This is Canada’s Thanksgiving weekend, on Sunday we drove to Windsor to watch the Great Pumpkin Race across the water that has been held for 15 years. The pumpkins were hollowed out and painted, some weighing up to 1500 pounds, then hauled down to the water on a forklift and gently lowered into the water before the race began. It took over an hour to get all 50+ pumpkins ready for the start of the race. Continue reading
Category Archives: Nova Scotia
Mahone Bay and Lunenburg, Nova Scotia
We drove to Mahone Bay by the sea, the next day (10/12) and spent time walking through this quaint village full of scarecrow figures, and exploring the many shops. I have never seen so many different animated figures in one place as we experienced walking down the streets of this town. Lunch was spent at the Mader’s Pub and Grill on the water beginning with Alexander Keith’s red beer to quench our thirst. Continue reading
Halifax, Nova Scotia
We spent the next day exploring downtown Halifax. We went on the best beer tour ever at the Alexander Keith’s Brewery built in 1863 where we went back in time with our guide. Finishing with tastings of the fine Pale ale and Red beer. The Maritime Museum of the Atlantic was fascinating to learn about the harbour’s history and the 1917 great explosion of a munitions ship, the Mont Blanc, and the Imo, in the inner Harbour. It was the biggest man made explosion in history prior to the atomic bomb. We walked the boardwalk and had dinner at Salty’s on the bay. Continue reading
Peggy’s Cove, Nova Scotia
On Thursday, Oct 10th we left Baddeck to drive approximately 250 miles to Halifax and stayed in the Woodhaven Campground just outside of Halifax, for four nights. Our first adventure was to explore Peggy’s Cove, a natural and geological marvel. Trees and plants are scarce here, and so is soil, but there are a lot of granite boulders around Peggy’s Cove, left here thousands of years ago by huge masses of retreating glaciers. Continue reading
Cabot Trail, Nova Scotia
Oct 8th: Cape Breton’s Cabot Trail is one of the premier scenic highways in North America. The Trail is 185 miles in length, but it takes a good 8 hours to do the entire loop. We began our adventure bright and early at 8:30am on a beautiful sunny morning and drove counter clockwise. At this time of year the mountain, trees and trails are ablaze with scarlet and gold colored leaves with the blue backdrop of the Atlantic Ocean and the Gulf of St Lawrence made for a beautiful scenic drive. The highlight of the drive is the portion through Cape Breton Highlands National Park, a roller-coaster ride over forest-clad mountains and spectacular vistas; the park is ideal for hiking, camping and wildlife watching. The first stop was the St Ann’s Gaelic College, unique in North America, founded in 1938 as a school devoted to the study and preservation of the Gaelic language and Celtic arts and culture of immigrants from the Highlands of Scotland. Continue reading
Baddeck, Nova Scotia
Oct 7th we drove to Cape Breton Island, one of the most picturesque islands in the world. We stayed at the Baddeck Cabot Trail Campground. Baddeck is the home of Alexander Graham Bell, and we spent hours at the Alexander Graham Bell National Historic Site learning about his life’s accomplishments and successes. He not only discovered the telephone, he also sponsored the construction of the first aircraft in Canada, the Silver Dart in 1909 and the hydrofoil craft the HD-4, which set a world speed record in 1919, at 71 mph on Bras d’Or Lake. We explored the many shops in Baddeck during the rain buying various gifts and memorabilia to take home. And finished the day with a sumptuous meal at Yellow Cello Cafe in Baddeck Continue reading
Stellarton/Trenton Nova Scotia
On Oct 5 we drove into Nova Scotia to meet Don and Rose McKenzie, friends of Harry’s in Stellarton a small rural town on the north coast. We took the coastal road by choice and that was a mistake as the road was very bumpy and rough the whole way. We camped at Don’s property for two nights off the beaten track in a peaceful farm setting. The horses grazing around us were magnificent and the sunset that evening was one to remember. Continue reading