Thursday 21 September 2023---This morning I am alarmed to find that the clutch pedal in the Jetta has sunk to within a couple of inches of the floor. It's necessary to give the car a rolling start down a hill to get it in gear. (Lucky we got put up there.) I had some things in mind to do around Carleton, and more on the way to Percé, but they are out the window. The car's GPS has among its preset categories "VW dealerships" and we find the nearest one is in New Richmond, twenty miles down the road in the direction we are already headed. It's déjà vu all over again: when the clutch cable on my motorcycle broke, I had to ride clutchless to a Kawasaki dealer in New Richmond. I got the cable replaced there, at not too much expense of time or money. Maybe I'll get lucky again.

Not this time: the service manager at the dealership tells me he has no one available to look at my car. He suggests a garage across the road, but it's the same story there. At least the car has become more driveable as it warmed up again. We learn there is a mechanic just outside Percé, and decide to go straight there. We have three full days there, and could do without the car if necessary. And if we're going to be stranded, Percé is where I want to be. It's not a very rational thought--if the car ends up having to be towed, Percé is a long, long way from anywhere. But what other choice do we have, really? Cancel everything and head home, I suppose.

Yannick Cloutier, the mechanic at L'Anse-à-Beaufils, a few miles from Percé, takes a look at my clutch and opines that it might be the master cylinder that is losing pressure. He doesn't have time to work on it, either, but he shows me that I can build up pressure by pumping the clutch a few hundred times. He then declines payment for the ten minutes he's spent with us. You're a good man, Yannick. I'm greatly relieved...for the first time today, I feel confident that we can finish the trip. I'll get the thing fixed when I get home.*

I realize at this point that we are close by Pit Caribou's brewhouse and taproom, so we go for a pint. It's a nice place to sit out on the terrasse, or would be, if it weren't rather cold and blustery. I don't care...the tension I've felt all day is gone.

Check into Hôtel La Normandie and admire the view of Rocher Percé outside our door, in late afternoon light. Go for a pint at Pit Caribou's main pub, then dinner at La Maison du Pêcheur. We have four nights here, with a relaxed agenda.

*The problem turns out to be the slave cylinder, and I'm told it's a common failure on Jettas of that vintage. New parts have been improved to eliminate recurrence, but Volkswagen takes no responsibility for the defect. The slave cylinder is apparently tucked away in the transmission, meaning the whole tranny has to be dropped to get at it. Replacement costs me $1200.