Tragedy and Giant Tides in Nova Scotia, and an epic storm...

Our final exploration of Nova Scotia was in the area named Bay of Fundy in the tourist info. Here we drive along the northern coast of the Province from St. Bernard, through Digby, where we spent a night, and then into Truro, where we had an enforced stay. The route followed more of the Evangeline Trail, then the Glooscap Trail.

According to another Mi'kmak legend, Glooscap was a giant vengeful god-man who created the Bay of Fundy's tides by smashing a beaver dam. Islands in the Bay are clods of mud Glooscap threw at the beavers.

Sunset in Digby Harbour, lobster boats at rest.

Dockside Suites overlooking Digby Harbour.

Digby proved to be a very picturesque fishing port where we were blessed by clear waether, and got great photos of lobster boats in the glare of a bright sunset. This town is missing all the chain hotels we are familiar with, and usually stay at for convenience, but Clare's research found the Dockside Suites as pretty well the only place open anyway. This establishment was a great success, with a very comfortable room overlooking the harbour facing east, our best view in Nova Scotia, a match for Halifax. The room was upstairs from the Fundy Restaurant and Night Club where we shared a large live lobster and had him steamed to perfection together with the Bay of Fundy's world-famous (large and delicious) scallops. The lobster, chosen by Mike, was probably not impressed.

This 3lb lobster about to die for our dining pleasure.

Swallows(?) swarming over Digby Harbour after sunset.

From Digby, it's a short drive to the other side of Long Island where we got our first view from the south of the Bay of Fundy. It was fine when we were there, but wild and extremely windy. Holiday houses there have spectacular views. They seem to be mostly empty. Maybe the residents have flown south to the Caribbean in response to the numerous ads we see on TV?

The light at Point Prim near Digby, with the 'automatic' foghorn. Some dispute over the original inventor.

Spectacular view over the Bay of Fundy and the entrance to Digby Harbour.

Driftwood catching rocky beach and isolated holiday house at Culloden.

We were tempted to spend an extra night in Digby, but bad weather was brewing. TV warned us of a 'historically bad winter storm' and we thought (correctly, as it turned out) that we might lose time further down the track. So we made for Truro.

Heading west, we discovered a prototype tide based power station. The Bay of Fundy has the world's largest tides, and it makes sense to try to expolit this fascinating geography. There is up to 17m between the levels of high and low tides, twice a day, and watching tidal bores is a major tourist attraction. According to traditional Mi'kmaq folklore, the huge tides are due to a whale splashing its tail.

Unfriendly viewing platform for the wash from Digby's tidal power station.

In search of espresso, Yelp directed us to Annapolis Royal, a very cute town about 25km from Digby. The appointed cafe was closed, but just two doors away we spotted someone going into an unheralded 'Sissiboo Coffee Roaster' cafe where we found a capable barista and some friendly patrons, who chatted with us about Australia and Nova Scotia.

Most people we talk to notice that we are 'not from around here' but few actually ask, out of politeness or shyness or straight out lack of curiousity, we don't know. In a gas station, one loiterer wondered if Mike from from Newfoundland, but the more alert attendant was on the ball and picked the accent correctly. Maybe she's been watching the tennis?

Near Wolfville, an Acadian university town, is the UNESCO listed Landscape of Grand Pré. Grand Pré (meaning 'great field') was the major site of Acadian settlement and also the sad port where the British forcibly deported 11,000 Acadians in the 1750-60's when they refused to swear allegiance to Great Britain. The memorial to the fictional but famous Evangeline is in Grand Pré.

Memorial to Evangeline in "Grand Pré" by Dr Wilson User Semhur on the french wikipedia, modified the original picture. - Own work.

The calm before the storm at Cogmagun River.

We then followed the Glooscap Trail (well, we did when we found it!) along the Bay of Fundy all the way to Truro. Inlets off this bar are like lunar landscapes which show the effects of huge tidal inflows and outflows.

Mud and ice mark the intertidal areas of the Bay of Fundy not far from Truro.

