Day 68 - Louisbourg, Nova Scotia

Our entire day of Monday, August 6th was spent touring the Louisbourg Fortress.  Unfortunately, it was a very foggy day with on and off drizzles.  We are not going to complain after all, we've had some awesome weather for most of our trip. 

Dozens of costumed animators become the town's residents of the summer of 1744. Period homes, exhibits and theme centres line the central streets of Rue Toulouse and Rue Royale, as well as along the busy waterfront.  Men, women and children enact the full range of society from the leisurely activities of the rich to the hard physical labour of the poor. We saw engineers, musicians, soldiers, merchants, street vendors, bakers, servants and fishermen. The "residents" were happy to show us nailmaking, cooking, sewing, gardening, animal care etc.

Only 25% of the Fortress has been rebuilt according to all the blueprints and plans that were available to them.  Due to the cost of maintaining all the buildings, they will not, at this time, build any more of the city.  Now, there are over 50 buildings covering 12 acres.  In its time, it was the busiest harbour in North America and a key to France's trade and military strength in the New World. 

These are some of the 50 buildings.  A lot of them are now used for restaurants, shops and museums but some are still in use by the blacksmith, storehouse, bakery, powder magazine, etc.  The bottom right was the largest building in North America in the l700's.  You are only seeing half of it.  The yellow one was built by the Governor. 

As we walked and toured, we were able to talk to the animators.  They did a great job especially the guards.  Very knowledgeable no matter what they did.

In every village, you will have animals and these were just a delight.  The caretaker actually taught the geese to walk with him as well as the turkey.  They walked in the midst of us and weren't bothered at all.  There were also sheep and goats.

These were a couple of the gateways leading into the Fortress.  The yellow or Frederic Gate lead to the harbour and the stone one or Dauphin Gate was the entrance at ground level.  The clock above only had one hand for the hour.  They didn't care about minutes or seconds.  The Louisbourg Cross is a reproduction of one taken by new Englanders after the siege of l745.  The cross ended up at Harvard University and in l995 they returned it as a long-term loan.  That one is behind glass.



We had lunch where the commoners ate.  We were given bibs since it was more difficult to launder clothes vs bibs.  We had stew, soup, bread and tea.  Very good I must say!  Lot of gardens - both floral and vegetable.  I also got a lesson in Bobbin Lace.  I thought Tiny was going to beat me up for not listening and doing it correctly; however, I finally got the knack and actually did one row.  This was only done by royalty and the rich as it took time and was delicate work.  After all, they had nothing to do as it was all done for them.

The military performed for us by marching, shooting guns as well as canons.  Some of the pictures look hazy but that was because of the heavy fog - sorry.

We saw a huge variety of rooms from the storage rooms of barrels (where clothes and food were stored for the military) to dining and living rooms of the commoners to the beautiful bedroom of the Governor and the Military Chapel.  The two rooms on the left were both in the largest building  as well as rooms for the King's Bastion Barracks which looked out onto the parade grounds.

Picture of the Day!

This is a model of a French 74-Gun Warship.

This class of warship became the standard battleship

for the rest of the l8th century.  In l758, three were sunk in the harbour

while defending Louisbourg during the second siege.

I just thought it was such a remarkable model and took someone a lot of time to complete with such detail. 



Day 67 - Louisbourg, Nova Scotia

We are returning back to Nova Scotia via the ferry today, Sunday, August 5th.  The morning is crisp and clear so we are hoping for smooth sailing.  Our trip to the Ferry terminal in Port aux Basque was only a 26 mile trip; however, we were up with the birds as we had to be at the terminal by 8 a.m.

It is amazing how many different bodies of water that we have seen on our journey.  You might be able to see several ponds, marshes or whatever in the middle of open areas.  They do get a lot of snow in the Maritimes so if that accounts for all the water – I don’t know but they sure have a lot of it.

I believe this is the same ferry or something very similar that we took on our way to New Foundland.  It was a very smooth five hour trip.  Most of the time everyone either played cards, had a bite to eat, read books, did some knitting or took a nap  Some whales and dolphins were seen, but not by us.

Our drive to the campground where we are spending a couple nights at was only 37 miles – again very uneventful.  It is, however, next to a wharf so we have a great view of the bay and boats.  We took a walk around town and saw many typical huge houses that have been converted into Inns. These homes were at one time owned by one family, but then again, these families had very large families. They do look very inviting.

Bruce read that there was a lighthouse on the other side of the bay so we took a drive and got several great pictures of the lighthouse and sunset.  The ocean was behind us.  Someone had painted a rock and I thought they did a pretty good job. If I cropped the picture more, you probably wouldn't even know it was on rock.

