Day 19 of 30 on our 2017 Canadian Maritime Caravan with Yankee RV Tour

Many of us have been wanting to see the famous puffins, often referred to as “the clowns of the sea.” Today, Friday June 23, 2017, will be our day to see them! We were split into two groups, rig numbers 1 – 9 and 11 – 18. The first group went on the Bird Island Boat Tour in the morning and the second group will go in the afternoon.

That gave us all a little downtime. I had some time to get housekeeping and laundry done. Jack and Jackie washed their rig at the self-service wash station.

Charlie and I also took a walk along the walking trail at the campground. John and his wife, keep it well maintained and nicely decorated. I have only included a few pictures! 

We departed the Arm of Gold at 12:45 pm for a 1:30 pm Bird Island Boat Tour. We heard that bird watchers from as far away as Europe and Australia reportedly have made the trip to Cape Breton to see the Puffin. Crazy, No?

The Bird Island Boat Tour was led by Captain Vince Van Shaick and his First Mate and son, Ian. The Van Schaick family are Dutch seaman and have been operating this tour since 1972, the longest running boat tour in cape Breton. These two are the second and third generations sharing the wildlife of is islands with visitors.

The currents are strong in the Bras d'Or channel, as this picture shows. Great Bras d’Or joins the ocean through a quarter-mile-wide funnel further squeezed by shoals. The currents can reach six knots there, and when they run against large onshore seas, they create a boiling cauldron. Our crew is well seasoned and a fair tide, which carried us swiftly between the buoys marking the deep water between the breakers.

The trip out to the Sea Islands, where the puffins nest, took about 40 minutes during which birds would come alongside the boat, to have a look. Maybe they are as curious about us as we are about them! Captain Vince was an awesome tour guide and you could hear the love of the birds in his stories and voice. Ian was as equally as vested in his craft. The first birds we spotted, were the Northern Gannet. These guys are a rare sight, as they do not nest in this area. The closest known nesting area is 50 miles west of Cape Breton.

On our way out to Bird Island, we passed a red freighter that was laying underwater electric lines from the Muskrat Falls Hydroelectric Generating Facility to Cape Breton Island. We heard about he Muskrat Fall project, while we were in Newfoundland. Construction began in 2013 on a hydroelectric generating facility at Muskrat Falls on the lower Churchill River, west of Happy Valley-Goose Bay, Labrador. The facility consists of a spillway, two dams and a powerhouse, and will be the second-largest hydroelectric facility in the province when complete. First power from the generation project is expected during the summer/early fall 2019 with full power by mid-2020. Almost 1,000 miles of transmission lines across the province, and the Maritime Link between Newfoundland and Nova Scotia. The project also includes two 100 miles of subsea cables across the Cabot Strait.

The Giant Black-Backed Gull is the largest gull in the world. It has a yellow bill with a red dot near the tip of it. Immatures will peck at it, which means “Feed me! Feed me!” 

 

Great and Double-Crested Cormorants are very prominent at Bird Island. The Double Crested Cormorant has an orange or rust colored cheek patch. They catch fish by striking at it like a snake. They also have hollow quills which allow water to enter. This is why you will often see a Cormorant with their wings outspread, attempting to dry their wings.

Here is a picture of the Cormorants nesting area. During the breeding season the male Great Cormorant grows a white patch which is found underneath its wing.

We were lucky to see a nest of a Great Blue Heron on top of Bird Island. The great blue heron is found throughout most of North America, as far north as Alaska and the southern Canadian provinces in the summer months. However, their hardiness is such that individuals often remain through cold northern winters, as well, so long as fish-bearing waters remain unfrozen (which may be the case only in flowing water such as streams, creeks, and rivers).

The great blue heron can adapt to almost any wetland habitat in its range. It may be found in numbers in fresh and saltwater marshes, mangrove swamps, flooded meadows, lake edges, or shorelines. It is quite adaptable and may be seen in heavily developed areas as long as they hold bodies of fish-bearing water.

