Letter 24: Nova Scotia II

Harrington Travels East 2009
Letter 24: Nova Scotia II
Saturday, August 1, we drove Blaire to the airport, came home, and crashed. We took a nap, ate supper and went to bed. Teenya kept us posted on the flight. We know Blaire was happy to be home. We enjoyed her stay and we think she did too. We were also glad to have our independence back.

Sunday, August 2 we washed! We did meet our neighbors from Pennsylvania. They are the Showers and the Crebs, in two huge motor homes. They are traveling our way for a little while then they will go to PEI and Quebec. They were so nice and even invited us to stay with them as we pass through (Williamsport, Pa area) on our way home. We enjoyed two evenings with them. Both are wonderful couples.

Monday, Aug 3 was Nova Scotia’s Natal Day and everyone was celebrating. We spent four hours in the Information Center at Tantallon with Susan & Leah. They allowed us to use a desk space, electrical plug and their internet. We caught up with the blog, emails & paid bills. They were so nice to also answer our many questions about this area. It was interesting to know that Leah was getting a degree in tourism. This is her summer job. She is being educated much like a hotel manager, with a minor in French. She will be qualified to do many tourist related jobs, including various cruise ship jobs, provincial promotional positions, etc. Imagine that! We didn’t know there was that kind of degree. Too bad that wasn’t offered when we were in college. Olivia probably would have finished school.

Just how connected are Acadians and Cajuns after all these years? Are they still similar? Do they look the same? Susan says she had a shocking experience in 2004 during NS’s annual Acadian Festival. That year a large number of Cajuns came from the USA for this special event. Several years previous she was widowed by her husband, who was Acadian. During the festival, while working at the visitors center, a man walked in who caused her to do a double take. He looked just like her deceased husband. She had to retire to their private office to compose herself because of the shock of seeing him. Later she discovered he was a Cajun from the USA.

Tuesday, August 4 was another lazy day. We told our new friends goodbye and happy traveling as they left to go south toward Yarmouth, NS. Their departure left a big hole in the campground and in our activities. We drove back into Peggy’s Cove and picked up our mail. Yea, it was there. Now we can head south too. We roamed the area taking pictures while the weather cooperated. Olivia had seen a very strange flower at the Memorial Site for the Swiss Air 111 crash. No one seemed to identify it . Finally with this picture it was identified as “Stinking Willie.” We did not smell it! This plant had actually multiplied about three times in size since last Friday. The main stalk is about 1” in diameter with the tentacles spreading out. We were also told when reported that the state department would destroy it as it is very invasive and will take over gardens. When we arrived back at Peggy’s Cove, sure enough this plant was everywhere.

We really enjoyed seeing the aerial view of Peggy’s Coe in the visitor's Center. We had been searching for another of Muddie’s pictures of PC, but too many structures have disappeared over the 35 years since she painted it. We finally gave up.

This area is so picturesque we had a hard time deciding on the pictures to keep and publish. A fog had rolled in, then back out over this island with a light house.

There are coves all around St Margaret’s Bay and we saw many buildings and piers built over the water. We had been told that these foundations, logs filled with rocks, were sometimes built in the winter on land and then slid out on the ice. When the ice melts, it drops into the water. Surprisingly a lot of moving takes place in the winter.

This area is abundant with islands—not 1,000, but hundreds none the less. We have been told by several locals the price of islands varies greatly dependant upon the location and size. One report was of a German paying over one million for one of modest size and building a rather large house upon it. We didn’t locate that island. Most of the houses are of modest size, with an occasional larger one.

One structure was actually built between the road and over St Margaret’s bay. Across a smaller bay were new homes. Up the highway we visited Albert’s Wharf Gallery. Mostly prints from water colors. Reasonably priced and well done, but we don’t need more art.

Wednesday, August 5 we left Wayside campground and stopped at Canadian Tire in Tantallon to check on one of the low trailer tires. Sure enough it had two minute holes too close to patch. We aired it up and put the good spare on and hope we won’t need the old spare tire. Fred keeps a very good eye on the tires so hopefully! We had been seeing Canadian Tire stores on nearly every corner since we arrived in Canada, but this was the first one we had needed to visit. It was a very nice store, mostly car supplies and sporting goods, and the people were nice also.

While waiting our turn, Fred started a conversation with a gentleman in the parking lot. He spoke with a German accent. For years he had been employed in some capacity with a contractor who built Home Depots in the USA. However, during this time he lived in the Peggy’s Cove area of Nova Scotia. Two years ago, upon retirement, he and his wife sold everything and returned to Germany to be near their children and grandchildren. He said it was wonderful to be with their family again, but after only a short time there, they said they had made a mistake, so they sold all in Germany and moved again. They love Nora Scotia! We understand why.

From there we headed to Lunenburg traveling on highway 3 through Chester and Mahone Bay where we saw the three churches,
l-r St James Anglican, St John’s Evangelical Lutheran and Trinity United Church of Canada. This view seems to be famous. The main street and highway 3 through Mahone Bay was very narrow and they allowed parking on one side of the road, Our side! Which pushed us over the middle line. The oncoming lane wasn’t big either and Fred was very nervous.

