Camping in the Cape Breton Highlands National Park After a Two-year Absence...Some Peace at Last!

Covid-19 certainly did a number on everyone's life, including mine. The summer of 2020 was a hard one for me.  Covid hit my finances and mental health pretty hard and I was looking forward to an escape from it all.  Unfortunately, that didn't happen the way I would have liked.   

My ultimate escape when I want to get away from it all is to pack up the car with my camping gear and head to Broad Cove in the Cape Breton Highlands National Park.  I've been going there since I was a kid and I always set up my tent at the exact same spot every year, lot 87.  

When Covid hit here in March, there were lockdowns for months. Even the provincial park beach where I take my daily walk was closed down to the public so I had to find another place to walk.  When it reopened in the late spring, things looked like they might be improving so I started to make plans for my annual camping trip.  However, later in the summer when closures were still in effect and many restrictions were still in place, I decided to cancel those plans on the advice of authorities to stick around my community unless it was necessary to leave. It was the first summer in 30 years that I didn't make it to Broad Cove. 

The arrival of summer 2021 was looking much better since many restrictions were lifted and most things were opened up again.  When I heard that campgrounds were expected to be booked solid all summer because everyone was wanting to get away for the first time in almost two years, I started monitoring the booking site for an opening.  Because I was working Monday to Friday in the evening, I had to book for a Saturday morning to get the most out of a camping trip. I found an opening on a weekend mid-summer.  Unfortunately, my usual site, which is almost like a second home to me, was not available so I had to settle for another one.  Luckily, it was a nice one not too far away from my original site.

The campground was just as I had left it two years before and I felt all the weight of the world fall from my shoulders as I drove along the gravel road to my familiar home-away-from-home.  A day and night in the woods surrounded by nature was exactly what I needed to unwind and get my head on straight again before heading back to the real world that's still dealing with this dreadful pandemic.

I set up camp, I dined outdoors on a picnic table with a friendly squirrel, I sat in my beach chair under a clear, starry night. I read in my tent by candlelight and I fell asleep to the sound of waves rolling ashore and leaves rustling in a gentle breeze. I awoke early in the morning and ate breakfast surrounded by 5 AM morning dew, ordered a fresh coffee from my favourite coffee shop, The Bean Barn Cafe, and savoured it on the banks of Freshwater Lake near Ingonish Beach. 

After I took down my tent and checked out, I spent the day swimming, hiking and visiting my favourite spots around Ingonish.  Maryanne Falls, Warren Lake, Black Brook, North Bay Beach, The Point.  It was dark when I headed back over Cape Smokey and made the long drive home along the North Shore.  About a dozen cars whizzed past me (some passing on double lines going well over the speed limit) in the race to get to the Englishtown Ferry.  Some things never change!

 

A Year of Firsts...Firsts for Missing Out!

The Covid-19 pandemic certainly messed up everything for everyone!  Things are slowly starting to get back to normal here on Cape Breton Island but this past summer was a strange one for me.  It was the summer of "missing out" as I call it.  This is because many of the things that I do every didn't happened.

I was celebrating a big Christmas gathering with friends at our community hall when I first heard about the Corona Virus. No one was taking it seriously back than.  In fact, jokes were being mage about it.  We hugged and sat close to one another at the table. We gathered around a letter that arrived in the mail from Louis in Portugal who had found my father's message in a bottle on a beach in the Azores. We gathered closely around the tree as the children opened their presents. Little did I know it would be my last such gathering for a very long time.   

While enjoying all my usual activities in the summer of 2019, there was no indication of what was to come in just a few short months and how it would upend the lives of everyone around the world.  How we take things for granted when the unknown is lurking in the shadows waiting to pounce on the unsuspecting. I have a lot of catching up to do when this is all over!

My whole life, I've had a strong connection to the Fortress of Louisbourg.  My mother worked there as a guide in the 70s and I have French-Acadian heritage on her side of the family.  Every single year, 39 years straight, I visited the fortress at least once. As a child, I ran around the open grounds of the courtyard, hung out with the farm animals and climbed the fortress walls.  Although I hated the sound of the cannon firings, I looked forward to this part of my visits when I got older.  Sometimes I went to the fortress several times a year but always tried to get there for the Fete de St. Louis Day where they had 18th century military demonstrations and old fashioned fireworks similar to what was used during that period. Recently, I had been attending the Canada Day festivities every year. It's been two years since I've been there. 

