JULY 21-29

Monday July 21^st - Moving day and rainy. We got an early start with a 294 mile drive to Laurie Provincial Park in Nova Scotia. The roads once again were narrow and winding. We were erroneously directed to a ferry but thankfully found a good turn-around spot. The RV Garmin must need an update or tune-up!!! We were so pleased when we arrived at the Laurie Provincial Park to see how it was so beautiful and wooded. However, our campsite did not have any services so we filled our tank with water and ran our generator during designated hours. The night was cool so the sleeping weather was great. We ate dinner, made plans for the next day and played Yatzhee before we turned in for the night.

Tuesday July 22^nd - We got an early start with a busy day planned. We stopped at McDonald’s for breakfast since we didn’t have any electric at our campsite and no fires were allowed. We drove into Halifax, the capital city of Nova Scotia. Our first stop there was at St. Mary’s Cathedral Basilica. The original 1820 structure at the site evolved into the consecration of the current structure in 1899 that was currently being restored. It has been expanded and the original simplistic wooden ceiling fashioned like the hull of a ship (that’s all local craftsman knew how to do at the time) was later changed to stone Gothic Revival. It has the tallest granite spire in North America. Pope John Paul II visited the Cathedral in September 1984. Our next stop was at the Halifax Citadel. It was a wonderful living history experience that started with a Highlander guard at the gate in full Scottish regalia, followed by an entertaining tour guide of the fort guiding us through dark passages as he shared stories of battles, a Rifle Firing demonstration, Cannon Firing Demonstration, and last but not least the performance of the Pipes and Drums of the 78^th Highlanders. The entire experience was great but Dana especially LOVED the Pipes and Drums of the 78^th Highlanders. They were FABULOUS! Next we went to the Halifax Public Gardens originally established in 1841. The current 18 acres were beautiful with very mature trees, statuary, water features, and blooms. Ornate irons gates into the main entrance for the park were installed in 1890 with Halifax’s original coat of arms. They are only opened for very special occasions with the last time being when Princess Diana visited the park. We stopped for an ice cream “lunch” (YUM) before moving on to the Maritime Museum of the Atlantic. It was so interesting with exhibits on local large and small water craft, boat/ship tools, history/evolution of shipping industry in the region, and shipwrecks. The region is known for it’s treacherous waters and numerous shipwrecks. They had 2 particularly interesting exhibits; one on the Titanic with artifacts retrieved from the wreckage and another about a tragic explosion in the Halifax harbor in 1917. The Halifax harbor explosion was caused when 2 ships collided, one being a cargo ship carrying explosives, devastating a large region of the city of Halifax and killing and injuring thousands. The stained glass windows of St. Mary’s Cathedral Basilica we visited earlier in the day were all shattered in the explosion embedding the shards of glass into the murals on the walls. This was just one example of a building impacted by the explosion with many other completely destroyed. We strolled down the boardwalk enjoying the beautiful day hoping to see the Elvis impersonator we had seen from the museum window earlier but he had “left the building”. Next we took a beautiful drive through several small seaside villages on our way to Peggy’s Cove Lighthouse. Peggy’s Cove lighthouse was gorgeous in a rugged setting atop huge granite rocks offering stunning view of the Atlantic Ocean. We could see why it’s one of the most photographed lighthouses in the world and it’s still a working lighthouse. The surrounding village was also charming with little shops and active fishing boats but we did not have time to eat dinner there or look around, needing to return to Yogi to start the generator. We drove back to Yogi, started the generator, ate dinner then took a walk around our lovely campground. We sat by the lake and watched the sunset before returning to Yogi. We started a game of Boogle but decided we didn’t enjoy it so switched to a different word game Wordalot then went to bed. A great day!

Wednesday July 23^rd - Moving day again. Gorgeous weather. We drove 140 miles to Lockeport, Nova Scotia to the Lockeport Campground and Cottages. As we’ve driven through the Canadian countryside we’ve noticed significantly more homes with huge stacks of wood for heating and clothes lines rigged in a circular pulley fashion from windows. It’s made us feel like we were stepping back into our own childhoods with fresh smelling sheets, stiff towels off the line and cozy fires from the wood-burning stoves. We arrived at our campground mid-day, set up, then headed out for “lunch” at the local ice cream shop. After our proper nutrition we were ready for a visit to the town of Shelburne, Nova Scotia. It was a charming seaside village!! We walked along the seashore enjoying the restored colorful buildings and stopped at the shop where they build “dories” (wooden, deep V-shaped flat-bottomed fishing boats with flaring sides). We were given a private fascinating tour of the building and the building process by a very knowledgeable man. Michael was especially excited about the equipment and building process and had many questions which made the tour guide even more talkative about the subject. We didn’t have time to visit the other 2 buildings on our ticket so we planned to return another day. We stopped at a barrel making shop before we left and had a pleasant talk with the craftsman there who had the relaxed attitude you would expect from someone whose shop is beside the ocean. On the way back to our campsite we stopped to see the Sandy Point Lighthouse built in 1873 to guide ships into Shelburne Harbor. It is no longer in use but now serves as a tourist attraction and community center. We returned to Yogi, worked on the blog, did laundry, ate dinner and relaxed for the remainder of the evening.

