"Merry-time" trip - the last leg - day 13-17

Well, we are already actually home now  - it's just taken me awhile to get this last post done.  I have to say that the whole trip was really amazing, and any Canadian who has not gone to the Maritime Provinces yet should really put it on their list as soon as possible.  

Day 13 - We left Dartmouth (Halifax) and headed towards the famous Peggy's Cove.  The rainy weather did very little to deter the crowds. I wasn't sure what to expect, but it is a very small fishing town with some quaint shops and a few places to eat.  The view from the rocks at the lighthouse point was the goal.  In spite of plenty of warnings, people still ventured far out onto the black rocks. 

The waves can abruptly crash in this area and sweep people off their feet, and can even be deadly.  Needless to say - I stayed off the black rocks!   We had a yummy lobster roll, bought a t-shirt and some homemade fudge, and then continued on down the road.  

Next stop was the town of Lunenburg.  Again, I wasn't really sure what to expect here. Only after we stopped did I become aware that the Town of Lunenburg was added to the list of UNESCO World Heritage Sites in 1995.  It is said to have the best example of the British colonial settlement in the country. We mostly saw the part of town along the busy waterfront, full of restaurants and shops and the oldest house in Lunenburg, circa 1760! .

  We decided to do the Fisheries Museum of the Atlantic and I'm glad we did.  A short, guided tour covered the advances made in fishing techniques over the years.  There was a sobering dedication to all the sailors who've lost their lives to the ocean along with an exhibit of the famous Bluenose II sailboat.  In addition to the museum, we got to go aboard two boats that are moored in the harbour. One was the Teresa E. Connor, which was a 120' schooner, launched on Dec. 14, 1938..  Here is Dave manning the helm.  


Day 14 - we left the Walmart parking lot in search of prettier places... lol! We stopped at Kejimkujik National Park and National Historic Site (called Keji for short). It is a beautiful spot in the Acadian forest, celebrating the presence of the Mi’kmaq heritage. In 1995, it became the first National Park to become designated a National Historic Site.

I particularly liked this quote from Chief Charlie Labrador, Mi'kmaq Elder and Spiritual Healer
                    "If we could see beneath the forest floor, we would see that all trees, the pine, birch, maple and so                                           on, are holding hands, regardless of species. 
                      We as people, regardless of race, must come together and hold hands and help each other. 
                      We must listen to our Mother Earth.  She is sending us a message." 
Without realizing it, David and I had both taken a picture of this quote. 

We hiked the Hemlocks and Hardwoods trail, where some of the hemlock trees are 400 years old. There were some incredible trees with roots growing over huge boulders. The only wildlife we saw was a little froggy and some birds.

We drove on to the town of Digby, which is famous for scallops, so of course we had to stop and try them out. They were quite yummy. We’ve been doing our best to sample as much seafood as possible. We’ve had lobster salad, fresh lobsters, lobster rolls, crab cakes, fish tacos, seafood stew, and now scallops!

Next we drove to the town of East Ferry to take a 5 minute ferry ride to Long Island (Nova Scotia, that is). We did the hike to Balancing Rock, which involved 235 steps (making my total for the day 14,669 steps, but who’s counting?). This immense basalt column is four feet wide and twenty feet tall and sits balanced, where countless others have fallen all around it.

We decided to spend the night at the entrance to Balancing Rock. Mother Nature and her abundant mosquito brigade convinced us to drive back to Digby that night instead. It was a late night drive (dodging birds and skunks in the road), but it meant we could sleep later the next morning before we caught the big ferry back to New Brunswick. This was our last full day in Nova Scotia; what an amazing province.

Day 15 - We boarded the ferry - sadly, no Travato sightings this time. This was a 2 hour 15 minute trip with lots of places to lounge and eat, charge phones, listen to live music, and even a kids' play area. We disembarked in Saint John, New Brunswick, but didn’t have time to really visit. We reloaded propane and headed towards Fundy National Park.

Our lunch stop was the surprisingly charming, little town of Hampton. We fired up the genny and had melted cheese tortilla sandwiches in the van, admiring views of brightly colored flowers. Since a good small town stop almost always begs for an ice cream stop, we obliged and checked out Kredl’s Corner Market, known for their for homemade ice cream. They also had quite a selection of fresh fruits, veggies, and homemade breads and desserts.

On to Fundy National Park, where we actually just set up camp and were able to have a fire and just sit still for a few hours! Well, I did make a big batch of vegetable spaghetti alfredo. I used up most of the veggies we had in the fridge (cauliflower, squash, bean, tomatoes, jalapeños, thanks to Howard for some of the bounty from his garden). Campfires are always sort of mesmerizing for me. We chatted a bit with the campers next to us, fellow Quebecers. They had just spent the day at Hopewell Rocks, where we are headed tomorrow!

Day 16 - It was a short, 45 minute drive to the entrance to Hopewell Rocks.  This is the spot with the world's largest tides.  We were lucky to catch almost the full range.

Here is a picture about an hour after the lowest tide - we were able to walk along the rocks and way out onto the ocean floor.  We were scheduled for a kayak trip that afternoon, but when the guide told us there would be 3-5' waves (crashing over us), I bailed out.

  Instead, we went back to our original spot and watched the tide come way in. Here is another shot of the same area, at almost high tide.  It was even more dramatic to see it in person, than to look at the pictures. 

Day 17 - Our last full day of vacation, we headed to Woodstock!  Woodstock, New Brunswick, that is.  We stopped to have lunch with a charming artist that we had met once, briefly.  She is the director at a really cool artist's co-op called the Creek Village Gallery & Café. They had a huge variety of artwork, soaps, woodwork, jewelry, etc. 

Suzan told us about the world's longest covered bridge - 1282 feet. So we made sure to check that out on our way to Grand Fall, one more beautiful waterfall before we head home.     
One last night at the Walmart in Edmundston, NB.  We've stopped at various Walmarts in the past, but who knew this one was so popular?  There must have been at least 25-30 other campers/RV's that night.  We were one of the early ones to pull out the next morning.  I was eager to get home and see the kitty cats!  

All in all - it was a terrific trip!  Keep checking back in to my blog for the next adventure, whatever that is!