Jazzbeaux Trip from Maine to Nova Scotia (on THE CAT)

[Host Jazzbeau]

This is a blog of the Jazzbeaux trip to Maine and Nova Scotia in July 2024.

 

We drove to Hall Quarry, ME and stayed at Chambers Oceanfront Cottages for two weeks, enjoying our usual round of hiking in Acadia National Park, eating lobster and blueberry pie and other gourmet treats, watching fireworks on July 3 and 4, cheering on the Flamingo Parade in Southwest Harbor, and hosting our children (and, new this year, grandchild!) for a few days.  Then we took THE CAT high-speed car ferry from Bar Harbor, ME to Yarmouth, Nova Scotia and began our trek along the Evangeline Trail, the Ceilidh Trail, and the Cabot Trail; then back from Baddeck, NS to Moncton, New Brunswick and home through Bangor, ME.

 

01 Maine & Nova Scotia Map

 

During the trip, Jazzbelle kept detailed notes and I [Jazzbeau] took lots of pictures.  After returning home, I revised the notes to remove names [to protect the guilty, as we say…] and put it in my voice to avoid confusion.  Jazzbelle became ‘DW’ in internet parlance [‘Dear Wife’].

 

The next blog entries are a day-by-day account of the trip, with a selection of pictures.

 

Enjoy!

 

PS – If you have any questions, please reply to this thread – or email me at jazzbeauster@gmail.com

 

And if you found this blog helpful, here’s a link to all our other travel blogs: jazzbeauxblogs.wordpress.com

[Host Jazzbeau]

June 30–July 13, 2024 – Acadia National Park, Downeast Maine

 

We drove to Hall Quarry, ME and stayed at Chambers Oceanfront Cottages for the two weeks, enjoying our usual round of hiking in Acadia National Park, eating lobster and blueberry pie and other gourmet treats, watching fireworks on July 3 and 4, cheering on the Flamingo Parade in Southwest Harbor, and hosting our children (and, new this year, grandchild!) for a few days.

 

We’ve been going to Acadia every summer for over 40 years, so I don’t tend to take a lot of pictures.  But here are a few highlights of this year’s trip.  [I’m sorry I didn’t do Acadia NP justice this year; for various reasons we didn’t explore it to the usual extent – you can find much better pictures online!]

 

01 Ship Harbor, Acadia NP

 

02 Sea Cove Auto Museum

 

03 sail on Ambergris

 

04 Bear Island Lighthouse

 

05 fog bank

 

06 IOD sailboat race in fog

 

07 Otter Cliffs, Acadia NP

 

The Abby Aldrich Rockefeller Garden, Eyrie Terrace, and Little Long Pond are part of a former estate donated by David and Peggy Rockefeller to the Land & Garden Preserve and now open to the public.

 

 

08 Abby Aldrich Rockefeller Garden

 

09 Eyrie Terrace

 

10 Eyrie Terrace

 

11 Little Long Pond

 

Asticou Azalea Garden is also now owned by the Land & Garden Preserve, as is Thuya Garden [which we didn’t visit this year].  Between all these public gardens and several annual ‘open garden days’ at various private ‘cottages,’ the Acadia NP area is a gardeners’ delight!

 

12 Asticou Azalea Garden

 

The social highlight of the season in Southwest Harbor is the Flamingo Festival, a whimsical, lighthearted and decidedly pink weekend with many free activities, sponsored by the Harbor House community service organization.  Most activities are free.

 

The big fundraising event is the Polo & Yacht Club Cocktail Party [the only membership requirements for this lighthearted club is that you can't own a polo pony or a megayacht!]

 

The highlight for us is always the Flamingo Parade, which has been held for over 25 years to honor Don Featherstone (who died in 2015), the inventor of the ubiquitous pink lawn ornament, and his wife Nancy.  [We’ll miss this going forward, as we will be changing our time in Maine to accommodate family plans.]

 

13 Featherstone Original Pink Flamingos - accept no substitutes!

 

14 Southwest Harbor Flamingo Parade

 

15 Southwest Harbor Flamingo Parade

 

16 Southwest Harbor Flamingo Parade

 

17 Southwest Harbor Flamingo Parade

 

18 Southwest Harbor Flamingo Parade

 

19 Southwest Harbor Flamingo Parade

 

20 Southwest Harbor Flamingo Parade

 

21 Southwest Harbor Flamingo Parade

 

22 Southwest Harbor Flamingo Parade

 

23 Southwest Harbor Flamingo Parade

 

24 Southwest Harbor Flamingo Parade

[Host Jazzbeau]

Sunday July 14, 2024 – Bar Harbor to Yarmouth, Nova Scotia on THE CAT

 

The hardest part of visiting Maine is checking out of our cottage by 9:00 am.  [I don’t even like to be up at 9 am!]  But this time was a little easier because we weren’t starting the long drive home and the ferry wasn’t until 3 pm – so we could just pack the car and leave without taking time for breakfast.  [I’m grateful for any small favors, time-wise...]

 

We drove to the ferry terminal in Bar Harbor where we checked in for our international trip on THE CAT high-speed car ferry to Yarmouth, Nova Scotia (Canada).  Passports verified, the clerk told us to return to the terminal to queue up between 1:30 and 2:00 pm.

 

We drove into town and were able to buy a hard-to-find Xmas gift.  We then walked to the Church of the Holy Redeemer for 10 am Mass, celebrated with Father Matt Temple (a visiting Priest we have seen often in Acadia).

 

Afterwards we hurried over to Jordan’s Restaurant on Cottage Street for their famous blueberry pancakes.  We chatted with one of the family owners and enjoyed our PCs.