Razorbills are members of the Alcidae Family. They are Pelagic, which means they only come on land to nest. They nest on Bird Island for three reasons: protection from the prevailing south-west winds; abundant food source and absence of land-based predators, rodents and humans.

We saw many Grey Seals. Grey Seals is an oxymoron, since the male is black, the females are grey spotted and the pups are grey and white. 

A large male seal can eat up to 60 pounds of fish a day. There is currently an overpopulation of the Grey Seals, due to the lack of natural predators.

The Herring gulls are the most common of the gulls. They are scavengers, they will even eat their young, if they are hungry enough! They will keep a Bald Eagle away by attacking it. This is called an Innate Releasing Mechanism. They will “dive bomb” a Bald Eagle until it leaves the island.

The Gull chicks can be found with their parents or wandering on their own. This might be the only time you say a gull is “cute!”

Puffins are only about 10 inches tall and weigh about the same as a can of soda. Their beaks are only colorful during the mating season. You can tell the age, by counting the grooves on their bills.

The puffins mate in a small cave in the rocks and only one egg is laid. A toilet or “guano pit” is constructed in the first bend of the burrow and used by the baby puffin so as not to soil its feathers. The toilet is moved closer to the entrance as the baby puffin matures, and when it leaves the nest, it follows its parents to the open sea where it will remain for up to three years before returning to the same island. The puffins’ greatest natural enemy is the giant black backed gull that will catch them in mid-air and rip them to shreds for a meal. Thankfully, we did not witness this event during our trip. They can live 10 to 15 years, which is long for a sea bird.

The puffins in flight. They have air sacs located under their wings which can inflate and deflate. So they can “puff” themselves up, hence the name Puffin. They can also use their wings to “fly” underwater. They can carry up to 10 capelin in their bill.

Eagle watching on the shores of Bras d’Ors from Bird Island. The eagles normally come to Bird Island after the Lobster season is over, because the gulls are hungrier and less likely to watch their young. When they arrive at the Bird Island, they make some of the smaller birds nervous and they tend to leave the island early.

 

We enjoyed dinner at the Black Spoon, at his catering facility. He has main venue is downtown Sydney at the Black Spoon Bistro. Some caravaneers went to lunch at another restaurant and they raved about the food at the Black Spoon, so we are all anticipating an awesome meal!  The meal selections were chicken fettuccine or haddock. Both were delicious!

Rod had arranged for music before and during dinner. Thanks to Darrell Keigan, he was an exceptional entertainer. He provided traditional Cape Breton Island music. The fellowship we enjoyed with our friends was awesome!

Day 18 of 30 on our 2017 Canadian Maritime Caravan with Yankee RV Tour

On Thursday June 22, 2017 we enjoyed wishing our wagon master, Rod Coe, a very happy birthday. Our two chefs, Charlie & Joel, whipped up a pancake breakfast for Rod’s special day. They were delicious and enjoyed by everyone!

Before we headed out for the day, I wanted to grab some loonies foe the laundry, but I had to wait for the visitor ahead of me to finish her business in the office. I guess I answered the question of why did the chicken cross the road, to get to the office! LOL

There is a lighthouse directly across the street, on an island, from the Alexander Graham Bell Museum. The Kidston Island Lighthouse is a lighthouse, located in the Bras d'Or lakes. The original lighthouse on Kidston Island was built in 1875. The present lighthouse was built in 1912 and the two stood side-by-side for some time. The lighthouse can only be accessed by boat. A ferry is operated during the tourist season.

We visited the Alexander Graham Bell National Historic Site. It is one of the very few historic sites that has as its primary role the commemoration of man’s inventive accomplishments. Bell had wide-ranging interests and produced a wide body of inventive work, much of it undertaken in Baddeck. Located in Baddeck, the site consists of 10 acres of land, overlooking Baddeck Bay, part of the Bras d’Or Lakes, and Beinn Bhreagh, Bell’s summer home, where much of his scientific work was pursued.