The Fortress of Louisbourg, Cape Breton, Nova Scotia

 

 

 

 Baddeck is my kind of town and one that I always visit numerous times each summer but I didn't even drive through it this year.  It didn't occur to me until the end of the season that I hadn't been there.  I was working all summer and was always in a hurry to get to the beaches on the west coast so I bypassed the exit to the pretty little town on several occasions. I was only able to travel around the island on weekends and the idea of trying to navigate the large crowds that congregate in Baddeck on summer days kept me away.  The monthly festival that had been taking place for the past few summers didn't take place this year so that was another reason I never went.    

 

 

Every fall since I moved back home in 2011, there's one event I look forward to all year round and that's the Celtic Colours International Festival.  The concerts, the guided hikes, the markets, the galleries, the community meals.....how I miss all of these things!  Sure, I can watch the festival online, but it's just not the same as being there in person.  

Even my trips to the Cape Breton Highlands National Park were scaled back this year.  I usually make a trip up there at least once every two weeks.  I only went once this summer and once just a few weeks ago when the leaves were changing colour. I can't imagine a year without going to the Cape Breton Highlands; of all the places on Cape Breton Island, that's my number one favourite area. Cape Breton weather can be hit or miss and it was a bit of a miss this year with most of the rain and adverse weather happening on weekends, which happened to be the only time I could go anywhere. 

Visits from family who live away, missed events and festivals and two years spent mostly close to home.  Once someone who used to love going on multiple road trips a week, I'm now used to staying close to home and have learned to love the things my own backyard has to offer.  With the price of gas, this's probably best.  My older, high-mileage Hyundai is certainly appreciating the break!  

Despite missing out on some yearly traditions, I found new places to explore around Cape Breton, Nova Scotia, ate at some new places, spent lots of time with family and dreamed of a future free of this virus so I can get back on the road....exploring near and far and not caring about whether or not I'm standing six feet away from a stranger or if I forget my mask in the car.  Well actually, I might hold on to the mask. I haven't had a cold or any sickness since the pandemic began!

The old railbed that passes near a trail in Gardiner Mines, Cape Breton Island.

It's a Year Into this S**t Show...How's Everyone Doing?

Since the start of this pandemic, I've been cursing it and everything negative it caused.  The isolation, the not being able to see friends and family due to the travel ban and Canadian Travel restrictions, the loss of work, the loss of money, the not being able to travel due to travel restrictions and the constant bombardment of Covid-19 this and Covid-19 that.

Yes, it's been rough in so many ways, but I'm starting to see the good that has come out of it.  It's been almost a year since the lockdowns, isolation and mass covid travel restrictions became a part of everyday life.  The first few weeks was a constant string of bad news.  First my beloved cat Captain Jack passed away followed by the news that the project I was working on was stopping along with my income.  Than the worse shooting in Canadian history right here in my quiet, peaceful home province of Nova Scotia.  All this combined with the bad news coming from all corners of the world made me anxious and even depressed.  

As the months passed, there were ups and downs, goods and bads and all sorts of emotions and hurdles and new developments.  But it's only recently that I've started to realize that, despite all the bad, some really good things came out of all this. I should have seen it earlier.  I should have embraced those doors that were opening up to me.  I should have appreciated the things that were transpiring.  But my eyes were closed and my brain was focused on the changes, the losses, this new normal that wasn't at all normal...at least not the normal I was used to.  But who defines normal anyway 

I feel like I've been more fortunate than a lot of people on one front.  While many people I know were upset because they couldn't visit restaurants, bars and movie theatres anymore, nothing changed for me.  I don't go to any of those places often anyway.  I am an outdoors person. I will pick a picnic in the woods or a hike along the shore over a restaurant meal or movie theater outing any day! 

I don't know when it hit. I don't it hit all at once. It was a gradual thing.  I started to lighten up a bit, think a little more positively and that's when things started happening.  Or maybe it was me just becoming so comfortable with all the negativity around me that It started feeling normal enough for me to start thinking straight again.  Sounds weird but everything is weird these days.  I still can't make any sense out of anything anymore but at least, I am moving forward in some way and I'm not in the very dark place I was a few months ago. Loss of employment and sense of purpose will do that to a person...but a new-found purpose can do wonders for a person.  

