Peggys Cove

Today is our last day in the Maritime Provinces of Canada and we spent the morning at the little fishing village of Peggy's Cove about 25 miles from our park.






The little village boasts 35 full time residents which is less than one of the tour buses that seem to be everywhere.

It's only about ten miles from Halifax but it seems a lot farther than that. You would never know there is a city of 350,000 people that close.

It was a dark, damp and gloomy day but we didn't let that slow us down. I wish the sun were out since this place would have been spectacular.

We stopped for breakfast at the sou west er and had this view from our window seat. Coffee, eggs and a view.... doesn't get any better.

The lighthouse stands on the rocks next to the restaurant and is just spectacular. The setting couldn't be better. This is what I think of when I think of a lighthouse. Off to St Stephen tomorrow morning and then to Bar Harbor, Maine on Saturday. We've enjoyed our time in Canada but it will be good to be back in the States.

 

The Bay of Fundy

This morning we drove up the way to the Bay of Fundy and did some hiking and rock hounding.

We headed up this trail in the woods and did a 3 mile round trip hike. The woods were quiet and the day was foggy and damp but we had a good hike anyway.

Sharleen  did great with her poles although it was a little muddy in some areas.








The tide was out when we were there and you can see that the ocean is a long ways from shore. The Bay of Fundy is unique in that the tide is huge here. Twice a day the water will drop as much as 50 feet leaving docks and boats high and dry until the next high tide.








We found this area that is normally filled with water but as you can see there is none now. The boat will be floating in about 6 hours.  All in all a nice day on the bay. One more day here and then we make our way back to the states.

Halifax Nova Scotia

We spent the day downtown Halifax starting with the Citadel on the hill.





The Citadel is located on a hill overlooking Halifax and was used to protect the harbor. It was a active fort until the end of the second world war.

These are college students that re-enact the life at the fort in the 1800's We talked with them to get a feel for life back then.










One guard acts as a sentry at the main gate. His shift lasts a hour and then he has two  hours off to rest. Much as in other sentries we have seen he will not acknowledge you in any way while he is on duty.

We walked down the hill for a bite of lunch and then back up where we had this view of the city clock. Some more time in the forts museums and then it was back home to put our feet up and rest. Tomorrow is the Bay of Fundy.
More from there.

PEI wrap up

We did a final two days on PEI and now in Halifax for three days. The computer went kaput so we went to Costco yesterday and now have a brand new one. So I need to catch up on the blog.

We drove over to this heritage village near Orwell east of Charlottstown and spent a couple of hours walking the old buildings and looking at the farm museum. The day was gloomy but we didn't mind at all.

Saturday was "Anne of Green Gables" day. We saw this house which L.M. Montgomery used as the model for her Green Gable story. It's her Aunt and Uncles house which she visited frequently. We also visited Avonlea village where some of the original houses are located. Lots of skits from the book at the village so it was interesting. Ella and Rachel need to read the book.

It was then time for a Lobster supper. We headed to a restaurant that was recommended by local folks and sat down to a Lobster feast. Does Sharleen look happy?

There was a shopping area on the way home..... James.... How did that cow get up there?










Sunday we took a hike in the national park near the RV park. Lots of  great trails and the views were worth the walk.
We're now in Halifax and since we have a new computer the blogs will continue.
.More later,

Prince Edward Island

We made it to Prince Edward Island on Wednesday afternoon after a 8 mile trip over the Confederation Bridge which connects PEI with New Brunswick. An interesting drive to say the least. PEI is a small farming island with active agriculture everywhere you look. From fields of wheat and corn to potatoes and cabbage it seems that they grow everything.

Thursday we did some chores like I got a new tire for the trailer and Sharleen got her hair done. Between we headed for the beach about 5 miles from the campground. We took a couple of mile walk on the beach and this is the Gulf of
St Lawrence which we walked along. A nice beach for just walking . The water was warm  so lots of folks were swimming.

