The Cabot Trail, Cape Breton

Day 57 of Trip, Tuesday, August 15, 2014

Well, here's a treat for me. We're at a KOA Campground near Halifax, Nova Scotia, and we have internet access at our campsite! I haven't felt this connected in about a month!! So I'm writing a blog post covering only one day...just because I can!

This morning we beat our previous record for an early start. We knew it would be a long day of driving, so we got up and packed up camp, and we were on the road by 8:14 a.m. Now I know that doesn't sound very early to all you early risers. But keep in mind we're in the Atlantic time zone. So for all our family in the Appalachians and New England, that was 7:14. For all our friends in Texas, that was 6:14; were you on the road then? For all of you reading this in Idaho and Montana, that was 5:14; I bet you were still snuggled in. And for our dear family in California, you were just getting into your good REM sleep at that time...4:14 a.m. Who says the Shirers can't get up early?

We drove the rest of the Cabot Trail, which is a breathtaking course around the north end of Cape Breton. A little of it was too foggy for pictures, but I do have photos of some of the different views we saw.

This is part of the road we traveled. 

By 10:30 a.m. we were pretty hungry and in need of a restroom (or "washroom" as they say in Canada. So at the fishing village of Cheticamp...

...we found a promising looking restaurant. 

Got in and sat down and ordered our tea, only to find that the washrooms were out of order. Our waitress said, "the best I can offer you is a portapotty across the street." Well, who wants to use a portapotty right before you eat? So we decided we could wait...drank our 3 cups of tea each and ate our big fisherman-sized breakfasts and then sloshed across the road to the portapotty. Here's Curt feeling victorious because he was the first one there...

But he emerged 5 seconds later. No paper!

Down the road 30 more miles...and we were finally successful! That'll keep you from nodding off on an early morning drive!

Midafternoon we saw a sign we couldn't believe. Could it be true? A McLobster at the Golden Arches? We had to follow the signs to see for ourselves.

Yep. It's true. Who says all McDonalds are alike? We never had this in Texas! Not quite as generous and chunky with lobster as the posters showed, but pretty tasty nevertheless. Beats a Big Mac all to pieces!

When we arrived at the campground this evening, we hit another milestone. The trip odometer rolled over to 5000 miles, since we left Kerrville on June 10. We're keeping the oil companies in business, doing our part to keep the economy healthy!

Now we're safely snuggled in our pop-up, ready to catch a few zzzzs before a big day of sightseeing tomorrow. Curt has the day all planned. We're going to "do" Halifax. I keep telling him that it's OK to stay at camp sometimes and relax, but even with those new hearing aids, he hasn't heard me yet. So I'm sure I'll have plenty to tell about tomorrow night. Sleep tight!

Three More Days on Cape Breton Island

Days 54, 55 & 56 of Trip, Saturday, Sunday and Monday, August 2, 3 & 4, 2014

We've spent 3 wonderful days here...and it makes us want to either stay longer, or return. We've felt that way about almost every place we've been. Perhaps we shouldn't make reservations for our next stop until we've really gotten our fill of our current visiting place...because it always seems like we're leaving too soon. 

The days here have been a feast for the eyes. Rugged mountains rising out of the sea, tall pine, fir and spruce trees towering above the many deciduous trees in the forests, picturesque coves and small fishing villages, groves of white birch trees, and many shades of green and blue everywhere we look. Of course, we know full well that the winters are brutal here, so summertime is definitely the time to visit.

Curt has been embracing the frigid Canadian waters, both the salty North Atlantic and the fresh water springs. Brrrrr! I've been happy to be the one standing on shore taking the photos!

Here he is waving to us...mostly to show us that he hasn't quite yet frozen to death!

And here he's standing in an icy pool at the base of a waterfall, watching the teenagers jump off the rocks above.

Here's a brave young lady! The jumping off spot is about 20 feet above the water. I used to do that stuff...now I'm very happy to be the observer!

We've taken some lovely hikes. We kept hearing people mention a place called White Point. They all said that the hike takes you to the most beautiful view in the world. What could be more beautiful than the sights we had been seeing, we wondered. We found out. The trail started just above a little fishing village, which was lovely all on its own:

It wound up through the most heavenly smelling ground cover. I have no idea what the fragrance was, but I took a shot of just the ground cover...maybe somebody can recognize these northern plants and let me know what it is.

Of course, we DID recognize wild raspberries and blueberries. And we certainly knew what to do with those!

There was a lovely little cemetery overlooking the water, where many local fishermen and their families have been buried over the years, including a grave for the Unknown Fisherman.

And once we got to the point, the views were truly breathtaking in every direction. The photos don't do it justice, but I'll post them anyway. You can use your imagination for the rest of the experience!