SIDNEY BUILD DORIES FOR 76 YEARS AT THIS SHOP. LAST ONE WHEN HE WAS 96 YRS OLD

Thursday July 24^th - The day was sunny and beautiful. It was warm but we needed jackets when we were close to the ocean. We started the day returning to Shelburne to see the 2 museums we didn’t have time to see the day before. We stopped first at the Ross Thomson House, built and owned by 2 brothers originally from Ireland and proprietors of the attached store. The upstairs of the store served as the warehouse for the store until wartime then it served as the meeting for the local militia. In 1995 the house and town of Shelburne was used for the filming of “The Scarlet Letter” and some movie props were still on sight. Our next stop was at the Shelburne County Museum that had the typical displays about the history of the area and it’s inhabitants. We stopped at a bakery for a snack on our way to the town of Yarmouth, Nova Scotia. It was a little larger seaside town. We stopped at the Cape Forchu Lighthouse, enjoyed the attached museum and went out on the viewing platform to see the gorgeous scenery around the lighthouse. However, the wind was so strong and cold we could not stand there very long. We left and drove past some interesting seaside sights on the way to town. We saw a wall of colorful lobster buoys as well as colorful floating shacks that have a foundation of a lobster crates. The fishermen put some of their catch into these large crates under the shacks floating in the water where they can live and be harvested well beyond the lobster season so lobster income can be prolonged. Next we drove into downtown Yarmouth and the Firefighters Museum. It was an interesting and unusual stop before we proceeded on a driving tour of the city past the recommended notable, pretty historical homes of the local Sea Captains. They were beautiful. We had the Acadian Skies & Mi’kmaq Lands UNESCO Starlight stargazing location on our agenda but decided we didn’t want to stay in Yarmouth until nightfall. We returned to Yogi, had dinner, worked on the blog, relaxed for the evening and went to bed. It was a great day.

ROOM USED WHIILE MAKING THE SCARLET LETTER MOVIE

PROP USED WHIILE MAKING THE SCARLET LETTER MOVIE

BENCH PROP USED WHIILE MAKING THE SCARLET LETTER MOVIE

ORIGINAL CLERKS DESK FOR THE STORE

YHIS WAS AN OLD JAIL

Friday July 25^th - We enjoyed another beautiful, sunny but windy day. We decided to explore the nearby fishing village of Lockeport, Nova Scotia. It was founded by 2 gentlemen and their families from New England in 1762; Jonathan Locke and Josiah Churchill. We did a driving tour of the town where we saw the founders homes, homes of Locke and Churchill descendants, old trestle bridge (walked it), cemetery, old 1845 school house and the harbor. We stopped at Crescent Beach where we walked the entire crescent expanse and collected shells. It was the finest sand we’d encountered in Canada and very pretty. The Visitor’s Center was nearby so we looked at their exhibits, and climbed to their viewing platform where we could see one of the 2 lighthouses in the area; Lockeport Lighthouse on Gull Point. We drove to the region and hiked to the rocky prominence to get the best view of the lighthouse on the nearby small rocky island. We also drove to see the Carter Island Lighthouse. It could be viewed on a small, distant island from a narrow dead end road projecting out into the ocean. You hardly had room to turn around! YIKES! A little more land mass would have been appreciated!! We spent the rest of the day at our campsite working on the blog, relaxing, organizing, and eating dinner. We met some more nice people from Canada at our campground which has been typical of the great Canadian people.

Saturday July 26^th - Pleasantly warm and sunny day. It was moving day so we drove miles to Middleton, Nova Scotia where we set up camp at the Jeff’s Hideaway Campground and Cottages. As soon as we were settled we went for ice cream at a nearby local store. We asked for 2 scoops of ice cream expecting the typical small sized scoops only to receive 2 scoops each the size of a grapefruit. I am not exaggerating!! Dana told the young man behind the counter he should receive the champion scooper award. However, the clean bowl award could not be given to Dana. THE SHAME OF IT ALL!!!! Alas, it was just too much ice cream :( We went to Corpus Christi Parish for mass before heading back to our campgrounds to do laundry, work on blog, eat dinner and relax for the evening.

