AUGUST 19, 2011 – L AST TOUR DAY – ST. JOHN’S
We head off about 9:30 hoping to find Tim’s for a quick coffee & muffin. Before you know it, we’re downtown & end up in “Coffee Matters” for a great coffee & home made muffin. Directly across the street from our coffee stop was St. Thomas’ Anglican Church, the oldest church in the city, it was built in 1836 & survived the Great Fire of 1892 that destroyed most of St. John’s. Our first “stop” today is the Quidi Vidi Brewery, the home of the famous Iceberg Beer. St. John’s probably has the craziest roads we have ever seen & it took us more than one go ‘round to find the brewery. It’s hidden in a little cove, between the rocks, down a hill, on a two way street only wide enough for one small car!! We would’ve had to wait for 50 minutes for the next tour so decided to continue on our way without the tour.
Next stop, Signal Hill & Mile One of the TransCanada Highway. The road to the top of Signal Hill twists & turns to the summit, there were actually people running down & UP this incredibly steep & windy road. Once you reach the top & get out of the car your breath is taken away. To the east there is nothing in front of you but water, & to the west the St. John’s harbor. Today was a perfect day to be in this space – clear blue skies & +24. Since 1762 the lookout has been used by merchants, customs officials & the harbor pilot so they could prepare docking facilities for incoming vessels after receiving flag signals from the top of the hill. We climbed the stairs to the top of the fortress (only about 50 this time) & I’m hoping these are the last stairs I climb in Newfoundland! The fortress was also used as a hospital in the late 1800’s & it was where Marconi received his first transatlantic wireless communication in 1901.
We were lucky enough to find parking on Water Street (the main drag) & decided to walk & see the sights. The entire downtown core( & residential area just around the core) is filled with buildings dating back to 1893. The buildings are painted a variety of bright blues, reds, yellows, & greens and make the city look like a child’s doll house village. It’s now well after lunch & very hot, time to find a pub for a cold been. George Street is the swinging night street of St. John’s (your Electric Avenue so to speak). We find Green Sleeves with room on the patio in the sun. The special today is “Feather & Fins”, fresh cod nuggets & chicken wings, served with our favorite - fries with dressing & gravy!!! The beer was cold & the service friendly so it was a very enjoyable hour.
As we worked our way back to the car, we came across Trapper John’s – the “Screeching” capital of Newfoundland. It’s here you kiss the cod, down the screech & say a Newfie saying to become an honorary Newfoundlander. The ceremony takes place late in the evening, so I am afraid we will have to come home just plain old Calgarians even though we’ve spent 2 weeks on The Rock, eaten more than our fair share of cod, can talk like Newfies & well, we’ve not had the Screech but did show them how to make a good Cosmo!!
Our last stop of the day are the wine vaults. The Newman Wine Vaults tell the amazing story of the 300 year old connection between wine produced in sunny Portugal, aged in the cool climate of Newfoundland (the wine vaults) then shipped back for the aristocracy in England. For our $5.00 entry we also received a glass of port to sip as we walked through the vaults. Since they also sell a bottle of port from the vaults, we had to have one – after call, it’s called Newman’s Port!!
AUGUST 20, 2011 – A SAD FAREWELL TO THE ROCK
Argentia is the destination for today as that is where the ferry leaves for Nova Scotia. We still don’t know if we have a berth for the 13 hour trip so we are going to be there early. We’ve not been on this stretch of the TCH #1 & again Newfoundland surprises us with different terrain. Huge boulders dot the landscape along with a multitude of lakes and ponds.
As we sat in the line up for the ferry, about 10 ATV Quads pulled in. They were loaded with coolers, sleeping bags & gas cans. Seems there is a fellow who runs quad tours in Newfoundland. You leave Sydney by ferry, arrive in Port au Basque then traverse more than 600 kilometers across an old abandoned rail line to Argentia where you board the ferry which takes you back to Sydney. Apparently it’s great fun except when you only have 2 days out of 7 without rain! I’m sure glad John decided to buy a Mercedes & not a quad!!!
We finally board the ferry at about 2:20 & yeah, we get a berth. It’s a good thing neither of us are claustrophobic. Our “room” has two cots that are so close only one person can stand between them. We do have our own bathroom complete with shower so we can’t complain. It is however, the most expensive room we’ve had on our trip - $170 + tax (15%) plus the $375.00 for the ferry trip. As we walked around the boat the expense mattered less & less. Unlike the other ferries we’ve been on, seating was very limited, no big loungers just small round tables & benches & tiny tub chairs. Not exactly how you want to spend 13 hours. The seats were good to sit & have a drink while we watched the band play. The “bys” had their fiddles & played some good “steppin’ ” tunes.
AUGUST 21, 2011 – FINALLY, THE CABOT TRAIL
Since you arrive in Sydney at 6:30 AM this is by far our earliest day on the road. A quick stop at Timmy’s – like everyone else from the ferry – then on our way. We reached the start of the Cabot Trail about 7:30 and pretty much had the road to ourselves. The day was glorious, not a cloud in the sky & +25. We did the trail counter clock wise & at first couldn’t figure out what the big deal was about the Cabot Trail. We couldn’t see any water, just lots of trees & a very windy road. Then we started to climb, climb, climb and then the beautiful North Atlantic lay at our feet.
We stopped at just about every look off along the way and even found a beautiful little beach. We decided we needed to dip our toes & discovered some crazy Europeans who were actually swimming. The water felt like it was barely above freezing & here this “older” couple were, frolicking in the ocean.
Once you cross the top of the trail & head down toward Cheticamp, the scenery changes again & the coast line become much more rugged with steeper cliffs. I guess if we would have seen this before we went to Newfoundland we would have felt differently, but we weren’t that impress with the Cabot Trail.
Our lunch in Cheticamp on the other hand was outstanding. Lobster burgers were the special of the day, freshly cooked & shelled, served on a toasted bun. Huge pieces of claw & tail meat, no bidders, no fillers, just meat – delicious!!
Once lunch was done we headed for Antigonish for the night. We have done just about all of Cape Breton so it’s time to get on with the rest of Nova Scotia. We had a very low key dinner & were in bed by 9 o’clock.
AUGUST 22, 2011 – THE EASTERN SEASIDE
Well, we thought we were going to see the seaside, but the trees are so dense between the “Seashore” drive & the road that we only saw the water once in awhile. By the time we reached Halifax the wind had started howling & down came the rain. Since we need 2 MORE TIRES (fronts this time) we found a tire shop & arranged for them to order in whatever it was we needed & made an appointment for installation at 9:00 tomorrow morning. Luckily we found a wonderful hotel only a few blocks away & checked in on the Executive floor. I just love the Executive floor! Those big, snuggly bathrobes, designer water, turn down service & a 15 storey view of the harbor. Oh yes, and the hot tub. Since the rain was still coming down in buckets we opted to eat at the hotel. What a surprise that was. We’re trying to cut back so it was a bowl of soup & salad for me while John decided to try the fish broth.
My soup was a tomato curry, not creamy but with fresh tomatoes in a mild curry sauce, then loaded with big chunks of lobster & served with 2 small samosas on the side. It was outstanding. The salad was very different with wedges of beets, stuffed with goat cheese & then wrapped in phyllo pastry, served on a bed of pea pod vines. Also, outstanding.
John’s fish broth was equally different & outstanding. The large flat bowl had 2 large shrimp, a lobster claw, piece of haddock & a piece of chorizo sausage standing in a bed of couscous. When the bowl was set down we both wondered why they called this dish broth, then we found out. The waiter produced a pitcher containing the broth that he proceeded to pour into the dish. The broth was left on the table so you could add as much as you wanted. Outstanding doesn’t even cover how good this dish was.
AUGUST 23, 2011 - TIRES & TOURS & A BIG BLUE SKY
John left the hotel at 8:30 to get those tires installed & I headed for the laundry room. One thing I’ve learned on this trip is not to pass up laundry facilities or bathrooms.
With the laundry done & the new tires installed we headed to downtown Halifax to see the sights. Parking is really at a premium but we finally found a spot, plugged in our $10.00 for 3 hours & boarded the double decker tour bus.
Halifax is rich in history & our tour guide was quite the character at describing the events that established Halifax. We passed graveyards from the 1700’s, the beautiful city clock, a fabulous park, filled with Victorian gardens & a drive through the area containing all the mansions. One house belonged to the famous Oland brewery family. Apparently it was Mrs. Oland, being the good wife she was, who started making beer while her husband was off at work.
We also stopped at the Citadel & walked about the garrison. The fortress is manned with kilt wearing soldiers, pipers & ladies in period costume showing you how the soldiers lived in the 1860’s. We walked around the top of the Citadel with its beautiful view of the harbor.
After the tour, we strolled the boardwalk & sat at a lovely little pub for a snack & a beer while we watched the action in the harbor. As it was, our pub was sponsored by Molson’s so no Alexander Keith’s. Apparently, you can’t go to Halifax without a Keith’s so off we go to find the brewery. The old brewery was only a couple of blocks away & is located right on the water front in a wonderful old brick ‘set of buildings’. We didn’t do the tour, but the beer was good & cold.
AUGUST 24, 2011 – PEGGY’S COVE & DIGBY
Another beautiful blue sky day. It’s only a 40 km drive to Peggy’s Cove but the road was busy with traffic. When we got to the cove we understood why. What a magnificent sight! The huge granite boulders are swept smooth by the seas & you can climb about them all around the light house. There was a lovely young miss, kilt clad & playing her bag pipes at the base of the light house that just seemed like she belonged.
We spoke to some people in the parking lot who had driven to the cove yesterday afternoon only to return to Halifax because all the parking lots were full. Apparently if a cruise ship is in Halifax people get any mode of transportation they can; buses, rental cars, taxis & limo’s to go to Peggy’s Cove.
We climbed around on the rocks & watched the water wash away at the granite. There is a sign on the light house that warns people to be mindful of the strength of rouge waves & that many a life has been lost for not paying heed. As you stand out on the rocks it’s hard to imagine if people can’t read or if they are really just stupid. We watched a family with a toddler sitting right at the waters edge. Not five minutes went by before they were scrambling up & running as a huge rouge wave crashed just below them & doused them with water. After we had our fill of Peggy’s Cove we headed off toward Digby.
We decided to drive across country this time so we didn’t get to see the very south eastern shore of Nova Scotia. We are pretty much sea shore drived out anyway & we’re looking forward to staying in Digby for a couple of days & playing golf.
We found a lovely, old Victorian inn & checked into our suite, complete with a canopied bed. The bed looked far better than it sounded. Every time you turned over all you could hear was squeak, squeak, squeak!!! Good thing we didn’t have any neighbors.
After a drive to see where the golf course was located, we wandered the wharf & found a cute little dockside pub so we sat & watched the boats for awhile. The menu looked good, so we decided to go back for dinner too. A pound and a half of fresh lobster with a side of Digby scallops. What more could you ask for.
AUGUST 25, 2011 – DIGBY PINES GOLF RESORT
The sky is overcast but it’s +26, perfect for a game of golf. Luckily we were paired with a fellow who knew the course & was more than willing to share his course knowledge. The ball retriever didn’t come out of the bag, but extra balls were required because of the dense forest. They don’t call it Digby Pines for nothing! After golf, we went back down to our favorite dockside pub for a cold one & a snack. We asked our server about some large mesh pens we had seen in the water & she explained that they were “salmon farms”.
I had seen a “scallop pearl” in one of the shops, so I asked our server if she had ever heard of them. Low & behold, she was a Digby native & former “scallop queen” so told us the whole story of how scallops swim, produce pearls, & are caught. It seems that scallop pearls are very rare, as scallops have a very good filtration system that flushes most sand particles through the shell. This has been a very educational trip for us!!!
Our innkeeper recommended another restaurant for dinner & we had a very wonderful scallop dinner sitting on the patio. We packed up the car & were able to sit outside & enjoy a glass of wine before making it an early night (have to be at the ferry by 7 am). After watching the news about hurricane Irene, we’ve decided to alter our route home. Rather than driving home through Maine & then up to Detroit, we are heading back through New Brunswick, Quebec & Ontario.
AUGUST 26, 2011 – RACING IRENE
Not only did we have the squeakiest bed ever, at 2am, the thunder & lightening started, the wind started howling & the rain came down sideways. We were beginning to wonder if the weather man had miss calculated about the arrival of the hurricane! The rain had subsided by the time we got up at 6 am, but the 3 hour ferry ride across the Bay of Fundy was anything but picturesque. The fog was so thick so couldn’t see your hand in front of your face.
Luckily, by the time we got to Saint John, the sun had broken through & it was a very beautiful day. We had set our destination as Cornwall, but by 6:30pm when we reached Drummondville we’d had enough. A hot tub, good dinner & a comfortable quiet bed was all we needed.
AUGUST 27, 2011 - TORONTO HERE WE COME
John made the phone call to let the kids know that gramma & grampa would be back in town for a couple of days. Since John’s sister was at her cottage, she left the key to the house for us & said, “see you Sunday night”. We arrived in Toronto sometime mid-afternoon. John insisted that I have the full travel experience so headed straight in on the 401. By the time we reached the “14 lane” width, the traffic (on Saturday) was at a stand still!! I’ve thanked John for the “experience” and will never complain about the Deerfoot again. After a very entertaining dinner with the grandkids, we enjoyed a quiet glass of wine before retiring for a good “sleep in”.
AUGUST 28, 2011 – TORONTO REST DAY
Caught up on laundry, repacked the trunk & got the car washed. John had to tip the guy at the car wash BEFORE he started on the car because of the mess of bugs every where. First time we’ve cooked dinner (BBQ & a salad) since June.
AUGUST 29, 2011 – THE REST OF THE WAY HOME
Another quiet day, planning the route home.
Monday, 29 August 2011
Friday, 19 August 2011
AUGUST 16, 2011 – ONE MORE GAME
We had booked a second game just in case it didn’t rain & when our tee time arrived at 8:00 am it was overcast but warm & not raining. Tuesday at Terra Nova is 2 for 1 day, golf carts are $18.00. The two of us are wedged between 2 threesomes, so things are a little slow to start but pick up quite nicely. After about the first 4 holes we renamed the day – “Twofee” day. It’s turns out it’s the day all the “bys” go out to see if they can golf. No one knows how to repair ball marks & parking your cart right in front of the green seems the thing to do. The heavy mist started about the 5th hole & was on & off until
#16 when it really started to rain. We finish up in just 4 hours & head in for a big bowl of chowder & a hot shower.
