corners park with a monument. The photo shows that the monument exists, but the fund raising is for the plaza to lead to the monument.

If you click on the photo of the monument you should be able to enlarge it enough to read the inscription. Madawaska was founded in the mid 1800s by the Acadians. The Acadians are the folks made famous in the epic poem Evangeline. I think the Acadians were French Hugenots, many of whom settled in South Carolina. My long time friend and law partner Cravens Ravenel is a Hugenot, so when next I see him I will quiz him on the Acadian-Hugenot connection. As I recall the story, the Acadians were on the lam from the Inquisition. Cravens will know because he remembers stuff like that. I remember stuff like the 1961 baseball season when Roger Maris and Mickey Mantle were battling to surpass Babe Ruth's single season home run record.

Travelling to Madewaska there was an interesting change in geology, topography and industry. As I reported earlier, eastern Quebec seemed to be the dairy capital of the province. Besides dairy, there were large cleared field, hay I'm guessing, and little timber. The landscape was flat and seemed to be a classic valley created by a mature river system.

Turning to the south, there was an industrial corridor along the highway, nestled among forested hillsides. The valley flood plain gave way to uplifted shale hills. If my recollection of geography is accurate, the area to the south of the current river valley was at one time a lake bed or river delta, the soil of which was compressed into shale over time. Then, some tectonic plate shift turned the shale on edge and created hills.

Stopping for gas on the way to Madawaska I met three members of one of New Brunswick's First Nations. In the states we call our original people Native Americans or Indians. In Canada, they are the First Nations in recognition of the sovereignty they enjoyed prior to the arrival of the Europeans. Natives in Canada are fighting the same battle for preservation of their land and their heritage as tribes are fighting in the states.

Edmundston, New Brunswick has a paper mill. I knew that before I saw the place because of the aroma. Madawaska also has a paper mill. The Madawaska mill produces coated paper for publications such as Time Magazine. I never did identify the source of the aroma of slightly burned toast.

As you can tell, one notices aromas on a motorcycle. Two of my favorites have been the coffee roasting at some point along I-10, and the honeysuckle in Quebec.

I liked Madawaska, and probably would have liked it even if it hadn't been the final corner. Now, it is on to home.

I talked with my sister this afternoon, and she wisely suggested that I stay focused on the ride. I am reminded that most fatalities on Everest are on the way down.