Newfie or Bust by Bernie Howgate

I first came across Bernie Howgate when I picked up this book in a second hand shop. Like most touring cyclists I had never heard of him before since he is seldom mentioned on the internet. It turns out that he doesn't sell his books in stores and you are unlikely to find them anywhere online other then on his web site. Bernie sells most of his books by going door to door and selling them to people who are interested.

Newfie or Bust is one of my favourite bicycle touring books and Bernie is one of my favourite authors. In addition to this book he has written another book about a bicycle world tour (currently out of print but I am hoping to pickup a copy of the next edition) and two others about long distance kayak and hiking adventures including a long walk through Labrador in the winter where he rapidly became known as the "Walking Man". It's no small testament to his writing to say that it motivated me to try my first kayaking adventure by being dropped 4 hours paddling time out in the bush during my Round Lake Huron tour.

Newfie or Bust starts off by telling the story of how Bernie managed to obtain a single-speed rickshaw via the Ambassador of Pakistan for his ride across Canada. He begins his tour a little out of shape but as time passes he crosses the mountains of British Columbia.

When he reaches the prairies unlike most Cross Canada cyclists he sets out across the Northern parts of Saskatchewan and Manitoba. Near Flin Flon he was plagued by Black flies so badly that he took a page from nature and had a mud bath similar to the ones that animals take when bothered by flies. Of course when he reached an unanticipated restaurant a short time later after many days of eating his own food he was strongly invited to have a shower before coming in for a bite to eat.

Bernie enjoys visiting schools along the way to share his traveling adventures including a slide show with youngsters in many of the small towns and villages that he passed through.

In Thunder Bay he experienced the joys of a missing money order at the time when he really needing it for replenishing his food stores.

Like many bicycle tourists Bernie managed to pick up a little extra gear along the way. Unlike most of them it consisted of abandoned treasures like wrenches, a Black and Decker power tool, some screw drivers, a radio, some money and many other items all found along the side of the road.

His journey continued through Quebec, New Brunswick, Prince Edward Island and Nova Scotia. Once again he ventured off the beaten path by taking the long way through Newfoundland including a visit to Labrador.

Newfie or Bust contains numerous hand drawn sketches and very well written descriptions of the places he visited and the people he met. I think one of the nicest aspects of his book is that his words tend to be a bit more direct about his experiences then other book's that have been through more editing cycles.

I really enjoyed his book and in fact I've since purchased and enjoyed the other two books that are currently available on his web site and I've sent a few copies of Newfie or Bust to a few friends of mine as gifts.

I've placed the reference to Bernie's web site here for two reasons.

The first is so that you can go to the site and check out his excellent pictures as well as read some excerpts from his various books and decide for yourself.

The second reason is that I've heard from other authors that often the author makes more money from direct sales than when it's purchased through third parties. Since I enjoyed reading his book I would like him to be sufficiently rewarded so that he can write some more! :)

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