August Long Weekend on the West Coast of Cape Breton

One of the highlights of every summer since I moved home is the long weekend in August which is usually spent in Cap LeMoine, Cape Breton.  

Back when I first started working at the place I still work at to this day, I met a good friend who had a family place on the west coast of the island and I've been in love with the area ever since the first time we went almost 15 years ago.  

The weather always seems to be nice around this time every year and this year was no exception.  The only downfall was the fire and woods ban that meant we couldn't go any hiking or venture into any wooded areas.  No big deal.  Thrift shopping, beach hopping and sunset chasing kept us busy all weekend.

The house we stayed at this year had a huge deck where we could watch sunsets and meteor showers.  We searched for the northern lights but didn't see any this year.  Just sitting out on that deck on those warm, dark nights in the country was enough for me!

We arrived late afternoon the first day and unpacked and grabbed some food in Cheticamp.  I always sleep so well in the country with the summer breeze coming in through the window and the natural sounds lulling me to sleep. 

Mornings are equally nice and that first morning, I got quite the treat when I walked out onto the deck to catch the first morning rays.  A mother deer and her fawn were grazing on the lawn when suddenly the young one got a burst of energy and started running back and forth across the lawn with mom looking on.  And yes, I did catch this on video! 

Later that day, we drove to Inverness to hit the thrift shops after stopping at the new Dancing Goat location for coffee and sweets.  We've been going to the closet for quite a few years and usually find some things but Sew Thrifty was a new one for me.  I was surprised by what I found there.  I'm very petite and have a very hard time finding pants in the right length without having to hem them or roll them up.  I found two beautiful, gently-worn pairs that day!  

After shopping, there was still plenty of daylight left to hit beautiful Inverness Beach.  Now, this part of the trip was a little disappointing.  I'm used to the beach being all sand.  On this day, there was nowhere that was untouched by rocks.  I tried my best to go in the water without hurting my feet but it was impossible.  There must have been a storm in the days before.  I was in for quite a bit and the water was beautiful but the rocks made it hard to get in and out of the water so I eventually gave up and joined my friend on the shore where she was searching for beach glass. 

We didn't stay that evening for sunset because we had a date to meet my sister and her boyfriend in Cheticamp for supper.  We met at Le Gabrielle and found a table in the lively bar area where there was some live music.  As usual, the food was delicious and I got to spend some quality time with my sister who was home at that time visiting from Alberta.  That evening, the drive back to Cap Lemoine was relaxing as the calm water twinkled under the twilight and the stars shone brightly overhead. 

The rest of the weekend was more beaches, sunsets, stargazing and scenic drives.  And then came the worst part - leaving.  But the best part is knowing that this heavenly place is only a two-hour drive away and I can come back anytime! 

 

The Wildlife of Kananaskis Country

While visiting with my sister and seeing her new-to-me place was a priority during my trip to Alberta, the mountains and scenery were a welcome bonus!  But there was something else that drew me to the remote area of Kananaskis and that's the wildlife.  "There are deer, elk, bears and bighorn sheep everywhere" was all I heard from anyone who was familiar with the region and I certainly wasn't disappointed on this trip when it came to the abundance of wildlife. 

As soon as we turned off the Trans Canada onto the Kananaskis Trail, we saw three deer and several bighorn sheep.  While unpacking, I heard stories from my sister and her partner about animal encounters in the area.  A neighbor's dog was injured in a cougar attack, a grizzly bear wandered through the backyard in broad daylight and black bears raided some nearby campsites. 

The second day I was there, I saw three black bears.  One mamma bear and her cub eating in someone's backyard and a huge black bear walking down a remote road. Later that same day as we watched from on top of a hill overlooking the golf course, a very large grizzly bear walked around an area where several golfers were teeing off nearby. I don't think they had any idea that the bear was in the area and the bear didn't seem to be bothered by the activity nearby. 

I was a little afraid to drive by myself after my sister went back to work.  There were so many animals wandering onto the road at all hours of the day, I was scared I would hit one and damage her car or one of the sheep would turn and attack the car as I tried to get by them.  Those bighorn sheep like to block traffic and honking, waving and yelling does nothing to get them to move any quicker or budge an inch so you can get by.  They move when they feel like it.  Sometimes they move and several others will run out of the woods from the other side and sometimes they turn around and look like they are going to start kicking or head bunting the car. 

Here at home, the whitetail deer either run out in front of cars or stand in the middle of the road.  They are constantly getting hit!  But in Kananaskis, the deer just stayed in the ditch nibbling on grass.  I didn't see any on the road at all.  

