A Mad Dash for Ingonish

It's been a rainy, muggy summer here in Cape Breton.  I mean, yes, we had some sun but mostly on days when I was inside an air-conditioned building at work wishing I was at the beach or camping under the stars.  Even when nice weather happened on the weekend, it was rarely two days in a row which made it hard to enjoy a dry, sunny camping trip that didn't involve either setting up in the rain or waking up in the morning to rain. 

So, last weekend, I came up with an idea.  Thursday evening was forecast to be very nice, Friday was forecast to be nice, Saturday's forecast was rain.  I originally planned to go camping in Ingonish on Friday into Saturday but I hate camping in heavy rain and having to take a wet tent and gear home. I'm off work on Fridays.  So I decided I would leave work at 4:30 on Thursday and drive the 2.5 hours to my favorite campsite and leave later on Friday when it was still dry.  And it turned out perfectly!

I didn't even stop at home on the way, just pulled out of the parking lot at work and drove straight to Ingonish, only stopping for gas.  My plan was to get there in time to set up and be all ready for the night before the sun went down.  Traffic was light and there was no lineup at the Englishtown Ferry. I made it just in time!

With the tent set up, my bed made and everything in it's place, I took a drive down to the point which is about five minutes away from my campsite at Broad Cove, and watched the moon come up while enjoying my coffee.  

Back at my site, I got out my beach chair and set up in a dark corner of the lot and cracked open a beer and waited for the lunar eclipse that would take place later that evening.  When I waited long enough and nothing happened, I went for a walk around the campground.  When I returned, a little piece of the moon was missing.  I got comfortable in my chair and watched the night sky for hours. And the night couldn't have been any more perfect.  It was very warm with no wind, no flies and no clouds. 

When the moon first came up, it was no bright, it was almost like daytime. It was beautiful shining through those tall trees surrounding me! As more of the moon slowly disappeared, it got darker and darker until I could barely see in front of me.  But that night sky!  I don't think I'd ever seen so many stars.  It was close to 1AM by the time the moon was completely covered and the campground had grown so quiet, I could only hear the distant waves washing ashore on Broad Cove Beach. Most everyone had gone to bed leaving me to admire that spectacular night sky alone and in peace and quiet.  

It was quite late when I finally retreated to my tent and the comfy bed I made.  I slept like a log.  I don't remember waking up once during the night and the temperature was prefect for sleeping outdoors.  It's strange because I usually do sleep so much better in a tent than I do in my own bed.  There's just something about the light rustle of leaves, the distant sound of waves rolling ashore and coyotes howling not too far away that lulls me into a peaceful slumber.  Likewise, there's just something about waking up to the sound of birds chirping in the trees!

I was up before 7 the next morning and quickly on my way to North Bay Beach for my morning walk while the dew on the tent dried. After I tore it all down, I headed home.  It was a quick trip but a good one!