Saturday, August 14, 2010

East Coast Road Trip: Day 7





Boathouse at Peggy's Cove


And on the 7th day,,,,we travelled from Mahone Bay to somewhere unknown on the East Shore.  Along the way we visited Chester, Peggy's Cove, a couple of Beaches, a couple of fishing villages....and we drove thru Halifax and Dartmouth and into no man's land.  I call it no-man's-land because when you travel along the small secondary coastal highway east of Halifax towards Cape Breton,,,,its vastly unpopulated wildnerness, in fact the landscape looks very much like northern ontario.  You can travel for hours without seeing much of anything except the odd gas station.

The pics below are in reverse order, and begin where we ended our day of sightseeing.... at Peggy's Cove around 6:30.  You either have to visit late in the day or at the crack of dawn if you want to avoid herds of people.  I actually didn't take too many photos at the lighthouse because it was next to impossible to get any shots without all the tourists included!






On the road into Peggy's Cove we stopped at this small inlet which had some beautiful views...




I'm obsessed with these weathered grey buildings along the rocky shore and can't stop wanting to photograph them!





A little further down the road before getting to Peggy's Cove was the Swiss Air Flight Memorial Monument,,,,,,it was a breathtaking spot that brought tears to your eyes.  I can't imagine a more peaceful place for reflection, there was a spiritual vibe present that was almost tangeable.





The monument itself was made from a large round stone that had been split and angled outwards toward the sea with benches inbetween, the flat face sides of the stone were engraved with memorials.  I thought it was so beautifully designed, it looked like it belonged as part of the landscape...






You could see Peggy's Cove from the monument











I spent more time photographing the buildings around Peggy's Cove than I did of the lighthouse, this building in fact (also seen in first photo) I must have taken a hundred shots of, then later the next day I realized it was the same image on the cover of our Frommer's guide, without the colourful boat. 





I've never seen rock elevations like this anywhere before.....so smooth and clean with all these distinctive wrinkle-like lines.




The only shot I could get of the actual lighthouse without hundreds of people in the way was in this reflection...







Earlier in the day somewhere between Chester and Peggy's cove we stopped at this little fishing port, these fluorescent buoys were so bright they were blinding to look at in person.









The quintessential Nova Scotian beach bordered by tall wispy grass.....






Early in the day we stopped in Chester, a picture perfect coastal town with magnificent views and elegant homes.  The town itself doesn't have parking, or sidewalks, or public washrooms,,and the visitors information centre was located on the highway outside of the town.  All of this gave us the distinct feeling the residents weren't too fond of tourists here unless you came by boat.  We didn't stay long...




On the highway just before hitting Chester we stopped in a fantastic antiques barn, I could easily have spent half the day here.  I instantly fell in love with the grey jam cupboard and from the moment we left I regretted not buying it.  I'm going to follow-up and see if they'll ship it to me...





Inside the cupboard were all kinds of little treasures...





On the other side of Chester on the same highway was another antique barn also filled to the rafters with great stuff!!





I really really wanted to take these twin spool beds home with me...





The bridge into Halifax.  After our visit to Peggy's Cove, we continued East and drove right thru Halifax and Dartmouth.  I just wasn't in the mood to stop in a bustling urban centre but little did we know as we headed onwards we were headed into no man's land - without any further hotel reservations, not one.  We were about to discover that the road less travelled has no cell phone towers or WiFi.  This would be the beginning of the end of our gloriously wonderful road trip....






And everyday from this point on,,,I dreamed of the lovely, comfortable B&B's we left behind....








All Photos:  Carol Reed

5 comments:

  1. Carol
    I have enjoyed seeing the east coast through the discerning lens of your camera - you have a wonderful eye for capturing images and colour - they are mystical and magical ... I can see all of your imagines bound in a beautiful book - the colours of eastern Canada...

    gabriella

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  2. Well said Gabriella,
    I too am just captivated by these images, really and truly I would buy the book. I had no idea that the east coast is so beautiful until you have blessed us with your keen eye and photos.
    Thank you so much.
    Sooooo, what happened at the end of the trip? You've left us hanging as how you made out.

    Sandra

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  3. Gabriella,,,thank you! I may have a good eye for composition but I have little knowledge of the technical aspect of photography, I'm such an amateur but its a hobby I'm addicted to!! I plan on having many of the images enlarged and framed for my walls,,,and I will have all my favorites printed in a hardcover book format but just for my own coffee table (many photo labs offer this service) something anyone can do with their travel photos.

    Sandra,,,I too was caught by surprise at the natural beauty of NS and am amazed it still seems so undiscovered in comparison to similar American locals. So glad you enjoyed following along! If you ever plan a trip there let me know and I'll send you some names of great places to stay and eat. : )

    Carol

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  4. Thanks Carol, I will definitely take you up on that offer of places if we end up going.

    If you are really looking for a couple of spool beds there are two spool matching twin beds at Redmans just east of Port Perry on Hwy7a for $150.00 each. They are a little different though from the ones you saw.

    Sandra

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