Blogs from Annapolis Valley, Nova Scotia, Canada, North America

Annapolis Valley, Nova Scotia wine country 31 August 2016 We stopped at Windsor on the way to the Annapolis Valley and popped into the Visitors Centre. Wow, were they full of helpful information and maps. It was great talking to them about the area as well as the Annapolis Wine Region. We learned that Windsor was settled in 1685 by the Acadian French, who built a network of dikes along the rivers. It has always been a meeting place, first for the Mi’kmaqs, then the Acadians, and later the English gentry. Windsor became a permanent English settlement in 1749. Its strategic location prompted the British to build Fort Edward. The Blockhouse which we saw, is the only structure remaining from the original Fort and it is the oldest structure of its kind in North America. Fort ... read more

After we left Larry's this morning, we stopped for coffee in what looked to be a quaint coffee shop in a little village. It was empty except for a couple playing crib, he in his pajamas and she, in a dirty, oversized T-shirt. We looked around for someone who could help us and realized that they were the owners. Scratching herself, she finally got up and poured us each a cup of weak coffee to go. "What do you think of these colours?", she asked, holding up a scarf that she had been crocheting. "They're nice", I lied. There was a mishmash of many colours. "People give me their leftover yarn", she said. "I have enough to last till I'm 300." As we left, we heard her smokey cackle behind us and we decided that the ... read more

Trailing Along The Glooscap and The Evangeline Trails As we drove westward from Charlottetown to Wolfville after spending too few days on the Gentle Island (Check out our blog: Prince Edward Island Days), our first stop on the northern shores of Nova Scotia's Bay of Fundy, was Truro to grab a bite to eat and see the Tidal Bore, a wave of water that moves upriver against the current of the Salmon River twice daily as a result of the incoming Bay of Fundy tides. Unfortunately, timing is critical when it comes to seeing the Tidal Bore and since we still had a long day of driving ahead of us to get to Wolfville, we continued on our merry way since Truro was no more than a pit stop with lots of fast food joints. Stops ... read more

Port Royale Habitation is an old fort reproduction of Canada's first permanent settlement. The Annapolis Valley is gorgeous. This is where the Acadians lived for 200 years before the English deported most of them and stole their land ... read more

Brier Island NS Setting sail from Yarmouth NS in beautiful sunny weather, our intention was to set sail to Grand Manan Island NB via the Brier Island pass. Not even an hour out of Yarmouth we sailed into very heavy fog, lasting the duration of our sail and making the approach to Brier Island a very challenging one. Not to forget that in the passage of Brier Island, when not in slack tide, there are currents between 7 & 9 knots. With radar on and keeping a close watch, we slowly entered the passage and made way for the Town port in order to take refuge until the heavy fog lifted, after which we would once again set sail to Grand Manan... Well as we always say.... Sailing plans are made in Jello... Saling are ... read more