Return to Bedford

We weren't in a hurry to get on the road to Bedford/Halifax, so lazed around a bit in the morning. After our complimentary breakfast, D and Eli went to the pool one more time, and then we packed up. Funny story, we were shuffling things in the bags when we found a television remote. Somehow it had fallen into one of our bags when we left the motel in Baddeck!  I called the motel to let them know we had it, and would drop it off on our way through that morning.

Before we left the Antigonish area, we headed to Pomquet Beach. We had planned to visit the beach when we were on our way to Baddeck, but the weather had been rainy and cool. Not so, this day, it was already quite warm and the temps would get hot later in the day.

The beach is on the Northumberland Strait, which is part of the Atlantic ocean. D had wanted to be able to put her toes in the ocean the entire trip, and Bras D'Or lake was close, but this was the real thing. The beach is 3 km. (about 2 miles) long, a mix of sand and rock. We didn't go swimming but satisfied ourselves with a walk along the beach front.

We looked for shells and pretty rocks as we walked. There was no one on the beach when we first arrived but a young woman and her toddler came soon after. They were clearly prepared to stay the day, with a small tent for shade, a mat, and toys in a wagon. 

Looking at this photo, I'm certain this beach rivals many I've had to privilege to visit in the Caribbean. 

Back in the car, we made a short stop in the community of Pomquet at the Sainte Croix cemetery.

D and I wandered around a bit looking for the oldest marker...there were many. The photo below is just a small portion of the cemetery. It extends beyond the church and quite a distance in the other direction. It is clearly well-maintained, and a very peaceful place.

I should note, we had hoped to visit Fairview Cemetery in Halifax, to see the Titanic memorial. However, though we tried, we never found the appropriate gates and it is located in traffic heavy area.

Back on the road, we stopped and picked up fast food in New Glasgow and went on to Trenton to the aptly named Trenton Park.

The park has playground equipment, a splash pad and a pool. As he had eaten his lunch in the car, Eli made use of the first two while D and I found a spot to sit and watch him play.

The splash pad was popular, as it was getting very hot. We stayed about a half hour, and noticed it was getting very busy. It turned out the community was gathering for their Canada Day celebration. We decided it was time to head back to the highway and our hotel

When we arrived back in Bedford, we decided to check out deWolf Park, where Canada Day activities were in full swing. It was just a few blocks from our hotel (the same Comfort Inn we'd stayed at earlier in the trip). After a slow, slow drive through the park, we weren't able to find parking so turned around and made our way back to Bedford Highway to the hotel. It was a good afternoon to go for a dip in the unheated pool. I went too!

We had thought about getting pizza for dinner, but I vetoed the idea because there would be leftovers and we were flying out the next day. I found a place called Boomburger COWS ice cream not far away. It reminded me of Five Guys burgers here in Saskatchewan, where your food is prepared in front of you and the fries are tossed into a bag. I treated myself to a beer, the first I'd had during the entire trip. (I promise I didn't drink it until I got back to the hotel.)

There were planned activities in the basin in the evening, but late afternoon the fog came rolling in. We could not see the bridge across the basin and it was pea soup in front of the hotel. As a result the boat parade and the fireworks were postponed, to a later date to be determined, so instead of propping our eyelids open, we turned in early.

Our flight the next day wasn't scheduled until 6 p.m. so we had another half day or so left to enjoy the area. I can assure you we did! More on that in the next post.

Sydney in the morning, Antigonish in the afternoon

Before leaving Sydney, we had a few more places to visit. First up, was a trip back to Open Hearth Park for some fun in the playground for Eli. There was bit of light rain, and no other children around, so we didn't stay very long.

Then it was down to the harbour/cruise pavilion to check out the giant fiddle. I've never actually cruised into Sydney, but I've seen photos before. They don't do it justice. At 60 feet in height, it is built of steel, and is a tribute to the local Celtic community. There is clearly a sound system hooked up that plays traditional music. 

Next up was Cossit House Museum, a living museum with individuals dressed in period costumes and offering tours and information about the property. The house was built in 1787, and named for the original owner, Reverend Rana Cossit. He and his family, wife Thankful, and ten of their thirteen children lived there until 1815. 

With a final stop at a local thrift shop, where D found several books from a favorite author, we headed out on the highway toward Antigonish. (By this point, I was thinking we were going to need an additional bag.)

The clouds were low in the sky, and at points nearly obscuring the top of the hills.

Our first stop in Antigonish was the Snow Queen Diner. It was set up much like an old style diner except we were provided a pager to notify us when our lunch was ready. I went with their special of the day, a smash burger - it was delicious! 

D had hoped to visit a number of churches along Church Street, and I had my heart set on visiting St. Ninian Cathedral. Since I was driving, I got my wish. I had visited there in 2015, and remember being amazed by the church then, and that was my impression this time too.

As it turned out the other churches D thought would be interesting were not open to the public. After a brief visit to a gift shop downtown, we headed off to the hotel - a very modern Microtel Inn & Suites. There was a heated pool, and D and Eli took advantage both that evening and the following morning.

This hotel was across the highway and quite far from the center of the community. There wasn't much out there, just a few fast food restaurants, a gas station and convenience store. But it was definitely quiet and provided a continental breakfast in the morning. It also had the only heated pool in our travels.

