We were in Nova Scotia for most of the last two weeks. We did not do a blog post while there because there was VERY poor phone service and access to Wifi. So, over the next few days we'll try to put up 2 or 3 posts (or 4 posts) to catch up. Hope you will enjoy all of them.


A dragonfly, at Porters Lake Provincial Park, north of Halifax Nova Scotia

Porters Lake, north of Halifax NS

These were the most delicate mushrooms we've ever seen. They were only about 2 to 4 inches tall and paper thin. They grew in the morning dew, and when it began to rain they melted away almost instantly.

 The boardwalk in Halifax Harbor.

The Halifax Harbor had paid falconers who walked the boardwalk with their falcons (a Harris Hawk in this case) to scare away the seagulls. 

 And Nova Scotia bunnies were much darker brown than we had ever seen before.

The Liscomb River (in morning fog) near it's mouth into the North Atlantic.

Our first Bald Eagle sighting of the trip.

 Wild Roses at the beach on the Gulf of St. Lawrence.

Mike at an overlook of the Gulf of St. Lawrence and the village of Pleasant Bay - along the Cabot Trail.

A cow moose in French Lake at dawn - Cape Breton National Park.

Tiny Orchids growing in the bog (each bloom was only about 1/4 inch long) - Cape Breton National Park.

Another plant from the bog: These are called Pitcher Plants. The parts that look like flowers are in fact leathery leaves, as are the pitcher shaped upright tubes below. They are an insect eating plant, and these are both parts of the plant for trapping and digesting insects.

 A bridge over the MacIntosh Brook.

Blooms along the trail.

Cabot's Landing Provincial Park - a day use only park on the North Atlantic. Be honest with me. When was the last time you were on a sandy beach that was 4 miles long and you could not find a single footprint other than your own? There were people swimming at almost every beach we saw, but this one was just too remote. (Mike did go swimming and said that it was warmer than Barton Springs.)

A Butterfly among the thistles.

Wild Blueberries.

The view of the Gulf of St. Lawrence from the Skyline Trail.

 
Sunset at the Cheticamp campground.

Another cow moose - at the side of the roadway.

Berries and ferns along the trail. 

 Mike on the trail to Ingonish Beach.

Ingonish Harbor - although a long established fishing community (that still survives as its primary industry) Ingonish had quite a large summer population and several beaches and campgrounds and resorts with world class golf courses.

Canada had many unusual signs. We plan to do a special post of signs soon.