Wednesday, August 18, 2010

East Coast Road Trip: The Final Days








The final days of our trip we travelled across the Eastern Shore of N.S. and headed over to Cape Breton Island.  We didn't do too much sightseeing along the eastern shore (not much to see on this route), but we visited a couple of beautful beaches.  Our first stop early one morning was at Clam Bay Beach, from the parking lot a trail leads you thru a wooded area that was covered in the most gorgeous green moss....





Thru the trail in the woods you arrived at a large modern facility that housed washrooms, changerooms showers and an interpretation centre.  I loved the modern architecture and the weathered grey siding...



We later spoke with other long time visitors to NS and locals who never knew this beach or facility existed....




There was a long wooden boardwalk from the building to the beach and even the railings were constructed in this simple modern style....





The only other people at the beach were the life guards who were just getting set up for the day....




The lifeguard huts designed in the same style as the public facilities....




A gorgeous wide sandy beach, all to ourselves....we stayed for about an hour and still no one else was there when we left, and it was the weekend!





And after staying overnight at a very remote, small inn (that was suprisingly noisy considering it was in the middle of nowhere!!?),,,,,we woke to a spectacular view, then headed on to our next destination on Cape Breton Island...



Back on the road, we passed a few more colourful boats...



A lighthouse or two....



And we arrived at a charming inn located in the Margaree Valley on Cape Breton Island where we spent the next few days.  It's a huge piece of property that used to be a fly fishing camp in years gone by,,,now it operates as an Inn but is still popular for fly fishing enthusiasts.  




This place is quirky, and charming and completely authentic.  Their dining room is reknown for their incredible food and its Living Room and Barn are famous for hosting local musicians, Celtic music is in their blood here and its hard to find a restaurant or pub that doesn't have live local talent every night of the week.  It was the most incredible experience being treated to these intimate performances each evening,,,traditional Scottish fiddle tunes that bring tears to your eyes.



Unfortunately what this placed oozed in charm it lacked in technology!  No phones or WiFi in our cabin and we had no cell service anywhere on the island.  This was our only connection with the outside world so I was a bit stressed (normally not a problem when on vacation but I had a few installations happening back at home and I had promised to be available!).



The view from our cabin.....there were acres of pasture with lots of horses...




The view in our cabin!  The screen porch actually, I totally loved this hanging swing : )




Green rolling pastures and mountainous valleys everywhere....



The cabot trail was so breathtaking but so vast I found that I just couldn't capture it on camera. The road ahead as it ascended....



Out one side of the car the towering rocky shore.....


On the other side of the car looking inland,,,the never ending valleys...




We reached the very tip of the island beyond the Cabot Trail on a steep, windy dirt road I don't ever want to travel again,,,feared for my life several times (not kidding).




Stunning views just went on and on.....








We left Cape Breton a few days later and headed on to PEI, it was a really brief visit!  We arrived late one evening and then awoke the next morning (in really bad accommodations) to black stormy sky and heavy rain......and no reservations, again.  I was weary at this point, the thought of searching for yet another place to stay was more than I was up for.  We saw the confederation bridge and on a whim decided to head for home, we'd save PEI for another time.




This was my first trip to the East Coast but it definitely won't be my last, I am totally and completely taken with its unique style and the beautiful landscape.  I think its a paradise for Designer's and foodies alike. Not only is there stunning ocean views and valleys and forests, its the freshest cleanest air I have ever breathed, the freshest most delicious food I've ever had and the most charming character homes I've ever seen.  It was a bit of a whirlwind tour so on my next trip there I look forward to doing some serious exploring!



THE END.





All Photos:  Carol Reed

3 comments:

  1. Carol I have thoroughly loved your images and observations on this amazing holiday. Think I will save the top image of the fern-covered banks for a de-stress picture! This looks like a wonderful treasure of a place, a fabulous "wondersphere" of beauty in which to rejuvenate and recharge.

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  2. Hi Virgina,
    Thank you so much I'm glad you enjoyed following along! I was fascinated with that mossy forest, had to drag myself away - BF finally said to me "havn't you seen moss before"? ha ha. Happy to know someone else sees the beauty in it too. : ) I"m looking forward to getting back to work on lots of amazing projects I'm working on and catching up on my fav blogs, including yours!

    Carol

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  3. I just read all of your East Coast posts. How's this for coincidence -- hubby and I were just in NS too, at the same time you were!! And we visited lots of the same places and took lots of the same pictures!! We even visited the covered bridge in Hartland on our way back to Ottawa :-)

    When you go back to PEI, book a room at One Grafton Street. It's a B&B in Charlottetown that was recently renovated and decorated by one of my favourite bloggers, Susan Snow at Susan on Design.

    Cape Breton is so beautiful. We were there in 1999 and went to a Ceilidh in Margaree Forks. What a blast!!

    When we were in NS last September, we visited Peggy's Cove and the Swiss Flight 111 Memorial. The beauty of the memorial gave me goosebumps -- and it was extra goosebump-inducing because it was September 11th. It was a beautiful sunny day and the clouds were so amazing -- it looked like they were emanating out of the stone at the memorial.

    Anyway, sorry about all the babbling, but I'm so excited to read about your trip and look at your beautiful pictures :-) Thanks for sharing!!

    Kelly

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