A bit of history about the Lighthouse point.

Picture of the Day!!

The sun was setting behind the Lighthouse.

Hope you had smooth sailing today.

 

Day 66 - Grand Codroy, Newfoundland

Saturday, August 4th and the sun is shining again but the temps are only in the 70's.  We have been blessed on this trip for sure especially after talking to my sister and daughter who are telling me how terribly hot it has been in Chicago.  This morning we only had to walk across the road to tour the Insectarium and Butterfly Pavilion.

This has been one of the most amazing tours and our guide explained things to us in ways that we could all understand the life cycles of butterflies, ants, bees, etc.  When we walked into the pavillion swarms of butterflies surrounded us but it was so hot and humid in there that we were barely able to take any pictures.  We weren't allowed to touch them but they could land on us - too cool!!

More pictures of butterflies of every color imaginable.  If you notice that their wings are the same color and design on each side of the body.  Bottom right look like fish but when the butterfly opens its wings, the inside is a beautiful blue color.  The appearance of the eyes scares off a potential predator. 

This facility, as you can see, is huge and has a spectacular display of butterflies, moths, ants, bees and taranchula's.  Bottom right - the butterfly or moth is the same color as the owl.  The collection is an assortment from all over the world.  Very impressive.

Top left is a container filled with thousands of ants.  They are fed different varieties of leaves - their favorite being lilac.  They cut them up and use them to build their houses which they eventually eat.  The people in the facility are very happy and proud because the University in Toronto was only able to keep them alive for a year, whereas, they've had them going on for four years.  Our guide also filled us in on the bees and their life cycle, the Queen, etc.  Us girls laughed when he told us that the female bees do all the work and the guys are useless except some of them get to mate with the Queen - then they die.  There was also a collection of bugs and other little critters that I didn't bother looking at.

The taranchula's, needless to say, were in glass enclosed containers so it was hard to get a good picture w/o reflection.  A couple of them were really quite colorful and fuzzy.  Enough said about them....

We were all lined up after our tour to travel 144 miles.  We are leaving the ocean behind us now and driving through the mountains and around lakes.  The roads in Canada aren't the smoothest so it takes extra time plus driving an RV is slower than with a car.  I had to laugh when I saw 7 fisherman standing right next to year other fly fishing.  Wouldn't they get their lines tangled up??

Picture of the Day!!

The Morpho - Butterflies that reflect light.

They are among the most beautiful butterflies in the

world.  They are highly prized by collectors.

Their colouring is not produced by pigment in the wings

but by the nature of the scales which cover the

wings and reflect light.  When they are in flight, their

colour changes according to the angle at which

the light strikes the wing surface.

Hope you had a bright and colorful day.  Should a butterfly land on your shoulder, it will mean good luck and someone is thinking of you.



Day 65 - Deer Lake, Newfoundland

Oh my it is Friday, August 3rd and this day begins our return trip home.  Our last and furthest excursion was to Labrador, which we did yesterday; however, we take the ferry back to New Foundland today and actually return on some of the same highways.   Our guide was a super nice guy, told us stories about the country as well as his family and even stopped so we could take a group picture.  Instead of just dropping us off at the terminal, he backed in as far as he could and waited until we were escorted onto the ferry.  The trip was very smooth.  We played cards and walked around - the guys saw a couple of whales.

Our Tailgunner's Lorna and Roger were celebrating their anniversary today so we extended our best wishes to them.  Very nice couple.  Since we traveled the same road, it was hard to take different pictures so the above are just a few scenes of a fishing village, their boats, the ocean and a field of Fire Weed flowers.  Some of the boats have already been taken out of the water as the season for catching certain fish is over.

 I find these little villages so interesting as noted in a document I read today: 

From the early days of hand-lining and salting cod, to the recent lucrative fishery for snow crab, fishing has driven the Parson's Pond economy for over 200 years. (Village pictured above). Turbot, halibut and lumpfish are also common fish species in the area.  In l959, local fisherman joined together to build the first fish plant.  To qualify as a shareholder, people from the community had to invest the equivalent of $25 in labor, materials or money.  The plant closed as a processing operation when the cod moratorium was announced in l992.  Now the few fish caught are transported elsewhere for processing.  Snow crab filled the void afterwards but many people worry that this fishery, too, will one day close due to over-fishing.  Hopefully, Parson's Pond will continue to survive for many many years.

More pictures of the landscape from the ocean to the mountains, but look at the sky.  In the top right corner, the picture is of an opening in the sky.  We had a bit of drizzle, the clouds got dark and stormy looking but then there was like a hole in the clouds - bazaar. I guess the Dear Lord needed an opening to watch over us.  It stayed that way for the longest time.  Bottom left shows the stormy clouds with very strange swirls.  The day turned out sunny and warm so all went well as we neared the campground.  We all sat out for Happy Hour while I did laundry and fixed dinner as well. 