 

With time to spare we decided to take a farewell drive along the Acadia National Park Loop Road.  We drove to the Gorham Mtn parking lot and walked along the Ocean Path trail near Otter Point.  It was a hot day, so a short walk was all we opted for.

 

We then drove by the Hulls Cove Visitor Center [still trying to get the elusive 50th State for the ‘plate game’!  No alohas, sadly...] before returning to the ferry terminal.

 

It took about a half hour to get checked in and parked on THE CAT before we could go to the top deck’s enclosed public area.  Once you leave your car, you may not return until the ship is docking at the final destination.  We brought along warm jackets, snacks, reading materials, Sudoku…  Once up top, we had to decide where we wanted to settle.  Drawing on our cruising experiences, we might have done better sitting aft than right up front as there was nothing to see except water and the ride is always more turbulent at the front of a boat especially up top.  It wasn’t too bad as long as we were seated, but trying to walk around was challenging.  Mercifully there were some handrails, but using the toilet facilities proved to be awkward...

 

To help pass the time, THE CAT had a number of TV screens suspended across the front of the cabin showing the European soccer playoffs with no sound.  (The cabin at the rear had similar screens but they were showing a movie.)  Also up front we had live entertainment.  A man and woman probably our age were singing songs by Gordon Lightfoot and others from that era.  They left their empty guitar case open and on display for donations.  There were two food/beverage bars set up and a gift shop, of course.

 

The fare for crossing to Yarmouth was around $200 each.  By mentioning our AAA membership, I earned $20 OBC which I used for a beer and some cookies – and, because they don’t give change from the gift certificates, a postcard of THE CAT.

 

01 THE CAT

 

We arrived in Yarmouth on time but it took over an hour to get into our cars, sit and wait till we could even start the engines, disembark from the ferry and then wait in queues to get through Immigration & Customs.  We arrived at our hotel, the Tru by Hilton Yarmouth, at 8 pm.  [We lost an hour, because Nova Scotia is one hour ahead of Maine]

 

The restaurant I had in mind was already closed, so the desk clerk recommended Rudder’s Seafood and Brew Pub which was back near the dock.  [Luckily not a great distance]  We had no problem getting a table, but they were very busy so service was slow.

 

I ordered haddock with lobster cream sauce with fries and a small house salad.  The entrée was good, the salad uninteresting.  DW had a big salad covered in nuts and raspberry vinaigrette, which was good.  But her entrée of mussels smelled fishy even before she removed cover.  She tried eating some but they just didn’t taste good.  The waitress apologized, took them away, offered a different entrée (no thanks) and removed the charge from our bill.  DW ate some of my fries.  [Just as well; I had so many fries on this part of the trip that I gained 5 pounds!]

 

We returned to the Tru.  This brand is a somewhat stripped down design but it works well.  The simple room design makes things more accessible and visible, which is great for an overnight.  The room was clean and neat, the bathroom immaculate.  Our night was quiet and comfortable.

[Host Jazzbeau]

Monday July 15, 2024 – Smuggler’s Cove & Port-Royal

 

Breakfast buffet was served from 6-10 am in the lobby.  There were chafing dishes with scrambled eggs, hashed browns, bacon.  There was a fast, automated pancake maker like the one we first used in Florence, Italy on our last trip.  There was a variety of toppings.  There were bagels, cereal, fruit, juices, milk, coffee, tea…  [So all in all it was better than a Hampton Inn and about equal to a Hilton Garden Inn breakfast.]

 

One disappointing thing was the pot marked hot water was anything but HOT and tasted of old, stale coffee.

 

Our only other complaint about this Tru was that the parking lot lighting was not on the night we checked in.  We mentioned it to the clerk upon checkout.  She was surprised.

 

Today was a sunny day that was in high 70s to mid 80s.

 

We were driving from Yarmouth to Annapolis Royal today with a number of stops along the way, following the Evangeline Trail along La Cote Acadienne (Acadian Coast).  This stretch was populated by descendants of the French who resettled here after the Acadian expulsion of 1755.  The place names, the soaring Catholic churches, and the proud Acadian flags (French tricolor of blue, white, red with a single yellow star) announce that you’re in the largest Francophone enclave in Nova Scotia.

 

Our first site was Smuggler’s Cove Provincial Park where  walkways lead to great bluff-top views of the Bay of Fundy, rocky shoreline, the cave where rum was smuggled from the Caribbean.

 

01 Smuggler’s Cove

 

02 Smuggler’s Cove

 

03 Smuggler’s Cove

 

Next on our list was Église catholique Sainte-Marie, the largest and tallest wooden church in North America.  Unfortunately, it is in a state of disrepair and was closed when we stopped there.

 

04 Église catholique Sainte-Marie

 

We drove down the road to Rapure Acadienne to try their famous rappie pie (chicken and potato) but they only took cash [Canadian of course] and the woman warned us it would not be hot.  This small building is actually a bakery factory that supplies local stores and restaurants, and the take-out counter is just a side-hustle.

 

Unexpectedly we came upon the Church of St. Bernard farther up the road.  The large stone church had its doors wide open and a sign outside which read ART so we went in.  This Catholic church had seen its numbers drop from hundreds in attendance to 40 and they could no longer stay afloat.  The bishop was petitioned and the church was deconsecrated and sold.  Over this summer there is a fundraiser to fund some necessary repairs.  Artists have donated their works and spend time in the former sacristy trying to sell them.

 

We drove on to Digby and ate at the Fundy Restaurant where we shared an entrée of famous Digby scallops.  We each got four large scallops, fries and a mess of veggies.  The scallops were the best, the sweetest ever!!!  From where we sat we could see the scallop boats coming in.  Bigger, fancier than the lobster boats of Maine.  Large refrigerator trucks were waiting for them to unload.

 

[After the cash-only rappie pie incident, we went to a local bank ATM and got some Canadian money.]

