Maritimes
Tuesday, July 29, 2003 - Quebec
We left a little later than planned, 9:25 am, on a sunny 22°C day, heading for Montreal. We reached Montreal at about 11:30, running across the top, along A-40, previously called Cote de Liesse, until we reached the east end where we turned south along A-25 under the St. Lawrence via the St. Hyppolyte tunnel to A-20. Clear sailing along the A-20 to reach Quebec at 2 pm.
I drove from Ottawa until just past Drummondville in the Eastern Townships. Then Carol took us past Quebec City until just before Rivière du Loup. Then I took over again and took us through Trois Pistoles. As we could not find the famous dog racing track, we went on to Rimouski, our intended stopping place. We arrived at 5 pm sharp and headed for our intended hotel, the Hotel Rimouski.
The hotel is right in the heart of
downtown Rimouski, on the boardwalk, on the great Fleuve St.
Laurent. As all good Canadians know, a fleuve is a river that runs
into the sea, and here the river is so wide you can almost not see
the other shore, and whales frolic in it (unfortunately we did not
see any). The boardwalk is actually concrete instead of wood and it
is also the breakwater that protects the shore from the tidal and
storm effects of the river.
The town/city is very up to date and civilized. The boardwalk consists of an 8 foot wide pedestrian way along the river, then an 8 foot wide bicycle path with a strictly obeyed yellow line separating the two directions and then a 4 lane divided roadway for cars. There are no bicycles on the roadway or on the pedestrian path. Only some in-line skaters shifted between the pedestrian path and the bicycle path as suited their mood (and speed). Ottawa could learn from this!
A short part of the path was a real wooden boardwalk, with a two-level metal ship-like infrastructure, so you could pretend you were ship-board on the river and go up to the second level for a better view. Very nicely done. After an hour walk along this boardwalk, we went back to the hotel for dinner, as they appeared to have an elegant dining room.
We alternated between being English-speaking only tourists and high-school French-speaking Ontarians, and were treated well in either language. The table was set with a linen tablecloth and linen napkins, and as soon as we were shown to our table, our candle was lit. They had an extensive wine list, so we chose a familiar Cote du Rhone, specifically a Cote Ventoux from Orange, France, La Vieille Ferme 2002, a little young, but familiar.
Carol started with a Roasted Goat Cheese Salad and then some Pork Tenderloins stuffed with Spinach and covered with a Shepherd Sauce (Sauce Berger - pardon my translation). I had the soup du jour followed by a good sized lobster which I had to pick out myself from the tank, to be carted out to the kitchen to be steamed and served with garlic butter.
It was about 1-3/4 pounds and Carol was surprised I was still eating when she was finished, but my Maine coast training in my 20s led me to efficiently get through the body, tail, claws and legs, with no knuckles left untouched.
I'm only slightly embarrassed to admit that our meal bill exceeded our accommodation bill, but after a normal simple breakfast at home, we had only a shared apple for lunch. Before I sign off, I have to tell you about a great new feature of this hotel. They have a jack on the phone in the room and instructions on how to use it to browse the internet by dialing an in-hotel number, giving a hotel userid and password and then doing your thing for 10 cents a minute. It worked like a charm!
Wednesday, 30 July 2003 - New Brunswick
We left Rimouski at 8:45, 17°C, overcast with a little sun peaking through. Drove along the boardwalk and now, due to a little early morning fog, you really could not see the other shore of the Saint Lawrence. We followed the river to St. Flavie and then headed south to stop at Mont Joli for a quick breakfast at McDonalds.
Then we followed a river down to Lake Matepedia, and then the Matepedia River right through the valley to the border with New Brunswick. This is a beautiful valley and we enjoyed the drive. After we crossed the border, from Quebec to New Brunswick, over the Patepedia River, we lost an hour by entering Atlantic Time. We spent some time rummaging through the town of Campbellton for a while and then took the fast road to Miramichi and then on to Shediac. Shediac was quite tacky, a typical seaside tourist trap. We even witnessed a silly fender bender right in front of us as one car stopped to pull into a restaurant and another, a tourist, ran right into her backend.
We stopped for a quick snack of lobster roll and fried clams and decided to leave right away. We headed for the Confederation Bridge and entered PEI. We had planned to go to Summerside and stayed there for the night. We wandered around the harbourfront, checking out their boardwalk and many little tourist shops and the Jubilee Theatre.
