Jul 16, 2021 | Flotsam
Our second camping adventure was even more enjoyable that the first, if that’s possible. After seeing the amazing rock formations and sea caves of the Ovens Nature Park, F bought himself a book on local geology. As it turned out this new location at Five Islands Provincial Park had so much more to offer.
Site #25
Stories of Mi’kmaq lore , combined with the world’s highest tides and rocks formed when dinosaurs roamed the earth made this trip an adventure to remember.
Five Islands
Firstly, a little background about the legendary Wabanaki god-like figure, Glooscap, who made his home in the Minas Basin of Cobequid Bay. As the story goes, when he slept, Nova Scotia was his bed and Prince Edward Island was his pillow. He lived here, admiring the beauty of the lands, until one day he found his medicine garden destroyed. The culprit? A Canadian beaver! Glooscap was understandably upset, and threw giant clods of mud at the mischievous and disrespectful beaver. The dam was smashed, and water began to flow freely. The mud, sticks, and stones created five islands that emerged in the rapidly rising tides. As for the beaver? He was trapped on one of the islands, and turned into gold.
Next, a little about this unique area, geologically speaking. Nova Scotia was once part of northern African and northern Europe on the super-continent Pangea. If you like, here is a short but fairly complete article about the geological origins: Origins of Nova Scotia.
Walking the Ocean Floor
Impressive thirteen metre tides with up to three kilometres of retreating waters meant we could walk the ocean floor and explore the shoreline safely for several of hours.
From the Days of the Dinosaurs
Retreating Tides
Jurassic Period Formations
This imposing formation of eroded basalt lava flow caps and exposed orange-red sandstone divided by a distinct fault line is only visible by land when the tide is out. And what a great vantage spot for us…on top of that cliff was our camping spot.
The Old Wife formation
The Old Wife appears to be a mere bump in the water when tides are in but at low tide we could walk her perimeter.
Hiking
As usual we explored up and down country roads, visiting tiny villages and local attractions.
Geological Museum
Five Island Light House
Down the road from the park we found a small general store…always fun to stop at country stores isn’t it? You never know what treasures you will find. Cooked freshly caught lobster and a local award-winning cheese called Dragon’s Breath (Dutchman Cheese) created a few kilometres from here with some freshly baked bread made for the perfect supper.
Evening Feast
Another day of rock-hounding led us to Wosson Bluff, yet another geo site of the UNESCO designated Fundy Geoparks.
Wosson Bluff
At 8:21 on our last evening we toasted the summer solstice with a tot of rum for F…mine, Irish whiskey, lit a blazing camp fire, ate far too many toasted marshmallows and watched the sun set over Cobequid Bay.
Sunset on the Bay 2021.21.2021
In a short while we should be able to tell you about our next trip which may even take us to a different shore of our Nova Scotia home…another new adventure for the crew of RED II.
…Peace and love…
Jun 18, 2021 | Flotsam
Well folks, we finally extracted ourselves from our little camping at home location. Provincial and private camp grounds have been allowed to open here with some restrictions. We had booked this first place a while ago for the May long weekend and they are now accepting us with open arms. It’s great being on the front edge of the season because we had the whole place to ourselves for the first three days…literally, no other campers on site. Waaaay down that field is us.
Solitude
F’s request for this location, his first ever trailer camping experience, was ‘give me an unimpeded view of the ocean’, so I asked for site 313….and we were not disappointed.
The View
Once settled in we walked down to the ‘beach’…loosely named. It was an impressively beautiful and colourful example of Cambrian period rock formations
Rock Beach
A short hike around the camp ground brought us to yet another rocky arrangement which looked like it had been upended by some giant force
Rock Formations
At cocktail hour we sat and reminisced about the times we were anchored off shore…over there, there, and there. The comparison of the sea anchor drop versus how we anchor on land was curiously similar without the obvious storm worries…although that night we had a mighty nor’easter blow through. Our little RED II held fast throughout the night though.
Stories at Sunset
Camping meals are simple nowadays. I prepare as much as I can in advance of departure. First night is usually simple and light and the rest is barbecue grill with little additions we find from day time outings.
Evening Picnic
Our second day we walked the hiking trail to the Ovens….caves carved by waves from ancient rock along the Atlantic shore line.
History
The Hike
Down to the Sea
Cannon Cave
Into the Depths
Tucker’s Tunnel
Day three we ventured out along the back roads to explore the country side. I’m not at all comfortable biking on public roads but thankfully traffic was light.
Easy Rider
The Ride
In the afternoon we drove to find three lovely beaches.
Oxner Beach
Hirtle’s Beach
Sand Dollar Beach
Sea Treasures
I thought it would be a good idea to collect something of significance to remember each camping adventure. Since we are restricted to local travel for now, supporting local enterprises and artisans is our focus. In a small shop in Lunenburg F found this little treasure which now sits happily in our camper as a reminder of our visit to The Ovens.
