The great journey to Newfoundland!

    After touring Fort Louisbourg for the greater portion of the morning we drove the hour or so to Sydney, where we would take an evening ferry to Newfoundland. I had booked tickets weeks earlier somewhere in the prairies and I will not lie...they were pretty pricey! For one van and three passengers it was nearly $500! Not a price I would want to pay very often but for our complete cross-Canada trip is was necessary. We had 6 hours to spend in Sydney before our ferry came and unfortunately it turned out Sydney is more of a 1 hour city. Sydney is a basic port town with a few shops to wander through, we spent some time rummaging around in the used book store which I always enjoy doing. There were lots of young teenagers driving around in their barely running vehicles making me laugh to myself as it reminded me of my home town. By 5 o'clock we had run out of things to look at and decided to all lounge in our home (the van) and read our novels. We were laughing at the looks people were giving us as they looked into our windows and saw our 'gypsie' style of living.
    The time finally came to go to the ferries...to wait again for our 8pm departure. Around 30 minutes before 8 I noticed something bad...really bad. After flipping the tickets around in my hands for awhile I glanced down at them and something caught my eye...

DEPARTURE: 20:00 NORTH SYDNEY----PORT AUX BASQUES

   Quickly using the free terminal wi-fi I searched 'Port Aux Basques' and to my horror it was indeed the ferry terminal on the complete OTHER side of the island!!! I had specifically ordered tickets for Argentia weeks previously, which is only 90 minutes from the city of Saint John's, but later learned something had been typed into the computer wrong and we indeed had tickets to Port Aux Basques. We were also told that the ferry had already left earlier that evening for Argentia and the price for that ferry would of been $1000! Slightly stressed at first, we all came to the realization that we had to accept the new itinerary and that it was for the best because we could not of afforded the other sailing.
    The ferry was only 6 hours, leaving us with very minimal sleep for our 11 hour drive in the morning to Saint John's. I slept under the seats on the floor with surprisingly good results and before we knew it we were there.

 I highly recommend scheduling your ferry crossings far in advance as each sailing only crosses on specific days of the week which changes throughout the year. Knowing well in advance will make sure the ferries coincide with the rest of your travel days.
http://marine-atlantic.ca/index.asp
    Driving across Newfoundland was a very, very long drive and I will put it out there right now...there is nothing for 11 hours aside from a couple very small towns. To drive it once would be alright but knowing we had to turn around and drive it again in a couple days was brutal. My favourite parts of the drive were at the beginning and end of the journey (by the water) where the land got very green and beautiful. At one point there were rolling hills that were covered in moss with ponds which was very nice and the morning fog gave it that extra flair.

 After 11 very long hours we arrived into Saint John's to our campsite located conveniently close to the downtown core. The campsite (and all hotel/hostels) were full due to festivals and summer tourism but luckily we were able to camp in a field provided by the campground. It served our purpose perfectly for our tent and the only difference with the field was we did not have a fire pit and there were many other tents in the field with you. The campground was called Pippy Campground and I would recommend staying there if you are on a budget, just make sure to book far in advance as accommodation in Newfoundland fills up fast especially in the summer months.
    We woke up extra early the next morning to venture to Cape Spear for sunrise so we could be the first ones in North America to see the sunrise. Cape Spear is the farthest point East in North America. We were up and out the tent by 4:45am (crazy I know!) and unfortunately the fog was quite thick and we could not see the sun but regardless it was amazing being out so early at Cape Spear.

 It was so beautiful there, magical really with the waves crashing against the rocks. Knowing you are the farthest you can possibly go in North America is surreal and really made me realize how far we had travelled. There was also a neat sign noting you have reached 'THE END OF CANADA' or 'BEGINNING OF CANADA' depending on which way you are going. This sign really signified to me that we have driven from one end of Canada to the other and are leaving Canada soon for an entire new journey abroad.

    After Cape Spear we headed back into town for some breakfast at Smitty's. This is surprisingly a great restaurant to go and catch a view of the harbour and Signal Hill! Refueled and ready for the day we drove up to Signal Hill and spent close to 3 hours wandering around. Signal Hill was stunning...it was everything I wanted to see in the East coast and more. After coming down the vertical wooden stairs you can roam around the rocky terrain and cliffs overlooking the ocean.

