The Lighthouse Route along the South Shore of Nova Scotia runs along the water, as expected, but not expected was the condition of the so called 'highway'. The views were very pretty, lots of bays and inlets, with quaint churches overlooking the water, and old fishing villages along the way. Steve wanted to go to Canso "just because it's there" and that part of the 'highway' was the worst piece of paved road that we've been on, this trip. The cracks were so bad they had weeds growing in them, and the patches just made the bumps worse than the holes. Anyway we got there in one piece, but the drivers were too busy watching the road to see much of the views. And to add to his troubles, Steve's door kept flying open. We returned from the point by a different route and the road was a bit better. Then we crossed the bridge into Cape Breton, and spent the night in Port Hawkesbury. The next day we traveled up Cape Breton to Sydney along Bras d'Or Lake. It is a huge lake that runs up the centre of the island, but it can't be fresh water as it has openings to the ocean at both ends. We'll have to Google that.
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| Public Punishment for stealing a bottle of wine. |
We still had plenty of time to go out to the Fortress of Louisbourg, as the ferry to Newfoundland didn't leave till 10:45PM. Now that is a worthwhile trip! It is one of the best presented historic sites we have seen. About a third of the fort area has been rebuilt exactly as the original was, before the British razed it and move on. The foundations were all that was left, and they used archeology, pictures and journals to fill in the rest. They even reused the precut stones that had been left. The characters did a public punishment and shot off some muskets and a cannon. They were also 'working and living' in the buildings and on the streets ready to tell their stories in character, which brought the whole thing to life. Some were different ranks of French soldiers, others were different townspeople, and one was a British prisoner of war, who because of his rank was allowed to wander around the .street. We were very impressed with it all and glad we went.  |
| The Garrison |
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| The Town |
We then went back to North Sydney to catch the 10:45PM ferry. It was pretty late then so we found our cabins and went to bed. Steve and I were lucky enough to have a window so it was lovely to go to sleep with the starlight coming in. Next morning we woke to thick fog and could not see a thing until we landed in Argentia around 2PM. So we all just relaxed in our room or worked on the blog, pictures or crosswords.
