Thursday 26 September 2019

Back on the Cabot Trail








Chéticamp Mi Careme



Mi Careme is a break from Lent. It is a very local celebration where people dress up and visit host houses. The host tries to guess who is in the costume. If they guess correctly, they share treats with the visitors. It used to last only one day, but now extends for a whole week.












Chéticamp Rug Museum

We stopped for the night in Chéticamp at the Silver Lining Inn. Our room was an "accessible unit", very clean and very appropriate.

In the morning we visited the Chéticamp Rug Museum. Here we saw hooked rugs by Elizabeth LeFort. Her work is world renowned. She has created rugs for the Kennedys, for Lester Pearson, for Pierre Trudeau, and many others. Her work is absolutely amazing.

Chéticamp is an Acadian community. This tree represents the Acadian families.

This rug just seemed especially beautiful.



The Bluenose II

Jackie Kennedy

This rug had 510 hand-dyed colours.


The Fathers of the Confederation

Cabot Trail

Shortly after leaving Baddeck, it started to rain hard. The highway was awash and the travelling was slow. We stopped at many artisan shops and hoped for better weather.

There were not many chances for pictures.

One glass shop was particularly amazing.

I liked the dragon, Deb not so much.

Flowers for the garden

Sculpture on the lawn
Finally we were able to get some pictures of the amazing scenery.








As we turned inland to cross the island, we went higher. The clouds closed in on us and and again we lost sight of the surrounding scenery. Coming out on the western coast, it brightened up and we could actually see the sky in the distance.



In Chéticamp we stayed in a little inn called the Silver Lining Inn. The village is stretched along the shore. There are many motels, cabins, inns and other forms of rentals. The homes are well cared for but the most conspicuous element is space. Yards are huge creating huge expanses between homes.

Night Out

Generally, by the time evening rolls around, we just want to rest. Today we have spent the whole day in Baddeck, so we are prepared for a night on the town. It started with dinner at one of the nicest restaurants in town.

This is how Deb looks when lobster and mussels are delivered.

This is how she looks when the plate is empty.
After dinner we went to a Ceilidh (gathering). It was in the Baddeck Parish Hall. A fiddler and a pianist taught us about Cape Breton music and played for about two hour. They were wonderful.




Alexander Graham Bell

For Alexander Graham Bell, Baddeck was a summer home. After he had invented the telephone, he had enough money so he could just experiment with everything. He created many wonderful inventions, some successful, some not so much. The museum is full of many of his passions.

Alexander Graham Bell Museum


A Model of a Hydrofoil Which he Experimented With

This is a model of the Silver Dart, the first powered flight in Canada.

This is a later model of a hydrofoil. This one was actually built.
Alexander's wife Mabel loved to drive the hydrofoil around the lake. The boat was powered by two -twelve cylinder 350 horsepower engines. The engines did not have mufflers so they were incredibly noisy. Mabel was deaf so she couldn't hear them. Alexander never drove this boat because he feared he would go deaf.

This boat broke the speed record, travelling at 25 knots.

The hydrofoil was eventually grounded and left as a derelict. Years later it was salvaged for this museum.

Alexander worked long and hard to create a kite which could carry a man.
The shape which  provided the most lift was the tetrahedron.
This memorial is shaped like a tetrahedron.

Baddeck

Baddeck is a beautiful little town just before you start your drive on the Cabot Trail. We looked around and quickly decided that we needed to stay two nights. On the first night we had Snow Crab for dinner. It did not pass muster.

In the morning we went to the Alexander Graham Bell Museum (more to come). Deb had a lobster roll at the wharf for lunch (It was wonderful). At this point we realized that Deb had had lobster rolls for three days in a row, but she had not yet had a lobster dinner. This was a situation that had to be remedied.

Another Lighthouse in Another Harbour



Deb found a friend.