On The Road…In Need Of A Food Intervention

It’s cold in the morning, so Gumby’s rockin’ his winter scarf

Day 102     September 19, 2014

Somewhere in rural New York  to Hagerstown, Maryland

It was only 35 degrees (fahrenheit) when we  woke up. So, when it warmed up to 60 degrees in the afternoon, we were ecstatic. We hadn’t seen temps this warm in quite a while, which, if you recall, is one reason we’d left Canada and were beelining it due south.

As on most long driving days, we munched on our fair share of junk food. Mark, having no respect for my eating dysfunctions, had smuggled on board a box of hot & spicy Cheese-Its. First I lectured him about bringing such junk on board, and then I dove right into the box of orange disgust.

On one of our finer gas & food stops today, we made a rare and desperate visit to a McDonald’s. I ordered a little fish sandwich. Mark ordered a double quarter pounder with cheese. We got it all “to go” and went back to the Space Shuttle to eat. When Mark opened up his double quarter pounder box, there was no lettuce, no tomatoes, no onions, no condiments of any kind on it…and no top bun. Too lazy to go back inside to return it, he just sat there, and pathetically ate his open-faced, double-pattie, cheese thingy.

We continued our way down Rt 81, and when we reached Harrisburg, PA, we stopped to visit my cousin Michael.

Hello, Pennsylvania!

Mark, my cousin Michael, and me

By the end of the day, we’d made it all the way to the Jellystone Campground in Hagerstown, MD. It was such a nice shock to be welcomed by the 70 degree temperatures at 8:00 pm. Finally, we were back in summer time!

Same Political Crap, Different Country

Rideau Canal, Ottawa

Day 100        September 17, 2014

Montreal, Quebec  to  Ottawa, Ontario

Canada

When we saw the awful rush hour traffic heading into Montreal in the morning, we made the last-minute decision to not go back into the city. Instead, we pointed the Space Shuttle west, and drove to Ottawa.

We hadn’t heard much of anything about Ottawa, but we figured since it is the capital of all of Canada, we were obligated to stop there. Passing it by would be like driving by Washington DC and not stopping.

Ottawa turned out to be a fantastic city! The only disappointment was finding out that the Royal Canadian Mint had absolutely nothing whatsoever to do with Junior Mints! WTF? Completely misleading.

Ottawa

The cool and hip US Embassy building

The US Embassy building

Locks on the Rideau Canal. Downtown Ottawa

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

Rideau Canal

The back of a fancy hotel. Looks almost like Parliament!

The Canadian Parliament buildings were pretty cool, as was the fact that we walked right into a political rally on the front steps. The Ukrainian President was speaking at the rally, and from what we could figure out, he was asking the Canadians for weapons and money. So, what’s new? Same old political bull shit so matter where you go!

Parliament!

Political rally in front of Parliament

The flag of Ukraine

Parliament

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

Parliament

Strolling by Parliament

Parliament. This old stuff is quite pretty!

Due to the political rally on the front steps, the Parliament building was closed for tours. That’d have to wait until the next day.

At the recommendation of a local Ottawanonian, we completed our day with dinner at The Black-Thorn Cafe. Delicious beers and food!

Libations @ The Black-Thorn Cafe

The Black-Thorn Cafe

It had started raining, so after dinner we took just a short stroll around the neighborhood, and then drove off to find a campground for the night.

Moshe Safdie, Surfing & Legos…One Degree Of Separation!

Habitat 67

Day 99     September 16, 2014

Montreal

Quebec, Canada

Just as we suspected might happen, we hit morning traffic going into Montreal. It was slow going, but we did get there. Of course, the central downtown district was crawling with traffic, so we couldn’t park there. So screw that. 

Morning traffic into Montreal

Old meets new in downtown Montreal

We got out of the downtown mess and made our way over to Habitat 67. I remember seeing it on a family vacation to Canada when I was only about 9 years old.. a long time ago, in a land far far away. It was time to see it again!

This is from Wikipedia…

Habitat 67, or simply Habitat, is a model community and housing complex in Montreal, Canada, designed by Canadian architect Moshe Safdie. It was originally conceived as his master’s thesis in architecture at McGill University and then built as a pavilion for Expo 67, the World’s Fair held from April to October 1967.

According to an article on dezeen.com, Safdie planned the arrangement of the project by using 2:1 Lego bricks to build models.

“We bought out all the Legos in Montreal at the time, because we built many, many alternatives.”

I wonder if he still owns all those Legos. I hear they can be hard to find and can be quite expensive. He could be sitting on a gold mine of Legos!

Habitat was pretty spectacular! And despite all of the signs surrounding it, telling us that this was private property and to keep out, we didn’t. This is just how it is when you are with an architect. Look around…until you get kicked out. And we did look around…and we did get kicked out…but not before having a good look at the place!

Habitat 67

Habitat 67

Habitat 67

Habitat 67

We’re in!!

Trespassing @ Habitat 67

Cool view from inside one the courtyards

Habitat 67

One last shot before being kicked out

One of the little known cool things about Habitat, is that it’s located right next to a surf break. Uh-huh!! There’s a surf break on the river right behind it! When the fast-moving water hits underwater boulders…voila…it forms a stationary wave that can reach up to six feet in height.

Surfing on the river!!

The wave wasn’t that big when we were there, but the rapid speed of the water, and the fact that the surfers had to enter the wave by being swept backwards, downriver into it, made the whole scenario look rather frightening! And if a surfer missed the wave, which most of them did that day, they’d get swept downriver, get out, walk up the embankment, walk back to the entry point, and try again. Not for the weak or faint of heart.

When we’d seen enough of the surfers and enough of the architecture, we ate lunch in the Space Shuttle, and then went to visit the nearby Biosphere. Like Habitat 67, Biosphere had also been built for the 1967 World’s Fair.

Lunch in the Space Shuttle

Biosphere is now an interactive environmental museum, and, unlike Habitat 67, it is open to the public…just not on Tuesdays!!! Crap!! We could walk around and take photos, but we couldn’t go inside.

Biosphere

Biosphere

Biosphere

Biosphere

Biosphere

We thought we’d try one more time to find parking in downtown Montreal. And once more, we were shut out. So we drove over to the old historic part of Montreal, where we totally lucked into finding two adjacent parking spaces on the street.

Old Montreal

New stuff, in Old Montreal

After further exploration, and dinner, we left the city.

Shooting while stuck in traffic on the way out of Old Montreal

Industrial scenes

Industrial scenes

We’d planned to return to the city in the morning to look around some more and to go back to Biosphere, so we found the nearest RV park and called it a night.

Cities….It’s a Love-Hate Relationship!

Huge head. Coolest ever public sculpture!!

