Camping in the Cape Breton Highlands National Park

The carful of kids wake up in the tiny town of Alma, New Brunswick, right outside the Bay of Fundy to a cloudless sky--amazing since yesterday we tromped around in the remnants of Hurricane Arthur. We are on the move again to add another Canadian province to our list, Nova Scotia, with a driving tour of the Cabot Trail.

The Cabot Trail is an 185-mile scenic route that winds along the northernmost coast of Nova Scotia through the Cape Breton Highlands National Park. This area of Canada borrows its heritage from Scotland.

From our room in Alma, New Brunswick, to our reserved campsite at Cheticamp in the Cape Breton Highlands National Park, it's 338 miles and should take a little over six hours. The roads are well-maintained and easy to navigate making for a pleasant drive; you won't find a chain restaurant or motel.

We spend the day driving and arrive at our destination at the eastern entrance of Cape Breton National Park just north of Cheticamp. This area of the park is quite wooded and we check in to the visitors center for our equipped campsite that I reserved ahead of time.

The equipped campsite is a great way to camp when you're road tripping. The carful of kids will look for kindling or tote sleeping bags but they vanish into the woods when I need help with a tent. Parks Canada has done it for you--and they also provide high-quality cooking equipment with a stove and fuel.

The carful of kids are delighted with the campsite and it takes no time to get some burgers sizzling on the camp fire. We top dinner off with some s'mores and crawl into our tent for a pleasant night's sleep thanks to our sleeping pads.

The carful of kids pack up camp after a breakfast of toasted tea biscuits and jam from the Aucoin Bakery. We're continuing east on the Cabot Trail, named after John Cabot who landed in Canada in 1497, towards the other side of Cape Breton National Park at Ingonish.

This one of the top scenic drives in Canada and the carful of kids love its vast, rugged beauty as it snakes its way through the Cape Breton Highlands. There are lots of turn-outs and overlooks so take your time but the driving is easy and there's no traffic.

At lunch we stop in Neil's Harbor for some seafood chowder at the Chowder House and ice cream at Neil's Harbor Lighthouse Ice Cream Shop, the lighthouse on top is still operational. The owner of the ice cream shop, Scotty, greets every guest and tells everyone the rich history of the area.

The carful of kids love the beach so we stop at the Ingonish Beach for wave chasing, a tad too chilly for swimming. Ingonish is the larger gateway town to the Cape Breton Highlands National Park, its also home to the Keltic Lodge, a historic seasonal resort.

The carful of kids spend a leisurely day exploring the Cabot Trail but we need to make it to Pictou, Nova Scotia, for an early morning ferry to Prince Edward Island. We wish we had more time, there is plenty to do in Nova Scotia and we hate to say good-bye to its rugged beauty.

Up Next: Prince Edward Island