Nova Scotia - Bay of Fundy and Minas Basin
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I started along the Bay of Fundy shoreline at Yarmouth. My first view
of the bay was from the Cape Forchu Lighthouse, guarding the entrance
to Yarmouth's harbor. It appeared to be as vast as a sea. The lighthouse
was one of the largest ones I encountered and is extremely well preserved.
From Yarmouth I drove on to Digby to have lunch with my cousin Faye. After
a brief visit over wonderful scallops, I drove on to Annapolis Royal.
I visited the Annapolis Royal Generating Station, and then walked most
of the length of historic George Street, where the oldest surviving wooden
house in Nova Scotia (the deGannes - Cosby House) was built in 1708. I
also toured Fort Anne, the oldest historic site in Canada. The area was
settled in 1605 by French colonists, and the Fort was first developed
in 1702. The stone powder magazine within the fort shows a date of 1704
chiseled into one of the stones.
Fishing boat near Yarmouth at low tide
Cape Forchu lighthouse and grounds
Fort Anne powder magazine
the deGannes - Cosby House, built in 1708
A panorama of Fort Anne, showing a defensive ditch, berms and officer's barracks
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After spending a night visiting Linda and Dale at her cottage, (an evening spent being sick from something I ate, perhaps the lobster roll the day before), Linda and I drove to Hall's Harbor
on the Bay of Fundy coast to view the harbor at high tide. I took a series of shots around the harbor and along the shore before driving off to explore the Blomidon Escarpment. At a lookoff near the
top you can see most of the Annapolis Valley and part of the Minas Basin. It is a spectacular sight. After exploring the Escarpment all the way to Cape Split we toured around the Valley, going to
Wolfville, Grand Pre and many other small villages. Finally we drove back to Hall's Harbor in time to catch the high tide, which was 25 feet above low tide. That is not the maximum that it changes
either, being what they call a "slack tide", due to the moon not being full. Still, the before and after pictures are impressive. What is even more impressive is learning how large a volume of water
flows in and out of the Minas Basin and Bay of Fundy twice a day - approximately 115 billion cubic meters! That is more than all the fresh water that flows into the oceans around the world, and it
has such a mass that geologists can measure a tilt in Nova Scotia due to it. Can you imagine? It was fun having Linda as my tour guide to show me around her neck of the woods. Thank you Linda!
Hall's Harbor at high tide, looking out
and the same view again at low tide
Another view of Hall's Harbor at high tide
and the same view at low tide
I drove around the Minas Basin toward Truro, following the Glooscap Trail.
The trail follows along the east - northeast shore of the Basin all the way around to New Brunswick. On the stretch between Windsor and Truro I stopped three times. Once was to view the low tide in
the Basin where a large mud flat was in the foreground and the Blomidon Escarpment was in the background. Next was a stop to see the Walton lighthouse, that sits at the mouth of a river on a bluff
overlooking the Basin. The lighthouse was built in 1872 and still has a kerosene lamp. You can climb right up to it to see the clockwork like gears that drive it. My final stop was at the Burncoat
Head Provincial Park. Although there is a small lighthouse there as well, the main attraction is red sandstone cliffs and a sea stack or island that you can walk out to at low tide. I ventured down
the stairs to the bottom where you can walk out to the island, but seeing as how it was now exposed with steep cliffs as its banks I did not try to walk out and climb onto it. The sun was getting low
by now and the red of the cliffs was absolutely stunning to see.
Linda relaxing at Hall's Harbor
the Walton lighthouse overlooking the Minas Basin
The Walton lighthouse kerosene lamp
barn near Burncoat Head Provincial Park
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New Brunswick - Moncton and the Hopewell Rocks
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I drove over the Cobequid Pass between Truro and Moncton New Brunswick.
On the toll portion of that highway there are amazing vistas stretching
for miles both east and west. While there is a lot more to explore in
Nova Scotia I decided to go to New Brunswick, at least for a day. I had
three things in mind - to see Moncton and the tidal bore on the Petitcodiac
River, to view the magnificent Hopewell Rocks on the Bay of Fundy, and
to find a covered bridge. My first stop was at the Information Center
in Moncton. It sits on the edge of the river where it is housed in one
of Moncton's oldest buildings, the Free Meeting House, built in 1821.
After gathering information and viewing the attached museum, I followed
the river to the Bay of Fundy. Near the mouth of the river, along the
Bay shoreline, I came across the Rocks Provincial Park, the home of the
Hopewell Rocks. The park is situated on a high bluff overlooking the Bay.
At low tide the immense Daniels Mud Flats are exposed. They span nearly two miles wide
and are over 12 miles long. There are many sea stacks along the shoreline,
with the largest group being the Hopewell Rocks. From the top of the bluff
you have to go down 96 steps to the shoreline at low tide. I was told
that more than 1/3 of the steps are submerged when the tide comes in.
Looking down at these Rocks, with people wandering in and out among them,
is impressive. Once you get to the bottom it is equally impressive wandering
among them. Some even have holes going through them, forming short tunnels.
The rocks were undoubtedly amazing.
Two views of the Daniels Mud Flats
at the Rocks Provincial Park New Brunswick
The Hopewell Rocks from the top of the bluff
and from down at the shoreline
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Near the Hopewell Rocks, on the drive to Bay of Fundy National Park, I found a covered bridge. The Sawmill Creek Bridge was built in 1905. It is right beside the highway so it was easy to find
and get pictures of. A lot harder to photograph was the Weldon Creek covered bridge on secondary highway 910. This bridge is still in use and three times I had to run off the road to avoid
traffic that suddenly appeared around a curve on a hill. Fortunately they did slow down, but it was a bit tense each time as there was virtually no shoulder on the road. New Brunswick is the only
Eastern Province that still has covered bridges, so it was a delight to be able to photograph them. I consider them to be icons of our national heritage in much the same way that I do steam trains,
old barns, lighthouses and prairie grain elevators.
Approaching the Sawmill Creek Bridge
The Sawmill Creek Bridge from the highway
The Weldon Creek covered bridge
detail showing the bridge's interior
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After photographing the Weldon Creek Bridge I made my way back to Moncton. Beside the Information Center is Tidal Bore Park, on the banks of the Petitcodiac River. It is a great place to view
the tidal bore coming up the river. While waiting for the bore to arrive I talked with an interesting couple from Michigan, Erin and Tim. They had driven to the east coast with their two Black
Labrador dogs. We talked about our trips until finally Erin saw the bore starting to come into view. Due to silting in the river, the bore is not nearly as spectacular as it is near Truro. There
tour operators take visitors out on Zodiac boats to ride the crest, which is close to four feet in height. The bore at Moncton is more like six inches, due to heavy silting in the river from
building a causeway across the river further upstream. They did not know at the time how much that would impede the flow, allowing the river to silt up. Today they are correcting the problem, but
it remains an issue and will for about another ten years. In spite of its small size, the flow is quite fast as could be seen by seagulls floating by. In about an hour the river had risen nearly
five feet and it was at that point that we realized just how much the river changes due to that bore. Then it seemed a lot more significant than when it first started. Unfortunately it did not
photograph all that well, but it was fun to watch and take a short video clip as the bore passed by.
Erin and Tim in front of the Free Meeting House, Moncton
If you have stayed with me this far, there is more about my trip on Travel - page 2. I will portray my travels around Prince Edward Island, the
northern end of Nova Scotia, Cape Breton, and finally, my visit to Sherbrooke Village. Please join me.
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