It was a quick jaunt into Amqui although I did manage to get distracted by looking for ripe wild strawberries to pick and missed a turn, adding about 500m.

The trail mostly followed dirt roads and atv tracks until just before Amqui, when it became a real trail along a stream and seemed to be in a regional park. Arriving in Amqui, I went to a pharmacy to pick up a few things and then into a grocery store to get some fresh food for the next section. Everything went well at the pharmacy but at the grocery store, my debit card was declined. As I was digging through my pack for my cash and wondering how I was going to pay for my hotel room that night, the woman behind me in line kept asking me where I had come from. I politely told her that I needed to focus on what I was doing because I had lost my credit card and now my debit card wasn’t working. She was very insistent with her questions, but didn’t offer any help. I found my cash and managed to pay for the groceries and get away from the woman who was blind to my distress. Thankfully, I had good cell reception and could use my data to check my bank account. I hadn’t transferred any money into my chequing account before the trip since I wasn’t planning on using it and it turned out that I didn’t have any money in it, explaining why my card was declined. I transferred money in from my savings account feeling relieved that I could pay for my hotel room after all. I headed to the hotel, but it was noonish and I couldn’t check in until 3 pm. I left my bag there and headed out to find some camping stove gas, bug spray (the one I brought was already pretty empty), lunch and check out Amqui. I found a take-out counter where I got a salmon poke bowl and Moroccan salad, which were both individually delicious although not very complimentary. I tried not to feel guilty about eating

the salmon that I had been observing and learning about over the last days…I found some gelato for dessert and then called Mum and Dad from this little pedestrian covered bridge over the river that had some seating areas.

Mum convinced me to speak to a pharmacist about a rash that was developing on my ankles, so after we hung up I went back to the pharmacy to do this and ended up getting a cortisone cream. Then I called Gill and spoke with her and Bea for a bit. I scoped out a café where I could get a real coffee and some pastries for breakfast tomorrow and then went to check-in. There was no laundromat in Amqui so I paid for the hotel to do my laundry. I gave them every piece of clothing I had and only had a towel to wear. I also had my first shower since starting the trail and then set about doing a proper clean of my cook set and water bottles, charging my electronics and organising my food for the next stretch (I had mailed myself a resupply box to the hotel full of the non-perishable foods I had pre-prepared). My clothes were delivered back to me nice and clean at around 6:30 and after getting dressed, I headed out to the local micro-brewery pub for dinner. I ended up getting a burger topped with bacon and cheese with salad and fries on the side and a white beer. I couldn’t finish the plate despite my hiker appetite. Feeling satiated, I headed back to the hotel and watched a bit of TV before heading to bed. I watched a show where a contestant does karaoke, but a few lines into the song, they take away the lyrics. If the contestant gets the missing lyrics correct, they get some money and can move on to the next level of difficulty and try to win even more money. Little did I know that I would have the same TLC song in my head for the next week.