The following day was July 1, Canada Day, and we would be heading back to Halifax for our final night. But there was at least one more place nearby we wanted to explore. Stay tuned!

Off to Baddeck, via New Glasgow, Arisaig, and Antigonish.

The next few days involved more driving. After four nights we checked out of the hotel in Bedford, saying see you later, with the Cabot Trail Motel in Baddeck our planned destination for the night.

We had lots of time, as our driving time would have been around 4 hours, and we weren't scheduled to check in until 3 p.m. Though the Pomquet Beach outside Antigonish was on the spreadsheet, it was a cool, cloudy day with rain in the forecast, so we decided to forgo the beach day and find other spots to visit along the way.

But first of all, here are a few photos of the scenery along the highway. I can't tell you exactly where we were, but do know the photos were taken before we reached New Glasgow.

D did some research on the "Google machine" and came up with a historical house in New Glasgow, the Carmichael-Stewart House Museum. Built in 1880, the house was a wedding gift to James Matheson Carmichael and his bride, Christian Matheson from his parents. His eldest daughter, Maria Carmichael inherited the property. She married Robert Bruce Stewart. The couple had no children and on their passing, the house was bequeathed to the Town of New Glasgow. Maria passed away in 1959, Robert in 1962.

We happened to arrive on the day the museum officially opened for the 2025 season. The staff were busy setting up for the event which included the renaming of the property as the Pictou County History Museum.

We were welcomed in, admission was by donation. One of the staff shared some information with us about the history, and provided a quick tour of the main floor. In addition, she told us they were having a scavenger hunt, and we happily agreed to take part. We were provided a sheet of paper with clues as to where to find the rocks that had pictures attached and off we went to explore. 

The museum holds artifacts including household furniture, glassware, tools, toys, tools, and guns. Eli found a pair of wooden swords in the children's bedroom and was told to go ahead and play with them. (That surprised me). We found most of the rocks inside the house, and then headed outdoors to the garden and yard to find even more of them. When we returned indoors, the staff member was kind enough to point us in the direction of the last one or two we were missing. Eli was presented with a prize for being the first to complete the scavenger hunt. It was a fun stop and I think we all enjoyed it.

Leaving New Glasgow we started on our way to Antigonish. Again D did a little research and found a unique option, the Arisaig Lobster Interpretive Marine Life Centre. The centre offers touch tanks, a scaled down lobster fishing boat, and lots of information about the lobster fishing industry. There were two young men working the day we arrived. One, was the grandson of a man who built many of the boats that were used in the area for lobster fishing. His father recently sold his fishing license as this young man plans to go to university to become an engineer. The second young man had just graduated two days prior from highschool and was planning to go to university in the fall as well. 

The biggest draw was the lobsters in the touch tank. They were various colours, blue, green, and brown. (I didn't think to ask why. Their claws were banded shut, but the critters were still aggressive towards one another. Sadly, neither D nor I got a decent photo of the tank. The best I can offer is the mounted lobster. According to the note, it weighed about 20 pounds, and was thought to be about 40 years old.

Nearby was the Arisaig replica lighthouse. The original burned down in 1939, but was rebuilt by local volunteers in 2007. It contains an ice cream shop on the lower level. Had it been a warmer day, we might have enjoyed a cone. We did, however, enjoy the views from the shoreline.

Leaving Arisaig, we continued on to Antigonish where we stopped at the Peace by Chocolate store. Originally from Syria, the Hadhad family lost their chocolate factory in Damascus in a bombing in 2012. They originally fled to Lebanon, later found their way to Canada, where they built their business in Antigonish, Nova Scotia. If you ever have the opportunity to taste their chocolate, I can assure you it is delicious. We bought a couple of bars to bring home with us, and each picked out a single chocolate to enjoy in the car as a treat.

Since we were planning to stay one night in Antigonish a couple of days later, we decided to wait to do more exploring then. We headed for the main highway, and I did an oopsie mistake, taking the wrong exit. We were off course for probably 15 minutes or so before our GPS maps gave us a reasonable option to return to the highway. (There were a couple of roads it suggested we turn on that looked a wee bit suspect to me).

We arrived at the motel mid-afternoon and were ready to get out of the car. Our room was up on the hill above the main office and restaurant. The view of Bras D'or Lake was lovely. The lake has a connection to the Atlantic Ocean, but also has fresh water inflows - we learned the water is called brackish. Before we left the following day, D and Eli crossed the highway to put their toes in the water.

The motel did have a restaurant on site, but we had passed by the Red Barn Gift shop and restaurant, a few minutes away. The meal was memorable, not only for the meal, but for D's interactions with several other guests. A couple came in shortly after we did, having ridden in on a motorcycle. They were from Quebec and spoke just a little English. D is functionally bilingual and was able to assist the couple and the waitress with their order. Later another group was trying to order dessert, and she assisted with that request as well. Back to our meal, would it surprise you if I said I ordered fish and chips? Both D and Eli had French fries a well, and we all agreed they were the best we'd had on the trip. After a brief stop in the gift shop, we headed back to the motel for a good night's sleep.

We had big plans for the next day!