The rest of the day was pretty laid back, JD with a nap while I read for a couple of hours.
The last of three dinners at the Lodge was just a good as the first. The girls already had our number, two martinis before dinner. It’s the only place we’ve ever found $5.00 Grey Goose martinis so we really enjoyed them.
AUGUST 17, 2011 – THE BEAUTIFUL BACCALIEU TRAIL
The morning didn’t start out very well. The rain came down in a torrential downpour. You couldn’t see across the bay & it didn’t look like it would ever let up. By the time we were ready to leave, the worst of it had passed & we headed down TCH #1. There was another scenic drive (The Discovery Trail) we could have taken, but we knew our time in Newfoundland was getting short so we had to choose. John had found an inn for us to stay at in Lower Island Cove so we headed for the peninsula bordered by Trinity Bay & Conception Bay. I’m not sure who named the towns in Newfoundland, but we certainly passed some good ones. Just outside “Goobies”, we stopped by the hiway & bought 2 jars of bakeapples. We then passed through “Come by Chance”, “Dildo”, “Heart’s Delight”, “Heart’s Desire” & then “Heart’s Content”. Little did we know that Heart’s Content was the location where the first transatlantic cable was brought ashore in 1865. It was a real “company” town with the telegraph operator’s first coming from England & eventually Newfoundlanders were trained as operators. It was also the first place where young women (some as young as 14) were trained to be telegraph operators & paid up to $100.00 a month. In the early 1900’s that was quite an accomplishment. The company that initially brought the cable from Ireland chose Heart’s Content because the harbor was deep enough for the ship carrying the cable to moor in. The company later merged with some American investors & became Western Union.
The sky finally starts to clear as we head up the peninsula toward Grates Cove & Bay de Verde. We finally come to an Irving Gas Station that has a snack bar so we decide it’s time for lunch (about 2:30).
We thought splitting an order of home made french fries was probably the best thing on the menu. Much to our surprise we got an order of fries you would never imagine!! I’m not sure which is worse, an order of poutine or our fries, covered with “stuffing” & smothered in gravy!!! The looks & thought of it was much worse than the actual taste – it was pretty good, not the healthiest lunch we’ve ever had though!!
The sky had almost completely cleared & the temperature had risen to +22. As we head up to the northern tip of the peninsula we can see a huge bank of clouds or at least what we thought were clouds. It was a fog bank & immediately visibility was at about 2 feet & the temperature was +12 – all in the matter of about 4 kilometers. We decided not to go to Grates Cove ( gravel road) but found an old museum in Bay de Verde overlooking the beautiful fishing harbor. Unfortunately, the rain started & the clouds rolled in so we didn’t get to see Baccalieu Island.
Down the eastern side of the peninsula toward Lower Island Cove & our resting place for the night. The Bayview Inn is tucked away off the main road & when we walk in no one is around. We finally roust Scotty, the teddy bear of a proprietor ( 6’2”, 250 lbs, Harley-Davidson tattoos). The Inn is a very large 9 bedroom home built by some Americans as a retirement house that Scotty & Ann have converted to an Inn. As luck would have it, Scotty is a retired Executive Chef & Ann is a baker. Scotty was at the University of Waterloo Culinary School for 14 years then both he & Ann went to Fort McMurray. Needless to say dinner was outstanding. Fresh pan fried cod, fresh out of the oven home made bread, & cheese cake with chocolate ganache & strawberries for desert. And we still have breakfast to deal with!!
It was wonderful to sit in the parlor & look out over the bay. The sky started to clear, but before it did, we were blessed with the most spectacular double rainbow. Unfortunately, the pot of gold was in the middle of Conception Bay so we’ll have to keep buying those Lotto tickets. Scotty’s mother joined us & what a sweetheart. Nell is 88 & had been out all day with her friend (79). Apparently she was suppose to be home at 5 o’clock for dinner, but didn’t come home until almost 8:30! Boy, did Scotty give her what for. I guess she goes off with her friend & doesn’t eat all day so they are trying to keep her on a schedule. What a hoot!! She sat & told us stories about where she grew up & told us if we ever came back to Newfoundland we could stay at her house in Buchans (“a nice wee place with 2 good bedrooms”). Buchans is in the middle of ‘no where Newfoundland’!! - one road in & the same road out. Nell also did all the “stitch’n” (embroidery) on the table cloths & pillow cases that were used at the Inn. All in all, it was a most enjoyable evening with real down home Newfoundlanders.
AUGUST 18, 2011 – OFF TO ST. JOHN’S
Bacon & eggs, home made bread toast, with home made blueberry jam & fresh potato pan fries – what more could you ask for! I was ready to stay & clean rooms!! The sky cleared over night & we headed off toward St. John’s. Ann had filled us in with a number of places to stop & thank goodness she did. Some of the places we would never have found on our own. The speed limit on hiway #70 is 50 klm/hr. I don’t think we got to 50k very often, it was mostly 30 or 40. The view across Conception Bay is absolutely awesome. We wove our way down the coastline with two particular spots in mind, Cupids & Brigus. Had Ann not told us about them, we never would have found them.
Cupids was the first English settlement in Canada, founded by John Guy in 1610. We toured the archaeological site of this first settlement, with our own personal interpretive guide. They have collected more than 145,000 artifacts from the site since it was first discovered in 1995. We have certainly had our eyes opened to the history of Newfoundland & what it meant to Canada.
Our next stop was at Brigus. There are no words to describe this little village. It is not like any where we have ever been before. The roads are very, very narrow (barely room for one car) & they weave in & around & up & down the tiny homes. At Brigus there is a tunnel that was formed in 1860 through solid rock, using only gun powder. Apparently a wealthy ship owner wanted an easy way to get his wares from the wharf to the town, so rather than taking the road he had an engineer make the tunnel. It took 4 months of drilling by hand, & using only gun powder to make the 50 foot tunnel. The town has turned into a real little tourist trap (it’s only about 1 hour from St. John’s) soup & a sandwich at the Tea Room was $13.95 & there was a couple of bus loads of tourists wandering the streets taking pictures of all the beautiful old homes & churches.
We continued on our coastal drive toward St. John’s through a number of little coves & harbors before reaching Conception Bay South & finally Mount Pearl on the outskirts of St. John’s. We ended up right in the heart of downtown St. John & pulled into a parking lot to get our bearings & find lodging for the night. This is the first place on our trip that we have had so much trouble finding a hotel room. The first call found us a room, with a king bed, in the downtown core for $289.00. The next four phone calls found no rooms at any inns, but we finally found a nice hotel about 5 klm from city centre for a reasonable price. We’ve had a nice dinner & made our list of must dos for tomorrow
We had booked a second game just in case it didn’t rain & when our tee time arrived at 8:00 am it was overcast but warm & not raining. Tuesday at Terra Nova is 2 for 1 day, golf carts are $18.00. The two of us are wedged between 2 threesomes, so things are a little slow to start but pick up quite nicely. After about the first 4 holes we renamed the day – “Twofee” day. It’s turns out it’s the day all the “bys” go out to see if they can golf. No one knows how to repair ball marks & parking your cart right in front of the green seems the thing to do. The heavy mist started about the 5th hole & was on & off until
#16 when it really started to rain. We finish up in just 4 hours & head in for a big bowl of chowder & a hot shower.
The rest of the day was pretty laid back, JD with a nap while I read for a couple of hours.
The last of three dinners at the Lodge was just a good as the first. The girls already had our number, two martinis before dinner. It’s the only place we’ve ever found $5.00 Grey Goose martinis so we really enjoyed them.
AUGUST 17, 2011 – THE BEAUTIFUL BACCALIEU TRAIL
The morning didn’t start out very well. The rain came down in a torrential downpour. You couldn’t see across the bay & it didn’t look like it would ever let up. By the time we were ready to leave, the worst of it had passed & we headed down TCH #1. There was another scenic drive (The Discovery Trail) we could have taken, but we knew our time in Newfoundland was getting short so we had to choose. John had found an inn for us to stay at in Lower Island Cove so we headed for the peninsula bordered by Trinity Bay & Conception Bay. I’m not sure who named the towns in Newfoundland, but we certainly passed some good ones. Just outside “Goobies”, we stopped by the hiway & bought 2 jars of bakeapples. We then passed through “Come by Chance”, “Dildo”, “Heart’s Delight”, “Heart’s Desire” & then “Heart’s Content”. Little did we know that Heart’s Content was the location where the first transatlantic cable was brought ashore in 1865. It was a real “company” town with the telegraph operator’s first coming from England & eventually Newfoundlanders were trained as operators. It was also the first place where young women (some as young as 14) were trained to be telegraph operators & paid up to $100.00 a month. In the early 1900’s that was quite an accomplishment. The company that initially brought the cable from Ireland chose Heart’s Content because the harbor was deep enough for the ship carrying the cable to moor in. The company later merged with some American investors & became Western Union.
The sky finally starts to clear as we head up the peninsula toward Grates Cove & Bay de Verde. We finally come to an Irving Gas Station that has a snack bar so we decide it’s time for lunch (about 2:30).
We thought splitting an order of home made french fries was probably the best thing on the menu. Much to our surprise we got an order of fries you would never imagine!! I’m not sure which is worse, an order of poutine or our fries, covered with “stuffing” & smothered in gravy!!! The looks & thought of it was much worse than the actual taste – it was pretty good, not the healthiest lunch we’ve ever had though!!
The sky had almost completely cleared & the temperature had risen to +22. As we head up to the northern tip of the peninsula we can see a huge bank of clouds or at least what we thought were clouds. It was a fog bank & immediately visibility was at about 2 feet & the temperature was +12 – all in the matter of about 4 kilometers. We decided not to go to Grates Cove ( gravel road) but found an old museum in Bay de Verde overlooking the beautiful fishing harbor. Unfortunately, the rain started & the clouds rolled in so we didn’t get to see Baccalieu Island.
Down the eastern side of the peninsula toward Lower Island Cove & our resting place for the night. The Bayview Inn is tucked away off the main road & when we walk in no one is around. We finally roust Scotty, the teddy bear of a proprietor ( 6’2”, 250 lbs, Harley-Davidson tattoos). The Inn is a very large 9 bedroom home built by some Americans as a retirement house that Scotty & Ann have converted to an Inn. As luck would have it, Scotty is a retired Executive Chef & Ann is a baker. Scotty was at the University of Waterloo Culinary School for 14 years then both he & Ann went to Fort McMurray. Needless to say dinner was outstanding. Fresh pan fried cod, fresh out of the oven home made bread, & cheese cake with chocolate ganache & strawberries for desert. And we still have breakfast to deal with!!
It was wonderful to sit in the parlor & look out over the bay. The sky started to clear, but before it did, we were blessed with the most spectacular double rainbow. Unfortunately, the pot of gold was in the middle of Conception Bay so we’ll have to keep buying those Lotto tickets. Scotty’s mother joined us & what a sweetheart. Nell is 88 & had been out all day with her friend (79). Apparently she was suppose to be home at 5 o’clock for dinner, but didn’t come home until almost 8:30! Boy, did Scotty give her what for. I guess she goes off with her friend & doesn’t eat all day so they are trying to keep her on a schedule. What a hoot!! She sat & told us stories about where she grew up & told us if we ever came back to Newfoundland we could stay at her house in Buchans (“a nice wee place with 2 good bedrooms”). Buchans is in the middle of ‘no where Newfoundland’!! - one road in & the same road out. Nell also did all the “stitch’n” (embroidery) on the table cloths & pillow cases that were used at the Inn. All in all, it was a most enjoyable evening with real down home Newfoundlanders.
AUGUST 18, 2011 – OFF TO ST. JOHN’S
Bacon & eggs, home made bread toast, with home made blueberry jam & fresh potato pan fries – what more could you ask for! I was ready to stay & clean rooms!! The sky cleared over night & we headed off toward St. John’s. Ann had filled us in with a number of places to stop & thank goodness she did. Some of the places we would never have found on our own. The speed limit on hiway #70 is 50 klm/hr. I don’t think we got to 50k very often, it was mostly 30 or 40. The view across Conception Bay is absolutely awesome. We wove our way down the coastline with two particular spots in mind, Cupids & Brigus. Had Ann not told us about them, we never would have found them.
Cupids was the first English settlement in Canada, founded by John Guy in 1610. We toured the archaeological site of this first settlement, with our own personal interpretive guide. They have collected more than 145,000 artifacts from the site since it was first discovered in 1995. We have certainly had our eyes opened to the history of Newfoundland & what it meant to Canada.
Our next stop was at Brigus. There are no words to describe this little village. It is not like any where we have ever been before. The roads are very, very narrow (barely room for one car) & they weave in & around & up & down the tiny homes. At Brigus there is a tunnel that was formed in 1860 through solid rock, using only gun powder. Apparently a wealthy ship owner wanted an easy way to get his wares from the wharf to the town, so rather than taking the road he had an engineer make the tunnel. It took 4 months of drilling by hand, & using only gun powder to make the 50 foot tunnel. The town has turned into a real little tourist trap (it’s only about 1 hour from St. John’s) soup & a sandwich at the Tea Room was $13.95 & there was a couple of bus loads of tourists wandering the streets taking pictures of all the beautiful old homes & churches.
