Fourteen hour ferry rides are not any real fun -- especially when there are a fair number of Martians accumulating in the bathrooms. Decided to play Redcoat for a day and invaid Fortess (not Fort) Louisbourg. But first I checked into a swanky RV campsite with showers, WIFI and power to recharge all my batteries -- all this luxury was $25. Went to see the Fleur-de-Lys Trail Players perform mainly Cape Breton style music - an evening well spent; the Loiusbourg Playhouse was sold to the town by Walt Disney for $1 after the local movie set was completed.

The twenty percent rebuild of Fortress Louisbourg is astounding - well worth the visit and very educational; I especially liked a replica exhibit showing models of the construction methods utilized in the early 1800's . They had great engineers back in those days but not much was said about the Mi'kmak or the British - touchy subjects maybe.

Drove across to the Cabot Trail to camp at Broad Cove (just north of Ingonish) in the Cape Breton Highlands National Park. Baby just loved touring the east and north coasts of Cape Breton. I also found my first coastal town, Capstick, that didn't have a harbour (a suburb?).

A dreary day after a night of rain to finish off the Cabot Trail -- still the west coast is spectacular and I know the pictures don't do it justice. Lots of towns named after my Scottish daughter Margaree (Harbour, Forks, East, Centre, Valley, North East, Southwest). After finishing my meandering, I'm now headed toward mainland Nova Scotia... Stay tuned :)

Tidbits:
- Many boats, large and small, in Cape Breton (and Newfoundland) are "parked" (decommissioned?) in peoples' side or backyards.
- I wonder if Canada could use the Cabot Trail to host a motorcycle race like the Isle of Man -- I'm sure it would gain worldwide recognition quickly.
- With a 21+gun salute, a cannon firing and a seagull fly-by at Fortress Louisbourg, my ragged old jean jacket was finally laid to rest.