A Day Trip in The Country

If I could bottle a day and savour it over and over again, last Thursday would have been one of those days.  It was an absolutely perfect summer day, clear blue sunny skies, warm breezes and my agenda........a long drive out of the city to check on a nearly complete client project.  I love a day trip more than anything, especially thru the rolling country roads north of Toronto.  The drive up north was a pure treat and I soaked in the early harvest scenery.  As I began my drive home, like a que from a movie script a vintage red top car pulled out in front of me at a stop sign and I drove behind it for over an hour.  It was like being transported to another time as we passed by old barns and old fashioned "General Store" signs along the road.  I could have hit the accelerator and sped past this car many times,,,but I didn't want to -  I was completely entranced by this nostalgic scene in front of me.  I felt like I'd been gifted my own vintage escort as I cruised the country roads.  There was a smile plastered on my face a mile wide, wishing the drive would never end.

It was truly a day full of vintage moments.  This old painted wood ladder was found in my clients garage, left behind from the previous owners.  I'm in love with this colour.  I think its the perfect shade of green for the front door of the house.  (And if they don't want the ladder, I've put dibs in on it.)

I rarely drive thru Primrose without stopping at Super Burger, its a destination on its own so I was looking forward to making a pit stop there on this trip.  Its a step back in time for some classic burger joint food....

During the summer months they open up their vintage TTC street car for extra seating.  Its 50's cool, complete with modern day air conditioning!

After cruising here behind my vintage escort I had a craving for an old fashioned vanilla milk shake and rings.  Oh how I enjoy great home made style onion rings,,,, I've even been known to plan road trips around them. ; )

There are some days you just wish would never end.

All Photos by:  Carol Reed

East Coast Road Trip: The Final Days

The final days of our trip we travelled across the Eastern Shore of N.S. and headed over to Cape Breton Island.  We didn't do too much sightseeing along the eastern shore (not much to see on this route), but we visited a couple of beautful beaches.  Our first stop early one morning was at Clam Bay Beach, from the parking lot a trail leads you thru a wooded area that was covered in the most gorgeous green moss....

Thru the trail in the woods you arrived at a large modern facility that housed washrooms, changerooms showers and an interpretation centre.  I loved the modern architecture and the weathered grey siding...

We later spoke with other long time visitors to NS and locals who never knew this beach or facility existed....

There was a long wooden boardwalk from the building to the beach and even the railings were constructed in this simple modern style....

The only other people at the beach were the life guards who were just getting set up for the day....

The lifeguard huts designed in the same style as the public facilities....

A gorgeous wide sandy beach, all to ourselves....we stayed for about an hour and still no one else was there when we left, and it was the weekend!

And after staying overnight at a very remote, small inn (that was suprisingly noisy considering it was in the middle of nowhere!!?),,,,,we woke to a spectacular view, then headed on to our next destination on Cape Breton Island...

Back on the road, we passed a few more colourful boats...

A lighthouse or two....

And we arrived at a charming inn located in the Margaree Valley on Cape Breton Island where we spent the next few days.  It's a huge piece of property that used to be a fly fishing camp in years gone by,,,now it operates as an Inn but is still popular for fly fishing enthusiasts.  

This place is quirky, and charming and completely authentic.  Their dining room is reknown for their incredible food and its Living Room and Barn are famous for hosting local musicians, Celtic music is in their blood here and its hard to find a restaurant or pub that doesn't have live local talent every night of the week.  It was the most incredible experience being treated to these intimate performances each evening,,,traditional Scottish fiddle tunes that bring tears to your eyes.

Unfortunately what this placed oozed in charm it lacked in technology!  No phones or WiFi in our cabin and we had no cell service anywhere on the island.  This was our only connection with the outside world so I was a bit stressed (normally not a problem when on vacation but I had a few installations happening back at home and I had promised to be available!).

The view from our cabin.....there were acres of pasture with lots of horses...

The view in our cabin!  The screen porch actually, I totally loved this hanging swing : )

Green rolling pastures and mountainous valleys everywhere....

The cabot trail was so breathtaking but so vast I found that I just couldn't capture it on camera. The road ahead as it ascended....

Out one side of the car the towering rocky shore.....

On the other side of the car looking inland,,,the never ending valleys...

We reached the very tip of the island beyond the Cabot Trail on a steep, windy dirt road I don't ever want to travel again,,,feared for my life several times (not kidding).