We continued on our coastal drive toward St. John’s through a number of little coves & harbors before reaching Conception Bay South & finally Mount Pearl on the outskirts of St. John’s. We ended up right in the heart of downtown St. John & pulled into a parking lot to get our bearings & find lodging for the night. This is the first place on our trip that we have had so much trouble finding a hotel room. The first call found us a room, with a king bed, in the downtown core for $289.00. The next four phone calls found no rooms at any inns, but we finally found a nice hotel about 5 klm from city centre for a reasonable price. We’ve had a nice dinner & made our list of must dos for tomorrow
Monday, 15 August 2011
August 12, 2011 – The Viking Feast
Last night’s Viking Feast was really something. You enter the earth hut & find the inside of a Viking village. The place seats about 90 but was only about ½ full & we were seated with a more senior than us mother & daughter from Toronto & a couple from North Vancouver. Goodman, our 5 foot nothing Viking server, instructed us on how to behave for the evening, get service (“jist bangs yer spoons on da tables” or “holler me name as loud as ye can”). Then the King of the Vikings came around and said he would be holding court & that each of our “boats” (tables) could accuse anyone of a crime & that they would have to defend themselves to the rest of the boats. Once all the details of the crime were heard all the boats would vote as to whether or not the accused was guilty. But first dinner, & the only utensils on the table were a knife & soup spoon!
First Goodman brought out plates of cod tongue & kapelin as appetizers, & instructed us on how to eat them. Kapelin is a sardine like fish that is salted & dried, about 6” long, complete with heads, eyes & fins. They are to be eaten head first so they know where they’re going! Not something I’d eat on a regular basis, but we decided it was “Newfoundland Jerky” & at least we can say we tried it. Cod tongues are very delicious & we could have made an entire meal of just them. All appetizers were eaten with our fingers.
The rest of dinner was buffet style, so I’ll try to describe it dish by dish, as close as possible.
Jiggs Dinner: Boiled potatoes, carrots, turnips, & cabbage served with salted beef (very much like corned beef).
Roast beef: We passed on this, why eat beef on the sea coast?
Moose Stew: Tender cubes of moose meat, turnip, carrot & potato in a wonderful rich gravy. Very, very good.
Fisherman’s Brewis: A combination of different fish (cod, turbot, shrimp, crab, & whatever else the catch of the day was) the consistency of crab cakes before they are formed into cakes. Also very tasty.
Planked Salmon: Some of the best tasting salmon we’ve ever had.
Turbot Cheeks: Lightly dusted & pan fried, they taste very much like cod tongue, very delicious.
Desert was a partridge berry flatbread (not really a pancake, but not quite a crepe) with bakeapple sauce & a dollop of whipped cream. Partridge berries are something like a blueberry & a bakeapple is like a raspberry only yellow. The desert was fabulous!
After dinner, the King of the Vikings called court to order. He had come around during dinner to get the name of the person accusing someone else of a crime. That person had to stand before the “village”, up on a rock, & tell all those assembled their name & the name of the accused & what the crime was. Before doing this, the King, his wench & the other Vikings (Goodman & the other servers) had a trial to show us what would happen.
When the king came to our table I was the only one who could think of a crime & of course JD was the victim. I stood on the rock & said “I am Susan of Calgary & charge John, who plays a game with a stick & a ball, with sometimes using his foot to move the ball so the ball is in a better place to hit with the stick.” With this, all the villagers in the room started pounding on the tables as hard as they could! The king then called John to the rock to see what he had to say. Using his cane & a severe phony limp, John crossed the room & stood on the rock. “I have never kicked the ball with my foot, can’t you see how much trouble I have just walking never mind kicking something? She only accuses me because I take money from her when we play this game with the stick & the ball.”
Once the room had stopped laughing & banging on the tables, the king decided it was time for everyone to vote. He pointed his spear at John & asked if he was guilty – the room went crazy banging the table & hollering. When the king pointed his spear at me & asked if I was guilty of making a story up about John, only a couple of slaps on the table could be heard. The king found John guilty & as punishment took his shoes, much to the chagrin of the villagers who had called out to have him castrated!!
Next to the “rock” was David of Comox & he charged one of his companions with stealing a pig. When Bill of Port Alberni came to the rock he said it was John from Calgary that stole the pig & he had a witness. Then Chris from Toronto came to the rock & said yes indeed, he had seen John from Calgary steal the pig. The room again went wild & John was again found guilty. This time his punishment was to purchase “dark liquid” for David of Comox. John said he’d meet him at Tim’s in the morning. There were a couple more people accused & tried, but nothing nearly as much fun as perfect strangers picking on John!
We did meet the people from Comox & Port Alberni earlier in the day on our iceberg tour & since they were golfers too, they just picked up on “pick on John”. Needless to say a good time was had by all!
AUGUST 13, 2011 – LABRADOR – THE BIG LAND
We drove from St. Anthony back to St. Barbe in time for the 1:15 ferry to Labrador. You actually land in Blanc Sablon, Quebec then travel the 5 km. into Labrador. It wasn’t the bright sunny day we had hoped for, but it was about +13 & not raining. Again, we are in awe of what lays before us. I’m not sure what I expected the landscape to look like, but it literally takes your breath away. The Trans Labrador Hiway stretches along the shoreline of the Strait of Belle Isle & turns inland much farther up the coast than we planned to drive.
We drove through L’Anse au Clair (population 241) with it’s nice sandy beach & many walking trails. Next, the town of Forteau (much bigger at 477) where we took a stroll along a high cliff overlooking the town & bay. There was even a big fat ground hog lying on the rocks enjoying a little sun. Next on our stop in along a windy dirt road at the waters edge at L’Anse Amour (population 9) where the earliest known funeral monument in North America sits. It is an archeological site which dates back 7500 years. Just beyond the Cove of Love, still on the dirt road, we come to our final destination in Labrador, Point Amour & the sight of the largest working lighthouse in the Martimes. There was also a walking trail to the wreck site of two British ships from the early 1900’s & foundation of a Marconi station.
The lighthouse was built in 1858 & contains 131 steps from bottom to top. The stone walls are 6 feet thick at the bottom, tapering to 4 feet thick at the top, & the lighthouse is perfectly round. The guide told us that some days the wind can blow up to 200 km/hr at Point Amour but there is absolutely no sway in the lighthouse. This time it’s John who has to drag me up! But we both made it all the way to the top (which is glass enclosed) & had the most amazing view of the Straits of Belle Isle & the landscape of Labrador. Of course, once you climb UP the 131 steps, you have to come DOWN, but the view from the top was so worth it! The museum in the lighthouse keeper’s house was also very interesting & if you can imagine, the longest keeper worked at the lighthouse for 44 years & climbed the stairs each day for each of those 44 years. That’s 262 steps x 365 days x 44 years. You do the math!! And some days, he climbed to the top more than once. Apparently he was a tall man, but very slim!!
It’s time to wind our way back to the ferry for our 8 pm sail back to St. Barbe. As we drive back, right at the “Welcome to the Town of Forteau” sign the odometer reads 10,000 kilometers – day 62 of our adventure. As the crow flies, we are 4384 kilometers from home, but we’ve made a few side trips. We’re on our way home from here, but so glad we decided to take the time to come to “The Big Land”.
AUGUST 13, 2011 – NEXT STOP ROCKY HARBOR
It’s my turn to drive as we head south to Rocky Harbor. We’ve driven this road before but it was in a rush to get to St. Anthony so today it’s very leisurely, with time to stop & smell the roses.
The road side is a mass of color with various wildflowers. Colors range from deep purple, to neon fuchsia, light pink, white & yellow. And every once in awhile you see a scarecrow in the ditch! Our iceberg tour guide did mention that because of the very short growing season in the northern part of Newfoundland, whenever someone can find a piece of ground that has some good soil (not just rock) where it gets the sun (whenever it might shine) they plant gardens. They grow potatoes, turnips, carrots, & cabbage (which they call “greens”). The gardens are usually fenced with various materials (fish buoys on rope, snow fence or lumber & sticks) & often have scarecrows dressed in a yellow rain slicker & hat. I guess that’s why Newfoundlanders are so hardy & hard working, they have to be just to survive!
Also along the side of the road are rows & rows of lobster traps, 1,000’s of them. In some places they are piled 6 or 8 high & go into the bush for 30 yards or more. We stopped at one spot to take some pictures & found a scattering of little fishing shacks along the beach where the fishermen stay when it’s lobster season.
We’ve been told there are more moose & seals in Newfoundland than there are people. Every other mile on the hiway are signs with a crumpled up car & a large moose standing in front of it. Well, today we got to see why! People are very good about flashing their lights here – and it’s not because there’s a radar trap – it’s for the moose. We saw one in the ditch, then a few miles later, a half dozen cars were stopped by the side of the road. I pulled over & sure enough, there was a cow & three calves. Not sure where the other “moms” were but they didn’t pay much attention to us & just kept grazing on the side of the road.
When we arrived in Rocky Harbor the bay was socked in with a heavy fog. It didn’t take long to warm up & burn off, so we went from our lodgings to “town” to see what was happening. Since we were only 80 kilometers from Pasedena (no not the one in California) we decided to go back to take in some of the sights we missed when we passed through. We went to a place that cut & polished rocks from around Newfoundland. They make crib boards, coasters, clocks, wine racks, & Xmas ornaments.
We also stopped at a number of view points that we didn’t stop at before.
Once we got back to Rocky Harbor it didn’t take long to check out the local restaurant menus & decide where we would have dinner. We then followed some music to a little pub on Main Street, found a spot on the patio, & ordered a local beer – Iceberg Beer. The local talent was really pretty good & even had a few different CD’s for sale. I heard one of the locals on the deck say “dat by plays dem good steppin’ tunes” . JD couldn’t resist, so we’ve added Peter Jacobs to our CD collection!
Early to bed tonight, but not before the TV falls off the stand in our room. John was sitting on the bed & I was standing by the bathroom & the TV just dropped to the floor. We picked it up but not before noticing it was attached to the stand with double sided tape!! We have been going non stop since getting to Newfoundland so we’ve decided to take a couple of days off to relax. Tomorrow we drive to Terra Nova, a golf resort near Gander where we’ll stay for a few days to play some golf & relax before seeing the rest of the Rock.
AUGUST 14, 2011 – TERRA NOVA HERE WE COME
We really weren’t sure what to expect of the TCH #1 from Deer Lake to Gander, but whatever it was we were greatly surprised. It is the best stretch of hiway we’ve had since leaving home!!! Now we know why so many Newfies are in Alberta, this piece of road looks just like the one from Edmonton to Fort McMurray. We each did 3 hour shifts & reached Gander in time for lunch & a visit to the Atlantic Air Museum. It was very interesting & contained a special section about the 6,500 people who were forced to land in Gander on 9-11. Since the population of Gander was only 9,500 at the time, people were housed up to 90 kilometers away at private homes & cottages.
We arrived at Terra Nova about 3pm & it was time for me to get the laundry done. Luckily, the laundry room & the bar were on the same floor, so we could sit & watch the golf, have a drink & do the laundry all at the same time!! We have a Tee-time for 9:50 Monday & 8:15 on Tuesday. Dinner was wonderful & the first time we’ve had something other than fish since we arrived in the Maritimes. The resort is hosting the Canadian Seniors Championship next week, so we are anxious to play the course.
AUGUST 15, 2011 – FIRST GAME OF GOLF SINCE JULY 29!!
Luckily we were paired with a lovely couple who where members of Terra Nova & they were very helpful with the lay of the land. We had a power cart but Peggy & David walked. To give you some idea of what the walk was like, in order to get to the first tee a cart & trailer load up your clubs & carts & you ride to the first tee box. For any one who has played at the Desert Princess, it’s about 1/2 as far as to the first tee Cielo!! Our playing partners where our age & I don’t think I know anyone at Cottonwood who could walk this golf course! You can’t imagine the scenery!! Some of the holes run along the Salmon River & parts of Clode Sound. From the bridges you can see waterfalls & rapids on the river & the salmon jumping. Truly some of the most incredible scenery we’ve seen. And just to prove how small this country really is, Peggy & David have a son who lives in Calgary & they spend every January & February at his vacation property in Panorama skiing. Only Newfoundlanders would winter in Calgary!!! And good luck to those seniors, this is one tough course!!
Last night’s Viking Feast was really something. You enter the earth hut & find the inside of a Viking village. The place seats about 90 but was only about ½ full & we were seated with a more senior than us mother & daughter from Toronto & a couple from North Vancouver. Goodman, our 5 foot nothing Viking server, instructed us on how to behave for the evening, get service (“jist bangs yer spoons on da tables” or “holler me name as loud as ye can”). Then the King of the Vikings came around and said he would be holding court & that each of our “boats” (tables) could accuse anyone of a crime & that they would have to defend themselves to the rest of the boats. Once all the details of the crime were heard all the boats would vote as to whether or not the accused was guilty. But first dinner, & the only utensils on the table were a knife & soup spoon!
First Goodman brought out plates of cod tongue & kapelin as appetizers, & instructed us on how to eat them. Kapelin is a sardine like fish that is salted & dried, about 6” long, complete with heads, eyes & fins. They are to be eaten head first so they know where they’re going! Not something I’d eat on a regular basis, but we decided it was “Newfoundland Jerky” & at least we can say we tried it. Cod tongues are very delicious & we could have made an entire meal of just them. All appetizers were eaten with our fingers.
The rest of dinner was buffet style, so I’ll try to describe it dish by dish, as close as possible.
Jiggs Dinner: Boiled potatoes, carrots, turnips, & cabbage served with salted beef (very much like corned beef).
Roast beef: We passed on this, why eat beef on the sea coast?
Moose Stew: Tender cubes of moose meat, turnip, carrot & potato in a wonderful rich gravy. Very, very good.
Fisherman’s Brewis: A combination of different fish (cod, turbot, shrimp, crab, & whatever else the catch of the day was) the consistency of crab cakes before they are formed into cakes. Also very tasty.
Planked Salmon: Some of the best tasting salmon we’ve ever had.
Turbot Cheeks: Lightly dusted & pan fried, they taste very much like cod tongue, very delicious.
Desert was a partridge berry flatbread (not really a pancake, but not quite a crepe) with bakeapple sauce & a dollop of whipped cream. Partridge berries are something like a blueberry & a bakeapple is like a raspberry only yellow. The desert was fabulous!
After dinner, the King of the Vikings called court to order. He had come around during dinner to get the name of the person accusing someone else of a crime. That person had to stand before the “village”, up on a rock, & tell all those assembled their name & the name of the accused & what the crime was. Before doing this, the King, his wench & the other Vikings (Goodman & the other servers) had a trial to show us what would happen.