As the wind whips your hair and eyelashes you feel like you're at the edge of the earth. The views of the ocean were spectacular especially looking down on a lighthouse perched on a cliff with waves crashing up against it. Further down the path you can visit the old battery and see the canons perched on the hill protecting the harbour.

 You get a very neat view of the Saint John's harbour nestled safely behind the cliffs from above...showing you how untouchable it would of been from invading navies. Signal Hill was breath-taking and made the 22 hours of driving completely worth it! I could of spent the entire three days sitting staring at the view.

 

   The city of Saint John's was so very East coast with the pastel coloured houses lining the streets and the fishing boasts in the harbour. The brightly coloured homes really make the city and it made me wonder why we don't do that in other Canadian cities. It would bring liveliness to neighbourhoods and transform otherwise plain houses into character-rich homes.

 There are plenty of restaurants and bars to go to, especially George Street which has the title of having the most bars per square foot in North America over 2 city blocks. We went to a restaurant called Velma's advertising traditional Newfoundland dishes like the one my fiance ordered called 'Fish and Brewis'. It was a cod and bread fry that was surprisingly very tasty! I ordered in the in-house made baked beans that were hardy and satisfying.

    Later on that afternoon we stopped by at the Info Center where we found out that there was a busking festival on down the street, free of charge. Busking refers to street performers that travel to different cities to put on short performances in exchange for small donations. We were thrilled to have a free show to go and watch and entertaining it was! There was juggling, acrobatic fireman, odd men dressed like wizards and extremely talented gymnasts. We had a great time watching the shows and I will definitely look out for more busking festivals in the future.

 I had a fantastic day in Saint John's from sunrise to sunset and it is a city that really offers everything from natural beauty to city exploring. Although it was a bit of a journey to get there, I loved it and I am so glad to of seen that special part of Canada.

Fort Louisbourg...A glance back in history.

    Before travelling to Sydney to board our ferry to Newfoundland we stopped at the historical site of Fort Louisbourg. I wasn't exactly sure what it was at first but my fiance assured me it was an important Canadian site to see. The ticket building is located about a 5 minute drive from the fort and admission was $17.50/ adult. WORTH EVERY PENNY!
    A small bus (leaving in 15 minute intervals) picks you up and brings you to the gates of the fort where you are free to roam around as you please. It really does feel like you are walking back in time to the 1740's. Fort Louisbourg was a French fortress that became an important commercial port but eventually got captured by British Colonists in 1745. When you walk through the gates you are greated by a French soldier in full attire questioning you on why you are visiting the fort. Throughout the entire fort you will see people in full costume going about their daily routine like they would of in the 1700's.

    Wandering freely around the town was exciting, and having the freedom to search the streets and inside buildings really gave you the realistic feel. There were many buildings to wander through such as the giant holding room for all of the barrels of whisky or the sleeping quarters for the soldiers.

    In one particular brick building a woman was inside and told us about the typical household back then and how drying fish was so important. Men working in the Cod fishing industry would actually make more than men in the fur trade industry! She also told us that despite making decent money, houses were built very simply in case of a raid on the fort where houses would need to be burned down. The homes were built very simple indeed but served their purpose and were functional.

       There was even a restaurant you could eat lunch at (with suprisingly decent prices) that still used the original decor making you feel like you were eating in the 18th-century. The staff were dressed in poofy white dresses and bonnets serving traditonal recipes, even observing the church calender and not serving meat dishes on days of abstinence (Fridays and Saturdays).

    You will also find many different animals in the town like sheep, roosters,chickens and goats. I particularly loved petting the sheep and being able to feel the rough texture of the wool. The rooster was fun to watch as well as he strutted around the pen puffing his feathers.

    My personal favourite was a visit to the Bakery where you could see bread being baked in the traditional wood burning ovens. Fresh bread was tossed into awaiting baskets where two young girls would sell you either a single bun or entire loaf. ($2.50/bun and $5.50/loaf). You could choose between white, whole wheat and a heavy rye. We purchased a white bun and a rye bun to sample which turned out to be a very satisfying and filling lunch! I also must add that you can buy apple turnovers made in the bakery as well that are to die for!

