Category: Cape Breton Island

In this day and age, I am amazed at the name, but even more amused that they leaned into it with “Life is Better with the Farmer’s Daughter” as their tag line. On our drive back from Cape Breton to Halifax, we saw a sign for a food and gift shop called The Farmer’s Daughter.  Everything about the name invoked all the naughty jokes from the past. Located in Whycocomagh (pronounced Why-cog-ho-mah) it’s a great pit stop for coffee, ice cream and a dessert to bring to the next person’s place at which you are crashing.  They had fresh pies […]

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Near Englishtown on Cape Breton you will find a dock and a tiny shack that leads you to Donalda’s Puffin Boat Tour.  Our trip was on an overcast day that reminded me of the west coast of Vancouver Island, where you feel like you are visiting the edge of the world. This of course doesn’t compare to when you are out in the boat and reach the rocky islands on which the birds live and nest.  Don’t let my rubbish pictures fool you.  It was amazing to see about seven different species of seabird, including the famous Puffins.  They looked […]

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Parks Canada operates a number of historic sites in Nova Scotia including, but not limited to, Port Royal, Fortress Louisbourg and the Alexander Graham Bell Museum.  In my experience, the parks are things like Banff and Yoho National Parks.  No history, all space. Well, in Baddeck, Mr. Bell is a town hero.  Scotland via Boston and Washington, he was looking for a place that was more like Scotland without all the tuberculosis.  He and his wife landed in Baddeck, based on a travel book.  I suspect the huge Scottish influences in the area helped. However, forget the telephone.  I had […]

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In Baddeck, during the tourist season, they have these signs that say Ceilidh.  So, it’s pronounced Kay-Lee.  It’s Gaelic, but honestly I think the spelling is really the Scots trying to annoy the English.  Meanwhile, I discovered that a Ceilidh is a Celtic fiddle music kitchen party.  There was a tradition dating back a couple of hundred years where a fiddler and a pianist and maybe a guitarist would spend time playing tunes while folks would bring snacks. Today you book a seat and join in the fun for about 2 hours of Celtic fiddle playing.  It is really the […]

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You’re going to need a day for this one. This Parks Canada historic recreation covers the years 1740s.  The fortress had a long history of French and English fighting.  When you read this stuff in books, it does not come alive, but it literally comes alive in Louisbourg. When you drive to the site, you stop at the visitor centre to buy tickets and you then take a bus to the walkway to the front gate of the fortress.  (Wear good shoes.) There are people in costume who work the various stations and buildings who are fonts of knowledge.  They […]

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There’s a rule in Cape Breton for driving that you should be aware of.  Don’t use side roads.  Even if they are on your mapping software.  There’s something strange about road maintenance in Nova Scotia. Here’s the letter I wrote to The Chronicle Herald in an attempt to warn others and effect change. Hi Voice of the People, For your consideration …. It was a lovely post Canada Day weekend in Cape Breton. We (tourists from BC) were returning to Baddeck from Louisbourg when we encountered a Canada-wide phenomenon called highway repairs. We thought we’d be clever and avoid them. […]

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North Sydney is a small town located about twenty minutes from the city of Sydney.  The town is known mostly for being The Gateway to Newfoundland because the ferry terminal that houses the ferries that go back and forth between the two provinces is located in the town.  It is also known for being in a scenic area overlooking Sydney Harbour and for having plenty of things for visitors to do. The downtown area of North Sydney is full of restaurants, fast food joints and boutique shops.  The scenic waterfront area makes for a great place to take a break […]

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There is a song about it and there are countless stories about summer days and nights spent there.  I’m talking about The Mira River and the surrounding area known simply as The Mira.  Although the area consists of forest and countryside, a small year-round population and countless summer homes, Mira is only a mere twenty minutes or so from the city of Sydney in Industrial Cape Breton. Mira is mostly known for The Mira River upon which locals and tourists alike spend summer days swimming, boating and barbecuing along the banks.  Evenings are spent around bonfires along the river or […]

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The small village of Orangedale may have gained much fame with Celtic music lovers who are familiar with the song The Orangedale Whistle by the Rankin Family but not many people know where it is located or that it is even located in Nova Scotia.  Well, it is in fact located in Nova Scotia almost right in the center of Cape Breton Island. The roads leading to Orangedale are distinctly rural; mostly gravel roads through thick forest with the odd stream or field thrown in the mix.  In “Downtown” Orangedale, old buildings line the main street and this is where […]

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Louisbourg is probably the most visited town on Cape Breton Island because that is where a famous, reconstructed French fortress lies at the end of town.  The reconstructed version of The Fortress of Louisbourg is only a very small fraction of the original fortress that stood in the 18th century but it is still big enough to require at least an entire day to see the whole thing!  There are guides in period costume and you can choose to avail of one of these guides for a guided tour or you can explore the fortress on your own.  The grounds […]

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