When the king came to our table I was the only one who could think of a crime & of course JD was the victim. I stood on the rock & said “I am Susan of Calgary & charge John, who plays a game with a stick & a ball, with sometimes using his foot to move the ball so the ball is in a better place to hit with the stick.” With this, all the villagers in the room started pounding on the tables as hard as they could! The king then called John to the rock to see what he had to say. Using his cane & a severe phony limp, John crossed the room & stood on the rock. “I have never kicked the ball with my foot, can’t you see how much trouble I have just walking never mind kicking something? She only accuses me because I take money from her when we play this game with the stick & the ball.”
Once the room had stopped laughing & banging on the tables, the king decided it was time for everyone to vote. He pointed his spear at John & asked if he was guilty – the room went crazy banging the table & hollering. When the king pointed his spear at me & asked if I was guilty of making a story up about John, only a couple of slaps on the table could be heard. The king found John guilty & as punishment took his shoes, much to the chagrin of the villagers who had called out to have him castrated!!
Next to the “rock” was David of Comox & he charged one of his companions with stealing a pig. When Bill of Port Alberni came to the rock he said it was John from Calgary that stole the pig & he had a witness. Then Chris from Toronto came to the rock & said yes indeed, he had seen John from Calgary steal the pig. The room again went wild & John was again found guilty. This time his punishment was to purchase “dark liquid” for David of Comox. John said he’d meet him at Tim’s in the morning. There were a couple more people accused & tried, but nothing nearly as much fun as perfect strangers picking on John!
We did meet the people from Comox & Port Alberni earlier in the day on our iceberg tour & since they were golfers too, they just picked up on “pick on John”. Needless to say a good time was had by all!
AUGUST 13, 2011 – LABRADOR – THE BIG LAND
We drove from St. Anthony back to St. Barbe in time for the 1:15 ferry to Labrador. You actually land in Blanc Sablon, Quebec then travel the 5 km. into Labrador. It wasn’t the bright sunny day we had hoped for, but it was about +13 & not raining. Again, we are in awe of what lays before us. I’m not sure what I expected the landscape to look like, but it literally takes your breath away. The Trans Labrador Hiway stretches along the shoreline of the Strait of Belle Isle & turns inland much farther up the coast than we planned to drive.
We drove through L’Anse au Clair (population 241) with it’s nice sandy beach & many walking trails. Next, the town of Forteau (much bigger at 477) where we took a stroll along a high cliff overlooking the town & bay. There was even a big fat ground hog lying on the rocks enjoying a little sun. Next on our stop in along a windy dirt road at the waters edge at L’Anse Amour (population 9) where the earliest known funeral monument in North America sits. It is an archeological site which dates back 7500 years. Just beyond the Cove of Love, still on the dirt road, we come to our final destination in Labrador, Point Amour & the sight of the largest working lighthouse in the Martimes. There was also a walking trail to the wreck site of two British ships from the early 1900’s & foundation of a Marconi station.
The lighthouse was built in 1858 & contains 131 steps from bottom to top. The stone walls are 6 feet thick at the bottom, tapering to 4 feet thick at the top, & the lighthouse is perfectly round. The guide told us that some days the wind can blow up to 200 km/hr at Point Amour but there is absolutely no sway in the lighthouse. This time it’s John who has to drag me up! But we both made it all the way to the top (which is glass enclosed) & had the most amazing view of the Straits of Belle Isle & the landscape of Labrador. Of course, once you climb UP the 131 steps, you have to come DOWN, but the view from the top was so worth it! The museum in the lighthouse keeper’s house was also very interesting & if you can imagine, the longest keeper worked at the lighthouse for 44 years & climbed the stairs each day for each of those 44 years. That’s 262 steps x 365 days x 44 years. You do the math!! And some days, he climbed to the top more than once. Apparently he was a tall man, but very slim!!
It’s time to wind our way back to the ferry for our 8 pm sail back to St. Barbe. As we drive back, right at the “Welcome to the Town of Forteau” sign the odometer reads 10,000 kilometers – day 62 of our adventure. As the crow flies, we are 4384 kilometers from home, but we’ve made a few side trips. We’re on our way home from here, but so glad we decided to take the time to come to “The Big Land”.
AUGUST 13, 2011 – NEXT STOP ROCKY HARBOR
It’s my turn to drive as we head south to Rocky Harbor. We’ve driven this road before but it was in a rush to get to St. Anthony so today it’s very leisurely, with time to stop & smell the roses.
The road side is a mass of color with various wildflowers. Colors range from deep purple, to neon fuchsia, light pink, white & yellow. And every once in awhile you see a scarecrow in the ditch! Our iceberg tour guide did mention that because of the very short growing season in the northern part of Newfoundland, whenever someone can find a piece of ground that has some good soil (not just rock) where it gets the sun (whenever it might shine) they plant gardens. They grow potatoes, turnips, carrots, & cabbage (which they call “greens”). The gardens are usually fenced with various materials (fish buoys on rope, snow fence or lumber & sticks) & often have scarecrows dressed in a yellow rain slicker & hat. I guess that’s why Newfoundlanders are so hardy & hard working, they have to be just to survive!
Also along the side of the road are rows & rows of lobster traps, 1,000’s of them. In some places they are piled 6 or 8 high & go into the bush for 30 yards or more. We stopped at one spot to take some pictures & found a scattering of little fishing shacks along the beach where the fishermen stay when it’s lobster season.
We’ve been told there are more moose & seals in Newfoundland than there are people. Every other mile on the hiway are signs with a crumpled up car & a large moose standing in front of it. Well, today we got to see why! People are very good about flashing their lights here – and it’s not because there’s a radar trap – it’s for the moose. We saw one in the ditch, then a few miles later, a half dozen cars were stopped by the side of the road. I pulled over & sure enough, there was a cow & three calves. Not sure where the other “moms” were but they didn’t pay much attention to us & just kept grazing on the side of the road.
When we arrived in Rocky Harbor the bay was socked in with a heavy fog. It didn’t take long to warm up & burn off, so we went from our lodgings to “town” to see what was happening. Since we were only 80 kilometers from Pasedena (no not the one in California) we decided to go back to take in some of the sights we missed when we passed through. We went to a place that cut & polished rocks from around Newfoundland. They make crib boards, coasters, clocks, wine racks, & Xmas ornaments.
We also stopped at a number of view points that we didn’t stop at before.
Once we got back to Rocky Harbor it didn’t take long to check out the local restaurant menus & decide where we would have dinner. We then followed some music to a little pub on Main Street, found a spot on the patio, & ordered a local beer – Iceberg Beer. The local talent was really pretty good & even had a few different CD’s for sale. I heard one of the locals on the deck say “dat by plays dem good steppin’ tunes” . JD couldn’t resist, so we’ve added Peter Jacobs to our CD collection!
Early to bed tonight, but not before the TV falls off the stand in our room. John was sitting on the bed & I was standing by the bathroom & the TV just dropped to the floor. We picked it up but not before noticing it was attached to the stand with double sided tape!! We have been going non stop since getting to Newfoundland so we’ve decided to take a couple of days off to relax. Tomorrow we drive to Terra Nova, a golf resort near Gander where we’ll stay for a few days to play some golf & relax before seeing the rest of the Rock.
AUGUST 14, 2011 – TERRA NOVA HERE WE COME
We really weren’t sure what to expect of the TCH #1 from Deer Lake to Gander, but whatever it was we were greatly surprised. It is the best stretch of hiway we’ve had since leaving home!!! Now we know why so many Newfies are in Alberta, this piece of road looks just like the one from Edmonton to Fort McMurray. We each did 3 hour shifts & reached Gander in time for lunch & a visit to the Atlantic Air Museum. It was very interesting & contained a special section about the 6,500 people who were forced to land in Gander on 9-11. Since the population of Gander was only 9,500 at the time, people were housed up to 90 kilometers away at private homes & cottages.
We arrived at Terra Nova about 3pm & it was time for me to get the laundry done. Luckily, the laundry room & the bar were on the same floor, so we could sit & watch the golf, have a drink & do the laundry all at the same time!! We have a Tee-time for 9:50 Monday & 8:15 on Tuesday. Dinner was wonderful & the first time we’ve had something other than fish since we arrived in the Maritimes. The resort is hosting the Canadian Seniors Championship next week, so we are anxious to play the course.
AUGUST 15, 2011 – FIRST GAME OF GOLF SINCE JULY 29!!
Luckily we were paired with a lovely couple who where members of Terra Nova & they were very helpful with the lay of the land. We had a power cart but Peggy & David walked. To give you some idea of what the walk was like, in order to get to the first tee a cart & trailer load up your clubs & carts & you ride to the first tee box. For any one who has played at the Desert Princess, it’s about 1/2 as far as to the first tee Cielo!! Our playing partners where our age & I don’t think I know anyone at Cottonwood who could walk this golf course! You can’t imagine the scenery!! Some of the holes run along the Salmon River & parts of Clode Sound. From the bridges you can see waterfalls & rapids on the river & the salmon jumping. Truly some of the most incredible scenery we’ve seen. And just to prove how small this country really is, Peggy & David have a son who lives in Calgary & they spend every January & February at his vacation property in Panorama skiing. Only Newfoundlanders would winter in Calgary!!! And good luck to those seniors, this is one tough course!!
Thursday, 11 August 2011
AUGUST 5, 2011 – THE DRIVE TO EAST POINT
We head off early Friday morning toward the farthest east coast of PEI. The weather is perfect & as usual, there are hardly any other cars on the road. The drive winds around the coast & through some central parts of the eastern part of the Island. As we drive along a sign states “distillery tours & tasting” so of course we have to stop. We’ve just missed the tour, but tastings are in order of original PEI potato vodka. It has an earthy aroma, but a very smooth palate. We had better have a bottle & find out it is more expensive than Grey Goose. It will be passed out sparingly!!
We reach East Point & watch the waves crash against the cliffs. There is another lighthouse to climb (only 67 stairs), but we decided to pass and continued down the road & discovered a tiny dirt road that ended on the beach. The beach was called the Singing Sands and had glorious soft sand that we strolled in & even dipped our toes in the icy cold water.
Another little road off the beaten track lead us to a wharf lined with lobster boats, traps pilled high & the little fishing shacks that lined the break water. We walked down to the end of the inlet and again, the waves were smashing in onto the rocks.
We were headed back to Charlottetown for the night but I had seen an ad for “red sand” jewelry & wanted to stop for a look. The only problem was, the shop was located in “Victoia by the Sea” which was about 30 minutes past Charlottetown toward the Confederation Bridge. John however, wanting to do nothing but curb my whine drove directly to Victoria and found the shop. Unfortunately, the name was misleading & only contained regular type jewelry which really didn’t appeal to me. The little village was however, very pretty & filled with different artisans. We have now been in “Victoria” on both coasts!!
We decided that our last night on PEI should be downtown. We found a wonderful little boutique hotel in the heart of the city & checked in. Since we hadn’t eaten since breakfast, we headed out for dinner. The hotel had recommended a few spots, but who would believe that Charlottetown would be so busy. We ended up at a lovely little Italian restaurant on the “pedestrian mall” & had a great dinner. We could have used a patio heater, but made the best of a beautiful “chilly” night. There was a great little band playing and the streets were busy with tourists.
AUGUST 6, 2011 – OFF TO CAPE BRETON
It’s a beautiful day for a ferry ride. The drive from Charlottetown to the ferry at Woods Island is about an hour long and is the southern most point in PEI. The crossing was uneventful, but as soon as we arrived in Pictou we noticed that things were different in Nova Scotia. The first sign we came to advised that there was a ROTARY in 2km. We weren’t sure whether it was a service club meeting or an old fashion telephone, but soon discovered it is a traffic circle. Thank god the GPS called it a round about so we knew what to expect!
Our first stop was the information centre & the lady there was extremely helpful explaining all the different areas & telling us where to go & what to see. She even booked our first night’s accommodation for us. The drive from Pictou to Beddeck wound its way through New Glasgow & Antigonish. A road sign advised a “LOOKOFF” in 500 meters but by the time we figured out it was a “view point” we had passed it! The scenery is quite different from PEI with beautiful rolling hills & very dense forests. We arrived in Beddeck and found our beautiful Victorian Inn about 4pm and set about getting our “chores” done. I had laundry to do & John needed to wash the car to get the red mud of PEI off the car.
The inn had a lovely restaurant and the special just happened to be a lobster supper complete with mussels. We hadn’t had lobster or mussels for a day so we were down a quart! It was just as good as the last lobster supper, only not all you could eat, but certainly as much as you needed to eat! After dinner we spent a couple of hours & a bottle of wine determining our travels for the next couple of days. (well, not so much a bottle as a portion of our 4 litre box). We found a decent “box” of Beaujolais in Charlottetown & it is much easier than always trying to find a liquor store. It is, of course, a little tackier carrying into a hotel, but no one seems to mind!
We had planned to do the Cabot Trail next then head to Newfoundland however the weather doesn’t look that great for the Cabot Trail so we’ve altered our plans to follow the weather.
AUGUST 7, 2011 – THE CEILHAH TRAIL (KAY-LEE)
Beddeck just happens to be the site of the Alexander Graham Bell National Historic Site. We spent a couple of hours touring the museum & finding out more about Bell than you would ever imagine. Not only did he invent the telephone, he was instrumental in early flight inventions in Canada (hydroplanes as well) & spent a great deal of his life helping develop “speech for the deaf”. He even helped Helen Keller learn to speak. So much for the history lesson!!
Our next stop was a beautiful public beach in Inverness. The temp. was +20 & the sun was shining so I couldn’t resist taking off my shoes and wandering the beach. The gorgeous sand stretched for a few miles & where we stopped there was even a lifeguard on duty. There was only another 20 people in sight so I spent a great hour wandering in the sun while JD sat, relaxed & chatted with people.
Another 30 minutes through rolling hills & dense forests and we arrived at Glenora distillery. This is the only place in North America that makes single malt whiskey. The tour was very interesting & we even got a wee dram to try. Single malt whiskey is the same thing as scotch, but it can only be called scotch if it is made in Scotland.
