Kejimkujik National Park - NS

 

 

Kejimkujik National Park Seaside is a protected coastal wilderness. 

After reading about the park, we decided to do a 3.0-mile round trip hike to the beach and back.

We did notice the warning about bears in the park but decided to hike anyway.  

While walking down the path we noticed several bear scats, a couple very fresh.  Probably should have carried our bear spray, which was safe in the RV. 

We finally arrive at the beach.  Although we had water in the truck, we did not bring that either.  

I did not mention in any of our previous posts but the mosquitoes in Nova Scotia are many and aggressive.  They love my O-positive blood.  Kathy sprayed me up before heading on our hike.  

As you can see, many others decided to do the same hike.  

This was a great tune up for our upcoming visit to Acadia NP in Maine.  We had a very good time at the park. 

Cape Forchu Lighthouse

 Cape Forchu Lighthouse - A light like no other!

The only Apple Shaped lighthouse in Nova Scotia that you can climb. We took a walk around the Leif Erikson Park, passing the impressive whale skeleton display, interesting rock formations and stunning ocean views. 

Meet "Foggy" the only 50' whale skeleton on display at the park.  The carcass found in 2006 was transported piece by piece back to the lighthouse by a local fisherman after receiving permission by the Department of Fisheries.  

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• After wearing Billy Rascoe's shoes for several weeks, I thought I was big enough to handle this chair.  Maybe not!

Standing at the lookout deck reading about each light keeper. 

The flag displays.  Left "The Municipality of Yarmouth", Center top, "Canada", Right, Flag of "Nova Scotia". 

The fun didn't stop there, we decided to come back another evening for the stunning sunset. 

We were not disappointed. 

An awesome view before setting.  

The World-Famous Cabot Trail - Nova Scotia

 

Rising from the sea and clinging to the mountains, the 185-mile-long Cabot Trail is a winding mix of roadway, both good and not-so-good with stunning beauty. During our rides we looked at ocean vistas to beautiful fishing villages along the route.

We traveled with a local, Kenny Shaw who was born and raised in Baddeck NS, and winters in Deer Creek with his wife Gwynn.  They were fantastic hosts for our visit.   We had dinner with their family and breakfast with cinnamon rolls from a local bakery.  We want to express our many thanks to each of them fort their wonderful hospitality. 

After passing Cheticamp, we entered Cape Breton Highlands NP which is on the Cabot Trail.  One-third of the trail travels through the park. 

The mountain views were impressive. 

We were amazed at the great photos we took along the route.

Ocean vista parking pull-offs were available for photo ops. 

Kenny Shaw, our tour director for the day, was born and raised in Baddeck NS.  

This photo was edited to show the people on top of French Mountain doing the skyline hike in the Cape Breton Highlands NP.  The hike takes about 3-4 hours, and the sights are incredible. 

This photo was taken on our way down Smokey Mountains.  One of our most impressive shots.  Kenny did mention that sometimes if you're lucky you can see Whales from many of the pull-offs. 

 

Some of the rides down the mountain were steep 8-12 down-hill grades. 

Another impressive view down the mountain. 

Kathy and Kenny at one of the pull-offs. 

At one of the pull-offs I noticed something odd in the sky in the upper middle of the photo.  It was not a UFO but a drone taking photos. 

For lunch we stopped at Morrison's Restaurant in Cape North.  As you can guess, Kathy had the Lobster roll.  Lunch was excellent!

Kenny took us off the Cabot Trail to visit a small fishing town of White Point.  Kenny met an old friend Jamie, who is a local fisherman.  Their season is typically 3-4 months long. 

One of many great views heading into White Point.  

Highlands Golf Course right on the Cabot Trail.  The course looked awesome.  

The Keltic Lodge is owned by Parks Canada and operated by Golf North.  It was built in 1904 and sold to the Nova Scotia Government in 1932 who built the tourist lodge.  

A view of Smoky Mountain from the Keltic Lodge. 

The Cabot Trial is a biker's must.  The ride from Cheticamp to Cape Smokey is absolutely stunning.  It offers great restaurants, many things to do and travels through the Cape Breton Highland NP, which is impressive by itself.  We decided that riding clockwise is the best travel as you are heading down the mountains with great views.   

Village of Baddeck -Nova Scotia

 

The lovely village of Baddeck Nova Scotia.  The town has a great atmosphere to include its restaurants and hotels to accommodate the many visitors each year. Its harbor setting is wonderful, and it is the home of Gwynn and Kenny Shaw who were amazing hosts during our visit.  

If you have time, you can cruise the harbor and enjoy a great lunch afterwards.  

 

It is also the home of the Alexander Graham Bell Museum.    In 1885, the Bell family had a vacation home in Baddeck.  He then built a complex of buildings including a new laboratory named Beinn Bhreagh (Gaelic), named after Bell ancestral highlands.  

Although Bell was famous for the invention of the telephone, his work in Baddeck was mainly focused on the Aviation career field. 

 

You can see the harbor directly from the interior seating area of the museum. 

The Silver Dart, the first powered, heavier-than-air machine to fly in Canada; designed and built by the Aerial Experiment Assn under Alexander Graham Bell, a flight enthusiast since boyhood. Baddeck NS has no airfield so where you think it was flown from?   You guessed it, frozen ice on the lake. 

Original Photo of the Silver Dart.  The Aerial Experiment Assn was composed of Alexander Graham Bell, John Alexander Douglas, Frederick W. Baldwin. Glenn Curtis and U.S. Army Lieutenant Thomas Selfridge were also members.  

Most Americans know Alexander Graham Bell as an inventor of the telephone. But few know that his central interest in life was education for deaf children or that he was one of the strongest proponents of oralism in the United States.  Oralism is the system of teaching deaf people to communicate by the use of speech and lip reading rather than sign language. Bell and his father before him studied the physiology of speech.