Grey squirrels are certainly plentiful in Kananaskis but it was there strange behavior that caught my attention.  In the mornings, the little squirrels were lined up along the highway on their hind legs and facing the sun.  Not sure why they were doing this but it was definitely a cute and funny thing to see.

Although I had seen a grizzly on the golf course, it was so far away, I couldn't get a decent picture.  I kept hoping to see another one from a safe but closer distance and I finally did get that chance.  I dropped my sister off at work and drove to the entrance of Peter Lougheed Provincial Park.  I noticed a car pulled over to the side of the road and two people with cameras looking in a grassy area.  I scanned the area looking for whatever it was that caught their attention and there it was; a large grizzly bear calmly eating some grass and making it's way across the field to a little stream. 

 

There's Nothing like a Morning Drive Through the Mountains

I knew my time with my sister would be limited as she had to return to work while I was still there. She allowed me to use her car while she was gone as long as I drove her to work in the morning and picked her up again in the afternoon.  I didn't mind that at all!  It was an excuse for me to go for a drive through the mountains with my morning coffee. 

Although I was sick with a cold, I still managed to get up at 6 AM, take some cold medicine and get an early start to the adventures of the day.  For three mornings, we left the house at 7:30, I dropped her off at work and than kept driving towards the Trans Canada Highway.  I didn't turn off onto the highway but instead pulled into the Gas Station / Tim Hortons that was located right before it.  I grabbed my breakfast and some coffee, gassed up and headed back the way I came from.  Instead of going back to homebase, I kept driving to Peter Lougheed Provincial Park.  After June 15th, you can keep driving further into the backcountry but that section of highway was closed during my visit so that was as far as I could go. 

Every morning, I'd see so much wildlife along the road.  Black bears, deer, bighorn sheep.  It wasn't until the second day that I finally saw what I had wanting to see since I got there; a grizzly bear.

I saw a grizzly on the Kananaskis Golf Course a few days earlier but it was so far away, I couldn't even get a picture of it.  This bear on this day was so close, I didn't feel safe wandering any more than a foot away from my car.  And I made sure to leave the door open too!  

The bear was wandering in a field close to the entrance of the provincial park.  Several other people were already stopped to take pictures.  The bear looked calm and content as it sniffed the ground and inched towards some trees at the edge of the field. For a few seconds, the bear sprinted and I had a chance to see just how fast these huge, powerful animals can run.  I was glad I met him like this and not on a remote trail in the forest.  

I made this drive every morning for three days but I stopped at different points-of-interest every day.  Once I stopped at Barrier Lake to sit by the water and drink my coffee, another time I drove up a road to see where it went and another time I just sat and admired the beauty of the area.  I always made it back to homebase by noon where I spent the afternoons relaxing in the backyard hammock or catching up on emails.  At 3 PM, I left to pick up my sister and from there we would head home to have supper and relax for the evening.  

 

Learn about Some of the Wildlife Species that Make Their Home in Cape Breton

Some things around Cape Breton may still be closed but Two Rivers Wildlife Park in Huntington (Mira area) is open for business!  There are dozens of animals to be seen during a walk through the park.  A cougar, otters, deer, raccoons. bobcats and coyotes to name a few.  I always make a day out of it and bring along a picnic and enjoy the rural surroundings away from the city for the day.

This adorable otter (above) is just one of the animals you'll see during your tour of the park.  A few peacocks (below) wander around on the trails as well.

Peacocks and bunny rabbits roam around like they own the place at Two Rivers Wildlife Park.  You won't be able to get close to them though because they run away when you get too close!

Finding the Fabled Marble Mountain of Cape Breton Island

The summer of 2016 is going down in history as the summer of seeing new places around my beautiful island home of Cape Breton. And one of the places I discovered was a previously-unknown-to-me swimming hole in a little village called Marble Mountain. All along, I thought the only other Marble Mountain was in Western Newfoundland but after hearing that there was such a place in Cape Breton, you know I had to go check it out. I did a little research and saw the pictures of the clear, blue water and a beautiful beach surrounded by cliffs and mountainous terrain. I had no idea where such a place could exist in Cape Breton but I wasn't all that surprised to learn it was on the Bras d'Or Lakes and in an area that I've been meaning to explore for years and never really had the chance. That chance came in Mid-August when I made an impromptu decision to head out on a mini road trip in search of the elusive Cape Breton Marble Mountain.

