Cape Breton Highlands NP-Broad Cove

 

                               

Sep 2, 2024 - It is an hour and a half drive from Cheticamp to Broad Cove where we will be staying at the NP campground.  The drive was cloudy and a bit rainy but it was fun to get to see the Cabot Trail on a gray day.  We stopped at quite a few pull outs for different views of the coastline and stopped just a few miles from our campground at Black Brook Cove Beach for a picnic lunch.

Tiny & Lep

I love seeing the road ahead winding through the trees

the sky is melting into the ocean

more winding road

and beautiful coastline

Our first moose of the trip.  There were Park rangers next to the moose telling us to keep moving.  We weren't sure if the moose was sick or they just didn't want gawkers

good looking bench model

coastline & colors

Selfie with AG

Tiny with a view

Fresh seafood

The Cabot Trail goes in and out of the Cape Breton Highlands NP.  We can always tell when we're not in the NP, because the roads are pretty rough.

Black Brook Cove Beach

Great spot for a picnic

lots of beach rocks on this side of Cape Breton

Nova Scotia 2024

The road is straight!!??

One last overlook before we get to the campground

gray gray gray

We're settled into our campsites and we're ready for a game of Mexican Train Dominoes

pretty sunset colors

we love a campfire

the sunset colors just kept changing

Sep 3, 2024 - Today is Uncle Gene's birthday!  We headed into the town of Ingonish to find some seafood for lunch and found the gondola at Cape Smokey and decided to ride it to the top for a pretty view.  

We really enjoyed lunch at Main St.  The halibut was good and the desserts were especially good.

Gondola to the top

That's a view!

selfie at the top

Kevin is going to take flight

UG's next

ski lift bench with a view

cute little sailboat down there

Sneek A Peek trail

Getting the wood ready for a campfire.  They had to bring out the big guns...the chain saw and the Jean Val Jean sledge hammer.

Our Happy Bday UG sign had to be moved inside when it started to rain.  Mirabelle is watching for any passing dogs.

Site 67.  These fire pits are weird, but nice in that they rotate to any way you want to point them.

Happy Birthday Uncle Gene!  We made a caramel brownie in the crock pot, just enough for four.

Cape Breton Highlands National Park-Cheticamp

 

                                 

Aug 31, 2024 - We're headed to Cape Breton Highlands National Park today.  We were getting a bit low on propane, so we took a quick detour into Port Hawkesbury to the Canadian Tire to fill up and we ended up shopping while we were there.  After our side trip we took the Ceilidh Trail (which is pronounced Kaylee) which runs into the Cabot Trail, which is the famous 185 mile road around the Highlands of Cape Breton.  There were lots of beautiful views along the way and it was quite a curvy drive slow drive.

They are hard to see, but there are 3 spider webs in the pic that were full of dew, that we saw on our morning walk

We made it to the Cabot Trail!

And the Ceilidh Trail!

Our first overlook on the Cabot Trail, Christies Look-off

The Nova Scotia and Canadian flag

We stopped for a picnic lunch at Inverness Beach

Such a cool sign

bench with a view

beautiful beach.  It's labor day weekend and the beach is pretty empty

the town of Inverness

We stopped at Doryman's Pub & Grill for a Cielidh (Scottish music and dancing)

Video from the Pub

Cape Breton Highlands National Park-Cheticamp Site 33

Stream next to the campsite

Another night, another fire

Sep 1, 2024 - Kev & I decided to hike the Acadian Trail, the trailhead is just across the stream from our campsite.  It's a 5.2 mile, 1200 ft elevation loop that overlooks the town of Cheticamp and the ocean.  Then it comes down along the stream.  After lunch we headed to Cheticamp and visited the Trois Pignons Museum which told about life in the area and especially focused on the women who made latch hook rugs.  It looks like rain off and on tomorrow, when we were planning to do the Skyline Trail, so we decided to drive there this afternoon so we can hike in the good weather and get the sunny view.  It's a 4 mile hike, but is crushed gravel and boardwalk, so an easy hike but more miles on top of our big hike this morning

 

the Acadian Trail map

we're headed up!

the first overlook

water break

the town of Cheticamp off in the distance

Kev has a berry earring

pretty mountains

higher views

we're almost to the top

nice bench and view

how did they get that chair here?

we're headed down the other side of the mountain

pretty color

Moss covered rocks

Tori’s Pignons museum-love this beautiful latch hook rug

they made rugs to commemorate things and to decorate walls and floors and to pass the time.

we got a demonstration of how to latch hook

pretty drive to Skyline Trail (on the Cabot Trail).  It's a windy road

Skyline trail map

 

2 miles without any views

we walked through a moose exclusion area, where you had to close the gate to keep the moose out.  They're researching what plants grow when moose aren't present

we've made it to the boardwalk and a view in the distance

Wow!

lots of stairs

It was REALLY windy at the end of the trail

Video view

that's the Cabot Trail over there

Video view of the Cabot Trail

another view of the windy Cabot Trail

bench with a view

View from the road home.  We were on the top of that mountain.  you can see people on the top

What a beautiful drive back to the campground!

Lots of pics!

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watch out for bears!