    There is so much to write about as everything we explored was worth noting except once again I must remind myself to keep my blogs short and sweet :) Visiting Fort Louisbourg was a great experience, with so much important history. I enjoyed it immensly and can'tt say enough how great of a job they have done perserving the fort and giving visitors of all ages a truly unique and interactive experience.

 

 

Prince Edward Island to Cape Breton

 

    We had a wonderful drive from Prince Edward Island to Pictou, Nova Scotia stopping at attractions along the way and enjoying the beautiful scenery. I couldn't help myself but to pull over when I seen the sign for the Winegarden Esatate Winery. We couldn't tell if it was open or not because the store was pitch dark when we walked in. A minute later a woman walked out from the back and explained that the power was out. I thought to myself, 'Darn, I don't have any cash..' As if she read my mind she smiled and told me she could still take Visa. Wandering around the dark store filled with assorted fruit wines was very relaxing and actually a very unique way to shop. I sampled some blueberry wine and a Cabernet, later choosing the unique blueberry wine. Very sweet and fruity and hit the spot chilled on a summer day.

    Nova Scotia was very beautiful to drive across with the wild flowers lining the roads and the houses perched on hills overlooking the ocean. There are different routes to take across Nova Scotia but I would highly recommend taking the scenic routes rather than the Trans Canada Highway. The routes may take you longer but are very scenic and truly show you Nova Scotia. The scenic route we took was called the Sunrise Trail and took us along the northern coast. Randomly on the side of the road we even spotted a couple Tallships docked for the day! We jumped out of the car and snapped some pictures. A couple nice men told us we could even get a bit closer by coming into their gated sailing club entrance where we would have an unobstructed view. They were amazing ships with weathered wood hulls and tall masts. I felt very lucky to of been able to see them with my own eyes after seeing them only in pictures. Unfortunately they informed us that the ship on the left was the Picton Castle ship where Bob Gainey's (former Montreal Canadiens General Manager) daughter was sadly swept overboard and killed.

    My next stop on the Sunrise Trail was at the Seafoam Lavender Farm. I absolutely love lavender...I love the plants, soaps, the colour, the smell...anything really to do with lavender. I was like a child in a candy store when we pulled in with the rows of lavender in front of me. I'm sure my travel partners were a little less enthusiastic and were probably laughing at me. At no charge you can wander between the rows of lavender and smell the intoxicating smells from the different varieties. There was also a nice gift shop offering different products they made on-site. I purchased a small container of hand cream for a steal of $3.00!

    We arrived in the town of Pictou by early afternoon via the Sunrise trail. This small town is known as the "Birthplace of New Scotland"because the first Scottish immigrants landed here in 1773. It's a pleasant town to drive through with tree-lined streets and period homes. A restaurant caught our eye as we were driving down the main street, so we did a u-turn and went back to check it out.  It was called Murphey's Fish & Chips with a nice patio out in the sun. We were all very excited to order some East coast fish and chips especially since it had been voted 'Canada's #1 Fish & Chips' in 2000 by Chatelaine magazine! It was amazingly crispy, fresh and not greasy and even the fries had been breaded for extra crispiness. Definitely on my Top 3 fish & chips list.

     Not having anywhere planned to camp yet we looked at our provincial campsite map and found one just up the street called Caribou Provincial Park. Very nice campground with quiet sites hidden throughout the trees. The fees for provincial parks across Canada all seemed to be around the same $24 fee plus the cost of firewood ($4-5). This is for a tent site with no electrical, fees for motor homes and electricity are higher. This campground had a fantastic beach to explore only a 5 minute walk down a wooded trail. The water was refreshing with lots of sea life to explore below the surface. We all bobbed in the water with our goggles finding crabs, sand dollars and even a giant sea snail!

