Moules Mariniere

Two pounds of mussels from North Rustico - start with quarter bar of butter and sauté a finely chopped large shallot till transparent, add dry white wine an bring to simmer, throw in mussels and cook in a closed saucepan till they open - fortunately we have a glass lid so you can watch! Decant mussels to a eating bowl, add a large dose of cream to the sauce, reduce a bit, and pour over the mussels....

Oh those sunflowers!!!

Lobster traps 101

Larger than our Chesapeake Bay crab pots they likewise have two trap chambers - entry chamber and bait on right side that can be entered from both sided through trap funnels, internal funnel leading to left chamber with two small rectangular culling cutouts to allow juveniles to escape! Weighted with poured concrete or slabs on the base, they are very heavy and usually operate in much deeper waters, the lobsterman have hydraulic winches to harvest and haul the pots. A short legal lobster season means that live lobsters are caught then warehoused in dark tanks until ready for market. If not cared for properly they rapidly lose weight and profit margin declines!!

Canadian PEI lighthouses

Ubiquitous basic lighthouse design prevalent throughout the Canadian Maritimes - it must come in a box with assembly instructions! Top Covehead near Dalvay; lower North Rustico - all are operational.

Magnificent Malpeques!

Voted tastiest oyster in the world in Paris... in 1900... how on earth did they get Malpeque oysters from PEI to Paris then? They have the clean taste of the ocean, squeeze a couple of drips of lemon and it's heaven! These beauties being tasted are the small size and I just bought another dozen mediums at Carr's at Stanley Bridge for about 85 cents apiece... the lobster cooked was US$7.50 a lb and mussels $1.40 a lb. We are going to have a feast!!!

Two grill dinner

Charcoal and mesquite wood grill for salmon and gas grill for eggplants and carrots! For the first course a dozen slightly salty PEI Fortune Bay oysters to shuck while waiting for the coals to get ready for this evening's dinner at Cornwall KOA site on the West River of Charlottetown harbour.

Got there too late!

Richard's at Covehead Harbour PEI does a nice lobster snack and fries out of its seasonal shack at the fishing harbour. Damned if I got there two days too late! My anticipation was making my salivating juices run highly and then.... utter disappointment! I was not the only one as the car park was chock a block with other punters looking for the same deal! Well that got their TripAdvisor rating readjusted a bit!

Prince Edward Island waterfront!

Arriving in Charlottetown PEI we claim our waterfront lot for a week as we overlook the West River at low tide. Perfect! Now there is serious gastronomic business to be done in PEI! Not only is it the capital of lobsters but also of the world renown Malpeque oysters and an unlimited supply of delectable mussels! What a feast! Lurking in Charlottetown is the  Culinary Institute of Canada which periodically unleashes newly trained chefs ready to test their skills in the dozens of small restaurants around the area. Weather ranges from 75 F daytime high to 65 F overnight low so no need for heating or cooling.

Wood Island PEI - will it fit?

Always a tantalizing question approaching a very small harbor entrance in a very large slab sided ferry boat! Not helped by considerable cross currents and a Force 4 cross wind. Skillful stuff!

Into the mouth of the dragon

Well if truth be known we really went into the belly of the beast, a Ro-Ro main deck reserved for trucks, buses, and RV's. A short 45 minute ferry ride from Caribou Nova Scotia to Wood Island on Prince Edward Island. There was even a cooking demo on deck to promote PEI produce and seafoods. I've never seen a ferry  boat that had a bow at both ends in fact it was a mirror image both ends....

Visitors from England

Forty five years after we first met in Cheltenham in the Cotswolds we meet up again with life long friends Peter and Nicky - a lot of water under the bridge and lives that went in many different directions! At least ten years since you visited us in Tappahannock.... One of their post retirement celebration trips with their traveling companions David and Jill around New England and Canadian Maritimes coincides deliberately with our stay in Baddeck! Lots of fun, stories, reminiscences and lives to catch up on over a couple of dinners and an Airstream inspection visit in the middle of a thunderstorm! Wonder when we see you again?

Cabot Trail

We waited three days for the right weather before setting off on this 8+ hour 200 mile marathon! Best driven counter clockwise so you are on the outside coastal side of the road the whole way! The morning sun on the east side and the afternoon sun on the west side... Perfect! We started early as it will always take longer than you think! Also choosing a lunch stop with care since good ones are few and far - Le Gabriel in Cheticamp with its Acadien French influence was really worth a stop. We diverted for a couple hours to get in a great coastal hike on Middle Head in Ingonish. A great day out and one of the classic drives of the world!

Ingonish Middle Head Trail

One of the very best walks you can do in Nova Scotia!!! We drove to the Ingonish Keltic Lodge where the trail head is located, put on our hiking shoes for this trail since it is rocky and criss-crossed with numerous raised tree roots.  We chose this trail for its marine exposure and views, the relative short two hours round trip, and the slight change in elevation which is limited to 45 meters so no big hills! The great thing on this trail is the constantly changing environment from quiet forest floor dappled with sunlight one minute then the swift marine breeze wafting in from the ocean as the trail hugs the cliff top and the washing machine noise from the waves along the rocky shore. Splendid views at the end at the point overlooking north and south Ingonish bays. One of the best outdoor experience in return for our walking effort!

Two stages in a lobster's life...

Alive and ready to be cooked...
Steamed and ready to be enjoyed !
Two beauties 1-1/2 lb each.
Dining options other than lobster are pretty sparse around Nova Scotia!

