PEI 3

Over the next two days we travelled round  the island and went to a couple of concerts which were part of the Festival of Small Halls, one off concerts held at various small community and church halls all around the island over 11 days. Some great acts, and we Aussies were singled out because we came from the furthest away, and won a CD, and Barry was taken up on stage to play the violin with one of the acts. (No, he doesn't even play the violin) lot of laughs.

 Hired some bikes and did a section of the Confederation Trail, a bike/walking trail which follows the abandoned railway lines and extends from one end of Prince Edward Island to the other. The part we did was one of the most scenic parts of the Trail, running beside the water most of the way, past bays, boats, old bridges, lovely farms and houses. Nearly ran over a squirrel and a snake on the trail, but alas, we have seen no bears or moose.

We finally did some camping on PEI as the weather was warmer and drier than it had been. People think there are a lot of flies and biting things in Australia, but they have nothing on the flies we encountered here. Barry and I both had enormous bites on our legs, face and necks for many days. 

PEI 2

                                     

 

 

Charlottetown above and below

Typical PEI scene

PEI

Prince Edward Island was our next stop. Caught the car ferry across from Pictou to Wood Island then did a loop on the eastern shore and headed to Charlottetown and set up camp at Cornwall, just outside the city, by the river. 

                     

We had been told that there were a couple of ceilidhs on that night so off we went, found the hall, and ... nobody. Drove to the 2nd one, and same thing. Very disappointed, but didn't give up and went into the city but it was very quiet. Found a young singer-songwriter and watched him for awhile then went back to campground.

Next morning, awoke to a beautiful day.

 

Barry getting breakfast by the water














          

                                             View from our tent
       

Cheticamp

Spent the night in Cheticamp. Went looking for some live Celtic, Cape Breton type music. Found instead a scratch country band who sang all kinds of songs from the Beatles to John Denver and more - not quite what we had in mind. We were a day early as we were told there's a really good gig on Saturday night. Also a couple of weeks early as there will be lots happening in a few weeks when summer starts.

We lunched at the Celtic Music Interpretive Centre in Judique where a young fiddle player and a lady playing piano entertained us. Went on to Antigonish and stopped for the night in a 'cabin' in a van park. It was actually a big mobile home with 2 queen bedrooms, a full kitchen, big living room and bathroom. I think I could live here (Barry couldn't - no shed). Unfortunately, we couldn't find any more music (there will be some tomorrow we were told) so just went for a drink and a chat at a little pub around the corner.  

Cabot Trail

Friday dawned slightly clearer, at least it wasn't raining. Headed off to do the Cabot Trail in Cape Breton National Park. It is a wonderful drive with changing scenery, fishing villages, wild rocky coast, then sandy beaches, and steep winding roads through mountainous regions. There are also lots of artisans dotted around the trail with some really good stuff, so we stopped a lot.

                            

 

Fortress Louisburg

Left Halifax in the rain and drove all day in gross weather. Driving along by the water, the Atlantic Ocean, was still good, but not for photos. We stopped in the middle of nowhere in the pouring rain at the studio of a well known folk artist, who makes all kinds of weird and wonderful creations from local wood. Some other tourists were there and guess what, three were from Sydney. Small world.

Stopped overnight in a cottage in St Peters on Cape Breton Island on the shore of the largest salt water lake in the world, Bras D'or Lake. Not the best time to view the lake, but at least we stayed dry. Next day we had less rain, but it was really cold and windy. For goodness sake, it's June and only 8 degrees! Bring on Summer.

Continued on to Fortress Louisbourg, North America's largest historical reconstruction of the 18th century French fortress. It was bitterly cold, so not at all pleasant, but we still loved it.The employees dress in the clothing and take on the role of the soldiers and civilians of the day. Some parts are not open as it's not high season yet, but we got to see quite a lot before moving on, crossing the lovely Mira River and on to Sydney, North Sydney actually, to spend the night.

         

 

 

  

Halifax

Spent the next 2 days in Halifax. Had a wonderful dinner and catch up with Dan and Nancy McKinnon who we had met 5 years ago when we had Dan for a house concert at our place. Great meal, lovely people and great to catch up.

During the 2 days, we visited the Maritime Museum, Citadel Hill, Immigration Museum, caught ferries, buses and walked and walked and walked. Lovely little city, really enjoyed our stay and really looked after by Caroline at our B&B. The weather could have been better but we can't change that. 

Dartmouth side

 

                                      .                          Theodore Too tugboat

 

Halifax waterfront

Citadel Hill