In the park was this national historical monument. The Dalvay house was built in the mid 1800's and is now a hotel and restaurant.
In it's day it was a summer home.Nice little summer cottage don't you think? Off to the Anne of Green Gables area tomorrow. I don't know much about Anne but, as I understand it, she's the Tom Sawyer of PEI. Think you  have to be a girl to understand. Tomorrow I get educated!

Levis

Today was a relax a bit day so we just explored the area around Levis (pronunced LaVee). Early this morning we headed to Parc Des Chutes-de-la-Chaudiere for some hiking. We had no idea what was there so once again.... supprise!

We were met with this view from the parking lot above the falls. The bridge on the right is a foot bridge that we took leading to a series  of trails in the woods. A good 4 mile hike on a beautiful morning.

On the way to the bridge we had a  view of the falls on the Chaudiere River. There's a hydroelectric power facility just to the right of the falls.

The falls are really spectacular with water rushing over them causing some  mist and a loud roar.

After our hike we headed to Ft Levis #1 which was built to in the mid 1800's to protect Quebec from American invasion. It was interesting to get a Canadian perspective on the civil war days. We're heading to Woodstock NB tomorrow and then on to Prince Edward Island. More from there.

The Old City of Quebec

We drove to the ferry terminal this morninng and boarded the ferry for a short 10 minute ride across the St Lawrence River. A great way to get there with no parking hassles and Old Town is all within walking distance of the terminal.

As we approached the dock we got a great view of the Old City. The weather was just beautiful, as you can see, and after leaving the ferry we started our walk to the Citadelle which is at the very left of this picture on top of the hill.

We watched the changing of the guard cermony which took about a half hour and was complete with a marching band and a goat.

In the best English tradition, guards are posted outside the entrance and just as in London they will not flinch at anything.

The streets have a European feel with norrow cobblestone surfaces and narrrow sidewalks. This is typical of what we saw today.

As the day wore on the crowds got larger but we didn't mind. Pretty scenes were everywhere we looked.

One last picture and it was back to the ferry terninal for the ride back to Levis across the St Lawrence. We spent about 6 hours waking and touring the area with a stop for lunch at a street side bistro. Tomorrow we explore Levis and then down the road again.

Quebec across the river

We drove up to Quebec from Montreal this morning, a distance of about 140 miles. Not too bad a day on the road but lots of traffic and the road was good some of the time and rough at other times. We parked the trailer at Camping Transit, a RV park about 6 miles from the ferry terminal that we will use tomorrow to go to Old Quebec.

Old Quebec sits on the St Lawrerce River and since we were on the South side it made a good picture. The city consists of a lower town and a upper town. In the early days the upper class (officials and well to do folk) lived in the upper section while the working class occupied the lower city.

This is the Fairmont Le Chateau Frontenac which was a famous meeting place for heads of state during the mid 1900's. It's now a hotel but it still is the most prominent building on the Quebec skyline. There will be lots more here about Quebec at the end of the day tomorrow.

Another day in Montreal

For the second day we jumped in the truck and headed to the Metro station for the trip into Montreal. Today we headed for the Montreal Botanical Gardens which are located next to the Olympic stadium built for the 1976 summer Olympics.

The Montreal Botanical Gardens is one of the jewels of the city with areas of different plants and flowers. This year, after 13 years, Montreal once again hosts the Mosaicultures Internationales  competition. 20 countries from around the world have sponsored artists who sculpt in live plants.

This sculpture is called Spirits of the Forest and is sponsored by Canada. It depicts the spirits that live in the forest and is comprised of several different sculptures.

This sculpture is also sponsored by Canada and is called Mother Earth. She rises from the ground with flowers in her hair. It's hard to believe that the entire sculpture is made of plants and flowers that are living.

This sculpture is titled "Planting Plane Trees to attract the Phoenix" and comes from China The inspiration for the work comes from the ancient Chinese legend of the Phoenix which by legend is the bearer of happiness and a symbol of peace and harmony.

This work comes from Spain and is titled "The Salamander according to Gaudi"
I included it because I thought it was unique although smaller than some of the more impressive works.