Stunning views just went on and on.....

We left Cape Breton a few days later and headed on to PEI, it was a really brief visit!  We arrived late one evening and then awoke the next morning (in really bad accommodations) to black stormy sky and heavy rain......and no reservations, again.  I was weary at this point, the thought of searching for yet another place to stay was more than I was up for.  We saw the confederation bridge and on a whim decided to head for home, we'd save PEI for another time.

This was my first trip to the East Coast but it definitely won't be my last, I am totally and completely taken with its unique style and the beautiful landscape.  I think its a paradise for Designer's and foodies alike. Not only is there stunning ocean views and valleys and forests, its the freshest cleanest air I have ever breathed, the freshest most delicious food I've ever had and the most charming character homes I've ever seen.  It was a bit of a whirlwind tour so on my next trip there I look forward to doing some serious exploring!

THE END.

All Photos:  Carol Reed

East Coast Road Trip: Day 7

Boathouse at Peggy's Cove

And on the 7th day,,,,we travelled from Mahone Bay to somewhere unknown on the East Shore.  Along the way we visited Chester, Peggy's Cove, a couple of Beaches, a couple of fishing villages....and we drove thru Halifax and Dartmouth and into no man's land.  I call it no-man's-land because when you travel along the small secondary coastal highway east of Halifax towards Cape Breton,,,,its vastly unpopulated wildnerness, in fact the landscape looks very much like northern ontario.  You can travel for hours without seeing much of anything except the odd gas station.

The pics below are in reverse order, and begin where we ended our day of sightseeing.... at Peggy's Cove around 6:30.  You either have to visit late in the day or at the crack of dawn if you want to avoid herds of people.  I actually didn't take too many photos at the lighthouse because it was next to impossible to get any shots without all the tourists included!

On the road into Peggy's Cove we stopped at this small inlet which had some beautiful views...

I'm obsessed with these weathered grey buildings along the rocky shore and can't stop wanting to photograph them!

A little further down the road before getting to Peggy's Cove was the Swiss Air Flight Memorial Monument,,,,,,it was a breathtaking spot that brought tears to your eyes.  I can't imagine a more peaceful place for reflection, there was a spiritual vibe present that was almost tangeable.

The monument itself was made from a large round stone that had been split and angled outwards toward the sea with benches inbetween, the flat face sides of the stone were engraved with memorials.  I thought it was so beautifully designed, it looked like it belonged as part of the landscape...

You could see Peggy's Cove from the monument

I spent more time photographing the buildings around Peggy's Cove than I did of the lighthouse, this building in fact (also seen in first photo) I must have taken a hundred shots of, then later the next day I realized it was the same image on the cover of our Frommer's guide, without the colourful boat. 

I've never seen rock elevations like this anywhere before.....so smooth and clean with all these distinctive wrinkle-like lines.

The only shot I could get of the actual lighthouse without hundreds of people in the way was in this reflection...

Earlier in the day somewhere between Chester and Peggy's cove we stopped at this little fishing port, these fluorescent buoys were so bright they were blinding to look at in person.

The quintessential Nova Scotian beach bordered by tall wispy grass.....

Early in the day we stopped in Chester, a picture perfect coastal town with magnificent views and elegant homes.  The town itself doesn't have parking, or sidewalks, or public washrooms,,and the visitors information centre was located on the highway outside of the town.  All of this gave us the distinct feeling the residents weren't too fond of tourists here unless you came by boat.  We didn't stay long...

On the highway just before hitting Chester we stopped in a fantastic antiques barn, I could easily have spent half the day here.  I instantly fell in love with the grey jam cupboard and from the moment we left I regretted not buying it.  I'm going to follow-up and see if they'll ship it to me...

Inside the cupboard were all kinds of little treasures...

On the other side of Chester on the same highway was another antique barn also filled to the rafters with great stuff!!

I really really wanted to take these twin spool beds home with me...

The bridge into Halifax.  After our visit to Peggy's Cove, we continued East and drove right thru Halifax and Dartmouth.  I just wasn't in the mood to stop in a bustling urban centre but little did we know as we headed onwards we were headed into no man's land - without any further hotel reservations, not one.  We were about to discover that the road less travelled has no cell phone towers or WiFi.  This would be the beginning of the end of our gloriously wonderful road trip....

And everyday from this point on,,,I dreamed of the lovely, comfortable B&B's we left behind....

All Photos:  Carol Reed