Day 17: Back to the Trails
Heard a bit of rain and on big clap of thunder before I got up
but when I actually did, the sky was near empty. I headed off for the ferry
and a day on Long Island (no, not that Long Island).
The first stop was Boars Head
where I got my first up close look at a lighthouse. Not that impressive
since its pretty barren and the paint isn't redone each year. Still,
it looked great standing there doing its thing.
From there I stopped at one of the whale watching companies to book
a seat for the next day. They use zodiac inflatable boats for the tours
so it seemed worth the extra 7 bucks. My next stop was the Balancing
Rock but when I arrived there were signs indicating that it was closed and
a rope blocked the parking lot. I headed off to Flour Cove and wandered
the beach for a bit. From there I headed to Central Grove PP and went
on their trail down to the coast - quite nice but a little muddy.
I continued down the island to Freeport and after a quick driving
tour I headed out to Dartmouth Point. It has similar rock formations
to the Balancing Rock so I figured it was worth a look. The road was
paved until the last house and there is switched to a rocky dirt path.
Deciding against risking my newly repaired car, I decided to go it
on foot and packed some snacks and a drink and headed off. I wandered
the path for a bit and then hit the rocky shore. After a while
it became quite geometric and jagged so I took a few
pictures and continued on. I strolled
back and forth between the rocks and the grass at the top of the coast until
I reached the tip of the Point. From there I worked my way back along
the grass and trees and scared a deer in the process.
Back at the car I headed back to the ferry and picked up some fish
and chips while I waited. At the camp I took a nap then made some hot
chocolate and took a quick walk to see the sunset. It wasn't much of
one so I went back, did some reading and went to bed.
Day 18: Disappointment
I slept
in a bit since I had to be at the dock at 1pm for the whale watching tour.
I had a sandwich before heading off to the ferry. Cars are $3
but pedestrians/cyclists are free so I left my car at the East Ferry dock
and just went on my bike. I arrived for my tour but was told that the
large group that would fill the rest of the boat had cancelled leaving myself
and one other person left for the tour. Although I would have enjoyed
the trip with those numbers, the owner apologized but said there would be
no tour. Sad and dejected I cycled off down the road...
Oh, OK, I wasn't really heart-broken since the humpback whales haven't
made an appearance yet. Anyway, I headed to the local tourist info/museum
site since I had heard that they had internet access but sadly their computer
wasn't hooked up. I could have asked to play for a bit but instead
I headed back to catch the next ferry. I did learn, however that the
Balancing Rock trail was closed for renovations since some kid scraped his
knee and his parents decided to sue or something - it would probably be open
the next weekend.
Back on Long Island I had some Iced Tea (not really) but I did head
to the Long Beach trail. Its another rocky trail that could be driven
but I decided to continue my bike travels and head on two wheels. The
trail basically leads down to the beach from the road. Its a nice beach
and I had a nice walk, but the trip back up to the car was a bit stenuous
- requiring me to walk my bike most of the way.
Before heading back to camp, I decided to stop in Sandy Cove to see
if they had anything worth cooking for dinner but I left empty handed.
Instead I took a nap and finished off the Two Towers while munching
on some Doritos before turning in.
Day 19: Travel
I forced myself up around 10am, broke camp and headed off around 11.
I made some hot chocolate for the road since there was no Tim Horton's nearby.
I took the more scenic route along Hwy 1 (for the most part) and soon
arrived in Yarmouth. I drove down the main drag and stopped at McDonald's
for lunch and then hit the tourist info building for some more pamphlets.
I took the long route to the campsite but eventually arrived at Loomer's
Campground. I toured the wooded sites, selected #23 and registered
for 2 nights.
I started setting up camp
when I was swarmed by mosquitoes so after hastily putting up the tent, I
retreated to the car. After killing the handful of mosquitoes that
joined me, I did some reading and then decided to head to town for a further
look. I found that the theatre didn't have any movies that I wanted
to see (any more) and so I stopped at Tim Horton's for a snack before heading
back.
The camp has two pay phones with modem jacks so I threw together the
next set of pages and logged on. I updated the site and then checked
through my 63 email messages and did some chatting.
With my technology side satisfied for a bit, I returned to my site
and started The Return of the King - the third book in the Lord of the Rings.
Day 20: Seashore anyone?
I was doubly awakened by my alarm
and the impatient chattering of the local chipmunk whose ground I realized
I was sharing. I got up and had some OJ before heading off for some
hiking. There was a good amount of fog about but I went ahead anyway.
If you ever catch yourself wondering: "Hey, it's the peak of mosquitoe
season - lets go on a hike that goes through a forest and a swamp!", take
my advice - don't go unless you are adequately protected. Being relatively
unprotected, I make a quick tour of the Wedgeport Nature Trail stopping only
occasionally and swatting almost constantly. Back at the car, I wandered
through the local pier where the main industry this time of year (seaweed
collecting) was the main activity. I had noticed a few boats prowling
near the shore collecting it during my hasty hike.
