Final Recap (I Promise!) PART 1/3

July 28, 2022

We had not planned on leaving so early, but what the heck, we were ready and we hit the road on May 23.

Au revoir, Quebec. Bienvenu to New Brunswick.

Our stay in Edmundston, and then Moncton, was illuminating, in so far as, that it reminded me that there are plenty of Francophones outside of Quebec, and as I was to find out later in Nova Scotia and P.E.I., that the French language is thriving, miraculously, without being jammed down anyone's throat.

Loved watching the tidal bore in Moncton, seeing the downtown core,

and in particular, we truly enjoyed spending time at the Hopewell Rocks, on the Bay of Fundy.

Only once it looked like it was going to rain in Moncton, did we decide to pack up, and move on. Because we had begun the trip earlier than expected, we had no hotels booked until May 31 and we were not certain where to bed down. Would have stopped at Springhill, Nova Scotia, but the Miner's Museum that I had hoped to visit, was not yet open. Their opening was delayed because supports in the mine needed shoring up. No other place enticed us, especially in the rain, and we continued directly to Sidney, Nova Scotia.

Once there, we explored the town

and even though we had planned on visiting Cape Breton in July, after returning from Newfoundland, we figured since the weather was so good, we should take the opportunity to drive the trail. No telling what the weather would be like later.

Driving the trail was everything we had expected it to be, and it

took forever, stopping at every lookout.

And in Sidney, we patronized the first of what was to be, many, many pubs.

I panicked when I heard that a ferry crossing had been cancelled because of high winds, a possibility that I had not considered. So, to insure the integrity of my itinerary, we adjusted our plans, and hopped on the ferry, one day earlier than had been originally planned.

And we were off to Newfoundland.

The bell tolled as we sailed into the harbour.

The hotel that we had originally booked for the next day, did not have availability so we cancelled the hotel and were lucky to find a BnB overlooking the harbour.

This would be my very first time at a BnB and it was a delightful place to stay.

Along with our luggage, one of the things we dragged in to the BnB was our small portable Nespresso machine. The drip coffee machine on site, defeated my efforts to get it working. This wouldn't be the last time we used our own machine. A couple of places would have drip coffee machines, but everybody else had Keurig machines. And it's my belief that you cannot get a decent cup of coffee out of a Keurig.

After a couple of nights, we moved halfway up the western coast, to Rocky Harbour. At this point, our vigilance for moose watching, began in earnest.

The entertainment was fun,

the trails were great,

(extra bonus, we saw caribou!)

the fiord at Gros Morne national park was divine,

and Bear acquired a friend.

We continued north, along the coast, to the northern tip, at St. Anthony.

(the Arches Provincial Park)

(just one of many streams)

(just one of many trails)

(just one of many seafood meals)

(just one of many light houses)

(just one of too many desserts-partridgeberry pie)

(and just one more, of you know what). There is a Canadian National park at L'Anse aux Meadows, which celebrates the arrival of the Norse, the first Europeans to land in North America. We enjoyed enactments of life in the settlement. I also got a kick out of recognizing a guide that I had met roughly 20 years previously, on my last visit (he rarely leaves the site).