We decided to go back to the motel restaurant for a late supper of pan fried island scallops. Fresh scallops and tasty, a cheerful student waitress, but not a place you would go back to.
That night we tried to catch the Mick Jagger performance in Toronto, at 11 pm Atlantic time (10 pm Eastern). It seemed better covered on CNN than on CBC, not sure why.
Thursday, 31 July 2003 - Prince Edward Island
Today, we left 9:42 am, 21°C, cloudy at 7 am, but sun breaking through by 8:30 am. Another lovely day.
We started by checking out the federal GST processing centre, as Carol had been involved in setting it up 6 or 7 years ago while at Revenue Canada, but had never seen it. Boring building. Then we headed out to Cavendish Beach to dip our toes in the Atlantic, having passed up the warmest beach in the Maritimes at Shediac, yesterday. A much better ambiance! Well, this water is not at all like Acapulco! Very invigorating, but we did not get beyond our knees. Outside temperature was 25°C and sunny, but I would not hazard a guess at the water temperature.
We did quite a bit of walking, but Carol still tires quickly from the chemo she had only a week ago. We didn't stay too long and after some picture taking, headed off to Charlottetown. We went through the building where Confederation took place in 1867 and walked down the various streets of old Charlottetown to the harbour and some of the trendy shops and old homes.
Our goal is still Nova Scotia, so we set off for the ferry at Wood
Island in time to catch the 3:30 pm. We got there at 2:55, as we
had been told to get there 30 minutes before, but alas, we were
told it was unlikely we would get on. They were right and we got on
the 5 pm one instead. Carol gets impatient, but I took quite a few
photographs of new modern lobster pots, rectangular not rounded on
top. Also of light houses and lobster boats and many little
individual fisherman houses.
The ferry ride was pleasant, warm and sunny and smooth blue water across the Northumberland Straight to Caribou, Nova Scotia. Since we got there at 6:30 pm, beyond the time we normally check-in, we headed immediately for our motel, a very nice Country Inn and Suites in New Glasgow, NS.
Imagine my surprise as we were greeted in the lobby by a sign stating "free wireless internet", and there we were with a wireless equipped laptop! As soon as we got to the room I opened it up and, presto, we were connected, nothing to do just open the browser and we were on, no fee, no password, no magic codes, nothing.
However, I was not allowed to continue, as we had to go out to eat. The people in the lobby directed us to the Crofter's Steak and Seafood Restaurant, just a few blocks and turns away, on Stellarton Road, in New Glasgow, in Pictou county. Did I neglect to mention that Carol's father was born in New Glasgow and lived for a while in next door Stellarton?
Carol opted for the Pan Fried Haddock, while I went for the Sirloin Steak and Baked Scallops. Both were good and we washed it down with a grown and made in Nova Scotia red wine, from the award winning Jost winery that neither of us had ever heard of. It was fine from my perspective, but probably would not get imported to the LCBO in Ontario any time soon.
Friday, August 1 to Monday August 4, 2003 - Cape Breton, Nova Scotia
Not to bore you with our detailed itinerary, let us just say that
we spent quite a bit of time over this long weekend visiting the
ex-mining towns of Sidney, Glace Bay, Donkin, Port Morien, Dominion
and New Waterford NS. There are no mines left except one used only
for tourist purposes at the Mining Museum in Glace Bay. We visited
the Museum but passed on the shaft. All of the coal mines here are
actually under the ocean; the shaft goes down on land and then the
tunnels (and mine faces) are all under the Atlantic.
We spent a bit of time in Donkin at the post office, and at the public library, finding out about the origin of the name of the town. It turns out that the mine was called merely Dominion Coal Co. #6, and when the people living there (in company owned houses) wanted a name for their community, the mining company proposed 3 names, and Donkin was chosen as a Hiram Donkin was the then general manager of mine #6.
Also part of the history of the area, a certain Guglielmo Marconi
of Italy, built a large transmitter with Canadian government money
on a high cliff overlooking the Atlantic, in "direct line of sight"
of Britain, called Table Head, in Glace Bay. In 1902 he succeeded
in sending the first west to east wireless transmission across the
Atlantic, putting the fear of doom into the owners of the undersea
cables used for overseas telegraphy until then. He later built a
larger antenna/transmitter at nearby Port Morien. Nothing remains
of any of this except another museum in Glace Bay.
