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.