It was a yearly tradition and then Covid arrived and it wasn't anymore. Things changed in the years of the pandemic, people changed, routines changed. I began to think that those August long weekend trips to Margaree were a thing of the past.
That's why it was such a surprise when the invite came from the friend I used to travel to Margaree with to spend the weekend there. I had a four-day weekend coming up for the civic holiday in August and I had a desire to get out of town and spend some time in the country. And that's exactly what I did.
We left early that Friday morning and headed straight for Inverness Beach before checking into the old farmhouse that would be home-away-from-home for 3 days. It was supposed to be off and on rain showers all weekend with Friday afternoon being the only time that looked decent enough to enjoy some time at the beach. The water was lovely...warm and calm as it often is on the west coast of Cape Breton. However, it was windy and probably not the best day to try and set up my new beach tent! Let's just say it didn't stay in one place like it should have!
It didn't rain although the sky threatened to at times. I was just happy to have been able to go for a refreshing dip in the clear, warm water of Inverness Beach followed by a long walk in the surf along that long stretch of coastline.
Nightfall comes sooner in mid-summer so we left the beach around 5:30 to get back to the house and unpack before dark. With our chores complete and some reheated leftover pizza in our bellies, we settled in to relax for the evening.
The next day was a mixed bag of weather so it was hard to decide what to do. We drove to Inverness to do some thrift store shopping at The Closet. I was surprised to find quite a few things in that tiny shop.
Next, we drove to Cheticamp intending to hike the Salmon Pools Trail in the Cape Breton Highlands National Park. We attempted this hike a few years ago and had to turn around due to bad weather. We hoped to finish it this time around but that was not to be. The moment I turned the car off in the parking lot, the rain started. We drove back to town and stopped for our traditional ice cream at LeBlanc's General Store (I had the Blackberry Cheesecake ice cream, of course).
When we exited the store, the rain had stopped and a crowd was gathering along the road. Curious as to what was going on, we asked someone passing by. "There's a big parade at 2 and they'll be closing this road very soon." We could have taken the Cheticamp Back Road to get back to Cap LeMoine but instead, we decided to stay right where we were and watch the parade.
The parade was part of the Festival de l'Escaouette and for a small place, I was surprised at how many floats there were! It was nice to see all the families out with their little ones, smiling and waving and having a good time.
Back at the house that evening, the skies threatened rain and thunderstorms. The barbecue we had planned was postponed so we stayed indoors and tried our hands at some virtual reality. I'm not a video game person by any means but I always wanted to try this. I donned some futuristic-looking headgear and raced my Corvette through the streets of some ancient city in Italy. It was interesting. I admit it was easy to get caught up in the realistic feel of it and at times, I felt like I was actually behind the wheel! It was fun for a short time but not something I could see myself getting hooked on or doing on sunny days that are best spent outdoors.
My last day in the Margaree area was again under threatening skies. It was too cold and windy to head to Inverness for some swimming and too close to rain to do much hiking so we went to Cheticamp and got some coffee and sat on the beach on Cheticamp Island for a while before heading to Le Gabriel for our traditional yearly feed of French Onion Soup and Nachos.
The weather may not have been great but it wasn't the worst part about the entire weekend; the worst part is always the moment we have to say our goodbyes and hit the road for the long drive home. But boy, it was nice to be back up there again!
No comments:
Post a Comment