Nova Scotia in July

[Geezer]

I recall a documentary talking about a town that straddles the US - Canada border where the library has a front door in one country and a back door in the other. Guess they will need to put a customs agent in there somewhere. Hmmm, that might be a nice 'after retirement' part-time job. Sitting in the library reading all those books I never got around to for a few hours a day.

OK, back to our regularly scheduled topic: Last time I was in Nova Scotia was more that 30 years ago but the most memorable sights were the Bay of Fundy during low tide, Peggy's Cove lighthouse, and a tour of a coal mine that I think was near Cape Breton. Drank a lot of Moosehead Stout on that trip so my memory may be a little fuzzy...

If you can work it into your schedule, as someone already mentioned, it is worthwhile to get over to Prince Edward Island.

 

[TheAxeman]

.
The way we travel when touring is: ride till you don't feel like it anymore, look for a place to stay, find the best restaurant, then crash & do it all over again. The only thing we plan in advance is the major stops & even then they are pretty flexible.

Booga, thats exactly the way we like to travel also. The only hotels I will probably book will be in Bar Harbor because of its circus-like atmosphere around July 4th and maybe a hotel in Halifax because I think there is a big "tatoo" going on at about that time also. We have been talking about doing the Cabot Trail also if time will allow. I just hate feeling rushed and will need to keep the stress level low so going where the wind blows us seems to be the best idea. The "hotel finder" services you speak of, are they readily found or is it something I need to call ahead for?

TWN, I was intruqued and tryed to lookup "the airline" but didn't find out a whole lot about the route. I'll have to save that for another time me thinks.

 

[NovaFlyer]

Hi There Axe.

Not sure if you've received the Nova Scotia motorcycle tour guide book I mentioned in another thread. It gives 'alot' of info tailored to motorcyclists.

For a rough idea of timings and stuff if you ride from Yarmouth:

1) Coming up the Fundy coast using the secondaries to Halifax will be an nice easy days ride, and by this I mean if you leave in the morning ~10:00, you'll get to Halifax for dinner. Going around the eastern shore is longer as the roads are very twisty along the coast, but there's more to see. These timings assume you like to stop occasionally to see things and not blitz through.

2) There's bike night located downtown Halifax on the waterfront on Thursdays which can be a packed mini-bike show.

3) I recommend booking a place in Baddeck up in Cape Breton to use as a base of operations. It's centrally located and the region can get booked up during the summer season. Timings to Baddeck from Halifax using our version of the Interstate is 4 hours. A secondary highway route can take a full day.

4) There are Lot's of B&B's around in almost every town so don't get freaked out with 'going rural'.

If you don't mind me asking, what time frame are you looking at spending in the Maritimes? Once I know that and what floats your boat in regards of things you like to do, I can maybe steer you in some directs that you'll enjoy.

Folks have a blast touring around here as long as Mother Nature co-operates. Given that you're planning for July, you should be in for some awesome riding.

 

[TheAxeman]

Nova, thanks for that info. We are probably taking 10 days total with 5 days slated for Nova Scotia. Out of those five days we probably want to spend 2 days around Halifax. We went there by cage about 5 years ago and took the Lighthouse Route as you described to Halifax but didn't really get to see much because it was extremely foggy and rainy. It was about the same time of year also (late June, early July). Looking at maps it seems that Cape Breton might be an area that you would need 3 or 4 days in alone to really enjoy it so we might have to leave it for another trip. We are primarily interested in rural touring to check out the sights. I personally like small towns but Michelle liked the energy of Halifax and wants to return. Your description of bike night Thursdays in Halifax sounds fun also so that is going to be figured into our plan for sure....

 

[boogahboogah]

We left Yarmouth in thick thick fog (30' visibility) that gradually dissapated after 9:00 AM. We noodled along the east coast, taking in the sights on the 'Lighthouse Trail'... Didn't see many lighthouses, although we sure looked & looked... Anyway, for some reason the name Lunenberg stuck in my brain (sailor), so we ended up there after doodling along the lower East coast for most of the day.

Did you know that there is at least 7 towns with the name Pubnico in it ? There's Pubnico, East Pubnico, Middle East Pubnico, Lower East Pubnico, West Pubnico, Lower West Pubnico, Middle West Pubnico, all within a space of about 6 miles. They sure loved that name Pubnico...

When we started to get close to Lunenberg, we started seeing signs for 'Lodging Locator' or some such. What the hell, we didn't have any plans & we got there around 4:00 PM (Atlantic TZ), lets stop in & see.

