Peggy's Cove, Halifax and More Rain!!!

Tuesday, June 11, 2013

We left Lunenburg Sunday after 4+ inches of rain! Thanks T S Andrea! We thought the east coast of Nova Scotia was predicted to get smaller amounts of rain, but no! Lunenburg got the most in all of Nova Scotia. We are rain magnets...

We took a mostly coastal route toward Halifax. The Atlantic sweeps up long skinny bays, so the main road cuts along the tops of the peninsulas. We drove down the south side of one to reach Peggy's Cove at the tip. Any visit to Nova Scotia must include the iconic fishing village and lighthouse at Peggy's Cove. Unfortunately, that means lots of tourists and tour buses. It's early in the season, but there was still a crowd, which made it hard to take photos without strangers in them. We encountered only one tour bus, so I guess we were lucky!
Peggy's Cove lighthouse is the most photographed lighthouse in Nova Scotia...Canada...the world...not sure which one, but it has probably appeared on more calendars then any other! If you can photoshop out the people, you truly have a dramatic shot. The entire peninsula is one giant granite outcropping. The lighthouse and all the houses are literally sitting on exposed granite bedrock. The Atlantic Ocean waves break dramatically against them. I would expect in a storm it would be unbelievable!

We parked at the visitor center and walked through the village. Most of the homes are private, but there are a few gift shops scattered in. We looked at a very interesting sculpture carved into the granite in the front yard of a house that is now a small art museum. It depicts life in the village in former times. Once at the lighthouse we found dozens of people crawling all over the rocks and taking photos. We didn't stay long. After a good look at the waves breaking on the rocks, and a chance for Greg to study the geology a bit, we walked back down the lane. We stopped at a shop and bought two Cornish pasties for lunch. After all, we are in Nova Scotia or New Scotland and so the cheese and meat pastries made a fitting lunch to salute our Scottish ancestries.

Sculpture of Peggy's Cove History

Peggy's Cove harbor

Peggy's Cove Lighthouse

There are rocks here!

Waves, More rocks...

Greater Metropolitan Peggy's Cove

Next we had to figure out how to get around Halifax to the town across the bay, Dartmouth. So, instead of going around it, we found a road in from the countryside and went through it. Greg wanted to check on the location of a bike shop that was closed on Sunday, so we drove right past it and into the downtown. Since it was Sunday the traffic was light. We turned north along the waterfront and drove toward the first suspension bridge across the harbor. Just before we reached the ramp, there was a weight warning. Greg was doing quick conversions in his head between kilograms and pounds and said we were too heavy for the bridge, so we drove further to the second suspension bridge. No warnings there, so we drove over and found the campground on the other side in Dartmouth.

The old suspension bridge that had strict weight limits

 We signed up for two nights at the Shubenacadie Campground which is run by the municipality of Halifax. “Shubie” Campground is in a park in a residential area and the next day, Monday, we walked through the neighborhood to the main road and caught the bus. It took us to the bus terminal and then we had a ten minute walk to the ferry terminal. The passenger ferry was small and we chose to sit on the upper deck outside and see the harbor. The ferry docked along the waterfront with its many blocks long boardwalk lined with shops and restaurants.

Halifax waterfront

Passenger ferry from Daartmouth side of the Narrows

Stern Trawler with tender boat

 We visited Halifax when we cruised New England and Canada almost two years ago. At that time we had a day there before we sailed again, and spent our time touring the old citadel and enjoying a meal at an outdoor cafe. We liked the city and have wanted to return. This time we started with a tour of the Maritime Museum. We learned about Nova Scotia's sailing history, the Canadian Navy and Canada's role in the world wars. Halifax had a big role in the recovery of bodies and wreckage from the Titanic. Three cable laying ships sailed out of Halifax and recovered the bodies from the water. The museum had one of the deck chairs displayed. We spent a couple hours there and when we came out instead of the predicted rain, we had a beautiful sunny day!

Small Craft Room

Canadian Arctic Exploration Ship from about 1910

We walked down the boardwalk to an outdoor brewpub, The Hart and Thistle, and had lunch and again tried their local brews. Greg got more fish and chips, and I got to eat local this time with a lamb dip sandwich made from Nova Scotian lamb. Really good! We watched the ferries coming and going across the harbor, as well as Theodore Too, a tugboat with a hardhat and a face, from a Canadian children's TV show, that cruises around the harbor.