The “Red Shoe Pub” in Mabou is our next stop for a late lunch. Mabou is the home of the famous Rankin Family & the pub just happens to be owned by the Rankin sisters. Lunch was a pint, a bowl of seafood chowder & of course mussels. Apparently one of the sisters was in the house when we arrived but neither of us know what they look like so it didn’t mean a thing. The pub is a real small town pub with the walls covered with old photos of the Rankin family (circa 1920) & an old upright piano. There is live music in the pub three nights a week & I’m sure that would be something to see & hear.
Time to head up to Sydney & find some place for the night. We found a wonderful suite hotel right on the waterfront in Sydney & it is the first place in a long while that has had a “working” hot tub. The tub was located on the top floor of the hotel, surrounded by windows looking out over the water. There was even a nice deck outside complete with lawn chairs & a bbq. As luck would have it there was no one else there so that was even better. After dinner (seafood of course) we found out there was going to be a fireworks display at 10pm. Apparently there was a week long festival in Sydney & Sunday was the last night of “Rock the Dock”. We headed back up to the top floor of the hotel, with wine glasses in hand, a watched a wonderful fireworks display. Since a number of other hotel guests also had the same idea it turned out to be a great evening.
Tomorrow we are off to Glace Bay to see the Marconi Museum then on to the ferry for Newfoundland.
AUGUST 8, 2011 – FERRY TO THE ROCK
The rain is coming down in buckets but we head to see what Marconi did anyway. The museum was small but interesting & we even walked out to the edge of the cliff (in the rain) to see the remains of the base of the tower that sent the first wireless transmission from Canada to England.
We arrived at the ferry earlier than the 2 hours prior to sailing & it was a good thing we did. Cars were lined up & waiting & there wasn’t even security to go through!! Once on the ferry, we found a couple of very comfortable seats & settled in for the 5 hour crossing. Now, this ferry is not like the ferries to Vancouver Island. There are TV’s (with private headsets), a dining room, lounge, cafeteria and reserved seating! You can tell that most of the travelers have done the trip before as they have pillows, cards, their own headsets & packed lunches. It rained the entire 5 hours & when we arrived in Newfoundland we were very glad that our hotel was only 2 km from the ferry dock. The wind was howling, the rain was coming down sideways & it was pitch black.
AUGUST 9, 2011 – HEADING TO DEER LAKE
The rain is still coming down but the first thing we see as we head out of Port au Basques in Tim Horton’s. He has even made it to the “Rock”. We found the Information Centre as we headed out on TCH #1 as they call it (Trans Canada Hiway). The clerk was extremely helpful & advised that we needed to have reservations for everything all the way to St. Anthony, our final destination. The reason for the reservations every where is tourists are flocking from all over the world to see the ice bergs. She helped us book our way to St. Anthony which is at the very north end of Newfoundland.
Everything about Newfoundland is different. The terrain changes every time you turn a corner or drive into a valley. It rained most of the way to Corner Brook where we decided we needed to stop at Walmart & pick up some warm hoodies & rain gear.
The roads are far better than we had anticipated & much better than in the other Maritime provinces. The only scary part (and the reason why you don’t come to Newfoundland in the winter) is the snow plow markers on the side of the road are 12 foot high 6” x 6” posts!!
The most spectacular drive is along the coast once you turn off the TCH #1 at Deer Lake. If you look at a road map it looks like the road & the coast line are the same and in fact they really are. In some areas the Gulf of St. Lawrence is lapping up against the side of the road.
The spruce trees on the seaside of the road look like they have been cut off at about 5 feet and the sea side of the tree is almost bare of branches with everything growing on the land side. The trees on the land side of the hiway are taller & straighter, but not by much.
In Gros Morne National Park the mountains form huge fjords & lakes that stretch inland from the gulf. There are miles & miles of hiking trails and from what we saw of various spots along the road a great many people were taking advantage of the trails. There is even a golf course at Cow Head which is located at the northern end of the Park.
Today is one of the longest driving days we have had since starting our trip, but the scenery along the way makes it all worthwhile. We arrived in St. Anthony at about 3 pm but since our room wasn’t ready the desk clerk suggested we just take a drive back the hiway about 30 minutes to St. Anthony Bight (“jist folly da road til yous gets at the end”) to see the icebergs. Just outside town as we are driving toward the “end”, I see what looks like a moose statue at the side of the road. Well, it wasn’t a statue!! John slammed on the brakes just as “mom” ran in front of the car leaving junior on the side of the road. Our first sighting of the largest population group in Newfoundland.
Not sure exactly where we were going, we ended up at L’Anse aux Meadows. The Meadows is a National Historical site of the first Viking settlement in North America, 1000 AD. There are a few scattered shacks but I’m sure it pretty much looks like it did when the Vikings arrived and it is really the northern most point in Newfoundland. We did finally find the right spot & it is something else to be able to stand at the side of the road, next to the water & look out at the icebergs that are only a couple of hundred feet from the shore. We finally head back to the hotel about 5pm and to my delight discover they have booked us into the “honeymoon” suite for the two nights we are here. A king size bed (last night’s was a double), Jacuzzi tub and flat screen TV! All the comforts of home. It’s an early night as we leave for our boat tour at 9am tomorrow morning.
AUGUST 11, 2011 – WHALES & ICE BERGS
Our stop at Walmart was well worthwhile. The temperature this morning was +8 and it was overcast but not raining. A long-sleeve turtle neck, under a sweatshirt, covered up with a golf wind shirt, topped off with a fleece hoodie, we were ready for anything!! A quick stop at “Timmy’s” for breakfast then off to the “Northland Discovery Boat” for a 2.5 hour tour into “Iceberg Alley”.
Icebergs are usually gone by this time of year however, a very large iceberg broke off the Petermann Glacier in Greenland last August & is still breaking up & melting off the Newfoundland & Labrador coast. The “Petermann Iceberg” is estimated to still be more that 55 square kilometers in size & be 15,000 years old. Even though the morning was cloudy, you could see a white glow in the sky that is the reflection off the ice. In August 2010 the Petermann Iceberg was estimated to be almost 250 square kilometers.
I can’t begin to put into words what it is like to be within 50 feet of an iceberg that is 150-200 feet high. You can feel the chill in the air as you pass by these shimmering mountains of ice & the spectacle takes your breath away. It was something that neither of us will ever forget & something you could never put a price tag on. I managed to get some great pictures that will always remind us of this amazing experience. We spoke to one lady on shore who had taken the tour yesterday & she said they saw a group of seals sliding off the icebergs into the water – wouldn’t that have been something to see.
And not to be out done by the ice, we had a show put on for us by a group of humpback whales that were no more than 25 feet from the boat. They spouted & rolled and slapped the water with their fins and more than once our guide hollered “tail” as the whales flapped their tail up in the air as they dove into the deep. There was even a calf performing for us. We’ve now seen whales on both the west & east coast and I find myself still holding my breath at their majestic grace.
As we headed back toward the harbor the captain advised we were going to stop & do some Newfie ice fishing. He scooped up a piece of iceberg about the size of a “cube of beer” & broke pieces off for us all to try. The ice was absolutely crystal clear & tasted great. I guess there were no pollutants to contaminate the water 15,000 years ago. The ice is even harvested & made into specialty beer & vodka. I’m sure we’ll be able to find a bottle to bring home.
It’s a busy day in St. Anthony as a cruise ship arrived about noon. Apparently they come in for the day, usually from Greenland, see the sights then ship out again. Today’s ship didn’t come right into the harbor, but the people were tethered in & a number of them were going on the same tour we took.
Tonight we are going to a “Viking Feast” which takes place in a dug out type of earth hut up on the cliffs overlooking the harbor – should be interesting!! Right now I’m going to have a Jacuzzi to see if I can warm myself up!
We head off early Friday morning toward the farthest east coast of PEI. The weather is perfect & as usual, there are hardly any other cars on the road. The drive winds around the coast & through some central parts of the eastern part of the Island. As we drive along a sign states “distillery tours & tasting” so of course we have to stop. We’ve just missed the tour, but tastings are in order of original PEI potato vodka. It has an earthy aroma, but a very smooth palate. We had better have a bottle & find out it is more expensive than Grey Goose. It will be passed out sparingly!!
We reach East Point & watch the waves crash against the cliffs. There is another lighthouse to climb (only 67 stairs), but we decided to pass and continued down the road & discovered a tiny dirt road that ended on the beach. The beach was called the Singing Sands and had glorious soft sand that we strolled in & even dipped our toes in the icy cold water.
Another little road off the beaten track lead us to a wharf lined with lobster boats, traps pilled high & the little fishing shacks that lined the break water. We walked down to the end of the inlet and again, the waves were smashing in onto the rocks.
We were headed back to Charlottetown for the night but I had seen an ad for “red sand” jewelry & wanted to stop for a look. The only problem was, the shop was located in “Victoia by the Sea” which was about 30 minutes past Charlottetown toward the Confederation Bridge. John however, wanting to do nothing but curb my whine drove directly to Victoria and found the shop. Unfortunately, the name was misleading & only contained regular type jewelry which really didn’t appeal to me. The little village was however, very pretty & filled with different artisans. We have now been in “Victoria” on both coasts!!
We decided that our last night on PEI should be downtown. We found a wonderful little boutique hotel in the heart of the city & checked in. Since we hadn’t eaten since breakfast, we headed out for dinner. The hotel had recommended a few spots, but who would believe that Charlottetown would be so busy. We ended up at a lovely little Italian restaurant on the “pedestrian mall” & had a great dinner. We could have used a patio heater, but made the best of a beautiful “chilly” night. There was a great little band playing and the streets were busy with tourists.
AUGUST 6, 2011 – OFF TO CAPE BRETON
It’s a beautiful day for a ferry ride. The drive from Charlottetown to the ferry at Woods Island is about an hour long and is the southern most point in PEI. The crossing was uneventful, but as soon as we arrived in Pictou we noticed that things were different in Nova Scotia. The first sign we came to advised that there was a ROTARY in 2km. We weren’t sure whether it was a service club meeting or an old fashion telephone, but soon discovered it is a traffic circle. Thank god the GPS called it a round about so we knew what to expect!
Our first stop was the information centre & the lady there was extremely helpful explaining all the different areas & telling us where to go & what to see. She even booked our first night’s accommodation for us. The drive from Pictou to Beddeck wound its way through New Glasgow & Antigonish. A road sign advised a “LOOKOFF” in 500 meters but by the time we figured out it was a “view point” we had passed it! The scenery is quite different from PEI with beautiful rolling hills & very dense forests. We arrived in Beddeck and found our beautiful Victorian Inn about 4pm and set about getting our “chores” done. I had laundry to do & John needed to wash the car to get the red mud of PEI off the car.
The inn had a lovely restaurant and the special just happened to be a lobster supper complete with mussels. We hadn’t had lobster or mussels for a day so we were down a quart! It was just as good as the last lobster supper, only not all you could eat, but certainly as much as you needed to eat! After dinner we spent a couple of hours & a bottle of wine determining our travels for the next couple of days. (well, not so much a bottle as a portion of our 4 litre box). We found a decent “box” of Beaujolais in Charlottetown & it is much easier than always trying to find a liquor store. It is, of course, a little tackier carrying into a hotel, but no one seems to mind!
We had planned to do the Cabot Trail next then head to Newfoundland however the weather doesn’t look that great for the Cabot Trail so we’ve altered our plans to follow the weather.
AUGUST 7, 2011 – THE CEILHAH TRAIL (KAY-LEE)
Beddeck just happens to be the site of the Alexander Graham Bell National Historic Site. We spent a couple of hours touring the museum & finding out more about Bell than you would ever imagine. Not only did he invent the telephone, he was instrumental in early flight inventions in Canada (hydroplanes as well) & spent a great deal of his life helping develop “speech for the deaf”. He even helped Helen Keller learn to speak. So much for the history lesson!!
Our next stop was a beautiful public beach in Inverness. The temp. was +20 & the sun was shining so I couldn’t resist taking off my shoes and wandering the beach. The gorgeous sand stretched for a few miles & where we stopped there was even a lifeguard on duty. There was only another 20 people in sight so I spent a great hour wandering in the sun while JD sat, relaxed & chatted with people.
Another 30 minutes through rolling hills & dense forests and we arrived at Glenora distillery. This is the only place in North America that makes single malt whiskey. The tour was very interesting & we even got a wee dram to try. Single malt whiskey is the same thing as scotch, but it can only be called scotch if it is made in Scotland.
The “Red Shoe Pub” in Mabou is our next stop for a late lunch. Mabou is the home of the famous Rankin Family & the pub just happens to be owned by the Rankin sisters. Lunch was a pint, a bowl of seafood chowder & of course mussels. Apparently one of the sisters was in the house when we arrived but neither of us know what they look like so it didn’t mean a thing. The pub is a real small town pub with the walls covered with old photos of the Rankin family (circa 1920) & an old upright piano. There is live music in the pub three nights a week & I’m sure that would be something to see & hear.
Time to head up to Sydney & find some place for the night. We found a wonderful suite hotel right on the waterfront in Sydney & it is the first place in a long while that has had a “working” hot tub. The tub was located on the top floor of the hotel, surrounded by windows looking out over the water. There was even a nice deck outside complete with lawn chairs & a bbq. As luck would have it there was no one else there so that was even better. After dinner (seafood of course) we found out there was going to be a fireworks display at 10pm. Apparently there was a week long festival in Sydney & Sunday was the last night of “Rock the Dock”. We headed back up to the top floor of the hotel, with wine glasses in hand, a watched a wonderful fireworks display. Since a number of other hotel guests also had the same idea it turned out to be a great evening.
Tomorrow we are off to Glace Bay to see the Marconi Museum then on to the ferry for Newfoundland.
AUGUST 8, 2011 – FERRY TO THE ROCK
The rain is coming down in buckets but we head to see what Marconi did anyway. The museum was small but interesting & we even walked out to the edge of the cliff (in the rain) to see the remains of the base of the tower that sent the first wireless transmission from Canada to England.