 

Next stop was Port-Royal National Historic Site, in Granville Ferry, NS.  The French colony of Port Royal, centered on the habitation, was the first successful attempt by Europeans to establish a permanent settlement in what is today known as Canada.  The habitation's active period was from 1605 to 1613.  Although the European settlement of Port Royal persevered, with some interruptions, the habitation's role as the focus of the colony ended with its destruction in 1613 by English forces from the Colony of Virginia.  The Government of Canada agreed to rebuild the Habitation as a historic site and construction took place between 1939 and 1941.

 

See https://www.novascotia.com/see-do/attractions/port-royal-national-historic-site/1462

 

The habitation, which is designed as a stockade fort, is really well done as a tourist site.  Signage in English and French is comprehensive, and there are several interpreters who are happy to explain the site and answer questions.

 

We followed the booklet and saw all 18 labelled rooms and areas, including the entrance [defended by a Musketeer – Athos? Porthos? Jazzbos?]; the forge, whose window panes are animal skin; the kitchen and bake shop; the cannon platform; the common room; the gentlemen’s residences; the storeroom; the palisade; the well, and some modern bat houses.

 

 

05 Port-Royal Habitation

 

06 Port-Royal Entrance

 

07 Port-Royal Forge

 

08 Port-Royal Forge

 

09 Port-Royal skin window panes

 

10 Port-Royal Kitchen

 

11 Port-Royal Bake Shop

 

12 Port-Royal Cannon Platform

 

13 Port-Royal Cannon Platform

 

14 Port-Royal Common Room

 

15 Port-Royal Gentlemen's Residences

 

16 Port-Royal Storeroom (upstairs)

 

17 Port-Royal Palisade

 

18 Port-Royal Well

 

19 Port-Royal Bat houses

 

We left there and hoped to visit the Annapolis Royal Generating Station but found a sign apologizing for their being closed to the public even though they had planned on having their interpretive center in operation for July.  [This early green-power plant stopped operating in 2019 when a crucial component failed and replacement was too expensive – an omen for offshore wind farms?]

 

20 Annapolis Royal Generating Station

 

We checked into the Annapolis Royal Inn.  It is an old motel with mismatched furniture, and huge horse flies that will buzz in if you don’t slam the door immediately (there were at least a half dozen fly carcasses on the floor near the AC).  However, you can park right in front of your room.

 

We had dinner in town in Café Restaurant Composé.  I had lobster risotto and DW had Thai chili lobster.  Both were delicious, flavorful, but a little short on lobster.  We shared what they called a raspberry flan but there was no custard in this dessert: it was a dense gingerbready cake with raspberry jam and almonds.

 

We ate in the dining room adjacent to the ‘solarium’.  The diners out there were freezing despite some glass enclosures.

 

After we finished, we took the boardwalk path to explore the downtown a bit.

[Host Jazzbeau]

Tuesday July 16, 2024 – Annapolis Gardens & Grand-Pré

 

We had breakfast in a large room off the motel office area.  There was an employee hired specifically for that purpose.  It was served from 6-10 am.  They advertised hot breakfast, but the only hot thing other than tea and coffee was waffles if you used their waffle maker.  And there was a toaster for bread/bagels.  Otherwise, they provided individual boxes of cereal, yogurt, hard boiled eggs, watermelon wedges, apples, biscuits, juice boxes, small cheese packets.  [We survived]

 

It was going to be a hot day.  Already 80, it would reach 89.  DW walked around the grounds.  Then we packed up and headed five minutes away to Annapolis Royal Historic Gardens showcasing gardening methods, designs and materials representing more than 400 years of local history.

 

It is located on 17 acres, where over 1,800 species and cultivars of plants are displayed.  Because of our timing in mid-July and the recent extreme heat, we missed the roses at their peak.  There was a reconstructed Acadian house based on pre-deportation 1671 designed using evidence from local archaeological excavations, historic dykes that reclaimed arable land from the salt water of the Bay of Fundy, and a cute garden gnome.  Among specialty areas, we saw the Governor’s Garden, the Victorian Garden, the Knot Garden – none at their best in this hot weather.

 

01 Annapolis Royal Historic Gardens

 

02 Annapolis Royal Historic Gardens

 

03 Acadian House

 

04 Acadian House

 

05 Dykes

 

06 Gnome

 

07 Gnome House

 

08 Governor's Garden

 

We drove on to Wolfville where we had lunch in Just Us! Wolfville Café.  Part of an old theatre lobby, it is basically a coffee house with ready-made sandwiches, simple pastries, coffee and tea, water, Italian sodas (I ordered raspberry and really liked it).  The sandwiches were okay.  I had a Reuben but even when grilled it did not warm up sufficiently.  DW had chicken salad which she did not want warmed, but it was chock full of scallions.

 

We drove down the road to the Tattingstone Inn where we would spend the night.  We checked in but as it was not yet 4 pm, we couldn’t go to our room.  That was fine as it gave us a chance to see where it was (#9 was in a building separate from the main house so it was entry level—no stairs) and to make a reservation time for breakfast the next morning.

 

We headed off to the Grand-Pré National Historic Site.  Added to UNESCO’s list of World Heritage Sites in 2012, it memorializes the expulsion of the Acadians by the British in 1755.  The tragic story of these neutral French descended residents (neither siding with the British nor the French) is retold at the visitor center through artifacts and an innovative multimedia presentation that depicts Le Grand Dérangement from both a civilian and military perspective.  The latter is shown in a wraparound theater that’s modeled on a ship’s interior and is very touching.

 

09 Grand-Pré National Historic Site

 

10 Le Grand Dérangement

 

A bronze statue of Evangeline, the title character of Longfellow’s tear-jerking epic poem, stands outside a memorial stone church that contains Acadian genealogical records and a beautiful stained-glass window.

