Nova Scotia

The ferry ride was foggy and cool, and in 75 minutes we were on Nova Scotia. This was a lot faster than back tracking across the Confederation bridge and 140 miles of driving to Pictou Harbor. We will tour Nova Scotia counter clockwise saving Cape Breton and the Cabot Trail for last. But first the Bay of Fundy, and the bore tide.

The Bay of Funday's unique geographic shape lends itself to tides up to a record 53 feet. We'll see extreme tides throughout this area depending on the moon, first a drive to Truro and watch the tidal bore. In the rivers, where the tide is confined into a narrowing shoreline, you can see the flow of the river change direction. The water then recedes and the river flows normally again, until the next high tide in the bay, every day, twice a day. This only occurs in a few places and we're in time to see a muddy low tide. We'll return to the North River view point in about six hours. While we wait, a drive down main street is interesting. Actual pieces of the Berlin Wall, complete with broken concrete, graffiti and rebar are on display, donated by a local businessman after he accepted them for repayment of a debt, from a German businessman.

Just another surprise along the way, in a community of five thousand people. Soon after supper, people are gathering at the viewpoint, and around a bend the flow appears, moving upriver toward us. 1-2 foot waves against the current, right before our eyes. The river raises 3-4 feet in this area that's 75 feet wide.
The next morning we drive on, 2 days in Digby, with a 30 foot tide in the harbor, world famous Digby scallops, a drive through Annapolis Valley and ferry rides to Long Island and Brier Island. Then stops in Yarmouth, Bridgewater, wonderful quaint Lunenburg, and a few days break at Peggy' Cove.

A campground just north of Peggy's Cove is a our spot to rest and catch up on our housekeeping. With side trips to Halifax our time here still goes fast. The natural beauty of the shore and a small fishing village is even more special at Peggy's Cove. On a calm morning, the sea breeze and ocean waves on the giant rocks around the light house are fabulous. This quiet cove comes to life every day with souvenir shops and tour buses, but we beat the rush this morning.

Halifax is gearing up for their summer music festival and a Paul McCartny concert this weekend. Another busy city until we go into the harbor. We find parking and walk the docks. Cruse ships, ferries, sail boats and freighters, container ships, schooners and the tall ships all call on this port. The wharf offers brewery tours, museums, historical sites and tourist traps. After two trips to Halifax and Peggy's Cove lighthouse it's time for a rest. We'll move on to Cape Breton and the Cabot Trail next.

After overnight stops in New Glasgow and Port Hawksbury we come to a campground in Baddeck. We'll use this stop for our base to tour the Cabot Trail. This includes a drive through the Highlands National Park of Canada and a side trip to Meat cove, the "end of the earth" at the north east tip of Nova Scotia. A big day followed by a rest day. A short drive to Sydney for lobster,(the end of the season), and Donny buys firewood to boil a big pot of water, we're looking forward to a great supper, but it rains! We still enjoy a feast cooking our big meal inside the two rigs and eating in one. We'll soon be headed to Maine with a stop at the Hopewell Rocks in New Brunswick on our way out of Canada.

The Hopewell Rocks are spectacular. We arrive past low tide and watch till high tide, today's phase of the moon produces almost 40 feet. It's easy to understand how you can get stranded on the beach below the cliffs, as the tide comes in one foot every 6-10 minutes. Four hours ago we walked the ocean floor around the flower pot rocks, now we watch kayaks paddle in 30 feet of water. Our last stop before the border is the Reversing falls at St. John, New Brunswick.

About two hours east of Calais, Maine is St. John. No economic slow down here. It's very busy at the Reversing Falls bridge. We watch the tide change to form a swirling falls and rapids with whirlpools downriver, when the inlet is higher than the river. Then a falls and whirlpools upriver when the tide comes in and the river is higher than the inlet. While we wait for the tide to change(5 hours), we enjoyed a nice dinner with a view of the falls, then a walk along the river with a view, then desert and coffee with a view, then wait some more. From the observation deck above the restaurant you can see downtown and the harbor, across the river, and a paper mill on our side of the river, with car, truck, and railway traffic running continuously. We'll soon join the traffic on our way back to the USA.

Crossing the border with a RV is usually no problem, but when you've declared nothing and they find something the border agents loose their sense of humor. We answered all their questions correctly I thought, followed instructions into the building to be scanned and was asked what was in the back of the Jeep? The x-ray picked up something, contraband FIREWOOD! My normal short term memory forgot all about that bundle of firewood we never used back on the Cabot Trail. The wood Donny bought was stashed in our Jeep, we were mules with possible insect ridden firewood. Parked out of line and boarded by customs and agriculture agents, the wood was confiscated, all our cupboards and refrigerator were searched, then our passports returned. I wonder if they red flagged us in the computer and will search us the next time we have to cross? It's still good to be back in the USA.