Making our Way Back to Maine

The carful of kids trekked through the Anne of Green Gables Heritage Place, transported back in time as described by L. M. Montgomery's famous books. We're on the move again headed back to the US, but first, we want to see some of the stuff that we missed due to Hurricane Arthur.

The carful of kids took a ferry to Prince Edward Island (PEI) from Nova Scotia but now we will take the Confederation Bridge across the Abegweit Passage of the Northumberland Strait to New Brunswick. Remember it's free to get to PEI but there's a charge to get off--across the bridge or on the ferry; the toll for the bridge is $45.50 CAN.
Ouch, but the ferry is more.

Back on the mainland of New Brunswick, the carful of kids want to see the Reversing Falls of the Saint John River which are effected by the tidal shifts of the Bay of Fundy. If you catch it during high tide the water of the Bay of Fundy goes against the downstream current of the Saint John River. During low tide, the Saint John River rushes into the Bay of Fundy making some intense rapids.

The carful of kids are headed to the Saint Croix International Park next, there is a Canadian park and an American park dedicated to Saint Croix Island. You will not be able to visit the island from either side and the Canadian national park is not staffed so we stop at the American park.

In the winter of 1604-1605, Pierre Dugua's French Expedition spent a hard winter on the island without fresh water or game, half of the men died. During the spring the expedition moved on but this was the beginning of the French presence in North America, especially through the St. Lawrence River region.

After taking the self-guided trail with bronze statues commemorating the expedition, we arrive at an overlook to see Saint Croix Island. The carful of kids fill out their Junior Ranger booklets and the Park Ranger gives us a great history of the area before we take the Junior Ranger Oath and get our patches.

Down the road from the Saint Croix International Park is Roosevelt Campobello International Park, where F. D. R. spent his summers as a child. It is open from sunrise to sunset during the summer.

The carful of kids are in Maine because my oldest son did a school project on Maine and wanted to pick some blueberries. Unfortunately, they had a hard winter so the season is running a little late. The blueberries are not ready.

While researching, I found this roadside stop that we are racing to see before they close in Columbia Falls, Maine. Wild Blueberry Land is a building that is shaped like a giant blueberry and everything is blueberry-themed, but alas it is closed.

Time for a Whoopie Pie instead, the official state treat of Maine.

Up Next: Acadia National Park

Anne of Green Gables Heritage Place

The carful of kids are spending the day immersed in the iconic Prince Edward Island setting of the Anne of Green Gables series by Lucy Maud Montgomery. We are surrounded by red-headed girls, young and old, of every nationality, dressed in green gingham dresses with braids, myself included.

The original book in the beloved series, Anne of Green Gables, was first published in 1908 and has millions of fans worldwide. For those who aren't familiar with the story, it is about Anne Shirley, a red-haired orphan who is mistakenly sent to Prince Edward Island to Matthew and Marilla Cuthbert, a brother and sister who own a farm, instead of the boy that they request. Through a series of good-hearted mishaps Anne endears herself to the Cuthberts, along with her schoolmates and neighbors of Avonlea.

The Green Gables Heritage Place is a popular national park so the carful of kids arrive when they open at 9 a.m. (family admission $19.60 CAN, or $7.80 adult and $3.90 youth). This includes a tour of the Green Gables house, the barn, the interpretive movie at the visitors center along with two trails--the Haunted Wood Trail and the Balsam Hollow Trail but not the Lucy Maud Montgomery's Cavendish Home that is located nearby.

As we walk through the Green Gables house, the carful of kids look at all the details and I am especially enchanted; it is like being in a life-sized doll house. L.M. Montgomery didn't actually live in the house, it belonged to her grandfather's cousins; she lived nearby.

The carful of kids wander down the Balsam Hollow Trail to Lover's Lane before taking a break to sip on a Raspberry Cordial. Afterwards, we head to the site of Lucy Maud Montgomery's Cavendish Home along the Haunted Wood trail.

As we walk along the woodland trail enjoying the scenery, the carful of kids run into Anne Shirley in the flesh. The kids tell Anne that they live in Texas and try to explain their life to the turn of the century character.

We arrive at the L. M. Montgomery's Cavendish Home ($3.00 CAN adults, $1.00 youth 16 & under) where she lived and wrote the first two books in the Anne of Green Gables series. All that remains is the foundation of the original home; there is a gift shop and artifacts of the Cavendish post office that was in her grandfather's home when L.M. Montgomery lived there.