    It was so nice to spend lots of much time swimming and camping this summer. Doing the things you remember doing growing up but sadly don't make time to do later on in life. I made a promise to myself this trip...to make time when we return to Canada to put the chores aside some weekends and just go out and have fun...whether that's camping, hiking or just going for a swim. Life quickly becomes revolved around work and chores and it's important to have a reminder in life to stop and smell the roses (excuse the cheesy metaphor). That evening I enjoyed the blueberry wine and made some perfectly over-toasted marshmallows.
    We continued to Cape Breton Island the next morning where the drive got even more beautiful. Cape Breton is an island located on the eastern side of mainland Nova Scotia with lots to see including the world famous Cabot Trail. As big of an attraction as it is, we did not drive the trail. My fiance had driven it before and said it was spectacular but very similar to driving to Tofino on Vancouver Island. Therefore, we wanted to spend the few days we had, exploring as much as we could of the other parts of Cape Breton. If we would of had a few extra days to play around with we would of driven the Cabot Trail for sure, but with only so many days, sadly we had to pick and choose.

    We arrived in a town called St. Peter's and decided to stop at the Tourist center to find a campsite. The woman in the tourist center was so helpful and cheerful and sent us to a campground up the street called Battery Provincial Park. Before leaving town we stocked up at the Sobeys grocery store for dinner (a good supermarket you will come across lots in the East coast) but leaving lunch open for a possible lobster roll. We had been on the hunt for the past few days for a traditional lobster roll with no success so we decided to stop and ask some locals. The first few people we stopped to ask only could recommend a spot 20 minutes out of town but finally at our last stop we had success! The friendly man and woman in the liquor store were more than happy to help us find the Lobsta' roll, even going as far as phoning friends to find a spot. It turned out, the woman's friend knew a spot just down the street! We were so grateful for their help and couldn't believe how pleasant they had been to us, especially the man who had been particularly amusing with his cross Canada hitch hiking stories. We found the restaurant (although there was no sign) and walked in to find no one at the counter. We could see people in a different room eating and we wondered if we had came into the right entrance. Eventually a waitress came out and asked if she could help us...we replied, rather confused, we would like lobster roll. Fifteen minutes later we had a traditional lobster roll in front of us with the hot dog bun and all (very traditional) stuffed full of seasoned lobster meat. It was so tasty...exactly like what I hoped it would be like.  ($10.95)

    I did locate a small paper sign half glued onto a window later on with 'Louie's Cozy Corner' so I believe that is what it was called. However, look for a large green building with no signage almost right across the street from the liquor store if you are stopping through.
   Full of amazing lobster we piled back in the van and headed out on the road to search for our campground. We actually ended up driving past the entrance as the sign is hidden behind some bushes. Sure enough when we came back it around was located right after the bridge like the tourist center had directed. This was probably my second favourite campground of the trip (first being Rainbow Falls) as the views were spectacular. From our campground we had a view of St. Peters Bay from high up on the hill with a refreshing salty breeze. There was also a canal to go and explore on the campground where we were able to spot starfish and jelly fish. Battery Provincial Park was an excellent spot to camp with plenty of views and a tranquil environment.

    I loved driving through and camping on Cape Breton Island. It is a beautiful place to visit with wonderful people, amazing coastlines and an East coast feel. If I had to choose an area on the east coast to come back and visit it would definitely be driving along the Sunshine trail and back to Cape Breton Island. Nova Scotia will remain my fondest memory of the east coast portion of our trip forever.

Prince Edward Island

    To get onto Prince Edward Island you must drive over the Confederation Bridge with spans
12.9 kilometers across the Northumberland Strait. It is an enginerring marvel! The 12 minute drive takes you high above the deep water below with a slight elevation in the center for ship traffic.

 About half way across the bridge I tossed my message in a bottle over the sides in hopes of someone far away finding it. Back in Edmonton I had purchased a cheap little watch, called a 'tube watch' and it had come in a perfect sealed glass tube. I had held onto it for the perfect opportunity to throw it in the ocean to be taken out to sea. I included a small message and my email address, so who knows, maybe I will have a new pen pal one day!