 

11 Evangeline

 

12 Memorial Church

 

13 Memorial Church Window

 

The church is the main focus of this site.  We were expecting a reconstruction similar to the Port-Royal Habitation, but the only other ‘historic’ building is the blacksmith’s forge, on the same lot as the potager, a vegetable and herb garden.  This plot overlooks the namesake grand-pré (great meadow).

 

14 Forge

 

15 Forge

 

16 Forge

 

17 Potager

 

18 Le grand-pré (meadow)

 

Don’t be fooled by the collection of buildings well beyond the visitor center with several paths leading to the center.  These are not reconstructions of houses from the time of the diaspora, but a cross between a tent and a rustic cabin known as oTENTik (available for rent to the hardy – porta potties were located at some distance (at right)!]

 

19 oTENTiks

 

Back in the Visitor Centre we examined the small exhibits, and noticed a modern art exhibit.

 

20 Visitor Center Art Exhibit

 

21 Visitor Center Art Exhibit

 

22 Visitor Center Art Exhibit

 

23 Visitor Center Art Exhibit

 

We returned to the Inn and finished checking in.  The room was nicely appointed but I had trouble getting the shower to turn on.  The desk clerk came over to demonstrate.  She was a willing and helpful young woman [and helpful because she was willing to pull on it much harder than I dared!]

 

We drove to the Old Orchard Inn to dine in the Acadian Room.  Although the hostess could not find our reservation, she welcomed us into the spacious dining room and seated us at a window table.  We had a pleasant young waiter.

 

I started with fried calamari, lightly seasoned and tossed with fresh garlic, chili, anchovies and butter.  DW had a roasted beet salad with local whipped feta, dressed with balsamic pistachio dukkha on a bed of arugula.  We both ordered the Digby scallops, seared and served with a warm bacon/red cabbage and dulse vinaigrette.  They came with carrots, broccoli, zucchini, peppers and a choice of potatoes.  I chose fries; DW roasted.  The scallops were nice, but not so sweet as those in Digby yesterday.  [Seafood is always best when you can still see the boat it came in on.]

 

We walked around the parking lot after dinner and then returned to the inn, only minutes away.  The space left for our car was tight.  DW backed in and could barely exit the van.  [She folded the side view mirrors back for safety – and all was well in the morning.]

 

It was quiet at the Inn.  The bed was comfortable, but some might have needed a small ladder or step stool to get in.

[Host Jazzbeau]

Wednesday July 17, 2024 – Wolfville to Mabou

 

The van was still in the tight assigned parking place so DW moved it to one of the numerous Visitor spots.

 

There was evidence of recent rain.  The weather was overcast most of the day and stayed in the high 70s.

 

We walked over to the inn for our 9:30 breakfast reservation and were greeted by the owner.  She seated us in the nicely appointed dining room and brought us the menu.  I got Eggs Benedict, served on potato pancakes instead of English muffins, and coffee.  DW got the traditional offering of two poached eggs (perfectly cooked) and three links of sausage.  The waitress also brought her apple juice, an empty bowl for her own cereal and a small pitcher of milk.

 

Today was going to be a big driving day (240 miles), so we started at the nearby Irving station and filled the gas tank – to the tune of $82 Canadian.  Ouch!  $1.748 a liter.  That’s about twice as much as we pay at home.  The gas prices were pretty uniform throughout Nova Scotia—all in range between $1.74 to $1.76.

 

The only major road takes you from Wolfville on the north shore of Nova Scotia southeast almost to Halifax (on the south shore) before angling back up northeast to Truro (back on the north shore), then finally goes basically east to Antigonish and Port Hawkesbury where a short causeway goes over the Cape Breton Island and the road follows the north shore to Mabou.

 

DW drove the first 120 miles then I took over for the final 40 or so before our stop for lunch at Little Christo’s Pizzeria and Eatery in Antigonish.  We were the only customers for a short time, then were joined by a family of three.

 

I went for a personal pizza, Italian style with sausage that had a spicy kick to it.  I ate every bit, and had a can of Coke [to keep me awake for further driving duties if called upon].  DW got a large spinach salad layered with sliced almonds, mushrooms, craisins and shredded Mozzarella cheese with a creamy poppyseed dressing.  (Way too much cheese and dressing!)

 

We popped into the local drug store (the size of a CVS) and checked prices on a few items.  No bargains!  [even with the exchange rate]

 

DW drove the rest of the way (70 miles) to Mabou in Cape Breton.  We were now on the Ceilidh Trail, famous for traditional Cape Breton Scottish music, which until recently [the creation of the causeway that opened up the island to the world] was the major source of entertainment in every family.

 

We checked into the Mabou River Inn.  The young, strong desk clerk carried our two bags up to our room.  The design of this motel was like a raised ranch house, with entry to Reception in the middle and the two floors of rooms for rent above and below.

 

Our room had a king size bed, full sized sofa, mini fridge, TV.  There was a large bathroom.  On our floor was a communal lounge area with large couches and a big flat screen TV and a long table with 6 chairs for games, cards…

 

On the bottom level, there was a small coffee room open 24/7 where you could make yourself a cuppa.  A few doors down was a laundry room which had coin slots for operation.  And at the far end and down more steps was a rec room with a ping pong table and exercise machines.

 

We took a short nap and then went to dinner at the Red Shoe Pub.  Arriving just after 7 pm, we missed the entertainment (a married singing duo) and the crowds.  We found a table where we wouldn’t freeze to death from the hyperactive AC.

