Pictures for Harding

As requested, here are some pictures of Sammy in his sweatshirt. These were taken at a place called A Tanners Home Inn in Saint John, NB. This is possibly the nicest place we stayed on the whole trip, and certainly the best deal. Also, Terry, the owner, made us breakfast with blueberry pie for dessert. I'm a fan of breakfast dessert.

Day 9 & 10: Cape Breton Island

Mom and I have spent the last couple of days in Ingonish, NS. When we arrived we were feeling ambitious and went on a terrible hike up a mountain. It seemed like a good sign that the hike was called Franey, but it turned out sort of badly. The northern mosquitoes are the size of small birds, and seem to be immune to bug spray. They were so bad the were following Sammy around in a cloud...we were forced to spray him with bug spray as well, which he DID NOT like. The most exciting thing was the outhouse on the top of the mountain.

We did have some fun though. We went on a whale watching cruise, and while we didn't see any whales we did wear ridiculous red suits and get splashed in the face while we rode across the water. I think this doesn't sound like fun, but it actually really was.



Next we went on a much easier hike with slightly fewer insects and much better views. And we learned what to do when attacked by a coyote... which is to fight back. Fortunately it never came to that.

Today we got up and drove to Saint John, NB. And, after spending so much time in the woods hoping to encounter some wildlife, we saw a moose by the side of the road. Several hours later, we saw a bear! Man I wish we had gotten pictures of those. But it was so shocking for the moose, and the bear was quicker than you might think.

Day 7 & 8: Fundy National Park, Antigonish, NS

The first place we went in Canada was Fundy National Park (New Brunswick) home of the highest tides in the world. We stayed at an adorable chalet (with separate beds!!). 

The next morning we went on another hike, which was good, but very foggy so it was hard to see the views (pictures below). It's just as well, since no place I've ever been can compare with the views from the tops of mountains in Acadia National Park. It was also very cold, and I did not dress appropriately, so I made Mom stop so I could put on jeans in a very smelly outhouse. It was worth it.

We left and went to Cape Enrage, home of the Cape Enrage lighthouse. You know that it's bad when you get out of the car and the tour guide asks if your dog has a sweater or something he can wear. Fortunately, he did. It was a cool lighthouse, and if we come again I would like to sign up for the ziplining you can do from the top of the cliff. You can also repel down the cliff, but I'm afraid that takes some experience.

Latish that evening we arrived at the Sea'scape cottages near Antigonish, NS. The lady who runs the place asked me to tell my friends about it, and the cottages were lovely, so I'm happy to do so. We got there just in time to see the sunset from the balcony.

Welcome to Canada

Mom and I have been in Canada for the last couple of days, so we've been more difficult to contact than usual. It turns out that when we started planning this trip, we kinda forgot that Canada is another country, with it's own laws and money and stuff. In fact, the entry started inauspiciously. The border control agent asked us some questions. "Do you have any tobacco products?" "Do you have any firearms?" "Do you have any pepper spray?" We answered. "No, no, wait, pepper spray?" I had discovered it earlier when I was rooting around my glove compartment looking for something else. It was a little key chain pepper spray bottle, that, as it turns out, is illegal in Canada. Mom tries to get it out to hand it to the border control agent, and he kinda yells at her to drop it, please. Anyway, we have to go park and let a (very cute) Canadian customs officer take it out of the car. For future reference, it's legal to have bear spray and dog spray, but nothing for use on humans.

Anyway, we make it into Canada (after I signed away the rights to my pepper spray - I had to agree to let them have it and never get it back), when we realized that we would need to get some Canadian money if we wanted to eat. However, neither of us had called our banks to let them know that we would travel internationally, so my ATM card did not work. Her card was fine though (apparently it's not a problem for BB&T) and we managed to get money. I called my bank and got my cards activated, so all is good now.

Other fascinating Canadian facts:

1. People really are nicer here (even the toll lady - which is very different from the toll collectors in New Jersey).
2. You can get gas and then pay for it inside (I guess that they're not worried that you'll drive away without paying).
3. When you're driving, there are "exits" that aren't really exits, they're just turns.
4. There's a dollar and two dollar coin, but other than that the coins are in the same denominations as American money.
5. One random man in the grocery store recommend that Mom try head cheese (she was looking for pimento cheese - not the same).
6. Everything is written in English and French (however, New Brunswick is the only officially bilingual province).
7. It is very beautiful here. 

Day 5 and 6: Acadia National Park

Have you ever been in a place where you just can't get anywhere because every time you turn around there's another breathtaking vista? This place is like that. Cliffs, ocean, mountains...really everything you could ask for in a view. Here are a few. Unfortunately, the pictures don't really do it justice.

Mom, Sammy and I did some pretty ambitious hikes. We felt really proud of ourselves for completing them. We scrambled over rocks, pulling ourselves up by our hands, and lifting Sammy up over the high places. Finally we would emerge on the rocky top of a cliff to look out over the mountains and the lakes. Up there the breeze was blowing and we were sweaty but victorious. Seriously, it's hard to say how much fun it was (well, lots of parts during the climb were not so much fun, but overall). This morning we had planned to do one last great hike but it rained. We ended up doing a short one around the lake instead. I will definitely have to go back Acadia. Here are some pictures of us actually hiking. Obviously I was kinda having a hard time choosing.

We also got up on Saturday to watch the sunrise on the top of Cadillac Mountain. I was not crazy about the idea at first because the sun came up at 4:49 am, but it turned out to be beautiful (Mom was right). The only thing that was frustrating was that there was something like 100 other people on top of the mountain as well. And some of them were not so much watching the sunrise as giving a play by play account of what was happening. Be glad these are pictures and not video.

So now we're in Canada and I'm tired of writing. Hopefully I'll get up tomorrow in time to tell you about poorly planned border crossing... much to my disappointment, no Mounties were involved.

Day 4: Portland to Bar Harbor

Yesterday we stayed in one state all day. Not the state of bliss, as has been suggested, but we did have a good day.

We stayed at the Inn at St. John, which I recommend for those of you traveling to Portland without an extensive budget. However, we forgot to take pictures so you'll just have to believe me.

In the morning we got up and walked around Portland. It's a lovely city. We did a little shopping, had some coffee, and I made a swarthy new friend (Mom insisted I put this picture on the blog).

Next, we drove up to the LL Bean store (open 24 hours) and treated ourselves to some things. I bought a hat, which I have chosen to believe does not look ridiculous on me.

All the guide books recommended getting a lobster roll at Red's Eats in Wiscasset, ME. Apparently we were lucky - we only had to stand in line for half an hour. Sammy was a big hit. The proprietors saw him standing in line and brought him some water, twice! The lobster roll was huge and delicious. But in fairness, most things dipped in butter are delicious.

Now we're in Bar Harbor, ME for a couple of days. We anticipate not driving more than a couple of miles today, which everyone is excited about (but mostly Sammy). We will be hiking in Acadia national park, so look forward to pictures!

Bar Harbor or Bust

Now that we've reached The Pine Tree State, we're about to head out to Bar Harbor and to the beautiful (so I've heard) Acadia National Park. However, I can't remember if the cottages have wi-fi, so it might be a few days until you hear from us again. I know, what will you do to fill your days? Please be strong. We'll post again as soon as possible.