Nova Scotia: A Two Week Itinerary (Part I)

10 October, 2009 (01:09) | Nova Scotia, Travel Itineraries | By: darngooddigs

When our son turned one, we headed to Nova Scotia for two weeks. We got a cheap, short flight from Newark. We rented a car in Halifax, and we hit the road. Here was our itinerary:

1st + 2nd nights: Lunenburg at the Lunenburg Arms
3rd + 4th nights: Annapolis Royal at the Hillsdale House
5th + 6th nights: Canning at the Farmhouse Inn B & B
7th and 8th nights: Mabou at the Mabou River Inn
9th night: Cheticamp at Merry’s Motel
10th + 11th nights: Dingwall at The Inlet B & B
12th night: Louisbourg at the Cranberry Cove Inn
13th night: St. Peter’s at the Canal House
14th, 15th + 16th nights: Halifax at the Prince George Hotel

We started our trip in World Heritage-recognized Lunenburg, 90 kilometers from Halifax. It’s an old fishing town with a historic 18^th and 19^th century main street and homes. Benjamin loved the Fisheries of the Atlantic Museum, as much any one year could love a museum. We stayed at a small hotel downtown called the Lunenburg Arms for two nights. It was a bit of a splurge for us, compared to the other places we booked, and we didn’t love the vibe.

Fisheries of the Atlantic Museum in Lunenburg

We then drove to Kejimkujik National Park for a day of swimming and eating ice cream.

For the night we stayed in Annapolis Royal, walked around the Fort Anne National Historic Site, got eaten alive by mosquitoes at the Historic Gardens, and visited the very cool Tidal Power Project. Perhaps tidal power will be the wave of the future! We stayed at the lovely Hillsdale House. Then we headed to the Farmhouse Inn B & B in Canning, ten minutes outside Wolfville, where we were greeted with cookies and lemonade on the excellent porch.

Fort Anne National Historic Site in Annapolis Royal, Nova Scotia

Around Wolfville we visited the Grand Pre National Historic Site, a fascinating memorial to Acadians who were expelled by the British in the 18^th century.

One of the most surprising and rewarding parts of our trip was our afternoon in Blomidon Provincial Park. We were in awe of the Bay of Fundy’s incredible low tide and Martian-red cliff walls and wet sand. We felt like we could have walked for miles on the beach out to sea! The wind howled around us, and by then the sky was blue – it was surreal.

Blomidon Provincial Park in Nova Scotia

From Wolfville we drove to Mabou on Cape Breton Island’s north shore, stopping for lunch in Antigonish – one of our two longest drives of the trip. We had two nights at the pleasant Mabou River Inn. We hiked for several miles in the Mabou Highlands, with Benjamin on my back, and pretty much had those beautiful trails all to ourselves.