The site provides a center for commemoration and interpretation of Alexander Graham Bell and his associates. It also functions as a center for the study of Bell’s scientific and humanitarian work as illustrated by the artifacts and documents preserved there. By the time of Bell’s arrival in Baddeck, the success of the telephone had freed him from the need to earn a living and, at Beinn Bhreagh, Bell continued his busy routine of experimentation and analysis. His imagination and wide-ranging curiosity led him into scientific experiments in such areas as sound transmission, medicine, aeronautics, marine engineering and space-frame construction. A unique fact is, Alexander Graham Bell’s office had no telephone! See the owl picture, that is a portrait of Bell that his wife Mabel painted ... very interesting story!

Alexander Graham Bell was a communication and transportation pioneer, as well as a teacher, family man and humanitarian. We discovered how Bell and his associates achieved Canada’s first powered flight, produced the world’s fastest boat, designed giant kites and invented the telephone. He really got a raw deal, because he is one of the most influential figures in human history. 

He was the first member of the Telephone Pioneers. I have a rich telephone history in my family, my parents were and my brother is a member of the Telephone Pioneers and they all were employed by the local telephone company

The museum is home to a full-scale replica of the Silver Dart. It was built by Aerial Experiment Association in 2005 in commemoration of the original’s 1909 flight, the first powered, controlled airplane flight in Canada. The replica was flown by a former astronaut Bjarni Tryggvason across Baddeck Bay in February 2009. It now flies high over the full-scale replica of Bell’s HD-4 Hydrofoil.

We learned about some influential members of the Aerial Experiment Association; Casey Baldwin, Douglas McCurdy, Thomas Selfridge and Glenn Curtis. The AEA was founded in 1907. There is a Glenn Curtis museum in Hammondsport, New York. We learned that three of Bell’s planes, the Red Wing, White Wing and the June Bug, flew from Hammondsport, New York. The winds in the area provided the perfect lift for these winged machines. Charlie and I have enjoyed the Glenn Curtis museum.

We enjoyed a lunch in Baddeck at Highwheeler Café and Bakery. We sat on the open air patio facing the roadway. It offered us a deli type array of foods. Some had salads, soups or sandwiches. 

Nancy and I went for the tuna salad, I added a sweet potato chicken lentil soup. It was delicious and a perfect break before our next stop this afternoon at the Gaelic College.

 

In 1773, the first ship carrying Gaelic settlers reached Nova Scotia. They were leaving behind cultural suppression and a change in economic and social order in Scotland that would come to be known as the “Highland Clearances.” In Gaelic it is called Faudach nan Gaidheal; the eviction of the Gael. They brought with them their language, songs, music and dance styles as well as their stories and traditions.

Songs, music, dance and storytelling have long been important parts of Gaelic society. The word ceilidh, now often used to refer to any concert, actually is Gaelic in origin and truly means a visit but wherever a few Gaels gather, music and songs are sure to be shared.

The Gaelic College began as a school of Gaelic language in a small log cabin overlooking St Ann’s Bay and has since grown into a unique institution. Established in 1938 by a Presbyterian Minister, Reverend AWR MacKenzie. The Gaelic College has gained an international reputation for its contribution towards the promotion and preservation of the culture of the Scottish Highlanders who had settled in Cape Breton.

Upon our arrival to the campus, our tour guide Brittney, entertained us with a Scottish dance with the music provided by her brother’s “mouth music.”

On the campus, we visited the Great Hall of the Clans, which features a walk around exhibit, tracing the history of the Scot, a Pioneer museum and an Art Gallery. 

Many people used the books they had, with the help of Brittney, to find their clan colors. I don’t have any Scottish or Irish in me … so, we enjoyed walking around. I did try to find one for our friends, Bob & Marie … I found one close.

The Gaelic College Gift Shop has a large selection of Celtic gifts, Gaelic language books and tutorials, music books, instruments, tartan clothing, clan items, CDs and more. This year, the college is hosting a Kitchenfest, a celebration of Celtic music and culture, which will take place in venues all over Cape Breton. It is a 10 day festival packed with music and culture, the hardest decision you will have is where to go every day to hear the music and see the culture!