 

I ordered fish and chips with a red cabbage slaw.  I liked it.  DW got salmon with a cream sauce on top along with small roasted potatoes and a sauté of vegetables (cabbages, carrots, onions).  The salmon was nice but she could do without all the cream sauces and the oil used on the potatoes…

 

DW drove back to the inn and then walked over to the small shrine next door.  It was locked up but she could see through the clear glass door.  The name was something like Our Lady of Sorrow.  There was a separate building housing a gift shop and washrooms.

 

[no photos today – too much driving!]

[Host Jazzbeau]

Thursday July 18, 2024 – The Cabot Trail & Skyline

 

We toddled down to breakfast by 9:00 (it was served between 7:30 and 9:30).  We could help ourselves to coffee, tea, yogurt, but an employee came to our table to take our orders for hot items.  We both had poached eggs and sausage and I also got toast.  DW got a bowl for her own cereal, and milk to pour on it.  She also got fruit juice.

 

Check out was 11 and we had the car packed by then and bid farewell to the owners’ black dog.

 

We had only 80 miles to drive in Cape Breton today—but the road was not an interstate and there was some rain, and some fog.  But there was not much traffic.  Temps were in low 70s.

 

DW drove over 50 miles to the Chéticamp Visitor Centre in Cape Breton Highlands National Park, where we bought a park pass (two seniors for a day and a half at a total cost of $15.50 Canadian) and got a map and advice from the park employee.

 

Cape Breton Highlands National Park is one of the finest in Canada and lies at the northern tip of Cape Breton Island.  One can hike, bike – or enjoy it by just driving from Chéticamp in the west to Ingonish in the east.  The landscape encompasses heath bogs, a dry rocky plateau, a high taiga, rugged cliffs, mountains, beautiful shores, forests of hardwoods and conifers which act as a wildlife sanctuary for deer, bears [!] – and amazing views from many look-offs.

 

We backtracked a bit to buy sandwiches at the Aucoin Bakery (less than $12 for 2) which we decided we’d eat at a scenic overlook [sorry, look-off].  So DW drove back into the park and started on the Cabot Trail, pulling over at the first elevated pullout.  I took photos, and then we ate lunch.

 

The Cabot Trail is the name of the route that traverses a horseshoe over 180 miles in length, with 66 of them in the national park.

 

01 Cabot Trail look-off

 

On we went to the Skyline Trailhead.  The young rangers who greeted us upon arrival checked our paid receipt and warned that there would be little to see with the current weather situation.  We parked near the trailhead and watched the rain hit our windshield.  We reclined our seats and decided naps were in order.  A wise choice.

 

Around 3:30 the rain stopped so we got ourselves ready and headed out for the four mile return hike along a dirt/gravel path with some steps and boardwalks.  The goal was two miles out to the various levels of viewing platforms.  We met lots of other hikers returning, who said there was no view.  However, when we reached the first view point, we could see the water and some of the mountains to our left.

 

02 Skyline Trail

 

03 Skyline Trail

 

04 Skyline Trail

 

05 Skyline Trail

 

06 Skyline Trail

 

07 Skyline Trail

 

DW stayed up top and I descended to take photos.  Suddenly the weather changed and it was raining with fierce winds.  I made it to the end [foolishly, I’m told...] but couldn’t take pictures at that point.  I struggled back up to where DW was waiting, and as we headed back the nasty weather subsided.  But at that point the reality hit that it was all uphill from here!  Not strenuous, but enough for your body to know after two miles that you still had to do the same two in reverse to reach the parking lot.  A little over one mile up, we found a bench.  I sat while DW finished her sandwich from lunch [she wasn’t less tired, but was afraid that if she sat down she wouldn’t want to get up again].  On we went and finally saw our red van waiting for us.  Hallelujah!

 

We had been lured to hiking this trail by possible wildlife sightings of moose, bald eagles, bears, boreal birds…  We encountered a robin and a few slugs on the path.  No dogs, as they are not permitted.

 

We drove back to Chéticamp to find our hotel, stopping once at a scenic overview as the view had opened up a bit.

 

08 Cabot Trail look-off

 

Once back in town, we found The Archie & Isidore Hotel.  Hotel is a strange name for it, as there is no staff on duty at any time [they call it “self check-in”]  We were happy to be in Suite #2 on the main floor so we had no stairs to deal with. An outside ramp took us from the dirt parking lot to the front porch and main door.  Our room was compact, very clean, eclectically furnished.  And we seemed to have a resident house fly.  Bottled water, canned flavored seltzers, yogurts, candy and granola bars were gratis.  There was also a small exercise room and a kitchen/family room/business center.  However, this was the first place on this trip that breakfast was not included, and checkout was at 10 am.

 

We had dinner at L’Abri Café.  We were led to a table with a view of the water.  Good thing we had a reservation, as the tables were all full.  It was strange that there was no AC, nor was there a fan or a way to open a window – so it was kind of warm and stuffy.

 

We shared a summer salad of arugula, chopped walnuts, fresh strawberries.  As usual I ate less than a quarter and DW the rest after requesting more dressing [I only eat salad to live...]  We both had Chicken Tikka Masala, a spicy Indian dish with crème fraiche, rice, and Naan bread.  I also had sauteed broccolini.  It was all very tasty, and remained so for hours afterwards.  [Cue the Curry parody of Ring of Fire...]

 

We exited the café between rain showers and mercifully made it to the van before a deluge struck.

 

I had thought of adjourning to The Doryman pub for some live Cape Breton music, but between the rain and the tiring hike we decided to head back to the Archie…, where we had to sit in the van for quite a while until the rain let up enough for us to run inside.

[Host Jazzbeau]

Friday July 19, 2024 – The Cabot Trail and Middle Head

 

As we were on our own for breakfast, we checked out of the hotel, loaded the van and left it parked at The Archie while we walked to Restaurant Evangeline, two doors down.  We ordered the senior breakfast—one egg, meat (I had bacon, DW sausage).  It also came with toast and hash browns but DW declined.  She got a glass of milk for her own cereal.