Day 98       Sept 15, 2014

Quebec City   to  Somewhere outside of Montreal

Quebec, Canada

Since we’d discovered a great spot, just a couple blocks outside of Old Quebec City, to park the Space Shuttle, instead of taking the ferry over to the city again, we opted to check out of the RV park, and drive across the river. This way we could go on another walk-a-bout, and periodically check in on the pups. It’d be a little easier to manuever about, take photos, and eat lunch inside, without our little K9 buddies.

The bridge into the city

We explored. We ate. And we ate some more. It was a perfect day!

Cool graveyard, that also doubled as an urban dog park

Entrance to the walled city of Old Quebec

Old Quebec City

Lots of hills = good exercise for us walkers

Old Quebec City

Old Quebec City

Old Quebec City

Coolest ever public sculpture!!

Mark, rockin’ his Modern Times sweatshirt inside the big old cathedral in the middle of the city

Our pick for lunch

We wined and dined

Old Quebec City

Old Quebec City

Flowers…Old Quebec City

Old Quebec City

Colorful…so the dogs can find it

Old Quebec City

Old Quebec City

Old Quebec City

Old Quebec City

Old Quebec City

Old Quebec City

Old Quebec City

Around 4:00pm, we left Quebec City and began our drive to Montreal. We would have made it to Montreal, had it not been for the horrific rush hour traffic we hit leaving Quebec City. This was one of the very few times, since leaving San Diego back in June, that we’d seen any kind of “traffic.” It sucked! Cities suck!!

We got to about 30 miles from Montreal, and had to stop for the night. If we timed it right, we could probably hit rush hour traffic going into Montreal in the morning…if we were lucky!!

The Day That Went To The Dogs!

Mark and Dax hike up a steep, narrow street in Old Quebec City

Day 97    September 14, 2014

Quebec City, Quebec

Canada

Lucky for us, French Canadians love dogs, and dogs are allowed on the passenger ferries that cross the river into Quebec City. So Dax and Trixie would be hangin’ with us in the big city today!

Taking the ferry to Old Quebec City

Mark and I, and Dax and Trixie spent all day wandering around Old Quebec. There was one downside to having the pups with us. It was really cold outside, and although we’d have loved to been able to sit inside and eat lunch in a nice warm bistro, we couldn’t. The French Canadians don’t love dogs that much. So we ate lunch outside in the cold. That’s what coffee’s for…to warm up. So we drank a lot of coffee.

Old Quebec City

Old Quebec City

Old Quebec City

Old Quebec City

Interesting architecture in Old Quebec City

A lot of tourists in Old Quebec City

Old Quebec City

After lunch, Dax and Trixie met a very nice Irish Wolfhound, who was touring the city with her people. Her name was Harriet. She was spectacular! The biggest Irish Wolfhound I’d ever seen!

I started thinking that maybe Harriet the Irish Wolfhound, was my mom, Harriet Cohen, reincarnated. My mom wasn’t particularly fond of dogs, so this would kind of make sense that she’d have to come back as a regal and beautiful dog…ya know, to gain a love and appreciation for dogs! At least, I think that’s how it works.

When we were thoroughly worn out from the cold and from so much walking around, we took the ferry back to the other side of the river. Dax was being Mr. Congeniality on the ferry. He was smiling at everyone, getting lots of pets, and giving lots of kisses. He was pretty much the center of attention on that ferry ride! Trixie ignored everyone, as usual, and just searched for scraps of food on the ground.

Later that evening, we drove back into the city to have dinner. We easily were able to park the Space Shuttle just a couple blocks outside of Old Quebec. And we were able to go out to dinner, without the dogs, to enjoy a little French Canadian cuisine. Or, as we dubbed it, Cuinadian!

I tried to order in French. I have no idea what actually came out of my mouth when I spoke. But the waitress appreciated my attempt, had a good laugh with us about it, and brought me what I ordered!  Cie la Vie!

I got what I ordered!

The Dangers Of Speaking French! Who Knew?!

Longest covered bridge in the world!

Day 96     September 13, 2014

Somewhere in New Brunswick  to  Quebec City, Quebec

Canada

When I woke up this morning, and looked out at the lovely river view that we had from our camp site, all I could see was the massive amount of steam rising off of the water. I don’t imagine the water was warm at all, but that’s just how freakin’ cold the air temperature was!

I don’t know why, but I was still shocked to find out that the air temperature in the campground shower/bathrooms, was equally as frigid cold. Brrrrr!!! Mark and I decided that we’d go see Quebec City and Montreal, and then head the hell south. It was so cold that, for the first time ever, when we hit the road, we both turned on our seat heaters!

We took a detour to Hartland to drive across the world’s longest covered bridge.

Longest covered bridge in the world!

And another view of her….

And it spans this pretty river….

 

And on the inside….

And across we went, just to say we did.

And we stopped in Perth-Andover, where we had an amazing lunch at the Waterfront Bistro. Gourmet smoked salmon and asparagus panini. Delicious!

Chillaxin’ on the deck, waiting for lunch.

This would be our last stop in New Brunswick, which was a significant landmark. After this, we’d be crossing into Quebec Province, which is French speaking. I am not French speaking. Mark is barely broken-French speaking.

Our first stop in officially French speaking territory, was just over the borderline in Quebec, at Tim Horton’s. Using his not so stellar French, Mark tried to order one doughnut. We got six huge doughnuts. We proudly walked out of Timmy’s with a bag full of six doughnuts, and planned our strategy for survival.

It was time to bring out the big guns….the iPhone language translator app. Mark would speak French into the phone, and, in theory, the proper English words would be spoken back to us. Then, speaking as precisely as I could, I would try to mimic the French words into the phone, and then listen to the English translation spoken back to me.

Here’s a little chart of what I thought I said in French, and what the iPhone thought I said:

What I thought I said in French…………………..The IPhone’s English translation

I’m sorry, I don’t speak French…………………..I saved Jana Ronson

I’m sorry, can you say that again…..……….……I’m sorry, and you could diet

I’m sorry, repeat please…………………………..I’m sorry, pizza please

And then there was a translation that had something to do with telling someone they need pants. I decided that it’d probably be too dangerous for me to attempt speaking French.

At the end of our fun little day full of adventures, we checked into Motel et Camping Etchemin, just across the river form Quebec City. This was a combination motel and RV park. Lucky for us, the receptionist spoke perfect English. And so, we DID end up with a nice RV site behind the hotel, and NOT with a deluxe hotel suite!

You Call It Summer, I Call It Winter!

Local cuisine.

Day 95     September 12, 2014    part 2

Antigonish, Nova Scotia  to Somewhere in New Brunswick

Canada

There was still a lot of driving to be done today, so back on the road we went. We crossed most of New Brunswick on the highway, which meant that we didn’t see much, except for trees. New Brunswick has a lot of trees.