South of there was Oak Island. Now if you haven't heard of this island here’s the scoop. The story we were given is this:


“In 1795 three men discover the “Money Pit”
What lies at the bottom of the Money Pit?
Imagine yourself walking through the trees of a wooded island rumored to hide buried pirate treasure. Suddenly you come across a depression in the ground. It’s roughly circular and there’s a tree standing above it with a branch that has been cut and appears to have been used as a pulley. Your imagination is fired and hope soars. You run off to get your friends and digging equipment.

You and two friends return the next day, shovels in hand, ready to claim your prize. The digging is easy. The dirt loose. Only two feet down your shovel strikes rock. As you clear the dirt away you find a neatly arranged layer of flagstone covering a circular area 13’ in diameter. You pry the stones out, expecting treasure but there’s only more dirt.

You begin again. Digging down 8 more feet with no luck. Suddenly you hit wood. This is it. You scrap away the dirt only to find a platform of oak logs covering the pit. You pull out the logs and resume your digging.

Ten more feet and still nothing. Finally, you strike wood. This MUST be it. As you clear the area you find another level of oak logs.

Now you know there’s something valuable here. Why else would anyone go to so much trouble.

Now 20 feet below the surface you heave to again. Another 10’. Another set of oak boards.

Disappointed, you and your friends decide that you can’t go any further alone. You leave but vow to return to retrieve your treasure.

Now imagine that it’s more than 200 years later. The pit has been explored to more than 150’. The treasure, if any, that was buried is still there, protected by an ingenious booby trap that floods the pit with sea water anytime someone gets close.

Group after group after group have tried to solve the riddle. Neither brute force nor technology has been able to overcome the problems. Six lives have been lost and millions of dollars spent trying to uncover the secrets of what has become known as the ‘Money Pit.’ Still, no one knows what lies at the bottom, who built it or why. There are numerous theories but little proof.

This it the story of Oak Island, Nova Scotia, one of the most frustrating and intriguing mysteries of all time.”

Today we drove as far as we could on Oak Island road which ended at a private causeway with no trespassing signs. There were several small houses on the island seen just above the cars at this end of the causeway. We guessed these were built by some of the treasure hunters. We back tracked to Oak Island Marina and lodge where we visited with
Captain Kidd and saw the REAL treasure map on the wall. We thank Diana Deever Toleman, whom we will visit in Maine for telling us to look for Oak Island. We enjoyed HUNTING for it. We do understand it has been purchased by the state of Nova Scotia and will later be open for tourists. At the present it is only open to visitors one day a year.

All along the roadways and yards Olivia had been noticing the various colors of day
lilies. She finally found them all in one yard. Pink, yellow, orange (like we have) and dark orange. She would like to buy some, but unless they can be shipped, customs won’t allow them to be carried into the USA.

We landed for the night in Lunenburg.

Lunenburg has an interesting history. Established in 1753, it was named in honor of the Duke of Braunschweig-Lunenburg, who had become King of England in 1727. The British settlement plan was to only hae protestants. Those approved were primarily German, however some English, Dutch, Swiss and a number from the Principality of Montbelaird (an area north of Switzerland, now part of France). They were all farmers. This area wasn’t well suited for farming—the soil was rocky and very thin. Atlantic fishing was great in the vicinity, so within a few generations, they became a prosperous
fishing village. Settlement took place under the protection of the British military because previously this was Acadian (French) territory.

This unusual white house caught Fred’s eye and the vivid colors of some of the downtown buildings caught Olivia's eye. Lunenburg is second oldest city (Halifax is the oldest) and they take pride in their old ornate homes like Waxahachie.

The Concordia was docked at the harbor next to the home for Blue Nose 2, where we also saw a
Fisherman’s memorial. Note the long lists of names of boaters lost at sea. Our home for the night was next to their visitor center and run by the Lunenburg board of trade. It was not as nice as Wayside, very cramped and the trail to the restroom was very near our site. We felt like we were in a fish bowl with the traffic to and from the restroom and the price is double. It does have internet service so we really can’t complain. We look forward to our state, national and forest camps in the USA.


Thursday, August 6 started out with a visit to the Lunenburg Farmer’s Market. It was quite good with lots of vegetables, sea food and baked goods. People were actually standing in line to buy at several stands.
We bought little cucumbers, tomatoes and some really good looking sweets. We wondered what the health department in Waxahachie would do to these vendors!

On the way back to get the trailer and head out the “battery is not being charged” light came on in the Suburban. Fred panicked. Fred says he was focused! We had to be out of the campground because all the spots were taken for a big festival this night next to the visitor center. The lady in the visitor center was so nice to try to help us in our situation. She recommended several options and we discussed them all. We opted to get to the closest mechanic in town. We managed to hook up and drove to the Irving gas stop with a mechanic. Yes, it was the alternator and they would have to get it from Halifax. We had stopped at the side of the station near the bays. Cars were just able to get between us and the station to go around the back. They took the alternator out and we were stuck. This was about 10:00 am. It would be 3:00 pm for the delivery.