Picture of the Day!

This is our group bidding Labrador farewell.  I know the sign is welcoming us but we didn't take the picture when we arrived.  Oh well!!!

Hope your day went well and the Dear Lord is watching over you.



Day 64 - L'Anse-au-Clair, Labrador

Finally, we are on our way to Labrador on Thursday, August 2nd.  We are only spending one day and one night there but we are excited as we've heard so much about it. Labrador is a vast wilderness filled with rugged seacoast, fast running rivers and breathtaking mountain ranges.  The history of indigenous people can be traced thousands of years before European settlers.

This is the ferry that we took for our 90 minute cruise.  We just walked on the boat as there will be a bus and guide to pick us up and give us a tour.  We had breakfast on the boat as we boarded at 7:30 a.m. and we didn't really have time to eat before hand.  It looks like the ferry is eating the semi.  Let me tell you, that driver didn't have but a foot to fit through the door.  We actually arrived in Quebec and crossed over to Labrador. The bottom right picture shows L'Anse-au-Clair as we come over a hill. 

One of the first stops was a mound of rocks which is the earliest known funeral monument in the new world and marks the burial place of a 12 year old Indian child who died about 7500 years ago.  The Maritime Archaic people, to whom the child belonged, occupied this area between 9000 and 3500 years ago.  People can't figure out why the body was buried face down with a rock on his back.   We then visited the Point Amour Lighthouse which was built in l858.  Some of our people walked up the l28 steps to the top - you can see Bruce, Sharon, Larry & Chris (who is taking a picture of me taking a picture of them).  It has a French name, L'Anse aux Morts, which means Cove of Death, because of the many shipwrecks in the area including two Royal Navy vessels: HMS Lily and HMS Raleigh.

The above are pictures of the coastline - quite similar to New Foundland; however, there are many old buildings or ships just lying in the water as they fall or sink.  The fishing villages pretty much all look alike.  Inukshuk's are seen everywhere.  This one was quite large sitting high up on a rock.

 

In the l6th century, the Labrador side of the Strait of Belle Isle emerged as the world's largest producer of whale oil.  At its peak, whaling on this coast attracted nearly 2000 Basques annually from Spain and France, and Red Bay became a major centre for seasonal hunting and processing.  The whale oil and other products were sold mostly in Europe.  It was in demand as a clean and bright lighting fuel.  Also used for paints, varnishes, lubrication and soap.  Above our small replicas of a whaling boat - front and back side.  The Chalupa was brought up from the bottom of the bay.  It was under a ship that was wrecked.

There are churches in every village and this is a very pretty one with a window overlooking a river.  We were very fortunate in seeing a whale on our drive.  Frank, our driver, stopped the bus so we could get a photo, if we were lucky.    Bruce did a great job as they are hard to photo.  If there is a beach, I will find it and walk along in the water.  As you can see, it was another sunny, warm day.  The landscape is varied with a lot of rocks, trees, rivers, lakes and of course the ocean.

 

Some miscellaneous pictures of the Pinware River (President Regan once fished here), a water falls, and a fishing hut with low tide.  Bruce and I took a walk after our return to the hotel and found the bubbling sands - a bit hard to read but most unusual.

Picture of the Day!

You never know what you are going to find here in the Maritimes.  While taking a walk, we found a an area of evergreen trees loaded with pine cones.  You have to remember, the ground is mostly all rock.

We head back to New Foundland tomorrow, but it was a wonderful visit.

Day 63 - St. Anthony, Newfoundland

Today is Wednesday, August lst and we are leaving St. Anthony for St. Barbe, New Foundland where we take a ferry to Labrador on Thursday.  The sun is shining so might as well take advantage of it and get in another hike.  We are only traveling 70 miles so no hurry.  Wendy, Wayne, Chris, Bruce and I hopped in the Jeep and off we went into town.

We hiked several trails - the Whale Watchers which is a series of boardwalks and short stairways which lead to an amazing lookout over the Atlantic Ocean, underneath the huge cliffs of Fishing Point.  This trail lead to Santana or Daredevil Trail where we climbed 476 stairs to the top of Fishing Point to view the coastline and Atlantic Ocean.

It was beautiful and sunny when we started our trek up the stairs; however, by the time we got up to the top, the fog came in from the ocean and we couldn't see anything.  It was cool and windy.  We sat for a little break and walked around the top for a good hour to no avail - still foggy so we went back down.  No sooner did we get back down, the fog cleared and we could see perfectly clear - wouldn't you know?