Since I was planning on moving
on shortly, I decided to travel out to the lighthouse at Cape Forchu - even
with the fog. I really couldn't tell where I was driving until I reached
the parking lot and saw the lighthouse before me. I stopped for some
Fish and Chips (very low on the list) before playing tourist. I got
the full story at the museum and then headed off to the end of the Cape to
see the rocks and the surf. The waves are quite a bit different here
than in the Bay of Fundy or St.Mary's Bay - these ones are more like gently
swells that build up and then crash as they hit the shore as opposed to the
smaller waves in the bays. I wandered well off the trail and got a
few good pictures (see, fog and a nasty sea don't mix) before heading back
to the car.
I drove back to Yarmouth and stopped to look at the hospital while
I cooled down. They have been advertising for a pharmacist but
I decided to to stop in - in case they offered me a job. I headed down
to the ferry dock to see if I could catch sight of The Cat and to organize
all of my tourist info (it adds up quickly).
I picked up a milkshake at McD's before heading back to the campsite
to surf the internet and read before retiring.
Day 21
I got up and hastily broke camp
as I was being swarmed. I headed out and stopped at Glenwood PP to
have some breakfast (yes, the mosquitoes were that bad). After a short
break I headed off to the Pubnicos. 
They
are a collection of 7 communities all with Pubnico in the name (Lower East
Pubnico, etc) that circle Pubnico Harbour. They have a trail listed
on the Trails website but I had a hard time finding it. I ended up
just wandering along the rocky shore and admiring the lighthouse before moving
on.
Next stop was Bayberry Campground near Barrington. I had my
choice of sites (I'll enjoy it while it lasts) and selected #4, almost on
the water of Barrington Bay. I set up my tent and then headed back
to Barrington Passage to fill my stomach and cooler at Pizza Delight and
Atlantic Superstore, respectively. I stopped at a computer store to
see if they were aware of any pay phones with jacks for internet but all
I got was a blank look and a recommendation to hit the library.
Back at camp, I did some more reading and enjoyed the view with a
cup of tea. I ventured to the pay phone to check the phone book but
was warned away by an angry robin and it's baby.
I enjoyed the sunset and then headed to bed to finished the Return of the King (and thus the Lord of the Rings).
Day 22: The Beach
I got up and had a bit of breakfast before packing up my knapsack
with all the fixin's for a day at the beach. The Sand Hills Beach
PP is just down the road so I rode my bike and left the car at the site.
I picked my way through the band
of grade school kids and found aspot on the nice sandy beach. It was
low tide but I decided to do some reading before heading out to the water's
edge. After getting nice and warm, I headed out along the beach and
walked for a while either in the water or at its edge. There were two
sections set aside on the dunes for the endangered Piping Plover's nesting
sites so I kept my distance, as instructed. I was thwarted, however
when returning to the beach since one of the birds had decided to wander
along the shore directly in my path. I took a detour into the knee
deep ocean and minimized my disruption.
I was a bit famished so I had my lunch before reading a bit more.
The afternoon was moving along and I was already fairly sunburnt, so
I biked back to the campground. One of the technicians at Timmis and
District Hospital had asked for my assistance so I called in to provide
it. From there, I did some more reading and then prepared for dinner
(steak and rice).
At the fog rolled in, I took a picture or two and then listened to
the radio for a bit before heading to bed. With the fog and all, I
didn't get treated to a nice sunset, this time.
Day 23
With little on the agenda for the day, I took my time getting up and
having a bit of breakfast. I decided to see what else the area had
to offer and headed out to Barrington Passage.
My first stop was the lighthouse museum built in the town. It
was built as a replica of one of the area lighthouses so that its aging lamp
could be preserved and displayed when it was replaced a few years back.
They have quite a few items to look at including at map of the area
c.1779 that had a brief description of the best was to approach the anchoring
grounds in a sailing ship.
I then headed off to Cape Sable Island and followed the Lighthouse
Route around it. I stopped at a few spots but was suddenly around the
island completely. I decided to stop at McD's for a milkshake (which
they are serving with a spoon for some unknown reason - 't'aint that thick)
and then headed off in the other direction past the
campground. I drove down past the
provincial park and headed to the Baccaro Light. It is an easy-to-spot
lighthouse with clear directions and signs so I found it easily. I
watched the surf for a while before heading out to take a few pictures.
The dome to the right is the local weather monitoring
station. It was much colder here with the wind so I quickly returned
to the car. I stopped for some fish and chips and a quick tour of the
Fort St.Louis historical site before heading back to the campground.
After a quick nap I headed in to see if I could borrow a phone line
from the local Shoppers. Nancy graciously allowed me to connect up
and check email and upload a few pages while we chatted. I then stopped
at Tim's for a bagel before heading back to the site. I finished
of the last remaining appendicies of the Lord of the Rings and then filed
the books - content to wait for the first movie this Christmas.
I did some writing and enjoyed the sunset with a cup of hot chocolate.
I've realized that my camera needs a few more levels of zoom since
my sunset pictures just didn't turn out. I listened to some music for
a bit before turning in
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