As evening approached, we found a really nice campground for the night. The place  was closing for the winter in three days, and it was pretty much empty except for a handful of New Brunswickians squeezing in their last few days of camping for 2014.

We had a site with a nice sunset view overlooking the river below. The view didn’t quite make up for the fact that it was butt-cold outside! We bundled up by layering on almost all of the clothes we had with us. Thank goodness we’d bought wool hats when we were in Newfoundland.

Once bundled up, we leashed up the pups to go on one last evening doggie walk. And that’s when we met a group of four New Brunswickians, out for an evening stroll around the campground. They looked at us, and we looked at them, and we all burst out laughing.

What was wrong with the picture was, that we were bundled up in lots of clothing, including hats, scarves, and gloves, and we were still cold. And they were out strolling around in shorts and t-shirts, and were perfectly comfortable.

When the New Brunswickians saw our California license plate, well, they said, “That explains it!” And when they found out we’d been living in the Space Shuttle for three months, one of them exclaimed, “Oh my gosh! You should be given some kind of award!” Haha!! Mark and I both laughed, and then agreed with her!

We bid these nice people good night, and went about our evening walk, in the frigid cold of the Canadian summer!

It’s cold out, but not so cold that we can’t drink a beer!

Three Californians Walk Into A Bar in Nova Scotia, and…….

@ the Fortress of Louisbourg

Day 94     September 11, 2014

Glace Bay  to  Antigonish

Nova Scotia, Canada

Maybe it was due to the gloomy overcast day, but Glace Bay completely underwhelmed us. Maybe we’d set our expectations too high. Maybe it was just the grayness. Well, we checked it off the list and moved on.

Next, we drove to Louisbourg. Have I mentioned how much I dislike historic reenactment villages? I think I have. But somehow, I ended up at another one of ‘em…..the Fortress of Louisbourg.

They welcomed us. How nice!

Unlike my experience with Glace Bay, my expectations had been set very low for our visit to Louisbourg. And this was so uncalled for, ‘cause the Fortress was pretty dang cool. We took tons of pictures, bought homemade wheat and rye breads, and ate lunch in the cantina. So glad Mark talked me into stopping here!

More or less, the front door of the fortress

Let the reenactment crap begin…..

@ the Fortress of Louisbourg

A fortress must have a moat, right?

@ the Fortress of Louisbourg

@ the Fortress of Louisbourg

@ the Fortress of Louisbourg

@ the Fortress of Louisbourg

@ the Fortress of Louisbourg

@ the Fortress of Louisbourg

@ the Fortress of Louisbourg

A fortress needs some cool weaponry too, right?

@ the Fortress of Louisbourg

@ the Fortress of Louisbourg

Green door detail @ the Fortress of Louisbourg

@ the Fortress of Louisbourg

@ the Fortress of Louisbourg

@ the Fortress of Louisbourg

@ the Fortress of Louisbourg

Red door detail @ the Fortress of Louisbourg

@ the Fortress of Louisbourg

The view of the fortress from across the water

On our walk back to the visitor center….a nice little graveyard.

It was early afternoon when we got back on the road and headed west on Route 104. We drove past the lake region, which looked pretty, but we didn’t have time to stop. We had to put on some more miles today.

We stopped for the night at Whidden Park Campground in Antigonish. This was one of those rare campground/RV parks that was situated right in the town….not two miles outside of town…right in the town.

This was a great opportunity to go out for drinks and dinner. Antigonish is home to St. Francis Xavier University. So, it’s a university town, which meant there actually was some night life!

We walked through the town, checking out a few places, and settled on The Townhouse Brewpub & Eatery. It was live jazz night, and the place was packed, but we lucked into a couple seats at the bar.

This was going to be a fun and easy place to talk to some locals, which was why I nearly fell off my bar stool when I discovered that the guy sitting next to me at the bar (not Mark, the other guy, other side of me), was a realtor from San Diego, CA. WTF??!!! What are the chances of that? He was equally as shocked to discover that we live about 1/2 hour from him back home in California!

Our new friend from California was on a fishing trip. He and his buddies would catch and release big fish during the day, and then drink like big fish in the Antigonish bars at night!

Now the guy two bar stools down from me, on the other side of Mr. California, he was a local. And he was hilarious, and had a keen mind for trivia. He challenged all three of us Californians to an informal game of trivia. This meant that he’d ask the questions, and the three of us would try to get the correct answers. He kicked our asses. And he even let us chose the categories. This must have cemented in his mind, the opinion that Californians, although we are a good looking bunch, are dumb.

It was a fun evening. And by the way, The Townhouse Brewpub & Eatery had fabulous food! Anyway, although our new friends invited us to go to another bar with them, we had to say goodnight and get back to the Space Shuttle where the pups would be awaiting our return.

Two Californians Walk Into A Newfoundland Tire Shop, and…

Mark. Man & food truck. Happy times!

Day 92     September 9, 2014

Barachois Pond Provincial Park  to  J.T. Cheeseman Provincial Park, Newfoundland

Newfoundland and Labrador, Canada

This is a long story with very few photos. Why? ‘Cause I was too freakin’ stressed out to take any photos!!

As soon as we walked the dogs, ate breakfast, showered, and pumped up our bad rv tire with the bike pump, we were back on the road. We headed south to Stephenville, the de facto New York City of southwestern Newfoundland, with a population of 8,000.

We knew there was a Canadian Tire store in Stephenville, and we knew that they’d be able to diagnose and fix our leaking tire. No worries. No stress. We enjoyed the drive south, and were happy upbeat people when we pulled into the Canadian Tire parking lot.

Joyfully, we strolled into the service center and explained our situation, where the friendly, and courteous employee explained that yes, they could help us, but not for another two days. They were completely booked up until then. And though we pleaded with him and explained that we had to catch the ferry back to Nova Scotia the next day, he showed no sympathy, and sent us to a small tire shop down the street. We walked out of that place a little less happy, a little less upbeat, and a little less joyful, than when we had walked in.

We found the small tire shop down the street, “OK Tire.” When we pulled up in front of the little garage, all four or so of the guys working there came out to say hello.

Friendly group, yes. But more so, a curious group, as they had never seen a vehicle even remotely similar to ours before. Nope, not a one of them had ever laid eyes on a Sprinter van! They were mesmerized by the Space Shuttle, and they were shocked to find out we’d driven all the way from California.

And so, started the most stressful part of our entire road trip. These nice guys were happy to help us, but, they didn’t know how to jack up our rig. And, did I not mention, that the problematic tire was the inside rear dually? Of course it was, because had it been a front tire, or an outside rear tire, that would have been exponentially easier to deal with!

I stood by and watched as Mark and these four guys looked under the rig, looked at the owner’s manual, looked under the rig, looked at the owner’s manual, shook their heads, discussed how to jack up Fiona without damaging her, and finally had at her with a bunch of equipment.