We arrived at the ferry earlier than the 2 hours prior to sailing & it was a good thing we did. Cars were lined up & waiting & there wasn’t even security to go through!! Once on the ferry, we found a couple of very comfortable seats & settled in for the 5 hour crossing. Now, this ferry is not like the ferries to Vancouver Island. There are TV’s (with private headsets), a dining room, lounge, cafeteria and reserved seating! You can tell that most of the travelers have done the trip before as they have pillows, cards, their own headsets & packed lunches. It rained the entire 5 hours & when we arrived in Newfoundland we were very glad that our hotel was only 2 km from the ferry dock. The wind was howling, the rain was coming down sideways & it was pitch black.
AUGUST 9, 2011 – HEADING TO DEER LAKE
The rain is still coming down but the first thing we see as we head out of Port au Basques in Tim Horton’s. He has even made it to the “Rock”. We found the Information Centre as we headed out on TCH #1 as they call it (Trans Canada Hiway). The clerk was extremely helpful & advised that we needed to have reservations for everything all the way to St. Anthony, our final destination. The reason for the reservations every where is tourists are flocking from all over the world to see the ice bergs. She helped us book our way to St. Anthony which is at the very north end of Newfoundland.
Everything about Newfoundland is different. The terrain changes every time you turn a corner or drive into a valley. It rained most of the way to Corner Brook where we decided we needed to stop at Walmart & pick up some warm hoodies & rain gear.
The roads are far better than we had anticipated & much better than in the other Maritime provinces. The only scary part (and the reason why you don’t come to Newfoundland in the winter) is the snow plow markers on the side of the road are 12 foot high 6” x 6” posts!!
The most spectacular drive is along the coast once you turn off the TCH #1 at Deer Lake. If you look at a road map it looks like the road & the coast line are the same and in fact they really are. In some areas the Gulf of St. Lawrence is lapping up against the side of the road.
The spruce trees on the seaside of the road look like they have been cut off at about 5 feet and the sea side of the tree is almost bare of branches with everything growing on the land side. The trees on the land side of the hiway are taller & straighter, but not by much.
In Gros Morne National Park the mountains form huge fjords & lakes that stretch inland from the gulf. There are miles & miles of hiking trails and from what we saw of various spots along the road a great many people were taking advantage of the trails. There is even a golf course at Cow Head which is located at the northern end of the Park.
Today is one of the longest driving days we have had since starting our trip, but the scenery along the way makes it all worthwhile. We arrived in St. Anthony at about 3 pm but since our room wasn’t ready the desk clerk suggested we just take a drive back the hiway about 30 minutes to St. Anthony Bight (“jist folly da road til yous gets at the end”) to see the icebergs. Just outside town as we are driving toward the “end”, I see what looks like a moose statue at the side of the road. Well, it wasn’t a statue!! John slammed on the brakes just as “mom” ran in front of the car leaving junior on the side of the road. Our first sighting of the largest population group in Newfoundland.
Not sure exactly where we were going, we ended up at L’Anse aux Meadows. The Meadows is a National Historical site of the first Viking settlement in North America, 1000 AD. There are a few scattered shacks but I’m sure it pretty much looks like it did when the Vikings arrived and it is really the northern most point in Newfoundland. We did finally find the right spot & it is something else to be able to stand at the side of the road, next to the water & look out at the icebergs that are only a couple of hundred feet from the shore. We finally head back to the hotel about 5pm and to my delight discover they have booked us into the “honeymoon” suite for the two nights we are here. A king size bed (last night’s was a double), Jacuzzi tub and flat screen TV! All the comforts of home. It’s an early night as we leave for our boat tour at 9am tomorrow morning.
AUGUST 11, 2011 – WHALES & ICE BERGS
Our stop at Walmart was well worthwhile. The temperature this morning was +8 and it was overcast but not raining. A long-sleeve turtle neck, under a sweatshirt, covered up with a golf wind shirt, topped off with a fleece hoodie, we were ready for anything!! A quick stop at “Timmy’s” for breakfast then off to the “Northland Discovery Boat” for a 2.5 hour tour into “Iceberg Alley”.
Icebergs are usually gone by this time of year however, a very large iceberg broke off the Petermann Glacier in Greenland last August & is still breaking up & melting off the Newfoundland & Labrador coast. The “Petermann Iceberg” is estimated to still be more that 55 square kilometers in size & be 15,000 years old. Even though the morning was cloudy, you could see a white glow in the sky that is the reflection off the ice. In August 2010 the Petermann Iceberg was estimated to be almost 250 square kilometers.
I can’t begin to put into words what it is like to be within 50 feet of an iceberg that is 150-200 feet high. You can feel the chill in the air as you pass by these shimmering mountains of ice & the spectacle takes your breath away. It was something that neither of us will ever forget & something you could never put a price tag on. I managed to get some great pictures that will always remind us of this amazing experience. We spoke to one lady on shore who had taken the tour yesterday & she said they saw a group of seals sliding off the icebergs into the water – wouldn’t that have been something to see.
And not to be out done by the ice, we had a show put on for us by a group of humpback whales that were no more than 25 feet from the boat. They spouted & rolled and slapped the water with their fins and more than once our guide hollered “tail” as the whales flapped their tail up in the air as they dove into the deep. There was even a calf performing for us. We’ve now seen whales on both the west & east coast and I find myself still holding my breath at their majestic grace.
As we headed back toward the harbor the captain advised we were going to stop & do some Newfie ice fishing. He scooped up a piece of iceberg about the size of a “cube of beer” & broke pieces off for us all to try. The ice was absolutely crystal clear & tasted great. I guess there were no pollutants to contaminate the water 15,000 years ago. The ice is even harvested & made into specialty beer & vodka. I’m sure we’ll be able to find a bottle to bring home.
It’s a busy day in St. Anthony as a cruise ship arrived about noon. Apparently they come in for the day, usually from Greenland, see the sights then ship out again. Today’s ship didn’t come right into the harbor, but the people were tethered in & a number of them were going on the same tour we took.
Tonight we are going to a “Viking Feast” which takes place in a dug out type of earth hut up on the cliffs overlooking the harbor – should be interesting!! Right now I’m going to have a Jacuzzi to see if I can warm myself up!
Thursday, 4 August 2011
AUGUST 1, 2011 – OFF TO P.E.I.
Our first stop on this part of the drive was a wine tasting at the Waterside Winery. They make blueberry, cranberry & rhubarb wine. The blueberry cabernet (oaked) is really quite good so we had to buy a bottle.
Continuing along the Fundy Coastal Drive we head for Cape Enrage. This site is part of what New Brunswick is trying to have designated as one of the Seven Wonders of the World. It is already officially one of the Marine Wonders of the World. At Cape Enrage the tide raises over 53 vertical feet over a 12 hour period, twice a day. When we were there, the tide was in so we did not get to see the floor of the bay, but it is still an amazing site. The original lighthouse was built in 1840 & operated until 1978. There is a set of stairs that descends 99 feet to the beach along Chignecto Bay. I thought it would be neat to go down & walk on the beach, but John thought I was trying to kill him so he wouldn’t go!! We had a great bowl of seafood chowder at the restaurant & they even had Waterside Winery blueberry wine on their wine list.
This part of the Fundy drive is really interesting with lots of twists & turns & a great deal of climbing along high cliffs then dropping back again to the floor of the bay. We found a great little spot, off the beaten path, where we stopped and wandered the beach (rocks). There was another car parked when we stopped & they couldn’t believe we had come all the way from Alberta, but the lady’s sister lived in Airdrie. That’s 2 people in 2 days with relatives in Airdrie.
Next stop Hopewell Rocks, unfortunately with the tide being in there is nothing to see so we just kept driving. We now determine that we are done with New Brunswick & it’s time to head for PEI. It’s suppose to rain tomorrow & John wants to drive over the “Link” (The Confederation Bridge) in sunshine so off we go.
We arrive at the “Link” about 4:30pm & it is really amazing – 13 kilometers over the Northumberland Strait. It’s hard to describe, about half way across the bridge the road climbs another 100 feet in height so that ships can go under the bridge. Unfortunately being in the Mercedes we couldn’t see over the concrete railings, but I can imagine it’s quite a sight. There is no charge to go over this “toll” bridge, but you have to pay to get off PEI!!
Charlottetown is just an hour from the bridge, so after a quick stop at the tourist information centre (which just happened to have a liquor store attached) off we go looking for our bed for the night. We found a Howard Johnson just on the out skirts of town & since we had done a little more than we had actually planned for the day it suited us just fine. Tomorrow is pretty much planned as John needs to find a tire store for 2 new rear tires for the car. Not sure if anyone on the Island will have what he needs, but that is what needs to happen tomorrow.
AUGUST 2, 2011 – TIRES & TOURS in CHARLOTTETOWN
No, they didn’t have the tires he needed on the “Island”, but they could have them from Moncton by tomorrow. That means we have the day to tour the city & as we have found, the best way to tour any new place is on a tour bus. Well, did we find a tour bus!!! The “Hippo” bus. Not only did we have a 40 minutes city tour but also a 40 minutes harbor tour. I’m not sure what we expected Charlottetown to be, but it was much smaller that we expected. The street tour was very interesting pointing out the old houses & churches – Charlottetown has more churches per capita than any other city in Canada. It also has more liquor stores per capita!!! And there are no buildings taller than the steeples on St. Andrews Church allowed.
Now it’s time for the harbor part of the tour. As we get to the waters edge & the captain changes to “water gears” the theme to Jaws is playing on the loud speaker, and once we are in the water we get the entire theme to “Gilligan’s Island”. It was a good thing they supplied blankets as the sky was overcast, it tried very hard to rain & it was not warm.
After our bus tour we wondered the streets of the city, then headed back to the hotel. We even found a clinic where John can have his blood tested tomorrow so all in all a good day. No sooner did we get back to HOJO than the skies opened up like you couldn’t imagine. Since our dinner at the hotel yesterday was so good, we decided not to venture out in the rain (we had a great lunch on the wharf downtown) & just stay in. Good thing we did as the rain came down in sheets & the thunder & lightning continued on into the night. Tomorrow, blood work & new tires, how much more fun can you have.
AUGUST 3, 2011 – BLOOD WORK, TIRES & THE ROAD TO RUSTICO
The blood work only took an hour, the tires we didn’t get finished with until 4:00pm. It was a cool, rainy day so we sat for an extended lunch, then I wondered the mall while John waited for the tires to be installed.
Everything on the Island is close, but there road maps are very deceiving. Our first stop outside the “city” is the “central coast drive” & we are headed for the village of Rustico. It turns out to be about 20 minutes from Charlottetown. We’ve found a quaint little cottage motel in the country side. Our “cottage” is right next to the corn field, but cozy & clean so we’re here for a couple of days. Dinner was at the “Blue Mussel” where “nothing” is deep fried, including the fish & chips. Dinner was to excellent & tomorrow we head for Avonlea & Anne of Green Gables.
AUGUST 4, 2011 – ANNE & NORTH CAPE
It was supposed to rain today, but we awoke to broken clouds & +13, hopefully it stays for the day. We head off to Cavendish which is the location of the Anne of Green Gables Interpretive centre. We wondered through the Centre, but since I never read any of the books & John was less than interested we decided to start our journey up the North Cape Coastal Drive. It’s my day to drive so it will be interesting to see if we are still married at the end of the day! Just down the road, literally, from Cavendish is Malpeque Bay where all the famous oysters come from. We just had breakfast, so the oysters will have to wait for another day. The coastal drive takes us through Summerside (the other major “city” in PEI), around Bedeque Bay, Egmont Bay then up the island to North Cape. The Cape is surrounded on three sides by water, the Gulf of St Lawrence, and where it meets Northumberland Strait. It is also the site of 17 giant experimental windmills. The water was quite rough with plenty of whitecaps but a number of people were wandering out on the sand bar at low tide. The sand, like the earth on the entire Island is red & is really quite a sight.
And if I said we saw potatoes in New Brunswick, it’s nothing compared to what PEI has. Every single inch of beautiful red soil has rows & rows & rows & rows of perfectly hoed potatoes. Hence, every time you get something to eat here you get your choice of potatoes 15 different ways! Apparently PEI supplies one third of all the potatoes to Canadians.
Tonight is our night for a traditional PEI lobster supper. We have been told the best place for said supper is in New Glasgow, which just happens to be about 10 minutes down the road from out little cottage. We really didn’t know what to expect, but after our drive we relaxed with a glass of wine then headed over to New Glasgow about 6:30. We did not expect the fully parking lot & line up well out the door. Well, the wait was certainly worth it!! Your choose your size of lobster & pay accordingly everything else is ALL YOU CAN EAT. John chose a 2 pound lobster while I opted for a smaller 1 ½ pounder. First is your appetizer”S”, seafood chowder, a BUCKET of mussels, a salad plate consisting of a tossed salad, coleslaw & potato salad as well as homemade hot rolls. Did I mention that the appetizers were ALL YOU CAN EAT??? And for each of us!! Once you work through the appetizers they bring on the main course. I don’t think I have ever seen such big lobsters, split & cracked with drawn butter on the side. Oh My God was it good!!! And the atmosphere is unbelievable! The room holds probably 175 people, there is no music & no carpet on the floor but lots of laughter with people of all ages thoroughly enjoying the entire experience. The table sizes range from 2 to 20 with paper placemats (which explain how to eat a lobster) and handi wipes on the side.
This place has been serving lobster suppers since 1958 & in 1974 had the dubious honor of having Margaret & Pierre Trudeau join them for supper.
Oh, I almost forgot about the dessert, which is also ALL YOU CAN EAT. Raisin, cherry, apple, blueberry & lemon meringue pie, as well as strawberry shortcake & ice cream. JD had lemon meringue pie which was at least 6 inches high while I opted for the strawberry shortcake (I only ate the strawberries!) If this blog sounds like we have been on a tasting tour of Canada you are absolutely right. We will both need to have our jaws wired shut when we get home!!! We haven’t had anything other than fish since we arrived in the Maritimes and we have had some of the most incredible seafood chowders you can imagine!!
Tomorrow we check out of here and head to the Points East Coastal Drive. We haven’t played golf on PEI yet so we will see what the next few days bring.
Our first stop on this part of the drive was a wine tasting at the Waterside Winery. They make blueberry, cranberry & rhubarb wine. The blueberry cabernet (oaked) is really quite good so we had to buy a bottle.