Baddeck base camp

Baddeck located in the central part of the Cape Breton peninsula on the Bras D'Or  translated means "Golden Arm" more like a large body of water open at one end to the North Atlantic and very reminiscent of the long and thin Scottish Lochs....  and ideal center for explorations in all directions to the Cabot Trail and other historic sites. For about US$28 per night we are hooked up to 30 amp power supply, wifi, running water and sewer disposal, and of course total peace and tranquility - what more do you need? Nice to be at the edge of the site so we have the wild forest view.

Stolen Kisses...

With apologies to Francois Truffaut I could not resist trying to kiss Mabel Bell, wife of Alexander Graham Bell on the boardwalk at Baddeck....

Fearsome Scot spotted in Supermarket

David looks the part! - fierce north of the border, senior Braveheart scot at the supermarket checkout ! Which aisle is the haggis on?

Single Malt Distillery

Just off the Cabot Trail this distillery was built in 1990's and is now producing a hundred or so barrels of Canadian single malt whisky - can't use the word Scotch! The very first single malt produced in North America! Had a little tasting tour and lunch in the pub along with a little fiddle music!

Hiking in the woods

Trek to waterfall and we discover young ladies in bikinis showering under an icy waterfall miles from civilization!

Bunchberries abound the forest floor

Useful.... perhaps! Bunchberry gets its name honestly — it grows in bunches of red berries on forest floors throughout our hikes in Nova Scotia forests. The berries have little flavor, but the leaves are medicinal. It is used to treat muscle aches and pain as well as infections. Hope I don't need it this week!

Dinner with David & Hazel

All the way from Virginia (actually 995 miles from Tappahannock) we cross over for four days in Baddeck, Nova Scotia. Dinners in and out, visits to Alexander Graham Bell center and Glenora whisky distillery - nice time together far from home!

Lobster #7 and #8

Keeping track of our lobster consumption across New England and Nova Scotia - somewhat healthy diet except for that melted butter! - here at Baddeck Lobster Suppers on Bras D'Or. With David and Hazel - thanks Hazel for the photo!

A G Bell's Canadian Silver Dart

Alexander Graham Bell, best known for "Come here Watson, I need you" invention of the telephone, also was very busy in many other scientific fields including the development of the first plane to fly in Canada from the frozen Bras D'Or lake in Baddeck. The Silver Dart has a Glenn Curtiss V8 with a huge copper radiator and won the prize for the first flight longer than one mile in North America.

Ferry across Little Narrows

Looping around the long and narrow Bras D'Or loch can be circumnavigated by using the car ferry at Little Narrows from Iona island that runs back to Canada Highway 105 about 10 miles south-west of Baddeck. The ferry runs on a large blue nylon rope strung across the Narrows and it is a one-young-lady efficient operation - she is captain, fare collector, parking director, tourist info expert, smiling face and happy greeter! What a joy!

Neat Airstream stuff!

Cam levelers - insert larger red plastic cam under both same side wheels from rear and reverse until the spirit bubble says you are level (up to 4 inches lift).... then insert smaller chock to prevent rolling forward! Voila! Then adjust electric hitch jack to get Nuage Volant level front to back.... fridge is happy, water runs completely out the shower pan and sink, and people are happy!

Bay of Fundy - dining out!

Margaret awaits her lobster dinner from the kitchen which includes sweet corn and melted butter... what else is needed? Sitting here on the sea shore surrounded by lobster pots and where the tidal range reaches 30 or more feet... all part of the Maritimes experience!

Trekking in Fundy National Park

Outstanding natural beauty and facilities in the Fundy Canadian National Park but a little tricky to get to over unpaved roads, lots of construction, overheating transmission and blue smoke from brakes! Hiked down to the Copper Mines and walked the trail 400 ft above the shore where the sea mist came inshore but you could see above the fog across the Fundy Bay to Nova Scotia.

Lobster Central in Belfast

No visit to Maine is complete unless many lobsters have been sampled. Young's is a walk in lobster warehouse on the dock where a bewildering number of decisions have to be made, soft or hard shell, weight between 1 and 4 lbs (always go for 1-1/2 to 2 for tenderness!), sides, veggies etc. you have to bring your beverage with you and sit on the dockside for 10 minutes for soft shell lobster or 20 minutes for hard shell while your beast meets its fate! A total evening sunset delight!!

Perfect Camden

A quick pit stop in the quintessential New England harbor town of Camden reveal the beauty of being on the water in Maine. Everything is perfect! The weather, the sunshine, the boats at anchor, the tides, the properties that line up along the waterside, the way sailors dress up and play their part! Onwards north!

Awaiting the storm in the brilliant sunlight on a mountain in Vermont... in the "Cowan KOA" garden with Rick and Lois.

Cowan KOA

Cambridgeport VT at the "Rick Cowan KOA" very private and exclusive site overlooking the Saxton's River near Grafton, Vermont.

Opus 40 - Bluestone Artwork near Woodstock NY

Quite amazing! Nothing can prepare you for the momentous work, skill, vision and passion that went into making this work of art in stone in the middle of the Catskills mountains. Meander your way through the stone corridors, over the mounds, across the walkways and study the skill with which the stones have been shaped and fitted together! Helping us park our SUV and Airstream, the step son of the Opus creator gave us insight on the wonderful life and work of Harvey Fite. Repairs to the area damaged by hurricane are to be done by craftsmen from Wales who still have dry stonework skills!

Thursday 6:00 am departure

Ready to leave Tappahannock Jeannette Drive at the crack of dawn.... 450 miles later we are in the KOA site near Woodstock NY.... Added a transmission fluid cooler to the Tahoe to avoid the high temperatures experience on the Blue Ridge Parkway. On this trip the temperature topped 200 degrees so may have to fit an electric fan to increase the cooling effect.