I didn’t have any confidence in this turning out well, ‘cause it just didn’t look to me like these guys knew what they were doing. I even tried to convince Mark that we should wait until we got back to Nova Scotia to deal with it. My fear was that, if they damaged Fiona during this first aid attempt, that we would be stranded in Newfoundland.

For some reason, Mark had confidence in the ability of a bunch of guys to figure out what to do and how to do it. Maybe ‘cause he’s a guy. I just saw impending disaster.

I was so nervous, this was the only pic I managed to take @ OK Tire. Fiona has no shoes.

And YEEHAW!!!! Mark was right!! Our guys jacked up the rig, removed both rear tires on the driver’s side, diagnosed our problem (our tire valve was loose. easy fix. not even a tire problem at all!), reassembled everything, charged us $50, and sent us on our way.

I profusely thanked each and every one of these great guys, and I apologized for my nervousness and for ever doubting them!

We had a celebratory lunch at Joe’s Takeout food truck, and then took a drive  around the Port au Port Peninsula.

Man & food truck. Happy times!

On the peninsula, we stopped at the one and only alpaca farm. The couple who own the farm have 16 alpacas and one llama. They shear the critters and send the stuff to Prince Edward Island to be processed. When the processed wool is returned to them, they hire a bunch of local women to knit stuff from it, and then they sell the stuff in their little shop. Mark bought a pair of hand knit alpaca wool sox. Nice!

Not to be missed on the Port au Port Peninsula! I recommend you get an ice cream cone and some wool sox in the gift shop.

The one lonely llama.

Curious alpacas.

Alpacas strike a pose.

Driving around the peninsula….

Interesting….not sure what this is…

A beautiful drive….

When we completed the loop around the peninsula, we stopped back at OK Tire. They’d told us to drive for about an hour or so, and then to return so that they could retighten our tire lugs. So, we stopped and said hello again, and then said goodbye again. And we thanked them profusely, again!

Just a little more driving, and we were back at J.T. Cheeseman Provincial Park. This was where we’d spent our first night in Newfoundland, and it’d be where we’d spend our last night as well. A bittersweet reunion.

The Education And Feeding of Magical Creatures (i.e. Nancy & Mark)

Local beers

Day 86     September 3, 2014

Terra Nova National Park to St. John’s, Newfoundland

Newfoundland and Labrador, Canada

Being the social movers and shakers that we are, we had a breakfast invitation for this morning. We’d been invited over to George and Pearl’s nearby motorhome for a hearty meal and conversation before we took off for St. John’s.

George and Pearl

We’d met George and Pearl the night before. They were native Newfoundlanders who lived only about a half hour from Terra Nova National Park. They were doing a little staycation at Terra Nova NP.

We feasted on bacon, eggs (I skipped the eggs..hate ‘em), toast, and homemade jam. And add to that, funny conversation. Funny  ‘cause, at times, their accents were hard to understand, and funny at other times ‘cause they were really funny and nice peeps.

Before we departed the campground, George and Pearl came by the space shuttle and gave us a jar of Pearl’s homemade canned/jarred beets. (months later, when we were back home, we cracked open the jar and ate them all in one sitting. they were absolutely “to die for!”)

On the drive to St. John’s, we listened with interest to a radio talk show discussion about what people who live in Newfoundland and Labrador call themselves. Newfoundlanders? Labradorians? Newfoundland and Labradorians? Believe it or not, this was quite a controversial discussion, and quite educational for us, to say the least!

Back on the road. A typical moose warning

Woohooo!!! We’ve arrived!

Where we were…..the little red dot….

We checked into the campground at Pippy Park, just on the outskirts of St. John’s, and then drove into the city. WOW!! St. John’s was colorful, hilly, and edgy! More rough around the edges than I’d expected, but all the more interesting!!

St. John’s

Colorful houses. Downtown St. John’s

More colorful houses on hills. Downtown St. John’s

Colorful houses on hills. Downtown St. John’s

Colorful houses. Downtown St. John’s

Colorful houses. Downtown St. John’s

Mailbox

The oldest store on the oldest street in the oldest city in North America!

Downtown St. John’s

Trapper John’s. We’ll visit this pub in the next day or two.

St. John’s would be the big turn-a-around point of our trip. To celebrate, we’d already decided that we would treat ourselves to lots of eating out while we were there. This turned out to be a good decision, as we found that St. Johns was a foodie haven!

Mark Wienke finds Winky’s food truck. How perfect!

We had the most awesome dinner at a restaurant called The Club. We chose The Club, because we happened to get a parking spot right out front, and we were hungry…pure luck. We stuffed ourselves with local Quidi Vidi beers, gourmet soup, salmon, miscellaneous sides, and a gourmet burger. Then we finished all that off with the most freakin’ amazing cake…parsnip cake!! Parsnip cake is the more delicious cousin to carrot cake.

Local beers

Gorgeous and delicious food @ The Club

Parsnip cake!!!

Now that I think back on our time in St. John’s, I’m pretty sure this is where that extra four pounds crept up on me. And it was all worth it, even though, seven months later, I’m still trying to get rid of it!!

Is It Groundhog Day, Or Are We Just Driving On The Same Road Again?!

Arches Provincial Park

Day 85      September 2, 2014

Portland Creek to Terra Nova National Park, Newfoundland, Canada

Some people don’t like the fact that, when you travel around Newfoundland, inevitably, usually, you’ll have to backtrack over the the same roads you’ve already driven on to get back to somewhere else you want or need to go, or just to get back to where you started. Some people will throw around words like, “Groundhog Day,” or “boring” when describing this predicament. But not us. We only used the word “lucky” to describe our situation.

When we left L’Anse aux Meadows, we had to travel south, down the same road…the only road…to get back to the split in the road that would take us east to get to St. Johns.  This was pretty cool, ‘cause we got to see some of the places we’d seen on the way north, only from a completely different angle. This made us happy. It was like seeing old friends again!

East coast magic.

Arches Provincial Park

Arches Provincial Park

Near Gros Morne National Park

Near Gros Morne National Park

Near Gros Morne National Park

Headin’ east on the Trans Canadian Highway

Moose?? Where??

Happy Road Tripping Nancy

And speaking of old friends…Just outside of Gros Morne National Park, we stopped for fuel at an Esso station and ran into a couple from the U.S. state of Washington that we’d met on the fjiord boat tour three days earlier. When we’d first met them, they had assumed that we’d flown out east from California and then had rented a car to travel around Newfoundland, just as they had done. They were shocked to see that we were actually in an RV and had driven all the way from California. Trust me, this fact added a lot to our “cool factor” when we were so far away from California! I reckon we were just about the coolest people in Newfoundland at the time!

We bid our friends farewell, and continued our eastern pilgrimage. Before stopping for lunch, we drove past Grand Falls-Windsor, a blip on the map whose motto is “Perfectly Centered.” Hmm, must be smack dab in the center of Newfoundland!