Alexander Graham Bell, of Badddeck, encouraged Mr. Marconi and offered him use of his Cape Breton house. We visited the A.G. Bell Museum in the beautiful Baddeck area, which is very well done and very interesting. This is where A.G. Bell spent the money earned from his telephone riches, building a large home on this huge inland salt water lake called Lake Bras d'Or. He also experimented with flight and hydrofoil boats. It was on this lake (while frozen, in winter) that his Silver Dart first took off and flew.
Back in New Glasgow and Stellarton, no signs of coal mining remain except the remains of a steam powered bucket type pump installed in the late 1880s after a mine explosion flooded the mines with nearby river water. The other signs were the many streets of identical semi-detached wooden houses which were the original company owned miner's houses. We took pictures of four of them, all different colours now and with different "improvements, but unmistakably the same.
Having completed our historical pursuits, we decided to head for a more urban environment and went to Halifax for what we call the August Civic holiday, but here in Halifax they call Natal Day in honour of the birth of Halifax and Dartmouth. After a week of great sunny and warm weather wherever we went, shortly after our walk along the Halifax waterfront, the Historic Properties and the Bluenose II, it started to rain at about 5 pm. When we checked to Weather Channel, it told us we could expect rain every day for the next 7 days. They may be wrong.
We decided on going for a great meal at a restaurant we had heard of called 44 North. They have an adjoining bar named 63 West, so you nautical types will know exactly where we are. We were not disappointed! Carol had Haddock wrapped in a Banana Leaf with Thai Curry Sauce and I had Lobster, Scallop, Mussel and Shrimp on Garlic Mashed Potatoes with a Tomato Sauce and Chili Aioli. This was fine dining, and all while overlooking the harbour in the rain and fog, both of which cleared up by 8:30 pm. Then another walk along the harbour, avoiding the puddles.
Tuesday, August 5, 2003 - South Shore, NS
After a decadent late hot buffet breakfast at the Casino, we set
off in the pouring rain, taking the small coastal roads along the
Atlantic shores south of Halifax. We got absolutely soaked just
getting out of the car to take a few pictures (the traditional
ones) at Peggy's Cove. Then we headed further south to stop at
Chester, a trendy little harbour with urban tastes. We opted for a
pair of capuccinos (due capuccini) and some local baked goods. The
rain continued.
Our next stop was Mahone Bay, also trendy, but with a more artistic and less urban flair. Now, in addition to the rain, we had a heavy fog which gave everything an ethereal feel, suitable for an artistic town. Everywhere we went, we saw people lining up outside various churches where election polling stations had been set up. The ones we saw were braving the fairly heavy rain, but how many chose to stay home rather than vote?
In spite of rain jackets and umbrellas, we were soaking wet and certainly not drying off, so we passed up on Lunenberg and took the fast road back to Halifax. On TV we just saw Premier John Hamm cast his ballot at his home town of Stellarton, at a firehall we had stopped at last weekend. Tonight we may spend a few minutes watching the returns. The few we asked said they would vote for Hamm, but on the road, the PC signs were heavily outnumbered by Liberal and NDP signs. Everyone expects it to be close.
Supper was at the Sweet Basil. Carol had Pork Tenderloin with Calvados and Spiced Apple, while I had the special, Grilled Halibut with a Cinnamon Sauce. The ambiance was very good and the waitress excellent. The food was good, and with excellent presentation, but just did not rise up to the excellence we encountered last night. I would go back to the 44 North anytime, for the food, but Carol would go again to the Sweet Basil for its ambiance. Not me. We walked over during a break in the rain, but had to use our umbrella for the return walk.
The election results are in now. Pretty close, but John Hamm will have to settle for a minority government. At 10 pm, PC 25, NDP 15, Liberal 12. But Rod MacDonald won for the PCs in Inverness.
Wednesday August 6th, 2003 - Halifax to Digby, NS
Another buffet breakfast at the Casino, and then over to the Citadel Hill, for a view of the Town Clock, St. Paul's Anglican Church and then left Halifax for Digby at noon, 23°C and very foggy! We alternated between sunshine and rain for most of this drive, but Digby was in beautiful sunshine and the temperature hit a muggy 29°. We had planned to take the ferry to St. John, NB the following day on the noon ferry, but it was fully booked, so we had a choice of 4 am in the morning or go tonight at 7:30 pm. Not being early birds, we chose to leave the same day and spent the afternoon exploring Digby. We arrived in the middle of their "Scallop Days" Festival, and every restaurant in the town had scallops on their menus, including the fast food chains that don't normally serve scallops. We also toured the main pier, although the scallop fleet was out and would not return for another two days.