Souvenir
Well, that’s all for now folks. It’s mostly a picture story this time. We’ve noticed there is so little drama when you land ‘sail’…just little wind here and there but that’s about it.
As always, we are thankful when you drop by. Please come back soon as we have another outing planned soon. Another corner of our world to explore. Another adventure for little RED II and her crew.
Peace and love…..
Mar 19, 2021 | Flotsam
“The earth has music for those who listen”
March is here. One of my favourite months. When winter is less wintery. When things planted last year begin to poke boldly through the still cold ground. If they can be so optimistic then for sure so can I. After all, the ground hog said it would be an early spring back in February. There will no doubt be more white stuff dropped on us I’m sure, although this has been a very mild couple of months, even by east coast standards.
Brave Souls
It’s been a year now since the pandemic entered our lives and ensuing restrictions descended on us….a year like no other. I remember with clarity that time last March when celebrating my son’s birthday, friend’s invited to make it more festive, those comfortable enough with human contact came. Cake with lit candles. Traditional wish made. Candles blown. It was at the very moment that I realized that something as common place and customary as a puff of breath over cake shared with others to extinguish a candle would forever change.
That Moment
It’s been a year to reflect. A year to decide who and what and where we wanted to be. In essence, a year to return to factory default settings. When you are two retired folks living in a seaside country village, reset is minimal. We focused on things we love…F, his plants, his terrain, his construction projects….me, who spends a good deal of time in the kitchen, I focused on improving my culinary interests and planning for and designing future renovation projects.
We keep in touch with our small group of friends, locally known as the Hubbards Hooligans, because with exception of one short period of restricted groupings we have been allowed gatherings of ten consistent friends….and one family bubble.
RED II
So now we are springing forward to our next phase of retired life. RED II landed in Canada just before Christmas and has rested safely at our local RV dealer for the past three months. We visited once to gather the keys, secure an appointment to install the ‘extras’ to make us and her road-worthy….and to have a peak at her. Even though she is a few inches shorter than our dear RED (sailboat), she looks so big by comparison. Twenty-three feet of indoor awesomeness that we can actually stand upright in with not just one but two sinks with running water, a real porcelain flushing toilet and an actual refrigerator. I’m in land-based heaven.
I know I will miss sailing…and RED… but that feeling of loss will fade with time. We continue to get updates from RED’s new owners who were consummate camping folks before buying our water baby last year (they are our mirror image). They have been a great resource for what to do in the camping world…and what not to do. I can’t imagine it being too much different from being on the water. Most of my galley gear will come aboard our land trawler and we’ve been collecting bits and pieces to make our little home on wheels more ‘homey’. Being ‘on the way’ or in a storm on the water will be similar to land travel, making sure things are secure. We have friends who are a few steps ahead of us who warned to take care to stow the ‘pretty things’ before heading out. She said when they reached their destination it looked like a cyclone had descended inside her home on wheels. Message received!
Crash Course
When we went to bring our baby home last week, the getting-familiar-course was rather intense but our technician John was very patient giving us a thorough run through both inside and out.
Supervisor Pig
Major Pig (ret) has gone from First Mate to Supervisor and he continues to perform his duties in his usual dependable quiet watchful manner.
Road Ready
RED II looks quite fine coupled with our tow beast but this will be our first road venture with 4000+ pounds of dry weight and it’s a little unnerving although my Captain remains confident. Total length is actually a touch shorter than RED on her trailer but RED II runs wider by about two feet.
Coming Home
Parking our baby at home base seemed a lot easier than parking a sailboat and the mast stepping and un-stepping process (AKA coupling and uncoupling) took no more that 30 minutes from parking to unhooking to levelling to where’s the wine. This is the type of ease of operation I was hoping for. I can see us doing this for many years to come.
Happy Couple
So here we are, very excited, very happy and we can’t wait for our first real adventure. We have some ideas of where we would like to go…after a bit of nesting at RED by the Sea while waiting for warmer weather of course…but there is a life time of wonderfulness to experience not too far from our front door while we wait for this virus thing to be gone. Remember, in Nova Scotia, we are never more than sixty kilometres from the ocean no matter where we go.
The Ovens (photo cred Tourism Nova Scotia)
Because prime sites book up quickly, I secured three days at a nearby campsite called the Ovens Natural Park (https://www.ovenspark.com) a mere hour drive down the coast from us to begin the season with a roar. The site boasts not only of coastal hiking trails, of natural sea caves to explore, of chances to pan for gold on the beach but the best will be the spectacular view overlooking the Atlantic Ocean and hearing the sounds of the waves as we drift off to sleep.
Camping with a View (photo cred Tourism Nova Scotia)
Thanks, as always, for stopping by. We love it when you do. Stay well and please drop by soon to catch up and see what’s happening in our little corner of the world.
Peace and love