 

Back to our van, we did a short visit to the church on the other side of the Archie.  Église Saint-Pierre et Saint-Joseph Chéticamp is one of few stone churches on the island and is chock full of statues.

 

Next stop was Petro Canada to gas up.  It was the only gas station in town and then halfway through the Cabot Trail. $85.25!  Cost per liter was $1.795.

 

DW headed for the Cabot Trail and repeated the drive from yesterday up to Skyline, which had great visibility today.  On the way there one of the most striking natural phenomena is La Grande Falaise (the great cliff).

 

01 La Grande Falaise

 

Driving the Cabot Trail from Chéticamp to Pleasant Bay “is the most impressive stretch of one of the world’s most spectacular drives, with the highway clinging to the shoreline and then climbing steeply along oceanfront cliffs to viewpoints miles away from the visitors center.”

 

Continuing the drive we encountered twisting roads, and steep grades of descent making us put the van into low gear.  We stopped at a number of scenic overlooks, as today’s weather provided clear views of the Maine-like coast.  Nova Scotia is heavily treed, especially with evergreens.

 

02 Cabot Trail look-off

 

03 Cabot Trail look-off

 

04 Cabot Trail look-off

 

05 Veterans Monument look-off

 

06 Fishing Cove look-off

 

07 Fishing Cove look-off

 

08 MacKenzie Mountain – Highland Plateau look-off

 

09 MacKenzie Mountain – Highland Plateau look-off

 

10 North Mountain - Aspy Fault look-off

 

At the recommendation of the employee who sold us our pass yesterday, we drove a loop outside the park from South Harbour to Neil’s Harbour to be able to be able to see Aspy Bay and the Atlantic Ocean.

 

11 White Point Road

 

12 Cabot Trail

 

Also at her encouragement, we stopped at Green Cove and were delighted we did.  This is an unusual overview as you can walk down steps out over a boardwalk and up more steps to a stunning rock formation.  If there is one thing DW likes to do it’s climb on rocks and these lured her down and out onto them as she marveled at their beautiful colors and geologic dike formations, with shades of pink and blue with white striped dikes iridescent in some places.  Absolutely beautiful and alluring.  She could have stayed there for a long time scampering over these gorgeous stones.  And in their crevices, there was the occasional deep purple wildflower.

 

13 Green Cove

 

14 Green Cove

 

15 Green Cove

 

16 Green Cove

 

17 Green Cove

 

18 Green Cove

 

19 Green Cove

 

Pulling ourselves away, we walked back to the parking lot and drove farther east on the Cabot Trail.  We finally came to our hiking destination for the day, the Middle Head Trail.  It is adjacent to the vast grounds of the privately owned Keltic Lodge at the Highlands.

 

Before beginning the hike, we had an impromptu lunch of peanut butter and crackers in the van, with doors and windows open.  But that required our shooing bees out as soon as they flew in.

 

We opted to do the extra loop at the beginning of the hike, because it promised a number of vantage points to get good photos.  Not so!  All the trees had grown in.  Completing that section, we considered going on to the lookout point which other hikers said had really good views – but they also warned us about steep ups and downs – and after trying a short segment we decided to take the straight path back to the parking lot.  That side did provide quite a few places to take pictures.

 

20 Middle Head Trail

 

21 Middle Head Trail

 

22 Middle Head Trail [in the distance is the part we didn't hike]

 

23 Middle Head Trail

 

24 Middle Head Trail

 

25 Middle Head Trail

 

26 Middle Head Trail

 

Returning to the car, DW drove out of the Keltic Lodge property and to the final national park gate and the Ingonish Visitor Center.  We availed ourselves of the facilities and DW drove to our hotel for the night, Telegraph House in Baddeck.  We checked in and unloaded our bags from the van.  The room was spacious but basic with two large beds.

 

We had a 6 pm reservation in their Cable Room restaurant, and received attentive service from our waiter, Judy.  The food was very good.  Farm to table!  I began with the special soup of the day—potato leek [it was just as I remember the potage du jour from my student days in France]  DW had their salad which had fresh cranberries and maple dusted walnuts, lots of cut up greens, carrot swirls and strawberry vinaigrette dressing.  We both ordered the Risotto Cremoso with meat from half of a lobster, accompanied by rainbow carrots, beet purée and a few snow peas.  Yum!  Too full for dessert and in a hurry, we asked Judy for the check and DW requested a cup of milk to go for her breakfast cereal.  It was put in a paper coffee cup and added to the bill.

 

Why is the hotel called Telegraph House and its restaurant the Cable Room?  [I hear you ask]  Baddeck is home to the Alexander Graham Bell National Historic Site, which we visited our first time in Baddeck, and Telegraph House was once a telegraph office that sent some of the first transatlantic messages.  You can even stay in the room that Bell used when he was a guest here – furnished exactly as it was in 1880.  [We preferred a more modern room in the newer motel building.]

 

We freshened up in our room and walked quickly about a half block past the hotel to St. Michael’s Hall for the Baddeck Gathering Ceilidh.  This Gaelic word sounds like KALEY.  It means a social gathering or party but usually means more than that.  Now people expect dancing, music and great company.  Everyone can take part, young or old, experienced dancers or beginners or those with two left feet.

