Peggy's Cove

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Morning was bright and sunny as we sailed into Halifax. We had selected a Princess shore excursion to Peggy's Cove. The guide and coach driver were excellent. The guide explained he was a "CFA" or Come From Away, as he was originally from Ontario. Yet, he was very knowledgeable about Nova Scotia and Halifax. I had the good fortune to have a seat near the windshield of the coach. The driver saw I liked to take pictures and pointed out upcoming sights as we drove along.

The route took us from Halifax along St. Margaret's Bay, passing many picturesque coastal villages such as Hackett's Cove. Peggy's Cove is located near the entrance to St. Margaret's Bay. The village probably takes its name from the bay, but there are many folk legends as to its origin. The most popular is that it it named for "Peggy of the Cove", the sole survivor of a early shipwreck.

Peggy's Cove today remains a quiet fishing village. But due to its popularity, visitors far outnumber the residents. Our motor coach was in the company of several others, as well as those travelers arriving by car and other means. The principal attractions are the 1914 lighthouse and the coastal boulders. The blocks of granite boulders owe their origin to the receding glaciers of the last Ice Age. There are many in strict block formation, with tight spaces between them. The sight reminded me very much of the Giant's Causeway in Northern Ireland we visited in 2017. Even more so because of the volume of visitors scrambling all over the rocks. There are many beautiful views to take in up and down the coast. Souvenir shops offer items from T-shits and magnets to local goods.

Leaving Peggy's Cove to return to Halifax proved a challenge. A large motor home with a Cadillac in tow could not make the bend in the road through town. Incoming and outgoing traffic came to a standstill. The situation resolved itself, after drivers and townsfolk came to the scene to offer assistanc, when the owner unhitched the car and separately drove the RV and the car out of the way.

On the way back to Halifax we passed the Swissair Flight 111 Memorial. In 1998 the flight had plunged into St. Margaret's Bay killing all 229 people on board. The three upright cairns of the monument signify "111".

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