I was really excited to spot a restaurant in Badger that made Canadian and Chinese food. We’d been eating such simple food on the road, that Chinese food would be a real treat! So, we stopped at Helen’s. And I was so bummed to find out that they didn’t have Chinese food that day, ‘cause the Chinese chef had off work that day. Oh well. There are worse things in life than a lack of Chinese food, and I wasn’t gonna let this little hitch get me down.

No Chinese food today!

As we headed east, we stopped at a scenic look out point near Gambo. There was a guy there selling fresh veggies from his little produce truck. We bought a bunch of stuff from him, super happy to have fresh home-grown veggies. He also gave us a gigantic turnip for the dogs. We never did feed it to the dogs. While on the road, we were afraid of feeding them something out of their ordinary diet. Didn’t need any more doggie gastric or digestive problems while we were all living together in our small Space Shuttle!

Scenic lookout near Gambo

Scenic lookout near Gambo

The final stop for the day was at the campground at Terra Nova National Park. Once again, a stellar Canadian National Park. It was the first National Park established in Newfoundland and Labrador, and it is also the eastern most National Park in all of Canada. It also had the most beautiful bathrooms I’d ever seen at a campground!

Girl With The Nerdy-Geeky Full-Body Anti-Bug Suit

Somewhere on west coast of Newfoundland.

Day 84     September 1, 2014

Red Bay, Labrador to Portland Creek, Newfoundland

We’d been sequestered inside the Space Shuttle since sundown the day before…since the nasty biting black fly attack and counter-attack. We’d planned to stay in Labrador another day and night, but couldn’t stomach the idea of dealing with that again. Both of us already had welts from yesterday’s attack, and they were pretty painful.

In fact, we were so afraid to go outside, that we got up at 5:30 am, fired up the engine, and got the hell out of there. If we were lucky, we’d be able to catch the 8:00 am ferry back to Newfoundland. And we were lucky, and we did.

Early morning drive to the ferry terminal to leave Labrador

Adios Labrador. I hope I can go back there some day. But, next time, I’m gonna buy one of those completely nerdy-geeky full-body anti-bug suits.

Couple hours later, we found ourselves touching ground back in Newfoundland. We stopped somewhere along the coast to walk the pups and to get some fresh fly-free air!

Back in Newfoundland! Cute church. Somewhere on west coast of Newfoundland.

Somewhere on west coast of Newfoundland.

Somewhere on west coast of Newfoundland.

And off we went to the next historic site….L’Anse aux Meadows, where there’s evidence of an old Viking settlement. And by evidence, I’d be referring to dead people. Or, actually, grassy mounds that were burial sites.

Getting close to L’Anse aux Meadows…

Near L’Anse aux Meadows

Mark and Fiona

Near L’Anse aux Meadows

Near L’Anse aux Meadows

Near L’Anse aux Meadows

In California, this shack would cost about $1.2 million.

Near L’Anse aux Meadows

There was also an historic reenactment village nearby. Those historic reenactment kinds of places kind of creep me out, but it’s like seeing a car accident on the side of the road…you just can not stop looking. So, we visited that too.

@ the Viking reenactment village

@ the Viking reenactment village. Mock-up of a viking game board.

@ the Viking reenactment village

@ the Viking reenactment village

@ the Viking reenactment village

@ the Viking reenactment village

@ the Viking reenactment village

The view at nearby St. Anthony’s.

As we drove south, we enjoyed the beautiful sunset on the coast, and then finally docked for the night at Mountain Waters Resort Campground in Portland Creek.

The Good, The Bad, & The Ugly….Red Bay, Labrador

Red Bay

Day 83             August 31, 2014             Part 2

Red Bay, Labrador

Newfoundland and Labrador, Canada

THE GOOD……

We could count on one hand, the number of cars we saw on the road between the ferry in St. Barbe, and Red Bay. We stopped a few times along the route to take in the enormous size of the place.

War Memorial

War Memorial

On the way to Red Bay

On the way to Red Bay

On the way to Red Bay

On the way to Red Bay

Curling Champion!!!!

On the way to Red Bay

On the way to Red Bay

On the way to Red Bay

A whole lotta pretty countryside

On the way to Red Bay

On the way to Red Bay

On the way to Red Bay

On the way to Red Bay

On the way to Red Bay

On the way to Red Bay

On the way to Red Bay

The little village of Red Bay was, well, little. And so pretty! We ate lunch at the only restaurant in town, Whalers Restaurant, where for the first time, we tried bakeapple pie. Verdict: Bakeapple pie is delicious and I should eat it every day to stay happy!

Red Bay

Red Bay

Red Bay

Red Bay

My new favorite food group….Bakeapple Pie!

After lunch, we visited the whaling museum. Basque whalers in Red Bay were some of the first Europeans to arrive in Canada…..a fun little fact that might come in handy at a trivia party.

The view from the whaling museum

This place was proving to be small and mighty. But, it was a long way from anywhere, and from what we could see, there were only about 6 other tourists in the whole village. But I can assure you that all of us were having the adventure of a lifetime!

Red Bay

Red Bay

Red Bay

Red Bay

Red Bay graveyard

Red Bay

Red Bay

End of the paved road on coastal Labrador. Red Bay

 

 

The other dirt road out of Red Bay.

Red Bay

The day had already been jam packed full of stuff to do and see, but the best, and worst, was yet to come. Mark had purchased a t-shirt in the gift shop at the restaurant that said “I hiked Tracey Hill.” And so, we had to hike it.

Tracey Hill hike, Red Bay

Tracey Hill hike, Red Bay

Tracey Hill hike, Red Bay

Tracey Hill hike, Red Bay

Tracey Hill hike, Red Bay

Tracey Hill hike, Red Bay

Tracey Hill hike, Red Bay

Tracey Hill hike, Red Bay

Tracey Hill hike, Red Bay

Tracey Hill hike, Red Bay

Me and Trixie

Tracey Hill hike, Red Bay

The pics from our hike, pretty much say all there is to say…Absolute Beautifulness!! Including stops for photo ops, it took us about an hour to hike to the top. The entire hike, top to bottom, we only saw one other person.

THE BAD……

The sun was setting, and we slightly hurried back down to avoid being caught in the dark. We made it in plenty of time. And so did the ferocious and infamous Labradorian biting black flies. Apparently, sunset is when they come out to suck the blood of the ignorant.

The flies were on us like, well, like biting black flies to ignorant people. And they were biting us something awful. We ran to the space shuttle, brushed the flies off of each other and off of the dogs, and jumped inside.

THE UGLY…..