The town of Cavendish is devoted to Anne of Green Gables, even the working post office has a museum dedicated to the series. After spending the day seeing the historic sites, the carful of kids are ready for some beach time.


Though we are fairly far north, the water at the Prince Edward Island National Park near Cavendish is warmer than I anticipated because of its protected location. In August, it reaches a high temperature of close to 70F, so it's great for splashing and wading.


As we call it a day, the carful of kids spot an actual Canadian Mountie riding around Cavendish.

Up next: Blueberries, Lobster and Acadia National Park

Prince Edward Island Getaway

The carful of kids are on the move again, we have our eyes set on Prince Edward Island for the potatoes, seafood and Anne of Green Gables. I have activities planned for two days that will take us across the majority of the island.

The hull lifts and you drive into the ferry

The carful of kids have to get to Prince Edward Island (PEI) first, we were, most recently, exploring the Cabot Trail in Nova Scotia--one of the most scenic drives in Canada. After a quick night at a bed and breakfast in Pictou, the carful of kids are ready to drive the SUV into the hull of the 8 a.m. Northumberland Ferry that departs Caribou, Nova Scotia, to Wood Island, PEI.

We pass another ferry.

The carful of kids have an American-sized SUV so that means we are oversized in Canada and we are directed to the taller of two vehicle levels on the ferry. No one is allowed to stay in their vehicle during the crossing but there is enough to occupy passengers on the 75-minute voyage.

The carful of kids head to the cafeteria for a quick bite before we explore the rest of the ferry. Right on schedule, we arrive at the ferry terminal in PEI.

Our first scheduled stop is Happy Clammers but we have a couple of minutes so we head over to the Point Prim Lighthouse. It was constructed in 1845 of brick and is the oldest lighthouse of the 30 lighthouses on PEI.

They offer a tour and the carful of kids scale a series of ladders to the top of the 60-foot round structure where we find a fabulous view of the Northumberland Strait. The carful of kids walk through the living quarters of the lighthouse keeper--they are spartan and look cold in the winter.

Loaded back in the SUV, we arrive at the home of Goldie and Gilbert Gillis, the Happy Clammers, for our next adventure. The carful of kids want to dig up our lunch and Gilbert is showing us how.

After a quick introduction, Gilbert loads everyone up and heads over to his secret spot for the biggest, juiciest clams at low tide. To find and dig up clams, we start looking for the tiny little bubbles popping up through the red sand that signals a clam underneath. We carefully slide our shovel eight inches into the sand and if we're lucky, we'll find a soft-shelled clam.

And we do, the kids instantly love it and run all over the beach, looking for tiny bubbles. With the guide that Gilbert gives us, we check the size of our clam to see if it's big enough and then throw it into the bucket for lunch.

After our group fills a bucket, we head back to the Gillis' house for lunch. Goldie has clam chowder ready for us with some homemade biscuits--a real treat. The carful of kids top it off with the fresh steamed clams dipped in butter.

At Goldie & Gilbert

Happy Clammers with Goldie and Gilbert is a must for your visit to PEI with or without kids. They are an extremely nice couple and great with families--Goldie will whip up some buttered pasta for a picky eater too! Make reservations ahead of time for this popular activity.

Outside the Province House

After saying good-bye to Goldie and Gilbert, the carful of kids drive on to Charlottetown, the provincial capital of PEI, for some Canadian history. The carful of kids walk around the quaint downtown area filled with interesting shops and sidewalk cafes before arriving at the Province
House.

In 1864, the Charlottetown Conference commenced to debate joining the Maritime Union and the Canadian Confederation. The Province House is open to the public and is a Historic Landmark complete with costumed re-enactors to reinforce the history lesson.

After our history lesson, the carful of kids load up and drive over to the Prince Edward Island National Park. I'm a lover of old historic hotels so we stop at the Dalvay by the Sea. Built in 1895, it's a summer resort tucked in the park and hosted HRH Prince William and Kate, the Duchess of Cambridge, in 2011.

The carful of kids are getting hungry so before calling it a day we head over to the Prince Edward Island Preserve Company, a charming business that makes and sells tea, jams and preserves among other things.