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I'm currently freelancing full-time now.  No, I'm not getting rich of it.  Not even close.  But, I'm doing something I love, I'm filling my time with purposeful work and I'm making enough to get by.  I also must say that I am quite proud of myself for remaining independent and for being resourceful.  Not many people can say that they have a talent outside of their regular work that they can use in a pinch to survive.  I feel very grateful for that.  My writing was once a hobby but now it's a lifeline!  So many new doors have opened up, many new connections have been made and I've learned so many new things!  The best thing is I'm still writing about travel despite the mass travel restrictions.  While I'm not writing about my own travel since I'm under Canadian travel restrictions, I'm writing travel content for other sites.  In my free time, I take courses and work on my social media channels and, from time-to-time, I write a blog filled with updates that will soon turn onto blogs about my own travels. Hoping  we can return to normal soon as I have many trips and adventures planned once the travel ban is lifted!

As for current adventures, we finally got enough snow here so I could get a day of snowshoeing in.  I Don't know how long the snow will last with all the rain and freezing rain we seem to get in the winters now but if I get out once, that's better than nothing since I didn't get out at all last year.  I stay pretty close to home for the most part though.  Every few days, I'll walk at Dominion Beach to see if any new and interesting debris washed up and to visit my friends the foxes, seals and eagles.  I'm itching to go further and do more but until Covid takes a hike, I'm content getting some things done around home! That's one good thing about the travel restrictions - I'm spending time completing some projects around home that I would otherwise not get to!

The Year that The World Will Remember...and Try to Forget

It's here.  Christmas has arrived after a turbulent year that seemed like it would never end.  One more week left of the dreadful year 2020.  It wasn't a good start to a new decade and I know I'm hoping that shaky start isn't a bad omen of what lies ahead for the future.  

I think it's safe to say that not one person on earth has escaped the year 2020 without being negatively impacted by it in some way.  For me, I can say that it has been a tremendously stressful year.  Mentally, physically, emotionally and financially.  On a personal level, I've experienced loss of work, loss of income, financial hardship and the loss of my beloved companion, my 16-year-old cat Captain Jack.  Local lockdowns in my area resulted in a very lonely period during the early months of Covid. I live alone so not having close contact with anyone for months took its toll.  On top of all that, I am missing some people this Holiday Season who won't be able to travel home.

So that's my experience on a personal level. On a geographic level, my home province of Nova Scotia (where I currently live) suffered tremendous loss this year.  I mourned along with the rest of my province and country after a madman went on a rampage and murdered 22 innocent people in what is now known as Canada's worse mass killings in history. A Canadian military helicopter crash in Greece that took the lives of six people including two from Nova Scotia and a Canada Snowbirds crash that took the life of a young woman from the province occurred around the same time, adding more pain to my already heartbroken province.  And just this month, another tragedy when a scallop dragger capsized in the Bay of Fundy, leaving six families and a province still recovering from the previous tragedies, to mourn the loss of six men lost at sea. 

 If I look at the past year on a global level, the impact of 2020 on the world paints an even clearer picture of the year's impact on humanity. Over one million people dead as Covid-19 sweeps across almost every continent on earth.  Hospitals overwhelmed by equipment and bed shortages, massive shutdowns of world economies and businesses struggling to keep afloat. Then we have widespread deadly protests and a tense presidential election in the United States.  Add a massive explosion in Beirut, catastrophic bush fires in Australia and the western United States  and countless celebrity deaths (Kobe Bryant, Alex Trebek, Van Halen to name a few) to the list and, yup, it was a pretty hard year for us all.  Almost apocalyptic you could say. Certainly, one that will go down in history!  

For me, one of the things that is really bothering me is the division I see happening in my own country.  West vs. east, conservative vs. liberal, pro-mask vs. anti-mask, black vs. white.  Why can't we all just get along!  