In those, oh, say, 8 seconds that the door was open to the rig, at least 20 of those freakin’ flies got in with us. We spent the next 15 minutes killing black flies. And it was disgusting. Those little freaks are full of blood, so every time you kill one, you have a mini blood bath on your hands. That shit was everywhere….on the windows, on the window shades, on the off-white wall covering. Yuck!!!

When we were satisfied that we’d killed them all, we drove back to the RV site for the night. And we didn’t dare go outside again, so we just hung out inside and tried to clean up the carnage from the kill. It was during that time that I noticed that I had huge welts on my neck from the fly bites. Two in particular, one behind each ear, made me look like I’d been abducted by aliens.

Stuck inside the space shuttle. And yet, we still had a nice view!

Last light, from inside the rig, on the side of the gas station!!

But, alas we were safe. Safe and tucked into our little RV spot, which, by the way, was one of 4 parking spots, with hook-ups, on the side of the Red Bay gas station. But, we weren’t going outside, so we didn’t bother to hook up to anything. We just hung out, ate dinner, and contemplated how the hell anyone could survive life with the infamous biting black flies!

Grandpa Was An Iceberg Hunter… & Other Adventures in Labrador

Ferry boat @ St. Barbe

Day 83        August 31, 2014         Part 1

St. Barbe, Newfoundland to Red Bay, Labrador

Newfoundland and Labrador, Canada

Another day, another ferry boat ride. First thing in the morning, we got in line for the ferry over to Labrador. Technically, the ferry takes you to Quebec (the Province, not the city), and then you drive to Labrador. And technically, you could drive across Canada, through the province of Quebec, and across Labrador on the Trans-Labrador Highway, and never get on a ferry, but we like ferry boats, and we’re not so crazy about unpaved roads. We met a few people who’d done the drive, and word was that the long unpaved parts were pretty brutal.

Ferry boat @ St. Barbe

Fiona, on the ferry

Goodbye, Newfoundland

Time to be creative on the ferry

Time to be creative on the ferry

Proof that we came from aliens!

So, here we were, on the ferry to Blanc Sablon, Quebec. The ride was less than an hour and a half, and smooth sailing all the way. There weren’t many people on the ferry, but we did manage to meet a nice young couple who were on their way to see her grandfather in Mary’s Harbour.

They told us that they would have about a 1.5 hour drive on an unpaved road once they reached Red Bay. Red Bay, the end of the paved road in eastern Labrador, was our destination.

The couple also told us that her grandfather would have drinks waiting for them that were made with iceberg ice. And technically, yes, ice from icebergs. And in case you’re wondering, yes, her grandfather does actually go out on a boat and chip off ice from icebergs! 

Apparently iceberg ice is super dense and lasts much longer than the ice cubes that we all are used to. I see a great benefit there…no longer having watered down drinks from melted ice. I wish I could grow an iceberg here in southern California.

Upon landing in Quebec, we took the road east and crossed into the Province of Newfoundland and Labrador. We’d made it to Labrador!! And it was looking as if we were in the minority. Labrador was even more sparsely populated than Newfoundland. And the landscape was vast and beautiful!

Arriving in Blanc Sablon, Quebec

Which way to go! Labrador…go right!

Still in Quebec

Still in Quebec

Not in Quebec anymore!

Falling In Love With A Coffee Drink, & Other Adventures In Newfoundland

Tablelands

Day 81          August 29, 2014

Gros Morne National Park, Newfoundland, Canada

We got an early start this morning, and drove over to the tiny community of Trout River.

A great view to start out the day!

On the way to Trout River

Beach time @ Trout River

It was dang cold this morning, so you can imagine our delight when we saw wool socks for sale at one of the little houses on the main street. Mark picked out a nice pair of brown and white striped socks. I would have bought a pair too, but they all looked too huge.

Mark scores some hand made socks. Trout River

On the main street in Trout River

Lots of colorful stuff in Trout River

Nice looking pile o’ wood. Trout River

At 10:00 am, we joined the park ranger’s interpretive talk at the Tablelands.

The park ranger, trying to educate us all.

The Tablelands were pretty spectacular looking on their own, and with a bit of education about what we were actually looking at, we had an even greater appreciation for how special this place was. You can google it to learn more, but basically, this area is one of only a couple places on earth where the earth’s crust and mantle rock are exposed. This is orgasmic stuff for geologist types, of which I’m not, but, just sayin.’

Hiking + Tablelands…that way…..

Tablelands

Tablelands

Tablelands

Tablelands

Tablelands

Tablelands

Tablelands

Pointing out something tiny at Tablelands

Tablelands

Tablelands

Tablelands

Following our Tablelands visit, we returned to Woody Point to have lunch and have a better look around. This time I scored, and found a hand made knit wool hat in one of the little shops. Now Mark’s feet would be warm, and my head would be warm, and I guess we could swap socks and hat once in a while, if necessary.

Lunch at Merchant Warehouse Retro Cafe & Wine Bar, Woody Point

After lunch, we walked across the street to a little coffee shop to take on some “liquid energy.” I tried the “Black Forrest Coffee” concoction, which was out of this world, and I don’t even like coffee very much!! Secret recipe…coffee, chocolate syrup, and cherry juice. Yum!! Must remember to try this at home.

The coffee did us good, and kept us revved up for the rest of the afternoon of exploration. We took a short hike to Southeast Brook Falls, followed by a drive to Rocky Harbor, and a hike around Lobster Cove Head Lighthouse.

Back on the road

Back on the road

Hiking to Southeast Brook Falls

Hiking to Southeast Brook Falls

Hiking to Southeast Brook Falls

Hiking to Southeast Brook Falls

@ Lobster Cove

Lobster Cove Head Lighthouse

Lobster Cove Head Lighthouse

Hiking around Lobster Cove Head Lighthouse

Hiking around Lobster Cove Head Lighthouse

Hiking around Lobster Cove Head Lighthouse

Hiking around Lobster Cove Head Lighthouse

Hiking around Lobster Cove Head Lighthouse

There was a nice campground nearby at Green Point, Green Point Campground (duh!), with ocean views and a nice vibe, so we docked for the evening and relaxed. We took in the sunset, admired yet another wild looking expedition vehicle, cooked dinner, and played music around the campfire with one of our neighbors. When it was too cold to play anymore, we called it a night, and retired to the cozy Space Shuttle.

Another crazy looking expedition vehicle!

Sunset @ Green Point Campground

Mumble-Speak, Kit Kat Bars, and Moose….A Fine Day In Newfoundland!

The Tablelands, Gros Morne National Park

Day 80              August 28, 2014

(west coast of) Newfoundland, Canada

I was super excited to start our exploration of Newfoundland. However, as usual, before we could get on the road, we had to take the doggies on their morning walk. We leashed them up and followed a nice dirt road through the campground.

Too bad we didn’t have tons more time, or we could have followed the road all the way to the coast. Walking with Trixie and Dax can be a slow process, and at our pace, it seemed like it’d take us at least another hour to reach the coast, so, we turned around.

