They ask the question as if I am making my way through some dangerous mountain pass.
Never mind that people who live in the Codroy Valley and commute to work also have about a 40 kilometre commute to work each way, if not longer.
In a way I feel sorry for those folks. All they have is the boring old Trans-Canada Highway to navigate. Where is the challenge in that?
If it wasn’t for those spectacular hills, it would be a pretty humdrum commute each day.
No, if I’m going to be on the road for 80 minutes, it might as well be an interesting drive. What other daily commute has a section of road known as ‘the devil’s elbow?’ I want to drive, not sit back with the cruise control set and a coffee in my hand.
If I’m not navigating the 80 odd turns between Margaree and Harbour le Cou, I’m taking in the most spectacular scenery this side of the Codroy Valley.
To those who only go down for a summers drive once a year, it might all seem the same to you. But to a commuter the landscapes are all fairly unique. There are the hills above Isle aux Morts, Otter Bay, the valleys around Grandy’s River, and the barrens on the way to Rose Blanche.
On the odd time that I do catch myself wishing I was home a bit sooner, I try to remember how amazing the landscape seemed the first time I drove down to Rose Blanche.
Sometimes visitors to the coast help me remember that feeling. I will never get tired of watching tourists nearly drive off the road as they come upon Barachois Falls, between Rose Blanche and Burnt Islands.
You can set your watch by it. Any car with out-of-province plates will suddenly brake and turn on their blinker as they come upon the falls.
Waterfalls aren’t something you see everyday, unless you’re lucky enough to have the commute I have.
The icing on the cake is when I finally turn the corner in Rose Blanche and start down the hill. With the lighthouse off to the left and Parsons Point straight ahead, I’m reminded of why I commute.
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