OH CANADA: HANGING OUT IN BADDECK

June 2018

It was an easy drive from the ferry back to the campground in Baddeck where we had stored Aimee.  We kept our fingers crossed that we would find her in good condition following all of the rain, wind and cold temperatures that ushers Summer into these parts of Canada.  We were relieved to find all was well, and our plan was to unpack and relax in Baddeck on beautiful Cape Breton for the next four days.  We had been hitting it pretty hard for the past month or so.

The next day the weather was in our favor, so we packed a lunch and headed out to Ingonish Beach along the Cabot Trail in the Cape Breton Highlands National Park.  We drove by a college that since its founding in 1938 has focused on the perpetuation of Highland Scottish Gaelic traditions and culture.

We loved seeing all the little homes along the way, trying to imagine how people thrive here in the winter, and we love supporting local small business whenever we can.  There’s a jewel along the east side of the Cape Bretton Highlands National Park on the way to Igonish Beach.  If you’re ever up this way stop in at The Clucking Hen for breakfast, lunch, or some homemade sweet treats.  You won’t be disappointed.

Onward to Ingonish Beach.  Keltic Lodge greets you as you drive into the area, with posters announcing a Ceilidh (pronounced kale – long a, long e) – an evening of Scottish or Irish folk music and singing, traditional dancing, and storytelling.  We were determined to walk to the point; a short hike (2.4 miles round trip?) along a winding narrow path to an overlook point brought us majestic views of the Atlantic Ocean, the soothing sound of waves swirling and crashing against the rocky shore below.  Gulls sailed on the breezes, and we just sat and soaked up all the ambiance of this incredible shoreline.

The following morning we woke up to rain and decided it would be the perfect time to visit the Alexander Graham Bell National Historic site – highly recommended by our friends, Maggie and Sue.  The museum sits on a lovely hillside overlooking Bras d’Or Lake.  We had no idea that Bell was such a prolific inventor!  Although most notably known for his contributions to language development in deaf persons, his invention of the telephone and the creation of the American Telephone & Telegraph Company, those were only a few of his many accomplishments.  He is also credited with being the leader of a group that achieved Canada’s first powered flight, and he built hydrofoils thought of as possible military weapons.  In the process he achieved a world speed record.  Bell also pioneered experiments in sheep breeding (3 bags full of the best wool!) and he built giant kites.  We marveled at the actual and replicated models of his works.

Scottish-born scientist, inventor, engineer, and innovator, he became interested in sound because his mother (and later Bell’s wife) were both hearing impaired.  Young Bell became a voice teacher, following in his father’s and grandfather’s footsteps, and he worked with his father who had developed “visible speech”, a written system of symbols that instructed the deaf to pronounce sounds.  Bell’s first teaching position in America as a professor of vocal physiology was at Boston University where he met his future wife, Mabel Hubbard.  Mabel was 10 years younger than Bell and she was deaf from a childhood illness.

Bell, Mabel, and their four children visited Baddeck on summer holiday, and a year later Bell purchased land near Bras d’Or Lake.  Mabel managed their family estate, Beinn Bhreagh (Gaelic for “beautiful mountain”), and she was very active in the community. Together they created and established the Aerial Experiment Association, and through her financial and moral support, Bell was able to pursue his many and diverse interests. The museum is a tribute to the partnership of these two remarkable people. Beinn Bhreagh is still home to Bell’s descendants.

Bell may have been distracted by all that he accomplished, but he never forgot his early experiences teaching the deaf to communicate.  The museum is full of the history of this great inventor and humanitarian that helped shape the modern world.  You will be touched by the loving tribute to Bell, Mabel, their family, friends and associates commemorated within the museum.

The skies cleared, and after a light lunch, we went in search for some fossils that brochures claimed could be found at Sydney Mines.  Unfortunately, we didn’t find any fossils during our search – a pretty view, but no fossils to be found.

The next day was dedicated to the Cabot Trail, a 185-mile trek around the perimeter of the Cape Bretton Highlands National Park.  We packed our lunch and off we went, traveling counterclockwise toward Red River and Pleasant Bay in the northeast corner of the Highlands.  Many people had told us to be sure to travel the Cabot Trail and now we know why.  The drive itself was thrilling; each turn in the road that climbed to incredible heights and down again left us speechless.  Breathtaking vistas, beautiful beaches, and easy travels made this stop on our overall journey so memorable.  We followed the advice of fellow travelers, and we completed a hike or 2 along the way as well.

While admiring the view and sitting with some other hikers at the summit of the Skyline Trail we noticed (what we thought was) a small boat moving slowly and erratically within a small area of the water.  Turns out there was a pod of whales just off the shoreline immediately in front of us, and the boat must have been shadowing the whales. With binoculars we could see them breeching and our imagination had them at play. Too far away for a picture or 2, but certainly something to add to our memories.

Rest assured that we got our 10,000 steps in each and every day.

Tomorrow begins our journey back to the States.  We’ll be stopping for visits at the Hopewell Rocks and in Quebec and Montreal along the way, but who knows what other adventures we’ll find in our last couple of weeks in Canada?

Barbara and Brian