 

We were entertained for almost two hours by a father and daughter – Michael MacNeil (on fiddle) and Abigail MacDonald (on piano and dancing) – playing jigs, reels, marches…. The daughter, a talented young woman, did many of the introductions, played piano and guitar, sang, wrote a Gaelic song, and gave a demonstration of step dancing…

 

And she can’t read music!  She heard the music in her family home every night, and learned to play what she heard.  Actually, her syncopated rhythms gave it added texture.  It was very entertaining, and when she invited us to sing along to The Fields of Athenry I was able to join in.  [I had learned it in Galway, along with the Curry parody of Ring of Fire mentioned above.]  I received compliments from our neighbors and from the young woman.  Many of us were tapping our feet, clapping our hands…  It was well worth the $15 admission fee, and that included Cape Breton tea (or bottled water) and a local oat cake.

 

These Ceilidhs are held every night at 7:30 in St. Michael’s Hall.  I would think there are some evenings where audience members are up dancing.

[Host Jazzbeau]

Saturday July 20, 2024 – Joggins Fossil Cliffs

 

Since the Telegraph House did not provide breakfast (other than coffee in the reception area), I went across the street to the Highwheeler Café & Bakery for a traditional breakfast of bacon, scrambled egg and too much toast with too little see-through strawberry jelly.  DW had her own cereal in our hotel room.

 

We packed up and were out of our room by 10 am and retraced many of our miles to the causeway, where we had a long wait while the gates came down and the bridge swung open to allow a sailboat through.  We soon reached a 4-lane highway, keeping us from getting stuck behind slow moving vehicles.  DW drove 130+ miles for over 2+ hours to Plymouth, where we gassed up at an Esso for $1.744/liter for a total of $71.73; then I drove for a while until we got close to our first site for the day: Joggins Fossil Cliffs.  Then DW took over again so I could navigate the tricky bit at the end.

 

Today while driving we actually saw our first police car on a major roadway in Nova Scotia.  It was unmarked, manned but he did not move.  Drivers are pretty cautious here but they don’t follow the speed limits any more than in the US.  [This was lucky for us, because it always took a bit of mental math to translate the kph road signs to our car’s mph-only speedometer.]

 

Joggins Fossil Cliffs is famous for Coal-Age fossils, i.e. from the Carboniferous Era 360 to 300 million years ago.  These fossils were embedded in sandstone, and are continually uncovered by erosion caused by the Bay of Fundy’s surging tides (the highest in the world: over 50 feet!).  We could see fossil specimens in the visitor center, and outside in the sea cliffs themselves.

 

At 3 pm we were joined the half-hour tour down 80 steps and onto the rocky beach, led by a knowledgeable young guide.  She passed around smaller rocks for us to see and handle and then pointed out larger ones on the shore and in the cliff.  The area was littered with stones but getting caught taking any could incur a $2000 fine.  Hands off!!!  After her time with us, we were free to roam the area on our own and come back to her in the center with any additional questions.  I did ask another guide who was still down on the beach about certain smaller specimens.  She was very engaging and remained a while.

 

Then we lugged ourselves up the 80 steps and inside to explore the visitor centre.

 

01 Joggins Fossil Cliffs

 

02 Joggins Fossil Cliffs

 

03 Joggins Fossil Cliffs

 

04 Joggins Fossil Cliffs

 

05 Joggins Fossil Cliffs

 

06 Joggins Fossil Cliffs

 

07 Joggins Fossil Cliffs

 

08 Joggins Fossil Cliffs

 

09 Joggins Fossil Cliffs

 

10 Joggins Fossil Cliffs

 

Back to the van and DW drove the rest of the way through Nova Scotia and into New Brunswick to Moncton where we were staying the night at Chateau Moncton by Wyndham.  We had to wait in the lobby until our room was ready – after 6 pm.  I noticed that they offer late check-out options, and I’m guessing the previous guest had taken advantage.  We couldn’t be switched to a different room because I had selected this one for its view of the Tidal Bore later that evening.

 

The Tidal Bore was due at 10:02 pm, so we had time for dinner.  We walked about half a mile to St. James’ Gate.  Although it was named after the Guinness brewery in Dublin, it is not a typical Irish pub.  First, it is decorated with walls of law books, reflecting a former life for the building.  Second, it has more elevated food than the typical pub grub.

 

We shared a really good salad full of greens, roasted beets, the pub’s own ‘Boursin’ cheese, walnuts and blueberry vinaigrette.  I ordered a beef tenderloin with mashed potatoes and roasted zucchini.  DW went for Kung Pao Chicken, ‘extra spicy’.  We both enjoyed every bit of our entrées, so it was good to walk back to the hotel.

 

We were back in plenty of time to see the Tidal Bore, which arrived around 15 minutes ahead of schedule.  Good thing I was at the window and on the alert.  [But it was too dark to film.  Thankfully there would be another in the morning.]

 

[Things we noticed along the drive today:  some solar panel installations, but not farms of them; occasional, small clusters of wind turbines; Quonset hut style outbuildings – initially designed for military use during WWI, they’re now used for a variety of purposes from residential garages, workshops, and storage, to large scale barns, factories and warehouses.]

[Host Jazzbeau]

Sunday July 21, 2024 – The Tidal Bore & Hopewell Rocks

 

We had breakfast in the first floor dining room.  There were at least three young women working there – cooking, cleaning, serving.  It was a very efficient system with one of them behind a counter spooning hot food out of chafing dishes – scrambled eggs, hashed browns, bacon or sausage.  She also did lattes, etc.  And handed out yogurts.  [Serving the hot food kept the line moving, and also was hygienic.]  There were self-serve stations for coffee, tea, juice, cereal, toast, muffins, fruit.

 

We packed up our things and waited for the morning’s Tidal Bore.

 

The high tides in the Bay of Fundy start out at only 15 feet at the mouth, but as the bay narrows they get progressively higher.  At the head of the bay, the Peticodiac River comes in at a 90 degree angle and this really concentrates the tidal flow, even rushing upstream – so even though they don’t get 50 feet in Moncton there is a bore that roars up the river about an hour before full high tide.  The best bores are usually around a full moon; we were there the day before [close enough for jazz? or for Jazzbeaux?]