The boats left behind, the salt harbour smells, the seagulls and
the frenetic activity made the pier quite interesting and
photogenic. The huge building at the root of the pier was the
processing plant for O'Neil Fisheries, who specialize in, of
course, the famous Digby scallops. They told us they will happily
send us fresh scallops for next day delivery anywhere in Canada.
Hence they can ship scallops fresh or frozen, and lobsters live or
cooked. Their web site is
interesting, their toll-free number is 1-866-245-6528 and to order by
e-mail is another possibility.
Right at the edge of this processing plant, built in to it, is a tiny little restaurant that serves super fresh scallops (or other seafood that they catch). It is staffed by young, cheerful, enthusiastic and knowledgeable employees who will cook up whatever you desire. Carol had pan-fried scallops and I tried the "scallopburger". Both were delicious. We may well take advantage of their mail order scallop offer. You may see their frozen products under the Royal Fundy brand label at your local supermarket.
Right after supper, we headed for the ferry terminal and we boarded at 7:15 but the ferry did not set sail until 8 pm. We arrived in St. John at 11 pm, in darkness and heavy fog. We slowly crept along, following the right streets and signs to our scheduled motel until we missed one sign and ended up in a dead end street where a police car was parked. We asked him for directions and he generously offered to drive there so we could follow. After thanking him, we told the motel clerk we had had a police escort (although without sirens) and he was astonished, telling us that they regularly lay in wait to harass him and give him tickets and never thought of them ever helping anyone. Perhaps the advantage of out of province licence plates and a polite question in the heavy fog.
Thursday, August 7th, 2003 - Saint John, NB
In the morning we checked out the Reversing Falls, but gave a pass to the Tidal Bore and the Magnetic Hill. Then we set off to Saint Stephen's. Again, we had a mixture of rain, fog and sunshine, but it was sunny when we got to St Stephen's and we opted for a tour of the Ganong Chocolate Factory. We did not know we needed tickets to get in and that all the tickets for the day were sold out, but a family from Boston had bought a bunch of tickets over the internet from Boston and several of their party had dropped out. They very nicely offered us two tickets and we were on the noon tour. We had to wear hairnets and remove all watches and jewelry, and not touch any product, but, at the end of the tour, you could eat all the product you wanted! The employees are under the same rules, they are not allowed to eat anything on the line, but they can eat all the product they want on their breaks in a special room. The portly guide told us this as she patted her stomach.
The next step was a slow crawl through downtown St Stephen's in a long line to get through customs on the bridge to the US, Calais, Maine (pronounced callous). It took us 45 minutes, and then after a brief tour of Calais, we were off on the road to Bangor, Maine. We decided to stop early and we spent some time at the Bangor Mall before finding a place for supper and early to bed. We did not buy anything and ended up at an Olive Garden for their standard italian fare. Better than pizza, but not like our Ritz on Elgin or Mamma Teresa on Somerset.
Friday, August 8th, 2003 - Maine, New Hampshire and Vermont
We left Bangor at 10:15 am after good bagels and coffee for breakfast in a light rain at 71°F (22°C). Although starting off on I-95 South, we soon followed two lane highway 2 across northern Maine to the White Mountains of New Hampshire and then the Green Mountains of Vermont. At St. Johnsbury, Vermont we hopped onto I-91 and headed north. About 5 miles south of the Quebec border we noticed the ROAM light on the cellphone went off and realized that Verizon's wireless service was obviously not very strong up here and Bell Canada was reaching down quite far. We placed several calls to Ottawa and Montreal and prepared for customs and immigration at Stanstead, Quebec.
Customs was very smooth and fast, and I-91 turned into A-55, leading quickly to A-10 at Magog. We had heavy rain and some thunder and lightning displays. The real delay came at the approach to the Champlain Bridge on Montreal's south shore. We spent more than an hour inching along two miles of A-10 before picking up the pace again on the bridge. We reached my sister's after 6 pm, where my brother and brother-in-law were also waiting. For two hours we were treated to champagne, various cheeses and catching up. We left Montreal at 8 and got home in Ottawa by 10. Quite a long day, but good.
Summary
The whole trip covered 4,340 km (2,696 miles) in 59 hour 37 min of driving time over a period of 11 days.
August, 2003.
