Road Trip to Canada 2014

Last week we were in New Brunswick and Nova Scotia, Canada. Here are the details of our trip.

Here is the link to my pictures.

9/27/14 – Saturday (St. Stephens, New Brunswick)

We got off the cruise ship in Boston and headed up to Canada by car. The trip seemed like it took forever and I was a little worried about the border crossing because the last time they gave us such a hard time. On the way, Don stopped at a flea market and then we had a lobster roll at a roadside stand in Kennebunkport. We finally arrived at the Scoodic Motel in St. Stephens, Canada around 7pm, only to find out that we were in the Atlantic Time Zone which means it was 8pm when we checked in. The room was really comfortable with 2 double beds, a refrigerator and microwave for only $69 CAD!

9/28/14 – Sunday (Hopewell Rocks, New Brunswick)

We got on the road early and stopped in St. Johns for breakfast at Coras. This was recommended by the nice guys at the visitor center we passed. Then we walked around town for awhile. This is a cruise port but no ship was in and most of the shops were closed because it was Sunday. We drove through Fundy National Park on the way to Hopewell Rocks. Around 4pm we checked into the Hopewell Rocks Motor Inn. For $75, we have 2 double beds but no refrigerator, microwave, or even ice bucket. We went to the Chocolate River Inn and Restaurant where we had a lobster roll platter for $10 each. After dinner we went to Hopewell Rocks and parked outside the gates. We were told we could hike in to see the rocks after 5pm for free. It was beautiful there and I can’t wait to go back tomorrow when the tide is low!

9/29/14 – Monday (Hopewell Rocks, New Brunswick)

After breakfast, we headed to Hopewell Rocks and had a wonderful time walking along the beach at low tide. It was amazing to see the huge rock formations that were almost 45 feet tall but when the tide is high, they just look like small islands. It was a cold and rainy day but that didn’t stop us. After a nice lunch in the park, we walked to see the mud flats. Then we drove to Alma to see the boats out of the water until the tide comes in. Then we came back to the motel to warm up and rest until dinner. It was a nice day.

9/30/14 – Tuesday (Baddeck, Nova Scotia)

After breakfast, we headed to Baddeck, Nova Scotia which was about a 6 hour drive. We stopped at the visitor center in Nova Scotia and the girl recommended that we take the North Umberland Trail which was the same amount of time as taking the major highway but much prettier along the coast. Along the way we stopped at a Lavender Farm which was interesting. We stopped for lunch in Pictou at Sharon’s Family Restaurant. By 4pm, we arrived at the Auld Farm B&B which was delightful! We had room 1 (Ben MacDui) with a double bed and bathroom located over the dining room. There was a nice dining room with cookies, tea, coffee, milk, and hot chocolate available. Breakfast is served from 7:30 – 9. We left to explore downtown Baddeck and ate dinner at a restaurant called Three Doors Down. When we returned, we relaxed in the livingroom where I knit and Don read his iPad.

10/1/14 – Wednesday (Cabot Trail)

We had a lovely breakfast at the Auld Farm and left around 8:30am to start on the Cabot Trail. We drove all day and looked at the beautiful sites! (Please check out our pictures!) I’m so glad we came here. I think you could do this either clockwise or counter clockwise because the ledges weren’t that bad at all. We had a nice picnic inside this picnic shelter that had a wood stove and was nice and warm. We got back to Baddeck around 4:30 and had dinner at Two Doors Down.

10/2/14 – Thursday (Yarmouth)

We spent most of the day driving from Baddeck to Yarmouth which took over 8 hours. On the way we stopped at Peggy’s Cove near Halifax. We stopped at the memorial for the flight that crashed in 1998. We also stopped at the light house which is one of the most photographed light houses in the world. Then we headed to our motel in Yarmouth called the Lakelawn Motel ($59/night). It was a nice room with a microwave and a small refrigerator. The bathroom window didn’t lock though and our TV didn’t work well so I had to get the manager to come work on the cable. He said he would have maintenance either fix it tomorrow or replace the TV. We had dinner at Marco’s which was an Italian restaurant across the street.

10/3/14 – Friday (Yarmouth)

We had breakfast at McDonalds and took the coastal road east of Yarmouth for awhile but we didn’t see anything. Then we drove around downtown Yarmouth and went to the Frost Park where they had a disc to stand on. When you talked while on the disc, you echoed. Once you get off the disc, there was no echo. Then we went to the Cape Forchu Lighthouse. On the way, we stopped to watch the ferry arrive from Portland, Maine. After that we headed west of Yarmouth for awhile and then on the way back, we stopped at an antique store. We ate lunch at Joann’s Quick ‘N Tasty. We stopped back at our motel to organize our laundry and met the maintenance man who was installing a new TV and cabinet in our room. Then we did our laundry. After laundry, we stopped at another antique store before returning to our room for a short nap. We had dinner at Joann’s again.

10/4/14 – Saturday (Truro)

On the way to Truro, we stopped at an antique store. Don found some postcards and I found a salt and pepper shaker set. We arrived at the Tidal Bore Inn around 1pm and checked in. Then we had lunch at Smitty’s which was okay. After lunch we drove around town and then hiked to 2 waterfalls in Victoria Park. Then we went to Maitland around 5pm to wait for the Tidal Bore. While there, we met a nice family visiting from Australia and we had a wonderful time talking to them. Don spotted a bald eagle sitting on the rock. He also was the first one to see the Tidal Bore arrive because it was about 30 minutes later than the tide charts said it would be (it wasn’t very big at all). Then we drove 5 miles to South Maitland to wait for the Tidal Bore to arrive. It was totally dark while we waited and we ended up hearing it arrive even though we really couldn’t see anything. It sure was cold and windy and misty while we were out there!

Things I Learned:

1. The signage on the Canadian roadways are somewhat different than what I’m used to. When I asked about them at the visitor center, I was told that many of them were new even to them!

2. The Bay of Fundy reminds me of when we visited the tide pools in Oregon.

3. Hopewell Rocks is an attraction under the Provincial government but it is not a Provincial park because it doesn’t have camping.

4. The entrance fee of $9 per person is good for 2 full days at Hopewell Rocks.

5. Baddeck has a population of around 800 in the winter and about 3000 in the summer.

6. It is cold enough that when the lake freezes, they can snow shoe across the lake.

7. Get fuel before you start on the Cabot Trail. There are some gas stations but all looked kind of old and didn’t have any credit card machine.

8. The washing machine took 3 loonys to work. (A Loony is a dollar) and the dryer took 4 quarters for 10 minutes.

9. In Australia, mutton is old sheep and tastier than lamb.

10. The Tidal Bore can be seen in the daytime but on a cloudy night, it can only be heard.

11. You can see the Tidal Bore in Maitland, NS, and it takes an hour to reach S. Maitland which is only 5 miles away.

Original Photos by Pat Hensley