For those of you who don't know Canadian geography, Cape Breton Island is a large island that forms the north-eastern part of the province of Nova Scotia. The people who live there are mostly descendants of Scottish immigrants along with some French settlers (now called Acadians) and the native inhabitants of the area, the Miq Macs. Celtic music is heard everywhere and until a few years ago, Gaelic was taught in the schools. It is a cultural experience not to be missed!
So, how do you get there? The Canso Causeway is the only road for cars to get to the island. It has a swivel bridge to let boats through... which of course, ties up traffic in both directions.
One woman we talked with said traffic on the causeway was stopped during Hurricane Igor, presumably due to high waves coming across.
The first night we drove up the northwestern side of the Cabot Trail and stopped just outside Cape Breton Highlands National Park. We were treated to another gorgeous sunset over the Gulf of St. Lawrence.
I could get used to this!
The next morning we were up early to make the most of our time in the park. We passed this patch of "scarecrows" one of the locals puts up every year for the tourists... we thought they looked like something out of "Night of the Living Dead!"
Interesting folks!
Finally we were in the park and after receiving warnings about bears, coyotes and moose from the ranger, we were off. The road zigged and zagged as it made a very steep climb. Off to our left the Gulf of St. Lawrence sparkled as the sun peaked out from the clouds.
Those in our family will immediately recognize this as a "Nona Road!"
We made our way to the top of French Mountain and set out for a 5+ mile hike on the Skyline Trail. The beginning of the trail was mostly flat and had beautiful views of fall foliage. We saw a moose track- but no moose... or bears... or coyotes... or any other animals.
We occasionally caught glimpses of the blue water through the trees as we continued along the path. This portion of the hike was relatively sheltered in the trees and we took our outer jackets off. It was very quiet... not even the chirping of birds or rustling of squirrels in the underbrush.
We could see the sparkling water off in the distance... and wildflowers still bloomed!
We finally reached the boardwalk- a wooden walkway through the boggy areas and fragile ecosystems as we approached the end of the hike. Holy cow!! What breathtaking views! It was very windy on the boardwalk and at times it felt like we would be blown right off the side of the mountain. There were no guard rails (just a sign at the bottom that said you were responsible for your own safety- gotta love Canadians!) as we descended the 96 steps to the final view point. We sat on a bench and admired the view for awhile before beginning the hike back. Yep... it started with climbing up the 96 steps and then the uphill hike back... but it was so worth it!
We drove a ways further along the Cabot Trail before stopping to have our picnic lunch- a sandwich we purchased at Tim Horton's (think DD) when we got breakfast. As we sat at a picnic table munching away, we watched a little dark brown field mouse scurry from tree to tree. Fortunately he scurried away from us so I did not end up ON the table! After lunch, we hiked a little over a mile to a waterfall on MacIntosh Brook. We meandered through stands of white-trunked birch trees and over the brook several times before we were rewarded with a beautiful waterfall cascading down the rocks.
The path on the right side of the brook was covered with exposed tree roots (stumbling hazard) while the path on the left side was worse- boulders in places to climb over and a tree trunk lying across the path! But, again, it was worth the effort!
We continued along the Cabot Trail where every turn was a feast for our eyes. The views were spectacular... the shimmering Gulf of St. Lawrence and Atlantic Ocean (on the eastern side of the Cabot Trail), the fall foliage, the jagged rocks at the bottom of steep cliffs, the powerful waves crashing against the rocks. Finally we arrived at our destination for the night on the southeast side of the Cabot Trail, the
English Country Garden Bed & Breakfast.
The house sits on 37 acres with a lake to the side. Ian and Penny were wonderful hosts- we felt at home immediately.
Our room, the Conservatory Room, was magnificent. I think Richard found it a little too girly, but I loved it. The attention to detail was amazing- from antique touches to toiletries in the bathroom to the most comfortable chair I've ever sat in. My favorite thing, though, was the bathtub. It was exactly what I needed after hiking all day! Ian fixed us a delightful salmon dinner served on the enclosed porch- very romantic!
Our stay on Cape Breton Island only deepened my love affair with Nova Scotia. I cannot wait to come back for another visit!
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