On the way back to our campsite, we stopped to talk to two of the nicest men you’d ever meet…two park rangers. This was, of course, also when we discovered that the Newfoundland accent can be a bit difficult to understand! They seem to speak with a slight mixture of Irish accent, and mumble-speak. Sometimes the mumble-speak is just in the first few words of a sentence, almost like an engine that’s just getting up to speed. This wasn’t too much of a problem though, ‘cause even without the first few words of a sentence, we could usually figure out the gist of the whole thing. And, no disrespect meant…just trying to describe the accent here.

Leaving J.T. Cheesman Provincial Park

The other interesting thing we discovered today, was the white chocolate Kit Kat candy bar. Y’all do know that white chocolate isn’t even chocolate, right? Mark and I are big fans of the Kit Kat bar. We were NOT fans of this silly white chocolate Kit Kat. If it’s not broke, don’t fix it!

As we were driving north, we had our first moose sighting. A giant moose was grazing on the side of the road. Couldn’t believe our luck, to see our first moose on only our second day in Newfoundland. Should have bought a lottery ticket.

On the road north

On the road north

At the urging of one of our tourist center guide books, we took Rt 407 towards St. Andrews. Supposed to be some interesting old church down that way. I think we found it, but it didn’t seem like it had been worth the detour. Oh well, Rt 407 was kind of a bust for us, so we headed back to the main road to continue north.

I think this was the church we were supposed to be looking for..

We made a short stop in Cornerbrook. Just long enough to check out the nice local bike shop and to have lunch, then went on our way.

Gumby, hanging on for dear life as we fly down the road!

Passing by Marble Mountain Ski Resort

Just a bit more driving, and we arrived at Gros Morne National Park. We did a little drive-a-bout to get oriented, and then stopped for the night at Trout River Campground.

Entering Gros Morne National Park in the drizzling rain

Gros Morne NP!!

Heading into the park…

 

 

 

 

The view from Woody Point

The view from Woody Point

The view from Woody Point

The hustle and bustle of downtown Woody Point

 

 

Driving through the park

Nice views all around us!

The Tablelands

Our day was complete after making dinner and walking the dogs, and realizing that it was cold up here and we were completely unprepared for the weather! We’d have to wait until tomorrow to figure out what to do about our lack of enough warm clothing!

Mark and Dax on our evening dog walk on the dirt road next to our campground

At Last, A Blog Post With Some Educational Info

Landscape @ the visitor center

Day 79       August 27, 2014          

Nova Scotia to Newfoundland and Labrador, Canada

We were catching the ferry to Newfoundland today.

Here’s a quick geography lesson. Newfoundland is an island. It’s part of the Canadian province called “Newfoundland and Labrador.” Labrador is the land mass (not an island) east of the Province of Quebec. The Province of Newfoundland and Labrador is made up of Newfoundland….and of Labrador. Make sense?

And one more thing, the pronunciations. The accent is on the last syllable of each of these names. NewfoundLAND, LabraDOR. It’s kind of odd and took a while to get used to it, but hey, if you’re gonna go there and talk to anyone while you’re there, you should at least learn how to pronounce the name of the place.

Moving on….we had our ferry reservation, and we arrived the required two hours prior to sailing. This meant a lot of “hanging around” time at the ferry terminal.

Fiona, in line to board the ferry

Somebody’s house is also in line to board the ferry

The two hours passed surprisingly quickly. Upon check in, the staff measure your rig from the very tip to the very toe. Fiona was 27’ long from the front to the back end of the bike rack. To be even more exact, Fiona was $258 CDN long!

The rest of that time “hanging around” was spent walking the dogs, and talking to all the other hanger-arounders. We met a bunch of nice people, including other RV-ers, other dog owners, and a truck driver from Newfoundland who was bringing home a little corgi puppy to his kids!

We finally loaded onto the ferry. While Mark was finishing up inside the rig, getting the doggies comfortable, one of the crew was nice enough to snap a photo of me next to the rig.

Into the belly of the beast

On the ferry!

This would be a six hour ferry crossing. The dogs had to stay in the RV, and we weren’t allowed to check on them. Access to the vehicle decks was strictly prohibited. Really, all we could do was set up their water bowl, and open up some windows, turn on the roof ventilation fan, and then try not to worry about them.

Our crossing was nice and smooth, for which I was quite thankful. I’d heard that it could go either way.

Leaving Sydney, Nova Scotia

Taking photos on the ferry

Beautiful seas

Good bye, Nova Scotia

The shadow versions of Mark and me

Before we knew it, we arrived in Port aux Basque, Newfoundland.

Arriving in Newfoundland

Arriving in Newfoundland

Arriving in Port aux Basque, Newfoundland

The trucks unload off the boat first

Yep, we’re here!

We stopped at the visitor center to pick up a bunch of info and a map. Not that you can get lost, as there’s pretty much only one road around most of the island. But it was helpful to see where everything was.

Landscape @ the visitor center

It’d been a long day and we were tired, so we stopped for the night at nearby J.T. Cheeseman Provincial Park. I enjoyed an evening music jam session with Keith and Marilyn, a couple from Alberta that had also just come over on the ferry. Our visit to Newfoundland was already starting out with a bang!

Bumpity, Bumpity, Bump….To Meat Cove We Go!

On the way to Meat Cove

Day 77     August 25, 2014       Dingwall to Meat Cove, Nova Scotia, Canada

I was keeping my eyes open this morning, to see who came in or out of that big ass cool looking RV near us. As soon as I saw a couple walking outside of it, I went over to say hi and to get the scoop on who they were and what they were driving.

An interesting neighbor. Will make a point to meet them in the morning.

I noticed that they had Swiss license plates, so, in my best German, I said good morning, how are you, and where are you from. My best German is kind of crappy, but it’s good enough for basic intelligence gathering.

This couple tripped me out. They’d been traveling all around the world for the past eight years in this expedition vehicle! Later on, I looked up their blog. They’d been freakin’ everywhere! Pretty amazing stuff!!

There were other interesting people at this campground as well….Debbie and Tony. We’d met Debbie and Tony a week earlier at The Ovens campground. We spotted their cool retro trailer, Millie, at this campground, and hooked up with them to have breakfast.

The four of us were having such a fun time hanging out, that we decided to drive up to Meat Cove together. This would involve driving the final 9 kilometers on a dirt/gravel road, which none of us was looking forward to, but somehow we all talked each other into it.

Follow the sign to Meat Cove

9 Kilometers of this…..

On the way to Meat Cove

On the way to Meat Cove

The long bumpy road to Meat Cove wasn’t such great fun, but it was well worth it, and I’d do it again in a heartbeat. Meat Cove turned out to be spectacular…without a doubt, my favorite place in all of Nova Scotia. Secluded and beautiful and wild!

