We are sharing more of our 2010 trip to the maritimes. This part is how we circled Cape Breton in the rain. I hope you enjoy the not so great photos and somewhat laconic note-like descriptions.
Day 4 and 2000 km. We decided to drive around Cape Breton first and then catch the ferry to Newfoundland.
Crazy weather; rain, hail, and strong winds gusting to 90 km an hours. Maybe not so wise to cross the mountains in weather such as this. We were lucky, the rain stopped every time we wanted to stop to look at the vista, and the wind didn’t blow us off the mountain.
Did I mention that this is the 8th natural wonder of the world! Some serious beautiful scenery. Even in the rain.
The sheet of rain is barreling towards us, you can actually see it in the picture below. Lots of pictures were drive-bys.
This WAS statue of a horse, not another horse tied by the side of the road.
We drove around the bend and these two were in the middle of the road. She almost left bambi behind when she was getting away. We stopped and watched the baby scramble away too.
Windy and cold.
A random woman insisted on taking a picture of us together. Nice, but you can tell that it was windy and cold!
One of many pretty, colourful houses. Yay for not building the same house as your neighbours.
Can anyone explain why people wrap their garbage in a blanket before taking it out to the curb here? At least we think it is garbage underneath the blanket. Unless they have a take-a-dead-body-to-the curb day. We’ve seen this in front of most houses.
One of many pretty harbours.
There was plenty of wind that day to feed the grid.
The drive was very scenic,
but such scary declines.
Crappy sign. Must have been created by a non-Scot.
Yup, more lupines.
We made it to the dock and here is the ferry that we didn’t get on. We got there thinking we’ll buy a ticket the evening before departure not knowing that the truckers hog all of the tickets and it’s not easy to get on the ferry…we ended up changing our plans and drove to Halifax instead.
By the way, the ferry trip was canceled that night due to high winds.
What a treat it would have been on a better day. The scenery’s beautiful anyway. ????
It is a beautiful place. Even if the weather was good, my cell phone camera from 10 years ago just didn’t take great pictures.
The scenery is extremely beautiful
And I laughed when I read the take a dead body up the curb day but regardless of what’s inside the white cloth the road looks really peaceful and great!!???????? I like both of your narration in this one too!!
Thank you, Roshni! I cringe a little when I read this ????
People put their garbage under a sheet to keep the crows from tearing open the bags. Some of us just but a garbage can. But others…. I always feel for the guys who have to remove dirty wet sheets to pick up the garbage. Did you get to Baddeck while touring the Cabot Trail? Hopefully you will get back this way again. And in better weather.
Oh, that’s too funny! We did make it to Baddeck later on and visited the lovely Bell museum there.
The Cabot Trail is a spectacular drive, but better in the sunshine. We spent a night at Ingonish Beach one night and it was a great stop. Just hope the recent flooding damage can be repaired easily. Thanks for sharing. Allan
I hope so too! Thanks for reading!
We have done this trip a couple of times and it really is spectacular!! We were fortunate enough to be there in the fall a few years ago and the weather was great!
it was spectacular! We like travelling off season. Even though it can be a lot colder, it’s so much nicer without crowds!
While I know you are disappointed in the quality of your photos, at least you have these visual memories. Technology has come a long way in a decade. I’ve been to several of the Canadian provinces, but I haven’t made it to the Canadian eastern seaboard.
You are right, of course and I do cherish these memories. The photos would have looked a lot better with a bit of editing, but I am a bit too lazy at the moment 🙂
It’s great to see and Tony getting back out on the road. I’m thinking of making a brothers’ trip in May to spend some time with each across the US (We ended up scattered in California, Colorado, Minnesota, and New Jersey.) If I were single, I’d consider driving from coast to coast, but I know that’s not happening. My wife is encouraging me to fly though, and I’m going to talk about it with them when we Zoom next weekend.
That’s a big spread! It will be an awesome trip for you whether you drive or fly. I’m sure they will be thrilled to see you!
Too bad you had such bad weather. We were lucky to have one great day on Cape Breton, but it did rain a lot when we were there. Maggie
Although it was rainy, it stopped every time we arrived at one of the many lookouts and we were able to appreciate the scenery in all its glory. It really is a beautiful place under any weather conditions.
Even on a cold gray rainy windy day, the scenery looked so beautiful! This is definitely on my bucket list to do one day and to explore the detours and trails. And to board the ferry!
I can definitely sense some of the declines looked terrifying from your pictures! ????
Thanks for sharing!
I hope you get to go! It was very beautiful regardless of the weather. I hope to go back and explore more than our drive through.
I wouldn’t have like the stormy ferry trip. Good idea to cancel. I love the stark bold coast.
I agree. boats in stormy whether are no fun. The coast is beautiful and I am sure that the Scottish and Irish settlers felt at home there.
It’s always fun to reminisce about past vacations and it looks like this one was quite enjoyable in spite of the weather. I also about chuckled at the dead body. 🙂
It is great to revisit trips such as this one. Yeah, I forgot about the dead body trash until I reread this post 🙂
Lupins are so pretty. That’s rough that you had such miserable weather during your time in Cape Breton. I couldn’t help but laugh at the picture of you guys where you look like you’re getting blown away in the wind! At least you’re still smiling!
It actually wasn’t too bad since there many breaks in the rain. Lupine are just lovely and there were carpets of them along the side of the roads. Just beautiful.
Looks like a charming place to visit but I would not be peaking under those sheets. I cannot imagine that happening here. If our garbage is not in the proper city provided garbage/recycling bin it is not getting picked up.
I think that the soggy sheets are part of the charm 🙂 it’s interesting to see how different places in the world treat their trash in different ways.
I am sure one sees so many interesting differences, when they travel around – even within Canada and the USA. I haven’t done much traveling – especially in the past twenty or so years.
Stormy and dreary as the weather looked that day, there is a kind of savage beauty to it all. Plus, it makes for quite the adventure while traveling! Thanks for sharing. 🙂
it was a good adventure, and savage beauty is a good way to describe it! Thanks for coming along!
Beautiful scenes. And you’re right, yah for not building an identical house to your neighbour. Can’t wait to get out to Newfoundland and see all the colourful houses and the beautiful ocean.
You will love it. I hope you get to go!
You will love it. I hope you get to go!
as George from Seinfeld would say, when looking at your photos: “the sea was angry that day my friends” 🙂
Haha, I guess the see was somewhat annoyed that day!
it certainly looked that way! 🙂
I’m in awe. It is just beautiful. Cheers.
It’s a beautiful place indeed!
You have captured the atmosphere of that moody day. The blue of the house is unashamed to show up the lack of blue in the sky!
Thank you! And you described the spirit of this house perfectly!
Thank you! And you described the spirit of this house perfectly!