After crossing the Canso causeway from Cape Breton to the mainland, I picked up the Marine Drive trail which meanders along the coast ending at Dartmouth. It takes 300km to drive the 120km distance as the crow flies (assuming you visit Canso Island) :); but the relaxing scenic set of roads with one cable ferry (no prop) thrown in to ford a river along the way was well worth it. After paying a $0.75 toll to get into Halifax, the van got its needed oil change plus filter then we picked up the Lighthouse Route (also named the Coastal Heritage Trail) to continue along the shore.

Peggy's Cove now looks more like Disneyland with the trinkets and trash stores -- the 40 inhabitants balloon to thousands on summer weekends . The lighthouse and cove are cute but not any better than many other small, less known towns. The SwissAir Flight 111 Memorial just down the road is beautiful - its shell shape and simple tribute have high impact; the peaceful ocean view using the monuments stone seats is very soothing as well. Stayed the night on Graves Island, which is a Provincial Park with campground.

I continued following the coast road and spent some time in Lunenburg. The Bluenose II is really impressive (check your dimes); it is 161 feet long with a 125 feet main mast and a sail area of 11,139 square feet (I measured :)). Moseying on, I setup camp in Raddall Provincial Park and headed next door to explore Kejimkujik National Park (Seaside Adjunct). After hiking over 10km, the best part was the 4km I did along the beach -- the seals looked like big slugs but the birds were just plain cute and extremely active. The parks department setup free telescopes at a couple of places for viewing the numerous animals and birds; very few people seem to get involved when any hiking is involved which cuts down the crowds significantly.

Rain arrived Sunday night from the tail of some tropical storm. Short drive tomorrow to get to the main Kejimkujik National Park that is a Mi'kmaq holy place (The Earth is a Sacred Place) and also the home of the endangered Blanding's Turtle. The hiking trails are all short and well kept -- I finished five trails and only walked 8km . Mill's Falls is interesting not because of the insignificant drop height of the Mersey River but the fact that the rocks there are vertical African slate from the time when our continents were joined.

More rain plus dreary day -- good for playing redcoat and getting laundry done. Fort Anne was the most fought over piece of property in Canadian history; ownership swung back and forth until the eventual deportation of the Acadians in 1755. All their homes and settlements were razed; including Port-Royal and Melanson settlement. An interesting piece of history in this neck of the woods.

Catching the ferry from Digby late tonight to arrive in St John around 23:30; had some of their famous scallops and clams before leaving though :).

Tidbits:
- Nova Scotia Provincial Parks are extremely well maintained; not only the campgrounds which have good facilities at reasonable rates but also the numerous picnic sites (day areas) which offer great views during lunch and snacks for free .
- Like Newfoundland, Nova Scotia has many rocks, big and small, left in random places by the last ice-age.
- Medium sized towns have Tim's; large towns have Walmarts as well.
- With GPS on nearly every boat, the beautiful lighthouses and scary foghorns are really just tourist items.
- The Disneyland crowds can be overcome if you get there early enough - I enjoyed Lunenburg at 08:30 and was leaving town by 10:30 when the hoards in the buses began arriving.
- Nova Scotia is difficult to figure out compass-wise; I have trouble with north being the short way across the peninsula.
- Don't camp under an oak tree in the fall during a storm - those acorns sure make a loud noise when they drop fifty-plus feet.
- Blanding's Turtles have the habit of laying their eggs on the shoulder of the road where it is slightly warmer than elsewhere :) -- ergo, reason for turtle signs and perhaps why they were becoming extinct (i.e., roadkill).
- I think all the US gated communities stole the idea from Port-Royal.