Nova Scotia's charm...

Faster · #1 08-24-2012

We took a couple of weeks out of our summer cruising to fly to Nova Scotia where we visited with our daughter-in-law's relations then rented a car and drove northeast to and around Cape Breton and back.

Great weather, astonishingly pretty country. The humidity was a bit of a surprise, I really didn't expect such a different 'feel' from the west coast, though of course we expected the lack of mountains.

We were also surprised at the low level of boating activity we observed.. given the short season we'd expected to see boats sailing everywhere but that wasn't the case, even in good weather. In Cape Breton's Bras'Dor Lakes (really a tidal sea) we did see cruisers about but that was the extent of it. Lots of mooring fields, a few floats and docks, plenty of boats to look at but few were actively being used. It's still a mystery to me.

One thing Nova Scotia does not lack is churches and graveyards!.. I don't think you could drive 10 km without at least one of each, often several clustered together.

We put on about 2500 km (1500 m) in a couple of weeks. It was a great trip and our first 'out east'.

Lunenberg

Bluenose II ready to launch after extensive refit.

Chester

Peggy's Cove

Cape Breton

Halifax/Dartmouth area

Other random images..

nodders · #2 08-24-2012

As a former Nova Scotian, your pictures sure captured the essence of the province! I can practicaly smell the salt air! Great shots!

ParadiseParrot · #3 08-24-2012

35 years since I was there...Hasn't changed a bit it seems.

JordanH · #4 08-24-2012

I really hope you got a chance to visit the maritime museum. ( Maritime Museum of the Atlantic ) I could spend a long time in there but my wife cut my visit short.

Also, too bad the Bluenose is laid up this year. Were you able to see it at least?

edit: d'oh. I just saw the Bluenose pic. Obviously you saw it.

Nova Scotia is fantastic and would love to spend all my free time there in the summer. It's a shame there's no work out there for me, otherwise I'd be moving.

I also noticed they didn't have a lot of recreational boating going on. They have a very rich marine history including everything from the Bluenose to Slocum to privateers and so-on. Perhaps the small population, and even smaller population of people with free cash to spend on boating is apparent when coming from large cities where there is lots of expendable money.

tdw · #5 08-24-2012

Very nice Fast. Quite a lovely place by the looks of it and my guess every bit as interesting as the PNW but in a different manner.

Great pics btw ... and some truley pretty boats. The wee clinker with MME on the bow. Oh my. You now know what I want for Christmas. hmmm ... I guess she still qualifies as a ketch but that really is a schooner in reverse.

Faster · #6 08-24-2012

Quote:

Originally Posted by JordanH

I really hope you got a chance to visit the maritime museum. ( Maritime Museum of the Atlantic ) I could spend a long time in there but my wife cut my visit short.

Also, too bad the Bluenose is laid up this year. Were you able to see it at least?....

I did spend some time there, but not enough.. it was very well done indeed. We were also just ahead of the tall ships' arrival, a few were trickling in early.

It was a fascinating trip. We also attended the Royal Nova Scotia Tattoo.. quite the spectacle. Royal Nova Scotia International Tattoo

tdw · #7 08-24-2012

Tattoo ? They still have Tattoos ? Wow. I havn't seen one of those since mad Prince Charlie was but a lad. Cue Land of Hope and Glory and the 1812 Overture.

Can I assume from that , Nova Scotia is the last bastion of God King and Empire ? (After Australia of course..

where we not only have the Queen but also the Union Jack as part of our flag. )

OK OK, now any of you who have caught the thread where I've been talking about chartering in the PNW ..... what is the deal in Nova Scotia ?

JordanH · #8 08-25-2012

Quote:

Originally Posted by tdw

Tattoo ? They still have Tattoos ? Wow. I havn't seen one of those since mad Prince Charlie was but a lad. Cue Land of Hope and Glory and the 1812 Overture.

Settle down Bruce. We are a good British colony and we like to celebrate our British, French, Scottish, Irish, Native heritage... Not to mention the more recent additions.

Quote:

Originally Posted by tdw

OK OK, now any of you who have caught the thread where I've been talking about chartering in the PNW ..... what is the deal in Nova Scotia ?

I haven't caught the thread about PNW, but Nova Scotia is a world a way and completely unrelated to anything PNW as far as I can tell. Different culture, climate, geography, economy, population... Same country as B.C. in name only. I'll have to go find the thread of which you speak before I can give you specific, useful information.

Perspective...
Halifax -> Vancouver is roughly 4,426km (5,970 by car?)
Sydney -> Perth is 3,291km
Moscow -> London 2,508km

tdw · #9 08-25-2012

Quote:

Originally Posted by JordanH

Settle down Bruce. We are a good British colony and we like to celebrate our British, French, Scottish, Irish, Native heritage... Not to mention the more recent additions.

I haven't caught the thread about PNW, but Nova Scotia is a world a way and completely unrelated to anything PNW as far as I can tell. Different culture, climate, geography, economy, population... Same country as B.C. in name only. I'll have to go find the thread of which you speak before I can give you specific, useful information.

Perspective...
Halifax -> Vancouver is roughly 4,426km (5,970 by car?)
Sydney -> Perth is 3,291km
Moscow -> London 2,508km

... somewhat like the land of Oz, Jordon. Just me stirring the pot.

4400 km eh ? Wow ... i thought it would be about the same as Syd - Perth. Big countries but i'd love to visit yours. Sail on both coasts and train across the middle.

flyingwelshman · #10 08-25-2012

Beautiful photos of a beautiful part of our country. I especially love the optimism of 'bluenosers' as illustrated by the lifeguard shot.

Back in '97 I took my family on a road trip to and around Newfoundland - to catch the landfall of the replica of John Cabot's ship: Matthew. We bee-lined to North Sidney to catch the ferry to Basseterre, so didn't really get see much of Nova Scotia on the way out.On the way home we spent time exploring Nova Scotia. I would recommend doing the trip the other way round next time however. While Cape Breton is definitely picturesque, Newfoundland is like Nova Scotia on steroids - the landscapes and seascapes are phenomenal!