We arrived in Truro in fine weather, but overnight and the next day told a different story. The historical storm arrived, and from about 5am it snowed and blew heavily. This is the same storm which closed New York and Boston the day before. Stern warnings in Canada advised us to stay off the roads, especially outside the towns where strong winds blowing deep fresh snow have zeroed visibility. We decided not to defy these warnings, and as of this moment, we are still hunkered down in Truro. And the roads we need to travel are closed for 100's of km. New Brunswick has copped the worst of the storm, and that's where we've got to go. It is still snowing and blowing, but not so hard.

Fierce storm moving north-east from New York into Nova Scotia has trapped us in Truro.

Pretty quiet on Truro streets as people are warned to stay at home.

Snowploughs work hard to clear the main streets. Smaller ploughs work businesses, and back streets just wait.

Another Yelp discovery, the only cappucino in Truro, open despite the weather. The boss' pick-up out front, the sherrif warming up inside.

A lone skater braves foul conditions on a public rink in Truro Park.

View from our hotel room. At least the wind has blown the Jeep clean!

Acadian Shores of Nova Scotia

The next section of our Nova Scotian drive covered the stretch from Cape Sable Island (where we couldn't find the lighthouse in heavy rain) up to Saint Bernard. On our tourist map, this territory is referred to as Yarmouth and Acadian Shores. Icelander Leif Eriksen was believed to be the first European to visit here (~1000AD), but the French get most credit, first arriving in 1604, and establishing a settlement soon after. These Acadians, as their decendents are known, had fought with the British and the native Mi'kmaq, and now seem to form enclaves around this coast.

Acadian church near Pubnico NS.

We note some considerable tension between the French and the English in the people we speak to and elsewhere - this is no doubt genetic after numerous wars during the 17th and 18th Centuries. For much of this section, the only radio stations were in French, but most business signage is in English. Almost no-one opens conversations in French, so we suspect English has won out, while French is a culture preserved at home and legally. There were, however, several French 'ecoles' evident as we drove around.

The Acadian flag identifies much of the coast north & south of Yarmouth. Good to see the correct spelling of the Municipality of Clare!

Very picturesque grey sand beach at Cape St Mary.

As we headed north, the characteristic southern geography of numerous large coastal inlets we saw in the south gave way to a relatively linear coastline with small and beautiful features, and the tourist route, now called the Evangeline Trail more or less paralled the main route 101, but went through all the interesting towns. Evangeline, A Tale of Acadie is the sad heroine of another epic poem by Henry Wadsworth Longfellow (1847). In the poem, Evangeline was separated from her lover Gabriel by the British when they forcibly expelled the Acadians (many of whom went to Louisiana as Cajuns).

Our route along the Arcadian Shores was named after Evangeline.

Old wooden lobster pots seem to have been largely replaced on modern fishing boats.

The town of Yarmouth was apparently established (1759) by settlers from Sandwich in Massachusetts escaping the Seven Years War (which in North America proved to be prdeominantly a victory by England over France). It was our base for exploring this part of Nova Scotia. We stayed at a very ordinary motel, but found an interesting, rustic place to dine known as Rudders Seafood on the waterfront. The town claims to be the centre of "the world's largest lobster fishing ground" so we had ceasar salad with lobster, of course. The rain was so heavy, we didn't have the opportunity to enjoy the seafront vista of Rudders. The only espresso we could find in Yarmouth was quite close to Rudders, at the back of a pharmacy, and the barista did a good job translating our unusual language and requirements.

Colourful fishing boats and floats aboud in Nova Scotia, these near Yarmouth.

Old cottage on boggy ground on Cape Forchu near Yarmouth.

Luckily, the pattern of alternate good and bad days continued, and were soon able to travel out to the Yarmouth Light on the French named Cap-Fourchu (Forked Cape). Of all the lighthouses, this is one of the most spectacular. We think it is no longer in use, a sign says it has been "given to the community", the first such in all Canada. It and its surrounds are in excellent order and condition, so we think the community is doing a good job.

The Yamouth Light is buffeted by full force Atlantic surf.

The beautiful Yarmouth Light is set on a high bluff right at Cape Forchu. The cafe & museum is closed.

As we drove, from Metaghan on, the coastline enters the protection of the hugely long St. Mary's Bay.

Looking across St. Mary's Bay to Long Island from near St. Bernard.