 

Along it came around 10:20, which was again 15 minutes early.  There was one fellow who tried surfing in it.

 

Here’s my video of the morning Tidal Bore:

[note that this video will take a long time to load – your computer/phone is not broken!]

 

01 Moncton Tidal Bore

 

and here’s one the hotel clerk sent me, with a higher bore and a more successful surfer:

 

02 Moncton Tidal Bore

 

We then checked out and drove to St. Augustine’s for 11 am Mass.  A large church filled with a multiethnic congregation.  There was a pianist, the priest was African and tended to hold forth often.  There was ample parking.

 

DW drove to the PetroCanada station and I filled the tank with 28 litres.  $48.31 @ $1.705/litre.

 

We drove to Magnetic Hill to see our car coast ‘uphill’ due to an optical illusion, but they have turned this into a big tourist attraction so we opted not to pay.

 

We went on to Hopewell Rocks Provincial Park, famous for giant flowerpots of red shale and conglomerate that have been carved by the Bay of Fundy tides.  These sea stacks have been separated from the mainland cliffs by the abrasive tides.  They’re topped with vegetation and form tiny islands at high tide, while low tide reveals the entire columns and you can descend to the exposed seabed for a closer look.  [We were there near high tide, so the beach area was off limits.]

 

Admission was over $30 for the two of us, which seemed steep compared to the attractions we visited in Nova Scotia.  We walked to a couple of lookouts to see rock formations and then a half mile along gravel paths down to the main platform with a view of the main rocks.  I went down the stairs to an even lower overlook, almost to the beach level.

 

 

03 Hopewell Rocks

 

04 Hopewell Rocks

 

05 Hopewell Rocks

 

06 Hopewell Rocks

 

We were dreading the steep walk back up to the parking lot, but a park employee told us that we could take the shuttle bus back to the top for $2 each.  A bargain!  It took ~5 minutes.

 

We checked out their food service operation.  No thanks.  So DW drove to Alma where we had late lunch at Tides Restaurant.  We both ordered lobster rolls.  The were on long, sliced, toasted and buttered traditional New England buns.  Lots of tender pieces of lobster on a few green leaves with mayo drizzled across the top and then sprinkled with delicate pieces of cress.  Accompanying the sandwich were a cup of cole slaw and a basket of French fries.  Delightful!

 

DW drove on through Fundy National Park about 12 miles and then on local roads to the main highway, where we switched drivers and she napped.

 

After 2 hours, DW took the wheel again and brought us into Bangor where we arrived around 8 pm EDT [ = 9 pm Atlantic time, so we gained that hour back] at the Hilton Garden Inn.

 

We unloaded our things and headed for the Olive Garden, where DW had the 'endless salad bowl' plus an order of Shrimp Scampi and I had the 'endless soup bowl' (Pasta e Fagioli) plus an entrée of cheese ravioli with marinara sauce with two large Italian sausage.  [One portion of the ‘endless’ items was sufficient.]  Too stuffed for dessert, DW drove to Irving Gas where we filled up at U.S. prices.  A bargain at $3.399/gal.

 

[Today’s notes:  we encountered very few cars/trucks on our drive from New Brunswick to Maine.  I passed one police car, who thankfully let me speed by.

 

We saw the Mounties’ headquarters in Moncton – the only horses they use now are not noble steeds but those under the hood of an SUV.

 

NB was more bilingual than NS in that most official signs had French translations as well.  Perhaps their proximity to Quebec?  NS has Acadie and the Gaeltacht, but signs are only in English.  Go figure!]

[Host Jazzbeau]

Monday July 22, 2024 – On the Road Again (home)

 

The final leg, 440 miles from Bangor to home.

 

We usually come home from Maine on a Sunday, and fight heavy traffic on the Maine Turnpike and then on the Mass Pike.  Monday spared us all the Maine vacation traffic, but Massachusetts had weekday commuters.  So you can’t win!

 

But we’re home, safe and sound – after another wonderful trip.

 

Thanks for reading.

[sharkster77]

I saw a program on PBS (maybe a Joseph Rosendo travel show?) that mentioned that New Brunswick is the only Canadian province that is officially bilingual.  That may explain the bilingual signs in NB.

 

I'm not sure what's Quebec's official status RE: language.

[Anchor Light]

7 hours ago, sharkster77 said:

I'm not sure what's Quebec's official status RE: language.

 

According to Google, Quebec's official language is French.

 

New Brunswick the only bilingual province as noted above.

 

The country of Canada has two official languages, English and French. 

[Daisi]

Thanks Jazz, it's been a while since we've made it down that way...

 

Yes, NB is the only the only official bilingual province, although Cape Breton has signs in both Gaelic and English, and parts of PEI and Ont are also bilingual. 

 

Kitchen Ceilidh's are quite common between NS & PEI, and great entertainment.

 

Oh...and the Canso Causeway is the deepest causeway in the world and replaced the ferries in 1955. 🙂

 

[Host Jazzbeau]

14 minutes ago, Anchor Light said:

Quebec's official language is French.

Rigorously French.  In France, stop signs say "STOP" – only in Quebec do they say "ARRET"

[Anchor Light]

Yes, but that's a whole other story!

[mariners]

Host Jazzbeau, what a fabulous blog!  I have begun to read your other trips, and love the photos, your writing style, and the detailed information you provide.  Thank you!  Merci beaucoup! 

 

 

[millybess]

What a great blog!  We have just recently completed our annual trek from Toronto to Nova Scotia and your blog has reminded us of many circuitous trips we have taken over the years to get here.  Thank you!!!🙂

Edited August 21 by millybess