Sunday July 27^th - Another warm and sunny day. We decided to see some sites on a drive south of our campground. We started with a HWY that borders the Bay of Fundy. The first stop was at Cottage Cove Provincial Park known for seal and sea eagle sightings. We did not see any but it was a peaceful and beautiful setting. Next we stopped at the Healy Brook Caves. It was fun taking the jeep on the dirt roads to get to the remote area then we hiked to the pretty beach. The tide was coming in so we couldn’t hike all the way to the sea caves but we could see them in the distance. Our 3^rd stop was at the Hampton Lighthouse built in 1911. It was small white square they called a “pepperpot” tower and it marked the cove. It was once again amazing to see the change in water level in the Bay of Fundy with an expected 23 foot change for July 27^th. We were hungry for lunch after leaving the lighthouse so we stopped at a German Bakery named Sachsen Cafe and Restaurant in Annapolis Royal. Michael and Dana got 2 pasteries to share; a cherry turnover and a blueberry crisp. They were just fair. We then went onto the small seaside town of Digby, NS called the sea scallop capitol of the world. It was fun to browse the shops, the sidewalk booths, view the fishing boats docked, and see the interesting tide clock but we did not stop to eat any scallops. Next we returned to the town of Annapolis Royal to visit Fort Anne, one of the most contested pieces of land on the continent between the indigenous Mi’kmaw people, Black Loyalists, Acadians, the French and the British. We toured the grounds with a 17^th century fortress, officer’s quarters and museum. It was all very interesting. Next we walked around the beautiful Royal Annapolis Historical Gardens. They described it as 17 acres of paradise and we would have to agree. It was beautiful with a Victorian Garden, a Pine Forest, a Rose Maze, Butterfly Garden, Ornamental Grass Garden, Marsh Lookoff, Garden Ponds, and a Thatched Roof Cottage that looked straight out of a fairy tale, just to name a few features. We enjoyed it all so much. We returned to Yogi for dinner, a few nightly chores, and relaxing the rest of the evening.

Monday July 28^th - We had to set an alarm for early wake up so we could make the 90 minute drive to Digby County, NS for a whale watching tour with Petit Passage. It left at 9:30 and we had to arrive 1 hour prior to departure. It was a chilly, cloudy morning so wore layers of clothing and coats. The boat was larger than the last whale watching boat we chartered and the tour lasted 4 hours with it going further out in the Fundy Bay. We were so excited to see another minke whale in the distance but even more excited to see 3 humpback whales. All were very close to the boat; so close we could see the markings on their bodies and could smell the breath of one. It was fascinating to watch them breach, swim, splash, dive, flip their tales and blow water from their blow holes. We also saw many sea birds. The Bay of Fundy is a major route for bird migration so we have seen many birds but don’t have the knowledge to identify them. We had a wonderful time. The drive to and from the whale watch was also entertaining with the tide changing from low to high. On the way to the whale boat we passed a bay inlet that looked like someone had pulled the plug on a bathtub, forgetting to remove the toy boat leaving it toppled on it’s side on the bay bottom. On the return trip with the tide coming back in, the inlet had filled with water and the boat was upright and floating in it’s filled bathtub. Next we went to the Port-Royal National Historic Site; a reconstruction of a 17^th century French compound (one of the earliest European settlements in North America). It was a fascinating piece of history. We returned to the city of Middleton to eat a yummy dinner at a local diner where we tried a Canadian favorite poutine; french fries topped with cheese curds and gravy. We then returned to our campground to blog, complete a few chores then relax for the rest of the evening. Another fun day!

FERRY AT LOW TIDE

FERRY AT HIGH TIDE

Tuesday July 29^th - It was a sunny, hot day. We’d explored south of Middleton, NS the previous 2 days so we decided to go north this day. We started driving on the hot morning through the countryside on our way to a lighthouse when suddenly the temperature dropped about 15 degrees. We took a turn on the road and there were the cooling waves of the ocean. Nature is amazing! Our first stop was there at the Margaretsville Lighthouse. It was only 22 feet high but stood 30 feet above the water on shoreline rocks. It was distinct because it is the only original wooden lighthouse and it’s the only one in Nova Scotia with a black band (it increases it’s visibility). Because of the uniqueness of this lighthouse it was put on the Canadian postage stamp in 1967, Canada’s Centennial year. It was also fun to access because it was in a remote location off of dirt roads so Boo-boo got to do something close to off-roading. Next we went to the Black Rock Lighthouse. We found it on the shore surrounded by houses with a small park. Our next stop was at the Grand-Pre National Historic Site. The drive to this location was BEAUTIFUL. The countryside was rolling farm land as far as the eye could see. It was a multi-sensory experience too with the farmers spreading some good ole manure. PHEW!! The Grand Pre was a farming settlement from the 1680’s on the Bay of Fundy created by the Acadians in an inter-tidal area. They reclaimed the land with techniques of dykes and a drainage network to create a sustainable agricultural community. They took a stand of peace during the period of unrest between the France, England, and American Colonists. Ultimately, they were persecuted by England for not pledging allegiance and bearing arms in alliance with them. Their village was burned to the ground and they were all captured and transported by ships to American colonies or to England. The Grand Pre we visited was a reconstruction of some of the buildings in memorial to the Acadians. Our last stop of the day was at the Greenwood Military Aviation Museum. It was a small museum with a focus on WWII aviators, aircraft, and support personnel. We returned to Yogi, had dinner, cleaned Yogi inside and out, blogged then relaxed for the rest of the evening.