A couple of other interesting facts. The sculptures were planted in April of this  year and the exhibit will run through September weather permitting. The entire show is called "land of Hope" and is one of a kind.
300 horticulturists were involved with this project as well as landscape architects, visual designers, artistic welders, painters and a host of other workers. We were indeed fortunate to be able to see this amazing work of art.

This looks pretty mundane after the sculptures but I had to include a picture of what was the 1976  Olympic stadium. It's an impressive structure in it's own right.
Tomorrow it's off to Quebec and more exploring. More from there.

Montreal

We arrived outside Montreal yesterday after some interesting driving. It seems the GPS wanted us to experience Montreal with the trailer so she took us off the freeway and into a traffic mess in old Montreal. I always check the route and it wasn't what was planned. Guess she was saving is a couple of minutes and in the process added a few more grey hairs to my head. But... we did well and got here in one piece. Today we drove into the metro station at Longueul and hopped the metro into old Montreal. It's the only way to go and it's fast and convenient. We spent the day roaming old town and Sharleen says we hiked about 6 miles total.

Montreal has a European feel with the French architecture and cobblestone streets. This is just a hotel but serves as a good example of what you see in Old Montreal.

The streets are narrow and mostly cobblestone. It makes it a city you really don't want to drive in. Since French is the official language all the signs are in French. The sidewalks are narrow as well so folks just walk in the street when necessary.

A carriage ride is popular with tourists. We didn't do it but these were prevalent on the narrow streets.

A must see in Old Montreal is Basilique Notre-Dame de Montreal. It's one of the most visited landmarks in Montreal with over 500,000 visitors a year. It dates back to the 1700's and has been rebuilt several times. The tour is worth the 20 minutes it takes since you get the history behind the building.

The altar is like nothing I have ever seen in a church. The combination of gaudy and beauty is a paradox that I'm still thinking about. The picture doesn't do it justice so when in Montreal just go see it. it's breathtaking!

Well, we  had all the fun we could stand for one day so we headed back to the metro for the ride to the truck and then back to the trailer. Feet up time now and get ready for round two tomorrow.

Niagara Falls

 We drove across the Canadian border on Saturday and spent Sunday at Niagara Falls.

I took about a million pictures of the falls but will only include a couple here. This is Horseshoe Falls which is the most well known of the two falls here. We took the boat trip up to the falls and into the mist. It's spectacular in it's power and to be that close is awesome.

These are the American falls which can only be seen from the Canadian side or the boat. This view is one of the reasons we chose to visit the falls on the Canadian side.

Another picture  of the two falls. Horseshoe on the right and American on the left in the distance. This was a great day with lots of things to do. Today (Monday) we spent at Niagara-on-the-lake visiting Ft George and the town up there. Tomorrow we start our two day journey to Montreal. So tomorrow we hope to get to Kingston on the North side of the St Lawrence River. More from there.

Greenfield Village

We spent the day at the Greenfield Village at the Henry Ford. Henry had the foresight to purchase and move some historical buildings to this 80 acre site. Some notable buildings belonged to Thomas Edison, George Washington Carver, Noah Webster, Luther Burbank and the Wright brothers. We spent about 6 hours at the village and now we're at the trailer and exhausted. Here's some memories from today.

The first thing we did upon arrival was to take a ride in a model T. We toured the park and got lots of information from our driver.

Later in the afternoon we took a ride around the park on this  1890 vintage steam engine. About a three mile loop took a half hour.

This is the bicycle shop and workshop of Orville and Wilbur Wright. It's not a replica but the actual building that Henry Ford moved here.

We finished the day with a ride on a 100 year old carousel. I hadn't done that in a long long time and it was a blast.



So... two days of fun in Dearborn and tomorrow it's down the road to Niagara Falls on the Canadian side. We'll be in Canada for three weeks if all goes according to plan. I'll blog as best I can with the campground Wi Fi. So.... Off we go to Canada eh!