Last night the fog had lifted so we hiked down to the beach. It was a beautiful evening and we wandered to rocky beach and combed through many broken lobster traps. The North Atlantic waves gently lapped at the shore and there was little wind. Who named the oceans? The Atlantic is always, well, pacific, and the Pacific is rarely that. Maybe they got it backwards.
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| The pacific North Atlantic |
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| Cool rocks stretching for miles on the beach |
This morning was really cold, about 3 C. The forecast called for rain and we were a bit worried that the rain could be sleet. After our small breakfast we layered up and headed out. Not much wind, at least. We were headed to Baddeck, on Bras d'Or Lake. Baddeck is the home town of Alexander Graham Bell. For those reading this on their iPhones, Mr. Bell actually invented the telephone, not Steve Jobs. Baddeck is a big town compared to where we’ve been the past few days so it ought to be fun and metropolitan.
We were chilled for a while but gradually warmed up. We passed an open cafe called the Clucking Hen and turned around to get coffee and warmth. That helped.
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| Coffee, baked goods and free warm air... |
A few kms down the road we took the Englishtown Ferry across the bay. This is a free cable ferry that is operated by the provincial government.
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| Englishtown Ferry |
From the ferry landing on the other side of the channel it was only about 30 km to Baddeck and we made quick time of it -- the rain had arrived but the temperature had climbed to 6 C, so thankfully nothing frozen in it. We were still early but the folks who rent out the room we have for the next two nights were only too glad to let us in ahead of the normal checkin time. Baddeck is really pretty small but is apparently very, very busy during July and August. It is kind of like Sisters -- a town that is these days dedicated to tourism. The town focuses on the lake, which is actually a salt water lake, and features lots of sailing and kayaking and other activities.
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| I guess that not all vendors appreciate tourist attention... |
Cape Bretons are not afraid of color, especially big bright blues and reds and greens and all shades in between for houses, chairs, everything. The houses are riots of color. If it was sunny it would be really pretty. Maybe in a few days.
We're staying here for two days to catch up on things, and give ourselves a bit of a rest.