The man was very nice to let us use his car and we went wild blueberry picking. Olivia had heard a lady at the farmer’s market say she had picked some the day before in the commons in Blue Rock. This is a very small town out at the end of this peninsula. By asking a local, we managed to find the commons behind the church and pick about two cups. We had more ant and fly bites than that!

Three o’clock came and went, then the mechanic came out and told us it would be about 5 pm for delivery, but he would stay and install it for us. By this time, there was no place for us to go. All the spots in town were full with the festival, so he said we could park in the back for the night. He even ran an electrical card out for us. This was the most expensive overnight spot we have had!

Friday, August 7 after a nice night at the back of the filling station/convenience store/mechanic shop we departed Lunenburg and drove to the BlueNose RV store. Two weeks ago, while Blaire was with us we developed a leak over the door. We had been sort of ignoring in every time it rained, which was every other day. Now that we had time, we needed to see to it. Blue Nose was booked for repairs, but the manager was nice enough to take a quick look to diagnose the problem. He felt like the leak had come from the door itself and recommended caulking above the door. He loaned us a ladder and Fred proceeded to caulk. If this was the problem, and we hope it was, this was a cheap repair. $5 for the caulk.

We drove down the main highway which reminded us of a freeway after some of the other roads, with Olivia reading about the upcoming towns. We targeted Pubnico and a small campground in West Pubnico. In fact we were the only ones there. This area was the oldest Acadian part of Nova Scotia and is still Acadian. In the office of the park Olivia asked about an article on the bulletin board about “The Lobster Peg Story”

Here is a summary:
West Pubnico, derived from Pombcoup, the Indian name meaning “a hole which has been cut into the ice for fishing”, is located on the southern shore of Nova Scotia. It is a fishing village. These people have always been resourceful in spit of many hardships. They have a unique story to tell about the industry of the “wooden lobster plugs.”
Lobster was a poor man’s food here until Maine & Boston wanted more. If the Lobster was alive when arriving they were worth 5 to 10 cents a pound. When shipping increased the wooden lobster peg industry increased. The plug was used to keep the pincher and crusher claws shut and protect the other Lobsters. The plug is a narrow wedge of pine wood, about one and a quarter inches long, pointed at one end and squared on the other. It was stuck in the joint to prevent the claw from opening. (It looks like a hand made golf tee.)
In West Pubnico, making lobster pegs was a pastime which provided an extra source of money. The young, the old, male or female made these plugs in almost every household in the village. Local gathering spots were places to hang out, yarn and make pegs.
They were packaged in paper bags, 1000 per bag. Children who were too young to use sharp knives were the counters. The price started at 25 cents per 1000. They were also used for barter in exchange for molasses, flour, sugar, spices, cloth, nails, tobacco and even luxury items such as radios, bicycles, washing machines, and house payments.
In 1975, an inventor designed a machine that could mass produce the pegs until 1984 when rubber bands became the tool of choice to keep the lobster’s claws closed.
Although the use of the lobster plug is now obsolete the stories live on and the older generation still teach the younger ones how to make pegs and keep the tradition alive.

After settling in, we drove to West Pulnico Harbor which is one of the busiest fishing ports in Canada. Originally herring were caught in brush weirs like the Mi’kmaq Indians. Later, the Acadians used nets around the poles and small dories inside the weir to harvest the herring.
Today state-of-the-art boats fish for herring, lobster, tuna, swordfish, marine plants, haddock, cod, halibut, flounder, red fish, monkfish, hake and pollock.
The Dennis Point Wharf is home to over 100 ships, from 25-100’, employing over 250 fishers, generating over $40 million a year. In peak season six fish plants sustain 300 more jobs. Fishing is definitely the economic bedrock of this community.

Lobstering runs from late November to the end of May, fish draggers operate all year and herring seiners fish spring to fall. Some fishers return the same day, others are at sea for long periods of time.
When the tide is out this harbor is almost dry and the fleet is aground on the sandy bottom, we wondered who went out first in this lineup.
From West Pulnico we could see the church at East Pulnico. Both sides of this bay were lined with Pulnicos: West Pulnico, & Lower Pulnico on the western shorn and East Pulnico & Lower East Pulnico on the eastern shore. Confusing? Maybe more that the University streets in Waxahachie.

Across from the harbor, we had our best fish meal of the trip. Dennis’ Restaurant is off the beaten path and a favorite of the locals. Our license plate was the only one not from Nova Scotia. First we shared a small order (four dozen) of steamed mussels with melted butter. Our two entrees had fried haddock, fried local (not frozen) potatoes, sautéed scallops, a lobster roll and slaw. It was all very good.


We thought we could finish NS in this chapter but there is still more to come
.
Let us hear from you,