But there's been some good in 2020.  I think collectively, most people have realized how important the things they once took for granted are.  Lockdowns meant families got to spend more time together.  I witnessed more and more people spending time outdoors instead of sitting in front of their TV's.  Children started spending more time outdoors too.  Materialism took a backseat.  Because many of us are broke, we had no choice but to appreciate what we already have instead of focusing on what we want and can no longer have.  

Here in Cape Breton, we had our own historic municipal election that saw a woman elected as mayor for the first time.  I'm divided on whether the discovery of the vaccine is a good or bad thing at the moment but time will tell on that one.  Certainly it's a good thing if it will curb the virus. However, for me personally, I'm a little worried about potential side effects of a vaccine that was developed so quickly.  I'm also worried about forced vaccinations and the possibility that anyone who either refuses it or is unable to get it will lose some of the freedoms they are used to.  I'm not against vaccines.  I will likely get it down the road if it's available and has been proven to be safe.

As I write this, my town is not under lockdown but there are some restrictions on Christmas gatherings. Further west in the country, residents are not so lucky. The virus is still spreading like wildfire in some provinces and Christmas will be much different than what they're used to.  It is my hope that everyone will try to have the best Christmas they can.  

I'm hopeful for a better year ahead in 2021. If we beat this virus and get back to normal, imagine the celebrations we'll have this time next year.  We have a lot to make up for! 

We will get back to normal one day soon.  It'll take time and effort on everyone's part but we will get to that light at the end of the tunnel.  But we will also never forget the year that was 2020.  So with that said, I want to wish everyone a very Merry Christmas and Happy Holidays....and wishes for a better year in 2021!   For everyone, for the whole world.  This is the first time in our lifetimes that an event has affected every single person on the planet.  We got in this together...now we have to get out of it together.

The Fortress of Louisbourg - A Must see on Cape Breton Island

The Fortress of Louisbourg is quite a distance away from the Cabot Trail but it's just as much an absolute must-see for anyone visiting Cape Breton Island.  I've gone to the fortress at least once every year since I was born.  I have a family connection to the Fortress since my mother worked there for quite a few years and I have French ancestry.  Although Covid-19 prevented me from getting out to the fortress so far (summer is not over yet!), I miss it and not getting there will leave a huge void in my summer plans.

The grounds features a reconstructed 18th-century French fortress and the site saw two major battles in the 1700s. Although only a small fraction of the original fortress was reconstructed, the site today is quite impressive.  Staff in period costumes, a restaurant serving 18th-century meals and building interiors fashioned in the way they would have been almost 300 years ago.  

Throughout the year, special events are held at the fortress and occasionally, world-renowned reenactments and grand encampments are held where costumed volunteers participate in mock battles that simulate the original ones. 

A reenactment at the Fortress of Louisbourg

Participants in period costumes getting ready to go to mock battle

Staycation or Nocation...What Will it Be This Year?

I always told myself  I would take at least one international trip once a year for as long as I live.  Than the Coronavirus happened.  I live in Canada and while our situation did get fairly bad for a while, we seem to be flattening the curve.  My province wasn't doing so well for a while but in June, with the help of strict social distancing practices, we managed to get our cases down to almost zero.  My specific region only had a few cases but the regulations are the same across Nova Scotia.

For a while, it looked like I wouldn't even be able to go camping in the Cape Breton Highlands (only two hours from my house) due to the strict regulations were  in place.  However, in recent weeks, those regulations have loosened and now the four Atlantic Canadian provinces have allied together to create the Atlantic Bubble.  This means that residents of Prince Edward Island, Newfoundland, New Brunswick and Nova Scotia can travel between the four provinces without the need to self-isolate for 14 days after crossing borders.  This is good news for regional travel, not so much for those wishing to travel nationally or internationally.  I've come to terms with the reality that I won't be leaving this region anytime soon.  Most likely not even this year.  And that's fine with me. After all, I live on an island that has been voted one of the most beautiful in the world and the Maritime provinces of Canada have so much to offer in terms of scenery, culture and the great outdoors.  So instead of a no-cation this year, I'll be doing a staycation.  And honestly, it's seriously overdue.  I owe it to my own backyard to explore it more and take this opportunity to really immerse myself in the surroundings I tend to take for granted.