Because of the fog, we didn't see the fishing boat coming in until it was in the Bay.  I can only imagine how happy they were that they were finally out of the fog as well.  There were smaller boats out in the ocean - crazy people as far as I'm concerned; however, this is their bread and butter.

After lunch, we headed back to the campground to pack up and hit the road.  We saw a beautiful water falls as well as very barren land.  There are also pictures of gardens along the roadside as that is the only place where there is decent soil to plant a garden.  When the roads were made, they brought in soil and whatever was left over, the people were able to use for gardens.  Everyone knows where there plots are and no one else will pick from someone else's garden.   We also saw logs as well as chopped wood along the roadside and the ocean.  This is wood that is used for their fireplaces in the winter.  Again, everyone has their own stack and no one will interfere with it.  They get the wood in the summer and haul it to their houses before snowfall.  We saw a moose on the side of the road but wasn't able to get a picture of him - honest!!

It took no time at all to get to St. Barbe.  A Happy Hour was happening and then a spagetti dinner was prepared by the Staff.  Some of us girls cooked up the pasta and Chris made three different desserts - what a great gal and excellent baker.  We played some cards and now packing up for our one night stay in Labrador.

Hope all is well in your part of the world. 

Day 62 - St. Anthony, Newfoundland

It is Tuesday, July 3lst and we are off to L’Anse aux Meadows to learn about the only Viking site in North America and the earliest evidence of Europeans in the western hemisphere.  We had a great tour by a gentleman that is a Newfi (born and raised in New Foundland )and lives in the area where all this history began.  As a matter of fact, only he and his three brothers are the only families that still live here.  There were four expeditions to this region they called Vinland, mainly in search of hardwood lumber.  Went as far south as New Brunswick – a land where wild grapes grow.  To their surprise there were many inhabitants, such as the aboriginal peoples, ancestors of the Innu, Beothuk and Mi’kmaq.  The Viking’s were greatly outnumbered. 

It wasn’t until Norwegian explorer and writer Helge Ingstad arrived and found the overgrown ruins of llth-century Norse buildings.

Above right are the homes where our guide and his family live.  On one of the islands sat a ship that was wrecked in a storm.  Bottom left are iron statues of the Vikings.  Bottom right is another island - so many of them.

Archaeological excavations in the l960’s uncovered the remains of 3 dwellings, 4 workshops and an iron working smithy.  Many artifacts have been found and there is still about 75% of the area that still needs to be excavated.  Above are pictures of a replica of what one of their dwellings would look like.  They are all wood inside, so they will burn from the inside out even though it is covered and surrounded by dirt.

We then toured Norstead – a Viking port of trade.  A living history site with costumed interpreters and the ship Snorri.  We put on the head gear - aren't we real beauties - not?  We also tried throwing an axe into the wood pile.  I actually did it on my first try.  Bruce did it on his 3rd try - ha ha!!  We then took a walk to the top of one of the hills next to the village.  It was another beautiful day.  Sharon joined us.

This is what their village looked like. Took the picture from our hike. One of the ladies was making a flat bread - very good.  Above is the church.  Everything is made out of wood.


After lunch we drove into St. Anthony’s to visit the museum and home of Sir Wilfred Thomason Grenfell.

He was an amazing man needless to say. 

This is the museum - so much to read and see but was very impressed with the replica of the stained glass window that has him in it - far right side.

For dinner we were treated to a Viking Dinner.  The building itself was in the ground covered by sod.  I was a little leary about that but managed.  The staff was all dressed in traditional attire and we ate with only spoons and knives – no forks.  The food was okay – a lot of fish.  Again, I managed, but the entertainment was absolutely hysterical.  They had a tribunal council and the guests (5 were chosen) to bring charges against someone they knew.  Bob brought charges against our Tail Gunner  for thumping our tires, waking us up and wearing pink shorts. Wally, was a witness.  In his defense, this is his job to thump our tires to make sure they aren’t flat but we had a lot of laughs.  He was found innocent.  Another fun night.



Another lighthouse near the restaurant.  Bottom left was the entrance to the restaurant - spooky!!  Bob, top right is bringing charges against Roger - bottom right.  Lorna, his wife was laughing so hard she was crying. 

More pictures of Wally, the witness, Bob, the accuser and Roger, the accused.  The Judge is sitting in the bottom left picture.  They all did a great job.

Picture of the Day!!



Can you imagine living between two bodies of water – one being the Gulf of St. Lawrence – especially in the winter?  The water does freeze and they can drive their snowmobiles on the ice as they can’t tell the difference between land and the gulf.

It was another great busy day that offered plenty of good laughs.  Hope you had a day full of laughter as well.