Time seems to rush by and we had to leave
Keji after some more hikes and landed up at Cape Split where we met some ‘old’ hiking friends to hike to the tip of the cape. Unfortunately I lost my “be prepared” camera at this trail a Canon IXSUS 70, so go for a hike and if you find my camera feel free to send it back to me…
Five Islands, Cape d’Or and
Cape Chignecto (Etonville) were some of the next stops along our tour. Ok the Confederation Bridge is not in Nova Scotia but belongs to the Maritimes and as we were close we had a fast look to this impressive bridge that connects New Brunswick and Prince Edward Island.
At
Joggins Fossil Cliffs UNESCO World Heritage Site we had again a journey into the past, this time we travelled 315 million years back to the Carboniferous fossils and found preserved fossilized plants and amphibian foot prints.
Back to 1874 to the
Balmoral Grist Mill where we learned that the mill is still working. In about three days they produce 350 pounds of oat flour using 15 bags of oats which is about 700 pound in total. They dry the oats first using a wooden fire which gives the oat a unique smoked flavour. After the drying process they start to peel, mill and grade the oats to flour.
A little step further to the 1890’s to the
Sutherland Steam Mill that is located in Denmark, near Tatamagouche. At the saw mill and factory they turn trees into almost everything you needed to build and beautify your home including bathtubs, chairs, tables, benches, wheels and toys. The mill was named after Alexander Sutherland. Today throughout the mill you can see numerous examples of Alexander and his son Wilfred’s adaptability and creativity. From designs and patterns to homemade, working machines – over 60 years of ingenuity and productivity is here for you to discover.
What an experience we had with those time journeys! We stayed the night at the
Tatamagouche Train Station Inn. The railway cars offering a place to eat and to sleep, they are dated from 1911 to 1978. In 1994 the seven cabooses have been renovated into deluxe accommodations reflecting the age of each railway car.
We visited
Cape George and the lovely beach of Big Island near Merigomish before we took several rides on the impressive ziplines of
Anchors Above Zipline. A short trail brings you up to a mountain and safely attached to a steel cable you will slide nearly 336 meters and about 73 meters above the ground to another base and a second slide. You cross the valley in between looking down to the trees like you were flying as a bird. The second ride starts about 58 meters above the ground and is nearly 275 meters long. The first one is slower while the second one is faster and imagine it is like the first line would probably dropping you six stories down while the second one would drop you nearly 10 stories down. What a lot of fun although I’m afraid of heights, I felt very comfortable and safe so I took more than one slide. Nicole was nearly unstoppable!
Exciting Nova Scotia, not only by nature, also in history and fun!