Theodore Too

 Once we were fortified by lunch, we were ready for the climb up the hill. Halifax is built on the side of a very steep hill. It's a good sized city with high rises, a civic center, and is the capitol of Nova Scotia. It's also a busy shipping port, and houses a Canadian Naval base, as well as Dalhousie University and two smaller colleges. At the top of the hill overlooking the seaport and the bay is the citadel that was built by the British to protect the city when they colonized this area. We hiked up the hill past it and reached the top and then the city flattened out. We walked about a mile from the harbor to the bike shop we had passed the day before. Greg had spoken to them in the morning and we wanted to see if an electric motor can be put on my bike to make it easier for me to ride, keep up with Greg, and give me another way to get out of a campground.

Clock tower on the Citadel

Harbor view from Citadel

Canadian mail box

Mural on Building wall

 We were able to see the motors, but the owner who knew the most about them wasn't in, so Greg has been trying to connect by e-mail to get his questions answered. We walked back downtown, this time downhill and boarded a ferry during rush hour for the return to Dartmouth. We had a 30 minute wait at the bus terminal for our bus home, so it was 7 pm before we got back.

This morning, after Greg called the bike shop and still didn't connect with the owner, we left Shubie to head further up what is called Nova Scotia's Eastern Shore. We wanted to find a cheaper campground, sit out the next two days of rain (again...), and wait for an e-mail reply from the bike shop, so we can decide if we should go back to Halifax. We completely missed the turn onto the provincial road because there was no signage. (Not the first time. Whenever we get into a non-tourist area we often find missing route signs.) We then headed off into the country thinking we could intercept another link. The local maps of the area weren't detailed enough, and it took many miles before we could find a business parking lot to turn around in. Okay, back on track we decide to go to the nearest provincial park that is open for camping. (The majority don't open until 6/14.) After arriving there and driving around to pick out a spot, we saw signs on every water faucet stating that the water is unfit for drinking. Back at the office we asked about it, and we found out there is no potable water anywhere in the park. Thanks for the heads-up from the office (none) before we wasted our time driving around!

Back on the road we continued up the coast. Needing to check e-mail for a message from the bike shop we stopped at a small local library with wifi. Most of the libraries in Nova Scotia have it. Greg got a visitor's library card and password from the surprised librarian, (not many tourists there), and still no message. We drove further and saw signs for a small business smoking fish. Greg wanted to stop and buy some, so he picked up a few varieties of smoked salmon.

Lots of wood for smoking the fish

Local Pickled herring for Lunch

The next campground up the coast was very pricey, so we drove a bit farther and found The Spry Cove Campground. There is only one other RV here. We have water and sewer hook-ups, but the wifi is only in the camp store. Still no message from the bike shop when we checked in, we'll check again in the morning, and stay here two nights. The rain started this afternoon after we got hooked up. We weren't going out anyway. The mosquitos and black flies were bad. I'm almost afraid to ask if they go away later in the season and have a Canadian laugh at me in reply!

Update- We spent today, Wednesday, relaxing in the camper while once again the rain poured and the wind blew. This time we even had a brief thunderstorm. Unusual for this far north. Greg finally connected with the bike shop owner, so tomorrow we will go back to Halifax and investigate the bike motor. If it will work for my bike, he will have to order it and that will take a week. So, we are scrapping our plans to go over to Prince Edward Island for now, and will decide where to go for a week until we are due back in Halifax to pick up my bike. There is still a chance of rain the next two days. Then we get sun for two and then back to rain. Guess we are getting payback for months of sunny, rain free weather in the Southwest last winter!
Left Spry Cove yesterday, Thursday, and went back to Halifax. [Note from Greg – test drove two Bionx bikes. BIG smile on Kathleen's face when she felt the electric assist kick in as she pedaled.] Ordered my electric assist motor and left my bike to have it attached. Will travel to southern part of Cape Breton, NS for a week and then back to Halifax to pick it up!

What to do on a rainy day? Look at the fancy money. The Queen's image is rather more detailed than is flattering. The shiny part is plastic. Canadians think it smells like maple syrup. Government denies it!

Top row is $2 coins known as Toonies. The bottom row is $1 coins named Loonies after the loon engraving. Loonies and Toonies! Clever those Canadians!