We enjoyed an early evening of fellowship with nature and other caravaneers.

Of course, the sunset and the night sky!

Day 17 of 30 on our 2017 Canadian Maritime Caravan with Yankee RV Tour

We spent last night at the Port aux Basques, this way we were there and ready for the start of Wednesday June 21, 2017. I should tell you that there is an 11:45 pm ferry that we heard the overhead announcements for that loading. Then, there is a 5 am commercial only ferry and we started to hear the overhead announcements for those drivers to return to their vehicles about 4:30 am.

So, you could say it was an early morning at the port! But, the early morning allowed us some awesome sights. We watched the fog “breath.” It came in and went out, again and again.

We enjoyed a breakfast at the restaurant at the port and they had free wi-fi, so we got caught up on a few things on the internet. The ferry terminal had a nice seating area with television and a model of a passenger and cargo steamer, the Cabot Strait. 

We loaded the ferry starting around 10am and got settled into our reclining seats. We went back to Nova Scotia on the sister ship to the one we traveled to Newfoundland on, the MV Highlander is our ship today. Since, I have already talked about the ferry ride I wanted to talk about a few observations from Newfoundland, as we sail away from it.

Without a doubt, one of the most colorful things in Newfoundland is its language. Start a conversation with a visitor to Newfoundland, you are able to understand most every word, provided they speak the same language! Speak to a Newfoundlander and you are challenged to understand every third or fourth word. Both are speaking English but, oh, what a difference. The English spoken in Newfoundland is a blend of English, French, Irish, and Scottish dialects. The influence of the native peoples and even a bit of American from the servicemen stationed here during and after WWII add to this language. Add to this language, a serious mixture literally hundreds of sea-lore expressions and idioms that could fill a dictionary and you have Newfoundland English. There is a Dictionary of Newfoundland English, but it is not easy ready! There is a lighter version, The Dictionary of Newfoundland and Labrador by Ron Young. This book is a must read for those interested in the language and lore of Newfoundland or a visit to the “Rock”.

The fellas at the Schreech-In taught us a thing or two. The biggest influences are the Gaelic language of Ireland which has no th sound and the fact you make the sound by placing your tongue against the back of your top front teeth has greatly influenced the language of Newfoundland. This become “dis,” three becomes “tree,” bath is “bat” and teeth ironically becomes “teef” which also means thief. Also o’s before r’s become a’s so that forty is “farty,” corn is “carn,” and morning is “marning. “ The letter s is often added to verbs and removed from nouns resulting in “I gets as good of a time now as I did 25 year ago. The oi sound become i and you have “Every time yah pints your finger at me, me fair blood biles”.  

 

Even though we were there is June, we learned about one of their Christmas Holiday traditions, Mumming. The only people we saw dressed were in pictures and these cute earrings, wine charms and ornaments. Sold at various gift shops we visited. Mumming is a Christmas holiday tradition in Newfoundland when people dress up in disguise, veils over their faces, and men usually dress up as women and women as men. With musical instruments in hand and wooden horse chops to ride, the merry makers begin on St Stephens Day, December 26. With a wooden Johnny stick, they wrap on the door and ask, “”Any mummers ‘lowed in?” using hushed disguised voices. If allowed in, the music and entertainment begins and the Mummers are served food and of course, alcohol. Moving from one house to another, the mummers go on ‘til morning’s light.

We got off the ferry and headed back to the Arm of Gold campground. It is an awesome park with unbelievable facilities and a very accommodating owner. John and his wife, go above and beyond to ensure every guest is satisfied and has an enjoyable stay! 

The first thing we noticed was the trees lining the entry road have really budded out! Look at the before and now pictures! The difference in a week is awesome!

We had friends from Florida that live in Nova Scotia drive 40 minutes to see us! We are so blessed with some incredible friendships! 

Florence, Keats & Brenda are very special! John let us use the barn to visit with them! It was a great few hours with friends!

Relaxing night and a sunset!