With the help of Google Maps, I soon had a good idea where this Marble Mountain was located but copied down some directions from just in case. I drove for almost 2 hours all the way to Whycocomagh where I found the turn off to Orangedale where Marble Mountain was said to be located. As most of you probably know, google maps doesn't let users know when a detour is in place and you will be sent off onto a rugged, old gravel, pot-holed ridden road into the unknown. Unfortunately, that is exactly what happened to me...but not right away. I made the turn off and there was the blazing orange sign telling me that a detour was in place. Nowhere on this sign did it say where the detour would take me, how long I would be rerouted for, what the condition of the road was and whether it would lead me back on the right track. And to make matters worse, I had no cell coverage and there was no one around to ask. I wanted to go swimming so badly that day so I decided to go the other way towards Port Hood instead and try to get some beach time in there. Usually Port Hood is good for swimming and I figured if it wasn't, there was always West Mabou and Inverness beaches which were also nearby.

I arrived at Port Hood around noon and took a little drive around the village. I went down a road I've never gone down before and found another section of beach I never knew existed so I checked it out. It was too crowded for my liking but perhaps a nice spot to check out again in the future. The main section of beach where I usually go wasn't to my liking that day either; too rough, too much seaweed and too rocky.

West Mabou Beach was next...and unfortunately for me, not to my liking that day either. I set up on the beach and at least tried to go in the water but it was just too rough and too murky with seaweed and debris. I love swimming in the ocean as long as I can at least semi see the bottom. I like knowing what is around me by seeing it, not by feeling it brushing up against me!

I didn't bother to go to Inverness that day as it was getting late. I decided to chance the road to Marble Mountain as a last ditch attempt to get some swimming in before dark. The detour I had avoided earlier took me onto a gravel road that wasn't in the best of shape. I drove and drove forever, only waking from my semi-consciousness brought on by boredom when I hit a pothole that was so bad I thought I would have to call a tow truck. I figured a flat would be inevitable but thankfully that didn't happen. It seemed like I was driving for hours by the time I reached the main road again. And than it felt like I was driving on that road for hours too. It felt like I was driving for so long that I began to think I took a wrong turn somewhere and soon, I realized that I didn't know where I was.

I drove for so long and it was getting so late that I succumbed to the realization that I wasn't going to find Marble Mountain that day. I was headed in the direction of Eskasoni or St. Peter's so I figured I would eventually come out near one of those places and there would be signs telling me which way to take home. I was hooking up my iPod to the car stereo and settling in for a long drive home when I saw it; a green sign with the words "Marble Mountain" on it! I pulled into a look-off on the side of the road and got out to stretch my legs and have a look below. I could see the beach from this look-off. I knew it was the right beach because it looked exactly like it did in the pictures online. After driving up and down that strip of road looking for an entrance and stopping a woman in front of her house to ask for directions, I finally found the road that lead to the beach area. I paid the three dollars (a small price to pay to finally get to cool off in the clear waters of the Bras d'Or Lakes) parked the car, got changed in one of the changing rooms and walked down to the water. There was a family enjoying an evening dip so I didn't have to swim alone. The water was absolutely beautiful. Warm and crystal clear with no seaweed or jelly fish. It was a little rocky but not too bad. I just floated on my back as they last rays of the sun started to disappear behind the hills. The air might have been cooling off, but that water seemed to be getting warmer and I had some trouble forcing myself to head back to shore. When I did, it was almost dark.

The steep hill I had to come down to get to the beach area was much harder to get up than it was to get down. I got so far and my car started to struggle and than started to slide backwards! In an instant my foot instinctively hit the gas pedal and with some effort, I finally made it to the top. Instead of backtracking the way I came and going through that dreadful detour again, I turned left and kept heading to what I was pretty sure was the St. Peters area. When I reached the sign for Dundee, I knew I was on the right track. I never really gave Dundee a second thought when passing through in the past. It's always just been that place I drive through to get to St. Peter's when I go that way. But on this drive through Dundee, I really noticed the sheer beauty of the area. Stunning. I have no idea how I didn't even notice how beautiful that area is until that night. As I got to the edge of the village area, I noticed something on the side of the road that started to move and it took me a second to realize it was two deer. A doe and a young fawn still with spots on her coat. They slowly passed in front of my car and went into the woods. A few minutes later, I spotted another deer on the side of the road.

In St. Peter's, I got a coffee for the road and headed towards Sydney via Route 4. I only got as far as the turn off to Loch Lomond where a blockade was in place with a sign pointing me in the direction of Loch Lomond, another long, gravel road in the middle of nowhere. It seemed like I was driving forever on that back road. It must have been an hour before I reached the highway again but a significant amount of traveling had been cut off my trip as I came out near Big Pond. They say things happen in three's and that night, I witnessed a 3rd deer-crossing but this time, the deer was erratically running all over the place and I nearly hit it...right in front of my father's house on the South Bar Highway!