The first view of Meat Cove

The campground was a trip too. Perched up on the cliffs above the ocean, there wasn’t a level site in the whole campground. None of the sites were marked very well, and most of them were unusually close to the edge of the cliffs. This place was like the Wild West of campgrounds. Anything went, and as long as you didn’t back yourself over the edge and die, nobody was going to bother you about how or where you parked.

Nice view from the campgrounds

Our camp site. Oh yea, we’ll be sure to stay back 2 meters from the edge!

The Space Shuttle’s got a nice view!

Our whole rest of the day and night was chock full of fun. First, Mark and I, and Debbie and Tony hiked up to the top of the “hill” to check out the great views. Then we hiked down to the beach to hang out. And then we cooked dinner, and played music under the most amazing night sky you’ve ever seen. We sang some songs, and swapped some stories with our new friends.

Hiking

Mark and Dax on the hiking trail

The hike was worth it.

Down at the beach

The dogs are exhausted, and crash out on the beach

It was so dark at Meat Cove, that it seemed like there were a zillion stars in the sky. We could clearly see the Milky Way, and we watched more than half dozen shooting stars grace the sky.

As is often the case, there’s usually a downside to everything. And the downside to Meat Cove, was the mighty mighty wind that whipped up in the middle of the night. Scared the crap out of me! But…I’d go there again in a heartbeat!

Cape Breton: Booze, Beer, Beauty (And Fiddlers!)

@ Inverness Campground

Day 75   August 23, 2014    Cape Breton, Nova Scotia, Canada

Another day, another morning dog walk. It rained like cats and dogs in the middle of the night, but the morning was sunny and beautiful. Perfect celestial timing.

@ Hyclass Campground

We got an unusually early start on the drive up to Cape Breton. Good thing, ‘cause we arrived in Judique at the Celtic Music Interpretive Center just in time for the lunch time Ceilidh.

Celtic Music Interpretive Center

If you’re a fan of traditional music, this place is a “must” on your travels. We ate lunch while listening to the local, but world-class fiddle/piano duo, spent a good amount of time in the museum learning about the local music and musicians, took a mini video celtic dance lesson, bought celtic bracelets, and bought some amazing cd’s by Cape Breton musicians (world-famous Natalie MacMaster, and a group called Coig).

A typical Cape Breton combo…fiddle & piano.

Lunch. Fish tacos. Note to self…when you’re not in California, do not order fish tacos. Other folks just don’t know how to do them right.

Fun facts about Cape Breton fiddle music!

Our dance teacher. We were rockin’ it!

Post-lunch hike with the doggies

Post-lunch hike with the doggies

Post-lunch hike with the doggies

Post-lunch hike with the Mark & the doggies

On the drive north, we took a side road, which turned out to be a whole other adventure. The pavement eventually ended and we were stuck on a long, windy rough dirt and gravel road as it started to downpour. At some point, we decided we were too far in to turn back, so we just kept going.

Stuck on the long, winding, rough road

Fiona stops to pose for a portrait

The reward was beautiful views

Eventually we met up with the main paved road, and made our way to Mabou and to the famous Red Shoe Pub. We’d already eaten lunch at the Celtic Music Interpretive Center, but we ate lunch again anyway because we’d heard so much about this place. The extra calories were worth it, as we had what may have been the best meal so far on the whole trip! This place is famous for it’s live local music too, but unfortunately for us, that all takes place in the evenings. Food, beer, and ambience would have to do.

The Red Shoe Pub, in Mabou

The Red Shoe Pub, in Mabou

The Red Shoe Pub, in Mabou

Great food!

Great beer!

Now you know, we’re not afraid to eat two lunches in one day. Well, we’re also not afraid to drink at more than one sitting in a day. And so, up the road a bit, we had to make a stop at the Glenora Distillery in Glenville. Glenora Distillers is one of only two single malt Scottish-style distilleries in all of Canada. We got the tour. We got the free samples. We were happy!

Glenora Disillery

Glenora Disillery. They claim it’s that pristine water running through the property that makes their potion so magical.

Glenora Disillery

Glenora Disillery

@ Glenora Disillery. Sampling more product…priceless, but not free!

$25 CDN for this little baby

We stopped for the night up the road in Inverness, at the Inverness Campground. The campground was on the most gorgeous site, perched up on the gorgeous ocean bluffs. We hiked down to the beach with the dogs and let them have a much-needed off-leash run. OMG!! You’ve never seen such joy! Running, digging in the sand…doggie heaven! A great ending to a great day.

@ Inverness Campground

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

@ Inverness Campground

Trixie & Dax running wild on the beach @ Inverness Campground

 

 

 

 

The beach @ @ Inverness Campground

Trixie & Dax running faster than the speed of light!

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

Dax

Trixie

One Perfect Day In Nova Scotia….Nude Beaches & Photography, Ice Cream, and Beer! Part 2

Garrison Brewery

Day 72    August 20   Part 1    Nova Scotia, Canada

As soon as we arrived in downtown Halifax, we knew we’d love this city, ‘cause we found a parking spot so easily! As we were sitting there in our parking spot, figuring out what to do next, a young man in a city parking authority uniform, tapped on my window. Crap! I knew this parking luck was too good to be true!

I rolled down my window, expecting the worst, when the young man said, “I noticed your California license plates. You’re a long way from home. Can I help you out in any way?”

Ends up, this guy was originally from New Hampshire, and had moved to Halifax just a couple months earlier. He was just welcoming us, his fellow Americans, to the great white north. And he was super helpful, as he told us where the local breweries were! He also told us where we could park and camp for free for the night. Our visit to Halifax was taking shape!

OK then, first stop…Garrison Brewery. Cool place, nice as heck bartender, good beer. The bartender was envious when he found out we were from San Diego, microbrewery central. He told us his favorite beer was from Green Flash, in San Diego. That was my most proudest moment as an American and as a San Diegan!

Garrison Brewery

Mark, chatting with the bartender at Garrison Brewery

Tasting @ Garrison Brewery

Modern condo building in Halifax

 

 

 

 

 

 

More moderness in Halifax

And, old quaintness in Halifax

Halifax

 

 

Halifax

It was getting dark, so we made our way back to the space shuttle. We were parked right outside of this hole-in-the-wall looking Persian food shack, Shiraz, so we grabbed dinner. A pleasant surprise, as the food was awesome and cheap!

Shiraz for dinner

Shiraz, the former taxi stand, gets a stellar write-up in the local news.

We tried to find the free overnight parking/camping spot that we’d been told about earlier, but we couldn’t find it in the dark, and so we drove to Shubie Campground, about 20 minutes outside the city. We had a hard time finding this too, but we did succeed. An important lesson had been learned today….It’s hard to find stuff in the dark in Canada!