My mom recently celebrated a birthday and given that I have so much free time lately, I suggested we take a little trip in honor of the big day. When thoughts of the Grand Canyon got a little too overwhelming, we settled on a road trip to Nova Scotia. She had heard great things about that part of Canada and I was eager to see Cape Breton Island myself. Off we went on our five day adventure!
After a six hour drive through Maine and an uneventful border crossing, we arrived at our first stop - Saint John, New Brunswick. We strolled around the small downtown and took a quick trip over to the "Reversing Falls," a pretty unimpressive tourist feature of "rushing" water where the river and ocean meet. It didn't rush and a huge paper mill provided the scenic backdrop. We weren't impressed but then enjoyed some beers at a local pub and retired for the night before heading to Cape Breton, Nova Scotia the next day.
Wowza! Cape Breton is so beautiful. We found a cute little oceanside cottage for our two-night stay which ended up being in a great spot for exploring Cape Breton National Park. Similar to the North Coast 500 in Scotland, The Cabot Trail winds its way from shore to shore of the island hugging the border of the national park and providing amazing views of the sea. Despite the rain and chill, we drove along the windy (and windy!) roads, stopping often for views, some brief little hikes, and a random cliffside porta potties. Stunning (the views not the potty).
We were sad to leave, but jaunted down the east coast of Nova Scotia to Halifax, a bustling small city that seemed full of young energy and happening spots. Reminding me a lot of Scotland, we enjoyed a delicious dinner of savory pie followed by sticky toffee pudding at a recommended pub before turning in for the night to rest up for another day of driving. The morning brought rain rain rain but we made the trip to Peggy's Cove before learning that the ferry intending to take us from Yarmouth, NS to Portland, ME was canceled the following day due to Hurricane Jose. From our oceanside perch next to Peggy's Cove Lighthouse, we were thankful to the ferry captain because the waves were enormous and the ocean was churning!
However, it did require some logistical finagling. We consulted our remote travel agent, Simon, who hooked us up with an amazing resort in St. Andrews by the Sea, one of our favorite stops! The quaint seaside town provided a fantastic dinner, gorgeous sunset, and a Farmer's Market for some Canadian Maple Syrup. On the way home, we managed a brief sojourn in Bar Harbor for pizza and a look at Acadia National Park's "Thunderhole" before arriving in Portsmouth tuckered but pleased as punch with our Canadian trek!
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