The person we talked to had a notebook full of hotels & B&B's to choose from. We told her that we weren't too particular, a hot shower & a comfy bed would be nice, everything else is gingerbread. Well the mega-corp hotels were full, but alot of the B&B's had a room or two, so we got the spiel on each of the B&B's (owners, location, house history, blah blah blah) and chose the one where the girl said the owners were a little 'peculiar'. They were, but that was OK because we're comfy with almost all types of people. As it turned out, the owners were a retired corporate salesman who was a bit tipsy most of the time (retired), and his OR Nurse wife who was a child of the '60's & really kept things together at the B&B. Stayed an extra day because the folks were so nice, the town was as yet not a tourist trap, has a FANTASTIC museum of the Atlantic (if you're into fishing in the 18 & 1900's) and because a bunch of two, three, and four masted sailing ships came to Lunenberg from a Tall Ships celebration in Halifax.

We checked out Peggy's Cove on the way to Halifax. Would be nice except for the tour buses & the hundreds of people & the ice cream shops. Better yet, there's a minature Peggy's Cove just north of Lunenberg, just follow water street (or whatever they call the street at water's edge with all the docks on it) north 3-4 miles. Smaller, but all of the scenery & none of the crowds.

Riding into Halifax we saw the same 'Lodging Locator' type of signs. We just followed those signs to the place in the center of town. Halifax is so big I think there are 2 or 3 of these lodging locator places. They close at 6:00 PM I think.

Anyway, enough blather, logon to this website to get the ministry of tourism to send you all of the free booklets about NS. Get them all, then build your short list of places & contact info from that.

NovaScotia Main Webpage

Nova Scotia Main Tourism Page

If you haven't seen the Bay of Fundy area, then by all means plan on:

Exploring around the parks in and near to Mt Desert Island, ride up Cadillac Mtn on MDI

From Yarmouth go West, plan on doodling around the slow roads following the bay.

Stop anyplace that looks interesting, it probably is

Canadians (esp NS'ers) are very friendly and will be glad to help you out any way possible

Digby has great (I mean GREAT) scallops & seafood

NS has not yet been 'WalMart ized', so patronize the local small businesses

However long you go, it will be too short. Good luck, have fun !!

(edit)

The guides you want are:

Dreamers & Doers guide

Scenic Travelways Map

Motorcycle Tour Guide

 

[gypsy]

This might be the service of which boog speaks.

https://www.checkinnovascotia.com

Check Inns can book almost any room in the province from a single phone number. It is good to keep it handy.

From the website:

1-800-565-0000 (toll-free from anywhere in North America)

directly at (902) 425-5781. Open 7 days a week to help you plan your vacation!

gypsy

 

[TheAxeman]

You guys have outdone yourselves. All the information is greatly appreciated and I've already ordered the three guides that you spoke of. I'm also going to check out the website that Gypsy has recommended. Thanks again for the advice.

Chris

 

[NovaFlyer]

Hi again Axe.

I'd really think about trying to do the Cabot Trail. That is absolutely an amazing ride ... as long as the weather co-operates. Even then it's still not bad. The best way to do it IMO is in an anti-clockwise direction as then you get to be on the outside lane and have the best view of the scenery.

There are two things up in Cape Breton that are quite cool to see if you you like history. The Alexander Graham Bell museum is in Badeck ( yah .. the guy that did the phone thing ) and Fortress Louisburg. The fort is a reconstruct of the main French presence on the east coast of North America beyond Quebec. Folks live in period character at the site all summer season. Like I said, it's quite neat if you are into history.

If you have any questions, please don't hesitate to ask as I've played tour guide to numerous folks and family.

No matter what, you're going to enjoy the sites as I haven't met anyone yet that hasn't .. even when it's rainy.

--K

 

[boogahboogah]

Oh, I forgot to mention something.

Cape Breton deserves to be a trip all on it's own, from what I hear, if you're limited on time. This would not be a metropolitan visit, more like a coast & forest & park ride through, probably with camping gear if you're so inclined. Heard many good stories about folks in Ingonish & Cheticamp, their wonderful bars (which double as music & dance halls) & also some funny stories about the French decendants vs the British decendants. If you're a Celtic music lover you'll be in heaven... A friend spent a week there & said he felt like he knew the natives forever & the trip lasted 5 days too few...

 

[FJReady]

If your travel plans can accommodate it I would strongly suggest you consider the St Johns to Digby ferry as an alternative to Bah Habah to Yarmouth at least one of the crossings. If the gulf of Maine is rolling you'll be in for a fast but unpleasant crossing on the Cat. Even if you're not suseptable to seasickness you'll be surrounded by some that are.. That was my experience last August. We returned via Digby to New Brunswick and had a nice ride back to Bangor on niner. Also less money than the Cat. That ferry ride is 3hours also but quite smooth as it is in a better protected body of water. Saw a few whales along the way. YRMV

Side note:

The best scallop roll I ever ate was served up at the little snack bar at the southern tip of Digby Neck. And across Petite Passage using the little ferry there are a couple very scenic islands.

As others have said Cape Bretton Island is magnificent - not to be missed on a trip to NS.

Enjoy!