Continuing along the Fundy Coastal Drive we head for Cape Enrage. This site is part of what New Brunswick is trying to have designated as one of the Seven Wonders of the World. It is already officially one of the Marine Wonders of the World. At Cape Enrage the tide raises over 53 vertical feet over a 12 hour period, twice a day. When we were there, the tide was in so we did not get to see the floor of the bay, but it is still an amazing site. The original lighthouse was built in 1840 & operated until 1978. There is a set of stairs that descends 99 feet to the beach along Chignecto Bay. I thought it would be neat to go down & walk on the beach, but John thought I was trying to kill him so he wouldn’t go!! We had a great bowl of seafood chowder at the restaurant & they even had Waterside Winery blueberry wine on their wine list.
This part of the Fundy drive is really interesting with lots of twists & turns & a great deal of climbing along high cliffs then dropping back again to the floor of the bay. We found a great little spot, off the beaten path, where we stopped and wandered the beach (rocks). There was another car parked when we stopped & they couldn’t believe we had come all the way from Alberta, but the lady’s sister lived in Airdrie. That’s 2 people in 2 days with relatives in Airdrie.
Next stop Hopewell Rocks, unfortunately with the tide being in there is nothing to see so we just kept driving. We now determine that we are done with New Brunswick & it’s time to head for PEI. It’s suppose to rain tomorrow & John wants to drive over the “Link” (The Confederation Bridge) in sunshine so off we go.
We arrive at the “Link” about 4:30pm & it is really amazing – 13 kilometers over the Northumberland Strait. It’s hard to describe, about half way across the bridge the road climbs another 100 feet in height so that ships can go under the bridge. Unfortunately being in the Mercedes we couldn’t see over the concrete railings, but I can imagine it’s quite a sight. There is no charge to go over this “toll” bridge, but you have to pay to get off PEI!!
Charlottetown is just an hour from the bridge, so after a quick stop at the tourist information centre (which just happened to have a liquor store attached) off we go looking for our bed for the night. We found a Howard Johnson just on the out skirts of town & since we had done a little more than we had actually planned for the day it suited us just fine. Tomorrow is pretty much planned as John needs to find a tire store for 2 new rear tires for the car. Not sure if anyone on the Island will have what he needs, but that is what needs to happen tomorrow.
AUGUST 2, 2011 – TIRES & TOURS in CHARLOTTETOWN
No, they didn’t have the tires he needed on the “Island”, but they could have them from Moncton by tomorrow. That means we have the day to tour the city & as we have found, the best way to tour any new place is on a tour bus. Well, did we find a tour bus!!! The “Hippo” bus. Not only did we have a 40 minutes city tour but also a 40 minutes harbor tour. I’m not sure what we expected Charlottetown to be, but it was much smaller that we expected. The street tour was very interesting pointing out the old houses & churches – Charlottetown has more churches per capita than any other city in Canada. It also has more liquor stores per capita!!! And there are no buildings taller than the steeples on St. Andrews Church allowed.
Now it’s time for the harbor part of the tour. As we get to the waters edge & the captain changes to “water gears” the theme to Jaws is playing on the loud speaker, and once we are in the water we get the entire theme to “Gilligan’s Island”. It was a good thing they supplied blankets as the sky was overcast, it tried very hard to rain & it was not warm.
After our bus tour we wondered the streets of the city, then headed back to the hotel. We even found a clinic where John can have his blood tested tomorrow so all in all a good day. No sooner did we get back to HOJO than the skies opened up like you couldn’t imagine. Since our dinner at the hotel yesterday was so good, we decided not to venture out in the rain (we had a great lunch on the wharf downtown) & just stay in. Good thing we did as the rain came down in sheets & the thunder & lightning continued on into the night. Tomorrow, blood work & new tires, how much more fun can you have.
AUGUST 3, 2011 – BLOOD WORK, TIRES & THE ROAD TO RUSTICO
The blood work only took an hour, the tires we didn’t get finished with until 4:00pm. It was a cool, rainy day so we sat for an extended lunch, then I wondered the mall while John waited for the tires to be installed.
Everything on the Island is close, but there road maps are very deceiving. Our first stop outside the “city” is the “central coast drive” & we are headed for the village of Rustico. It turns out to be about 20 minutes from Charlottetown. We’ve found a quaint little cottage motel in the country side. Our “cottage” is right next to the corn field, but cozy & clean so we’re here for a couple of days. Dinner was at the “Blue Mussel” where “nothing” is deep fried, including the fish & chips. Dinner was to excellent & tomorrow we head for Avonlea & Anne of Green Gables.
AUGUST 4, 2011 – ANNE & NORTH CAPE
It was supposed to rain today, but we awoke to broken clouds & +13, hopefully it stays for the day. We head off to Cavendish which is the location of the Anne of Green Gables Interpretive centre. We wondered through the Centre, but since I never read any of the books & John was less than interested we decided to start our journey up the North Cape Coastal Drive. It’s my day to drive so it will be interesting to see if we are still married at the end of the day! Just down the road, literally, from Cavendish is Malpeque Bay where all the famous oysters come from. We just had breakfast, so the oysters will have to wait for another day. The coastal drive takes us through Summerside (the other major “city” in PEI), around Bedeque Bay, Egmont Bay then up the island to North Cape. The Cape is surrounded on three sides by water, the Gulf of St Lawrence, and where it meets Northumberland Strait. It is also the site of 17 giant experimental windmills. The water was quite rough with plenty of whitecaps but a number of people were wandering out on the sand bar at low tide. The sand, like the earth on the entire Island is red & is really quite a sight.
And if I said we saw potatoes in New Brunswick, it’s nothing compared to what PEI has. Every single inch of beautiful red soil has rows & rows & rows & rows of perfectly hoed potatoes. Hence, every time you get something to eat here you get your choice of potatoes 15 different ways! Apparently PEI supplies one third of all the potatoes to Canadians.
Tonight is our night for a traditional PEI lobster supper. We have been told the best place for said supper is in New Glasgow, which just happens to be about 10 minutes down the road from out little cottage. We really didn’t know what to expect, but after our drive we relaxed with a glass of wine then headed over to New Glasgow about 6:30. We did not expect the fully parking lot & line up well out the door. Well, the wait was certainly worth it!! Your choose your size of lobster & pay accordingly everything else is ALL YOU CAN EAT. John chose a 2 pound lobster while I opted for a smaller 1 ½ pounder. First is your appetizer”S”, seafood chowder, a BUCKET of mussels, a salad plate consisting of a tossed salad, coleslaw & potato salad as well as homemade hot rolls. Did I mention that the appetizers were ALL YOU CAN EAT??? And for each of us!! Once you work through the appetizers they bring on the main course. I don’t think I have ever seen such big lobsters, split & cracked with drawn butter on the side. Oh My God was it good!!! And the atmosphere is unbelievable! The room holds probably 175 people, there is no music & no carpet on the floor but lots of laughter with people of all ages thoroughly enjoying the entire experience. The table sizes range from 2 to 20 with paper placemats (which explain how to eat a lobster) and handi wipes on the side.
This place has been serving lobster suppers since 1958 & in 1974 had the dubious honor of having Margaret & Pierre Trudeau join them for supper.
Oh, I almost forgot about the dessert, which is also ALL YOU CAN EAT. Raisin, cherry, apple, blueberry & lemon meringue pie, as well as strawberry shortcake & ice cream. JD had lemon meringue pie which was at least 6 inches high while I opted for the strawberry shortcake (I only ate the strawberries!) If this blog sounds like we have been on a tasting tour of Canada you are absolutely right. We will both need to have our jaws wired shut when we get home!!! We haven’t had anything other than fish since we arrived in the Maritimes and we have had some of the most incredible seafood chowders you can imagine!!
Tomorrow we check out of here and head to the Points East Coastal Drive. We haven’t played golf on PEI yet so we will see what the next few days bring.
Sunday, 31 July 2011
JULY 28, 2011 - THE ROAD TO MONCTON
So far we have stayed off major hi ways for most of our trip. The drive from Miramichi to Moncton was no different. The road wound around the eastern edge of New Brunswick & at a couple of spots we had to detour as the ocean had washed away parts of the road. We found a wonderful little fishing port after passing Boutouche so decided to wander even a little farther off the beaten path. We came across a fish processing plant & as we drove through the little village, we came across the most magnificent house you could ever imagine. It sat high up on a cliff overlooking the Gulf of St. Lawrence, with what appeared to be an enclosed swimming pool at the back. It was all stone, with a 4 car garage & a separate garage which was probably for a boat. The funniest thing about the whole beautiful location & house was the double line of sheets hanging out to dry at the back in the wind! I guess it doesn’t matter how big the house, the smell of fresh hung sheets can’t be beat. We also stopped at a small fish market, just to check out the fare. Whole, cooked lobster - $8.99 a pound! The girl in the market told us the price was high because the lobsters were imported from Nova Scotia, usually the local stuff is only about $5.00!!! We also found out that the big mansion belonged to the owner of the processing plant, fish market & most of the fishing fleet.
We have been lucky enough on all of our travels to just drive up to a hotel/motel where we think we would like to stay & get a room. Today was no different. We found a hotel right next to Moncton’s famous Magnetic Hill. Off we went to check out the golf course, which was right next door & also Magnetic Hill. We decided to take the day off driving tomorrow and set up a tee time for 10:30. Then we made our way to the Magnetic Hill & experienced the “optical allusion” of being pulled up the hill backwards. At least we can say we did it.
We also got a look at the “Claw” which is U2’s stage. The final performance of U2’s 360 degree world tour takes place in Moncton July 30. Moncton is expecting 80,000 people for the concert – that’s the same as the entire population of Moncton.
We just had dinner at the hotel, but what a dinner! Fresh mussel, scallop & shrimp linguini in a light garlic oil sauce. The hotel was not fancy, but boy was the food good! Another good nights sleep & we can hardly wait to play some golf.
July 29/11 – Magnetic Hill Golf Club
10:30 tee time, how good is that. We played with a long time member & his grandson unfortunately, they were playing a match & weren’t very helpful with course layout. There were lots of tricky little blind holes & water where you didn’t expect it, but with the temperature at +26 we were not about to complain. And they even have a Calgary connection – one of there new pros is Brianna Souter from Glen Eagles in Cochrane. She moved to New Brunswick because her boyfriend is from here & so far she is really enjoying the new experience.
A little nap then out to fill our selves with seafood again. Oh yes, our hotel was rocking Friday night. Music & laughing on into the wee hours of the morning with people from all over the world in town for the concert. We plan to get out of town first thing in the morning & head for Saint John.
July 30/11 – Driving to Saint John
Thank god we don’t have tickets for U2!!! It has poured rain since about 3 am & it is predicted to rain all day. The Magnetic Hill Concert site is in a huge field. There is no parking & people are not allowed to bring lawn chairs. How much fun is that???
It rained almost all the way to Saint John, but cleared a little as we checked into our hotel overlooking the harbor. We couldn’t get into our room until 3pm so off we went to market square to see what the city has to order. First stop, market square & the Museum of New Brunswick. We then stopped for lunch (seafood chowder, of course) & watched the rain come down like I’ve never seen before. By the time we left, the rain had almost stopped so we toured downtown then headed back to the hotel about 4pm. Both of us were pretty tired & had eaten way too much chowder so we opted for a very lazy night in. After a nap, dinner consisted of a bag of potato chips & a bottle of wine in front of the TV. We couldn’t get the Calgary football game, so it was early to bed with a full day of touring planned for tomorrow.
JULY 31, 2011 – ST. ANDREWS BY THE SEA
First stop the “Reversing Falls”. You really need to be diligent to see the whole effect of this marvel of nature. The tides on the Bay of Fundy are the highest in the world and in order to see how the tide rises 28 feet you to have to catch low tide, slack tide & high tide. This process takes 12 hours, so we caught low tide & will just imagine how it looks at high tide.
St. Andrews by the Sea is a beautiful little village just across the bay from Maine. It was a fortress during the War of 1812 & there is a “block house” which was used as a fortress during the war. It is one of only two remaining “block houses” in North America.
The main street in St. Andrews is very much like the main street in Banff, Jasper or Oakville. Full of little shops filled with souvenirs made in China. The only difference is they have a wonderful view of the Bay of Fundy filled with sail boats. We found a great old restaurant & sat right on the waters edge eating our bucket of mussels & having a beer.
There is the beautiful “Fairmount Algonquin” located in St. Andrews along with some very lovely cottage homes sitting right at the waters edge. The weather is very similar to that in Victoria and they see very little snow compared to the rest of New Brunswick.
The drive back to Saint John along the Fundy Coastal Drive is very picturesque. We stopped at Chance Harbour which dips right into the Bay of Fundy. The Alberta license plate always gets a comment from people & a couple who were walking on the beach stopped to chat – they have relatives in Airdrie, so it really is a small world.
We got back to the hotel about 4pm so I had time to do some laundry before we headed out for more seafood. Tonight’s restaurant was recommended by the hotel clerk, but we were really disappointed. We had the “Shore dinner for 2”. First course clam chowder or lobster bisque, then a bucket of mussels, then 1 ½ pound lobster (each) with corn on the cob. Unfortunately, the service was the worst we’ve ever had. We had to ask where our cocktails were, we got the mussels before the soup, and the main course at the same time as the soup, which we had to ask for. There was only one waitress & she of course blamed the kitchen. The food was good, but not the lobster experience we were looking for.
Well, I am finally up to date with this blog. Tomorrow is a holiday here and we are heading back toward Moncton via a different route, then to Sackville and on toward the Confederation Bridge & a week on P.E
So far we have stayed off major hi ways for most of our trip. The drive from Miramichi to Moncton was no different. The road wound around the eastern edge of New Brunswick & at a couple of spots we had to detour as the ocean had washed away parts of the road. We found a wonderful little fishing port after passing Boutouche so decided to wander even a little farther off the beaten path. We came across a fish processing plant & as we drove through the little village, we came across the most magnificent house you could ever imagine. It sat high up on a cliff overlooking the Gulf of St. Lawrence, with what appeared to be an enclosed swimming pool at the back. It was all stone, with a 4 car garage & a separate garage which was probably for a boat. The funniest thing about the whole beautiful location & house was the double line of sheets hanging out to dry at the back in the wind! I guess it doesn’t matter how big the house, the smell of fresh hung sheets can’t be beat. We also stopped at a small fish market, just to check out the fare. Whole, cooked lobster - $8.99 a pound! The girl in the market told us the price was high because the lobsters were imported from Nova Scotia, usually the local stuff is only about $5.00!!! We also found out that the big mansion belonged to the owner of the processing plant, fish market & most of the fishing fleet.
