By Clifton Melby
It was August 9, 2015, still dark in the early hours of a cool Autumn Sunday morning. I was eager and excited about my second ride into the Maritimes with the route including both Newfoundland and Labrador, the two provinces I missed on my first visit. On my last ride there, while conversing with a total stranger in Nova Scotia, it seemed to me that I had been more than cordially invited but almost contracted to make this trip. Although it seemed very strange to me at the time, such was his influence.
While on the ferry from North Sydney, Nova Scotia, to Argentia, Newfoundland, through the long dark hours of the night, a strange and haunting incident occurred. I healed from the physical injury of the incident in a few days, but mentally it proved to be a different matter. I had to share this in order to move forward. This was my inspiration to write this book. It is a work based almost entirely on my daily journal entries but also includes some fiction. While continuing on my ride, I began a lengthy healing process with the help of a very strange visitor.
I am happy to say that today, this whole adventure is filed away safely in a good place. I find myself longing for yet one more visit.