    We drove about an hour to the western side of the island to a campsite called Twin Shores Park. It is about as far from rustic as you can get! My best description for this campground was an RV city! This does not make it a bad campground in any way, but just to note that it is not a rustic campground tucked in the wilderness. The showers unfortuantly were pay showers so I made good use of the water taps instead. We got settled in and poured some wine, taking a moment to relax in the sun when the strangest thing happened. Think for moment to yourself...what is the oddest thing you could imagine seeing on a hot July evening from your campground? How about a full on Christmas Parade!!! I couldn't believe my eyes! There was a santa, a Mrs. Clause and even a rudolph. First Halloween and now Christmas? We did all we could do in that situation...laugh hysterically while sitting and watching the show with the most confused look on our faces.

    After that very odd experience we decided to head down to the beach. It was a spectacular beach with golden sand and rusty red sand dunes. We played in the water until the sun went down, scanning the bottom of the ocean for crabs and shells. It really is a beach to see on the East coast, and the campground is situated perfectly on it. The red sand is like nothing I have seen before and truly is unique to Prince Edward Island.

        The following morning we drove about an hour again to Charolottetown. The drive across P.E.I is pretty with glimpses of the ocean and fields of corn. The island is quite small and you could drive across the entire length of the province in 4 hours (256 km) tip to tip. This was a nice break to have short drives instead of long 10 hour journeys. Charlottetown was a nice town with some shops and restaurants. There was a small market that day along the main road with people selling things such as, button rings, homemade inukshuks and beautiful wooden bowls. We wandered through the downtown area briefly then headed down towards the water. There were some beautiful old houses in the residential area to stop and admire like the Beaconsfield Historic House. It was a mansion built in 1877 and was considered P.E.I's most elegant home.

 

                              (Downtown Charlottetown)

        The boardwalk along the water was my favourite part of Charlottetown, and had the wonderful salty ocean smell in the air. You get a nice view of the ocean and if you're there when the tide is low you can see peoples boats sitting out of the water on the sand. It's funny becasue I find myself posting more pictures than words for P.E.I but there are some places that are better to show visually rather than to write about. I think sometimes you can get the feel for a place even better through pictures, when there isn't necessarly particular sights you saw to write about.

    We discovered a fantastic little restaurant at the end of town called Seatreat. After reading a few menus in the downtown area and not seeing anything that caught our attention, we were excited to of found it. Inside was packed with locals talking loudly among eachother and we were lucky enough to grab a booth. They offered a bit of everything for very affordable prices. I went for the mixed seafood chowder, and it was the BEST chowder I've had in my life! For around $5.00, you were served a huge bowl of creamy goodness packed full of chunks of lobster, scallops, crab and fish. It was how a chowder should be!

    After filling up on delectable chowder we piled back in the van and drove to our campsite for the night, located in the north of the island. The campground was called Cymbria Campground and was run privataly with good nightly rents.  We were assigned a nice site surrounded by trees and near the comfort station (showers/washrooms). My goal for the remainder of the afternoon was to do nothing...just read and write. So I sat in my hammock and read for a couple of hours enjoying the light breeze rocking my hammock...that's what a holiday is right there. My friend had went to relax at the beach across the street (turned out to be marsh) and when she came back later that afternoon she mentioned that there were people digging with buckets. I was so excited when we heard this! I had always wanted to go clamming but never had had the opportunity. Within minutes we had grabbed our camping pot, watched a quick tutorial on UTube and ran down to the shore. It was such a great evening in the mud, getting messy and not caring. We dug so many holes, found so many clams and had many scrapes to prove it.

 

    I had completly forgotten how awesome it was to get messy...to feel the dirt under your fingernails and have dirt stained knees....it brought the kids out in all of us.

   I steamed them later on that night as our appetizer before Barbequed pizza, in butter and they were fantastic. I think they tasted even better becasue of all of our hard work finding them. When preparing the clams make sure to leave them in clean OCEAN water for an hour (2-3 if you can spare the time) to allow them to siphon out the sand. Do not use fresh water or home-made salt water as this will kill them, and you never want to leave dead shellfish laying around. Once doing this you will ensure not to have the sandy pockets inside which is not pleasant to bite into.

    I truly loved our 3 days on Prince Edward Island and am so happy to of seen the rolling hills, the signiture red sand and the beautiful beaches. P.E.I seems to provide something for everyone whether thats lounging on the beach, camping, sipping a coffee in a trendy cafe or clamming.

*Confederation Bridge cost us $44 for 1 van+3 passengers