Many things have already opened up here and many more are due to open up in the coming weeks.  I don't have any grand plans for the summer but I plan to make the most out of it as much as possible.  Although the Atlantic Bubble would give me the opportunity to travel to the other three provinces, I plan to stay right here in Cape Breton and enjoy the summer close to home.  I'll save money, spend more time with friends and family and support locally-owned businesses.  At least one camping trip in the highlands, a day trip to Inverness and Margaree on the west coast of the island and some other day trips to closer beaches and attractions are definitely in store.  However, much of the summer will be spent right here in New Waterford where I'll spend my days catching up on some writing projects, biking to Low Point Lighthouse every morning and swimming in the refreshing waters of Dominion Beach.  If you really put your mind to it and get creative, the restrictions are really not all that bad.  Imagine the money you'll save!  When this is all over, you'll have double the amount in your travel fund if you plan accordingly.  And this will end.  And when it does, destinations around the world will be there anxiously waiting our return.  

So no matter where you are in the world, this is your opportunity to see your own backyard the way tourists do.  If strict lock downs aren't in place and things are open, get out and do what you can.  Visit local parks, admire the local scenery, visit the museums and most importantly, support local businesses because they are going to need all the help they can get to stay afloat and bounce back when this is all done.!

Missing the Road, the Sky.....Anything but these Four Walls

Knowing what you know about me and my likes and dislikes, I think it's pretty clear what I am missing during the Covid-19 pandemic.  And it's not just travel.  It's not just the fact that I can't go hiking, camping and walking on my favourite beach.  It's the loss of freedoms in general and those things fall into that category.  But yet, I am definitely missing the freedom to leave my house whenever I want and go wherever I want.  Sitting in the house watching TV and going for my daily walk around the block are not in the least bit satisfying and hardly add up to me living my best life like I was once doing.

Travel has always been a big part of my life.  I didn't have any trips planned for the near future but, because many of my trips happen at the last minute, it was always nice to know that I could just plan a trip and leave whenever I wanted.   The uncertainty surrounding Covid-19 and how it's affecting travel has taken that away from me.  The consolation I have is the fact that everyone else is in the same boat so I don't feel like I'm missing out on anything.  The world will still be there when this is over....whenever this is over.  That's the big question; when will we get back to normal and what will normal be.  I've heard every possible scenario and every single one contradicts every single other one.  Some say it will be over and we will back to normal in May.  Others have said it could be the fall.  I recently heard January is a likely outcome.  I've stopped watching the news so I have no idea where the predictions stand now and don't care to.  I'll find out when they parks reopen, international flights start up again and borders start letting people back into their countries.  It's not that I'm cold-hearted and don't care to hear anything else about the virus, it's the fact that my brain couldn't handle the information overload on top of everything else going on that I have no control over.  I can control my intake of news and media.

So what have I been doing to keep my toes dipped in the world of travel besides dreaming of travel.  Well, not a whole lot when it comes to actually physically traveling.  I mean, if you count taking the car around the block to prevent it from seizing up, venturing to my back step for afternoon tea, going to the grocery store and walking around the neighborhood travel-related, than sure, I've been on many grand adventures in the last few months.

I have done a lot of research into some potential destinations I'd like to visit when the world flips back to its old self.  I've gone on a few virtual holidays.  Not the same thing, but hey, it's better than nothing.  It's an escape from looking at the four walls of my living room.  I've read some travel books and I even wrote some of my own travel stories.  I went back and looked at all my old travel photos and memories so I could remind myself that this is all just temporary and I'll be back on the road and in the sky once again someday soon.  I can't say I haven't been productive with all the free time I suddenly have.

I've also been catching up on some of my own writing projects I didn't have time to work on before.  I'm doing some online courses in the travel industry to become more familiar with the business side of tourism and have been brainstorming some new ideas for articles I can work on over the summer.  I might not be traveling but I can certainly put some new twists on some old adventures and write about some things I never had the chance to write about before or never thought of writing about before.

That being said, I'm left wondering about the future of both travel and travel-writing.  I can't imagine a world without either of these things.  We really do need to get this world back in shape!

For now, I'll just hang on and keep thinking about future trips I would like to take and keep hoping things go back to normal sooner than later so we can all get back out there and continue exploring this beautiful world of ours!