We spotted a huge bird on our drive today. From the size, we think it's an immature bald eagle. What a treat that was to see so close!

We've also met wonderful people on this trip. We're staying in the National Park campground. There are a couple dozen families from various parts of Canada and the U.S. who come here for their vacations every year...many have come here for 30 years or more, and two families have been coming for over 50 years without missing a summer! Their children have all grown up knowing each other, and have looked forward to these vacations every year. They were kind enough to adopt us into their big, loose, happy group, and Curt and I have ended up providing their campfire music and entertainment for the past couple of nights. It's been so much fun! We sang till almost midnight the first night. Last night I said we HAD to quit earlier...so we managed to wind it up at 11:40 p.m.! Ah, the life of a traveling troubadour! But it's not without its rewards. One woman made me a s'more last night (yum!!) and another brought us a basket of Cape Breton strawberries. I've enjoyed those all day today!

Tomorrow (Tuesday) will be another long traveling day. We're headed for Halifax, Nova Scotia for the next few days. We may be able to connect with some new friends we have made on this trip, so we're looking forward to that. Also, people have told us that this is the week that the "buskers" will be in Halifax. Apparently there are many street musicians, jugglers, and various other entertainers who will be all over the city this week. That sounds like fun to us!

So, our last farewell to you from Cape Breton. We love all of you!

PEI to Cape Breton, Nova Scotia

LDays 51-53 of trip, Wednesday-Friday, July 30-August 1st

We enjoyed a few more days at the KOA Campground in PEI. We met some wonderful people, some of whom we may be able to connect with in future travels. 

Wednesday we enjoyed a morning bike ride, followed by driving around one of the island loops. Lots of,beautiful scenery...lighthouses, churches, and coastal views. Here are a few photos of our drive:

If you love old churches like I do, you'll enjoy these shots!

This was one of three houses that a couple built out of bottles! yep, glass bottles. 30,000 bottles per house. Now THAT's recycling for you!! 

This corner of concrete sticking out of the cliff...

used to be part of the foundation of this lighthouse. 

Needless to say, they had to move it back away from the ocean.

That night we had a wonderful dinner and played lots of music with our new friends Vivian and Dennis, from Bend, Oregon. We'll be meeting them next week in Halifax for more time together.

Thursday the 31st we did more exploration of the island. Found a great music shop, Long and McQade (a national chain in Canada). Here's Darleen who works there, and Aaron, who stopped in to jam a little on the guitars:

I know some of you are certain that I can't get out of a music store without buying n instrument. But I managed to this time! I did, however, buy a few books that have great traditional songs and fiddle tunes from PEI, Cape Breton, Nova Scotia, and all across Canada in general. 

Also found a wonderful fabric/craft/yarn store where I spent a happy hour and added to my mobile yarn stash. As much as I'm knitting up here in the North,I have to have plenty of material to work with!

here's Michelle, the manager, helping a customer:

Another lighthouse and a great walk along the beach...

...until we hit this sign. We did a quick U-turn, because I'm highly allergic! 

Here are a few more photos from that beautiful drive:

When we returned to camp, we found that another jam was scheduled in the Harmony Room. This one had a real treat for me. I've been reading about the champion fiddlers in the Maritime Provinces. One man came in and joined us, and it was apparent from the moment that his bow touched his strings that he was a stellar musician. When the jam was over I introduced myself and asked his name. here Curt and I had been playing all night with the famous Allison Inch from New Brunswick, and we didn't even know it. I was thrilled!

After the jam we had one more late night of visiting with friends, Millie and Wayne MacDonald, from PEI. We had such a great time with them, and I know we'll keep in touch.

And then up early yesterday morning to catch the 1 1/2 hour ferry from PEI to Nova Scotia. We hurried as we packed up camp, so we could make the long drive and be sure to catch the 11 a.m. Ferry. And we arrived almost an hour early, only to find that the 11 a.m. had broken down. We would need to wait till 1:15. Ah, well, the vacation plans weren't ruined. We parked our truck and camper in the ferry line and removed our bikes. Biked out to a nearby lighthouse, then found a funky little crab shack for lunch.

We visited with lots of people, and a musical duo even set up their microphones and amps and played for the waiting group. Altogether, it was a very pleasant way to spend a few hours waiting. 

Here's the front of the ferry as it arrived in port. You can see how huge it is compared to the people!

And our first view of Nova Scotia as we approached after an hour and a half on the ocean:

And a few photos of our LONG drive to the campsite:

We're still exhausted today from yesterday, so I'll stop now and continue the narrative after we've rested a bit! Blessings to all of you!