We have been lucky enough on all of our travels to just drive up to a hotel/motel where we think we would like to stay & get a room. Today was no different. We found a hotel right next to Moncton’s famous Magnetic Hill. Off we went to check out the golf course, which was right next door & also Magnetic Hill. We decided to take the day off driving tomorrow and set up a tee time for 10:30. Then we made our way to the Magnetic Hill & experienced the “optical allusion” of being pulled up the hill backwards. At least we can say we did it.
We also got a look at the “Claw” which is U2’s stage. The final performance of U2’s 360 degree world tour takes place in Moncton July 30. Moncton is expecting 80,000 people for the concert – that’s the same as the entire population of Moncton.
We just had dinner at the hotel, but what a dinner! Fresh mussel, scallop & shrimp linguini in a light garlic oil sauce. The hotel was not fancy, but boy was the food good! Another good nights sleep & we can hardly wait to play some golf.
July 29/11 – Magnetic Hill Golf Club
10:30 tee time, how good is that. We played with a long time member & his grandson unfortunately, they were playing a match & weren’t very helpful with course layout. There were lots of tricky little blind holes & water where you didn’t expect it, but with the temperature at +26 we were not about to complain. And they even have a Calgary connection – one of there new pros is Brianna Souter from Glen Eagles in Cochrane. She moved to New Brunswick because her boyfriend is from here & so far she is really enjoying the new experience.
A little nap then out to fill our selves with seafood again. Oh yes, our hotel was rocking Friday night. Music & laughing on into the wee hours of the morning with people from all over the world in town for the concert. We plan to get out of town first thing in the morning & head for Saint John.
July 30/11 – Driving to Saint John
Thank god we don’t have tickets for U2!!! It has poured rain since about 3 am & it is predicted to rain all day. The Magnetic Hill Concert site is in a huge field. There is no parking & people are not allowed to bring lawn chairs. How much fun is that???
It rained almost all the way to Saint John, but cleared a little as we checked into our hotel overlooking the harbor. We couldn’t get into our room until 3pm so off we went to market square to see what the city has to order. First stop, market square & the Museum of New Brunswick. We then stopped for lunch (seafood chowder, of course) & watched the rain come down like I’ve never seen before. By the time we left, the rain had almost stopped so we toured downtown then headed back to the hotel about 4pm. Both of us were pretty tired & had eaten way too much chowder so we opted for a very lazy night in. After a nap, dinner consisted of a bag of potato chips & a bottle of wine in front of the TV. We couldn’t get the Calgary football game, so it was early to bed with a full day of touring planned for tomorrow.
JULY 31, 2011 – ST. ANDREWS BY THE SEA
First stop the “Reversing Falls”. You really need to be diligent to see the whole effect of this marvel of nature. The tides on the Bay of Fundy are the highest in the world and in order to see how the tide rises 28 feet you to have to catch low tide, slack tide & high tide. This process takes 12 hours, so we caught low tide & will just imagine how it looks at high tide.
St. Andrews by the Sea is a beautiful little village just across the bay from Maine. It was a fortress during the War of 1812 & there is a “block house” which was used as a fortress during the war. It is one of only two remaining “block houses” in North America.
The main street in St. Andrews is very much like the main street in Banff, Jasper or Oakville. Full of little shops filled with souvenirs made in China. The only difference is they have a wonderful view of the Bay of Fundy filled with sail boats. We found a great old restaurant & sat right on the waters edge eating our bucket of mussels & having a beer.
There is the beautiful “Fairmount Algonquin” located in St. Andrews along with some very lovely cottage homes sitting right at the waters edge. The weather is very similar to that in Victoria and they see very little snow compared to the rest of New Brunswick.
The drive back to Saint John along the Fundy Coastal Drive is very picturesque. We stopped at Chance Harbour which dips right into the Bay of Fundy. The Alberta license plate always gets a comment from people & a couple who were walking on the beach stopped to chat – they have relatives in Airdrie, so it really is a small world.
We got back to the hotel about 4pm so I had time to do some laundry before we headed out for more seafood. Tonight’s restaurant was recommended by the hotel clerk, but we were really disappointed. We had the “Shore dinner for 2”. First course clam chowder or lobster bisque, then a bucket of mussels, then 1 ½ pound lobster (each) with corn on the cob. Unfortunately, the service was the worst we’ve ever had. We had to ask where our cocktails were, we got the mussels before the soup, and the main course at the same time as the soup, which we had to ask for. There was only one waitress & she of course blamed the kitchen. The food was good, but not the lobster experience we were looking for.
Well, I am finally up to date with this blog. Tomorrow is a holiday here and we are heading back toward Moncton via a different route, then to Sackville and on toward the Confederation Bridge & a week on P.E
Friday, 29 July 2011
JULY 26, 2011 – THE APPALACHIAN RANGE ROUTE TO CAMPBELLTON
My turn to drive so John can do the sight seeing. I’m not sure he is always comfortable with that, but that’s the way it is. Campbellton is on the northern tip of New Brunswick, just across Chaleur Bay from Quebec. You would think you were still in Quebec as everyone speaks to you in French first, but they quickly switch to English when they see the stunned looked on your face. The drive was very easy, just rolling hills & lots of trees. We had a lovely lunch in a little local café, made a stop at the bank (some how the cash just seems to disappear), then headed off to Bathurst. We are now on the Acadian Coastal Drive which stretches all the way from Bathurst to the Centennial Bridge on the eastern most tip of NB. The hi-way hugs the shoreline of Chaleur Bay and meanders through little Acadian towns & villages. They are extremely proud of their Acadian heritage and nearly all the little homes & cottages along the way have the Acadian flag (looks a lot like the French flag) flying from flag poles along with the Canadian flag.
The skies have been a little grey most of the way, but the rain has held off so the weather has not affected any of our tour plans. We arrived in Bathurst late in the afternoon and decided to call it a day. The tourist information centres in NB have been great. Very informative & everyone speaks English. It was suggested that we stop at a place called “Danny’s”. Not only the best seafood in town, but a great little motel/convention centre just outside town. Danny’s has been around since 1947 when it was just a burger stand and campsite. It is still run by the same family & everything was outstanding. I had grilled scallops with maple syrup & JD had Atlantic salmon. I really though the salmon was a stretch for him, as he doesn’t usually like salmon but we were both surprised. Atlantic salmon has a much milder taste than the Pacific & the way Danny’s grilled it was superb. They also served a fabulous cup of seafood chowder. Had I known how good the chowder was, I would just of had a huge bowl full & nothing else.
JULY 27, 2011 – OFF TO MIRAMICHI
Raining a little this morning, but off we go toward the Acadian Isles, the most eastern tip of NB which separates Chaleur Bay and the Gulf of St. Lawrence. We are staying off as many main hi ways as possible & seeing the real country side. As we cross the little islands heading toward our goal – the lighthouse at the tip of Miscou Island – we stopped at an information centre just to make sure we were on the right track. The girl was very sweet, spoke very broken English, but told us to make sure to stop as soon as we crossed the bridge onto Miscou Island if we liked seafood.
We weren’t sure we were at the right place when we stopped, but since there were a bunch of motorcycles parked next to a small garage-type of building with picnic tables outside, we stopped. “Steve’s Place” sitting right on the edge of the water serving up his specialty – fresh, steamed LOBSTER. We were the first people this year from Calgary so we had to sign his wall (one of the posts holding up the tarpaulin windbreak!) He also took us into his “kitchen” where he had 4,00 live lobsters and clams in tanks. We had a fabulous lunch of steamed clams & lobster along with a local blueberry beer. Steve then brought out “Bob” the 10 lbs. lobster so we could have our picture taken with him. Steve also has a blue heron that comes for lunch when Steve whistles for him, but he must have been out fishing when we were there. Definitely one of the highlights of our trip!!
We reached the light house, which was built in 1825. Of course the lighthouse keeper does not have to light the lamps with seal oil anymore but we did climb the 96 steps to the top & go out onto the observation deck. I kept my back to the inside while JD is a lot more daring and stood right at the edge of the rail overlooking the side of the lighthouse. The view was spectacular, one side The Bay of Chaleur, the other the Gulf of St. Lawrence. The guide at the top even pointed out a group of seals swimming just of the shore. Of course, we then had to climb down the 96 stairs but that seemed to work off the lobster & give us some exercise for the day.
We decided to stay the night on the Island & had seen a lovely spot just before crossing onto the most easterly island. We headed back to the small bay where the three storey building was located. JD went inside to see if there were any rooms available. How I wish I would have gone into the lobby with him! There were a number of “guests” seated in the lobby, but no reception desk in sight. He walked down the hall a way & there were more “guests” sitting in the hall staring at him. When he left the building we determined that it was an assisted living lodge! We knew that “auberge” meant “inn” in English, but we thought the rest of the “sign” said something to the effect of “The Inn of Companions”. I guess the best part of this story is that we did not check into the old folks home!! But we sure laughed as we drove off toward Miramichi.
We stayed at a regular old comfort inn type of place, but the best part was they had a hot tub – just like the one we have at home. All we had to do was tell them when we wanted our hot tub & we had it all to ourselves. Anyone else had to wait until we were finished.
A great sleep & we’re ready to hit the road for Moncton tomorrow.
My turn to drive so John can do the sight seeing. I’m not sure he is always comfortable with that, but that’s the way it is. Campbellton is on the northern tip of New Brunswick, just across Chaleur Bay from Quebec. You would think you were still in Quebec as everyone speaks to you in French first, but they quickly switch to English when they see the stunned looked on your face. The drive was very easy, just rolling hills & lots of trees. We had a lovely lunch in a little local café, made a stop at the bank (some how the cash just seems to disappear), then headed off to Bathurst. We are now on the Acadian Coastal Drive which stretches all the way from Bathurst to the Centennial Bridge on the eastern most tip of NB. The hi-way hugs the shoreline of Chaleur Bay and meanders through little Acadian towns & villages. They are extremely proud of their Acadian heritage and nearly all the little homes & cottages along the way have the Acadian flag (looks a lot like the French flag) flying from flag poles along with the Canadian flag.
The skies have been a little grey most of the way, but the rain has held off so the weather has not affected any of our tour plans. We arrived in Bathurst late in the afternoon and decided to call it a day. The tourist information centres in NB have been great. Very informative & everyone speaks English. It was suggested that we stop at a place called “Danny’s”. Not only the best seafood in town, but a great little motel/convention centre just outside town. Danny’s has been around since 1947 when it was just a burger stand and campsite. It is still run by the same family & everything was outstanding. I had grilled scallops with maple syrup & JD had Atlantic salmon. I really though the salmon was a stretch for him, as he doesn’t usually like salmon but we were both surprised. Atlantic salmon has a much milder taste than the Pacific & the way Danny’s grilled it was superb. They also served a fabulous cup of seafood chowder. Had I known how good the chowder was, I would just of had a huge bowl full & nothing else.
JULY 27, 2011 – OFF TO MIRAMICHI
Raining a little this morning, but off we go toward the Acadian Isles, the most eastern tip of NB which separates Chaleur Bay and the Gulf of St. Lawrence. We are staying off as many main hi ways as possible & seeing the real country side. As we cross the little islands heading toward our goal – the lighthouse at the tip of Miscou Island – we stopped at an information centre just to make sure we were on the right track. The girl was very sweet, spoke very broken English, but told us to make sure to stop as soon as we crossed the bridge onto Miscou Island if we liked seafood.
We weren’t sure we were at the right place when we stopped, but since there were a bunch of motorcycles parked next to a small garage-type of building with picnic tables outside, we stopped. “Steve’s Place” sitting right on the edge of the water serving up his specialty – fresh, steamed LOBSTER. We were the first people this year from Calgary so we had to sign his wall (one of the posts holding up the tarpaulin windbreak!) He also took us into his “kitchen” where he had 4,00 live lobsters and clams in tanks. We had a fabulous lunch of steamed clams & lobster along with a local blueberry beer. Steve then brought out “Bob” the 10 lbs. lobster so we could have our picture taken with him. Steve also has a blue heron that comes for lunch when Steve whistles for him, but he must have been out fishing when we were there. Definitely one of the highlights of our trip!!
We reached the light house, which was built in 1825. Of course the lighthouse keeper does not have to light the lamps with seal oil anymore but we did climb the 96 steps to the top & go out onto the observation deck. I kept my back to the inside while JD is a lot more daring and stood right at the edge of the rail overlooking the side of the lighthouse. The view was spectacular, one side The Bay of Chaleur, the other the Gulf of St. Lawrence. The guide at the top even pointed out a group of seals swimming just of the shore. Of course, we then had to climb down the 96 stairs but that seemed to work off the lobster & give us some exercise for the day.
We decided to stay the night on the Island & had seen a lovely spot just before crossing onto the most easterly island. We headed back to the small bay where the three storey building was located. JD went inside to see if there were any rooms available. How I wish I would have gone into the lobby with him! There were a number of “guests” seated in the lobby, but no reception desk in sight. He walked down the hall a way & there were more “guests” sitting in the hall staring at him. When he left the building we determined that it was an assisted living lodge! We knew that “auberge” meant “inn” in English, but we thought the rest of the “sign” said something to the effect of “The Inn of Companions”. I guess the best part of this story is that we did not check into the old folks home!! But we sure laughed as we drove off toward Miramichi.
We stayed at a regular old comfort inn type of place, but the best part was they had a hot tub – just like the one we have at home. All we had to do was tell them when we wanted our hot tub & we had it all to ourselves. Anyone else had to wait until we were finished.
A great sleep & we’re ready to hit the road for Moncton tomorrow.
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