The carful of kids dive into the Lobster Pot Pie and the Seafood Bubbly Bake after sharing some PEI mussels along with PEI potatoes, both of which are island specialities. We eat everything but find room for dessert--Raspberry Pie.

The Prince Edward Island Preserve Company
has a garden of hope filled with butterfly-loving plants and that is where the carful of kids watch the sun set before finding our cottage close to Cavendish.

Up Next: The Anne of Green Gables Heritage Place

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

How do you spell fun in Canada--Bay of FUNdy

We have one photo and my youngest photobombs it.

Hopewell Rocks on the Bay of Fundy, near the town of Moncton, New Brunswick, is the home to the highest tides in the world according to the National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration (NOAA). We have wanted to visit for years and we are not going to let a little inclement weather get in our way, even if its name is Hurricane Arthur.

The carful of kids drove through sideways rain in the pitch dark of a moonless night to get here but we got here. We are headed to the Bay of Fundy National Park after we leave Saint John, New Brunswick. Hurricane Arthur came ashore a few hours ago across the Bay of Fundy from us at Meteghan, Nova Scotia.

Because of Hurricane Arthur the waves are up.

The power at our hotel made it through the night but the roads are flooded in spots; after checking the weather and calling the Bay of Fundy National Park, we load up the carful of kids and make our move. But first we have to drop off the rental car that I rented in Montreal.

The Bay of Fundy National Park is 81 miles away and should take an hour and a half, but it will probably take a little longer with the weather conditions. Hopewell Rocks, or The Rocks Provincial Park, is 27 miles farther. We look at the tidal charts to find low tide so the carful of kids can walk on the ocean floor.

Low Tide

As we turn onto the road to Bay of Fundy National Park, the Parks Canada ranger calls to tell us our reservation for tonight has been cancelled due to the wind. I had reserved an oTENTik, A-frame platform tent, for the night but the park service called the local hotel right outside of the park boundaries and secured us a reservation. They will give us a full refund when we arrive.

To tell you the truth, the kids are a little disappointed but it's quite windy with spotty showers and I'll take the hotel room with a view instead, thank you very much.

From the stairs on your way down

When the carful of kids arrive at the Bay of Fundy National Park, we have the place to ourselves. Sure the weather is not the best but this area is very busy in the summer so it's nice. Thanks to our Parks Canada Annual Pass ($136.40 CAN) there isn't an entrance fee.

After checking in with the park service to get my refund and the kids Parks Canada Xplorer Booklets, we drive over to Hopewell Rocks for low tide so we can walk on the ocean floor.

The carful of kids are very excited, it seems that Hopewell Rocks are featured in a lot of educational programming and they want to see it. This park is not covered under the Parks Canada Annual Pass but they have a family rate of $24 CAN plus the $2 CAN each way to ride the golf cart--the weather is icky so we get a ride.

The carful of kids climb down a series of rugged industrial staircases and enjoy the wind for a moment. We have timed it correctly because the tide is  completely out and there is plenty to see. At Hopewell Rocks during low tide, the Bay of Fundy is approximately 50 feet lower than at high tide.

It is amazing.

While we are looking at different sea weeds, marine life and shells, the tide is inching back up. The visitors center has a great display explaining how the marine life adapts to the changes of water level.

After exploring the ocean floor, the carful of kids take a break for lunch and warm up with a cup of tea in the  on site cafe. We load back up in the SUV and head back to the Bay of Fundy to complete their Xplorer Booklets.


We tour the whole park, spend some time watching the waves crash against the rocks and finish our Parks Canada Xplorer Booklets before calling it a day. We exit the park and cross a bridge into the town of Alma.

The carful of kids have a room at the Parkland Village Inn with a bay view and the Tides Restaurant downstairs serves up local seafood. The town of Alma is tiny but we find a laundromat for the clothes, a fish and chips shack for the kids and a couple of souvenir shops.

The kids settle in with cartoons and the babysitter-certified big sister is left in charge, Spencer and I walk downstairs to the dining room for a grown-up dinner. We love seafood and that's what is on the menu.

The owners and staff of the Parkland are wonderful and make our evening most enjoyable. The weather might not be perfect but our view is lovely and we make the best of it and enjoy lobster  and scallops for an impromptu date night.

Next up: Cape Breton and the Cabot Trail