Day 2 Halifax

In which we visit Lunenburg and Peggy’s Cove

Woke to rain and fog in the harbour and the small lighthouse on George’s Island barely visible, though it too was soon fogged out. Forecast was for clearing though…

We started with the hotel tour, picking up people at different hotels on the way out of Halifax. Most were on time, apart from one couple of girls who had to be phoned to appear…. there’s always one in a crowd. We were a total of 13, with a large passenger van which was perfect. Nice bunch of people, with some Americans we discovered eventually were recently retired physicians appalled by the politics in the US and considering emigrating to Nova Scotia to restart practice if necessary to obtain entrance. Fairly severe to be considering such a move…

First stop Lunenburg, driving through fog most of the way but by the time we got there it had thankfully cleared and we had lovely views. It was actually hot and humid… pre thunderous would be a good description but apparently that’s been the norm for the last week. Lunenburg is a Unesco world heritage site, and deserves it as it’s lovely – we got the history of the Bluenose, the Bluenosers (Nova Scotians’ nickname from the US) and Lunenburg on the way in, a brief commentated tour of town then were left to wander for a couple of hours.

A selection of preserved houses (colour is not restricted by Unesco rules!)

Local drivers were very tolerant of idiot tourists in the middle of the road taking pictures…

this one now a legal office

our only complaint was that the wires kept getting in the way of photos!

Architectural heritage reconstruction takes on a whole new trade here…

If you look closely you can see the upper window has lots of tall ship models on display

This Anglican church was actually destroyed in a fire Nov. 1, 2001 and rebuilt in similar Gothic style. Ironically one of the passengers on our tour was a retired Toronto architect whose previous partner had designed the reconstruction, definitely one for the “its a small world” list.

Some lovely stained glass work as well

Right at the top of the hill sits the school – and like most coastal towns it was a steep hill up. It was retired from service in 2012 and now houses municipal offices and community space.

Not so sure about this apricot colour but the gardens were lovely

Bluenose II came into dock about noon and we were able to wander the decks. It has a crew of 20, room for 23 in the berths below and goes in for the winter Oct. 15th. There are six permanent crew and 14 seasonal (6 month) hires, mostly students in gap years; surprisingly the crewman I talked to said only 60 or so applicants for the positions. Mind you, they work 7 d/week and 14h/d during the season so perhaps that has some bearing….

For those following in the UK you may not know the bluenose – our famous fishing vessel that won many Fishermen’s Trophy Races. The Americas Cup refused to let the competing boats go out over a certain wind speed which the Acadians thought was near calm weather compared with what they dealt out fishing so they started their own racing series which competed in almost all conditions. All entrants had to be working fishing vessels. The Bluenose was iconic, and is famously on our dime coin (10 cents). Bluenose II is a replica and now belongs to the Nova Scotia government. Currently it takes passengers out for 1.5 hour sails from Lunenburg, and represents Canada as a tall ship on other occasions up and down the coast.

The green in the background is now a golf course, but formerly was where the fish brought in were salted and dried in the sun (about six weeks).

By the time we left it was hot and humid again and I was really happy I’d packed my full rain gear and fleece with me in the pack…. but we had some relaxing time on the dock as well.

Lunenburg is still a functioning fishing village, and this was in the working part of town. The lobster industry has been severely damaged by recent Chinese tariffs such that lobster prices have dropped to ~8/lb from 25/lb previously – yet to be seen if it rebounds next year.

The golf course afforded a great view of the town.

Next we headed to Peggy’s Cove, about an hour away, with its iconic lighthouse. It was a bit of a zoo, with lots of people wandering around but we worked assiduously to take pictures with as few people in them as possible!

No longer a manned lighthouse, the interior hasn’t been seen for some years. Our guide said that weather in the winter in Peggy’s Cove is legendary for winds, rain and fog (hence the need for the lighthouse!)

Stay off the rocks when wet, famously slippery.

An iconic coastal village scene…

On return to Halifax I hopped out of the van early and walked back through downtown exploring some more green spaces: first the public gardens, which were lovely, serene, and beautifully kept…

some inventive topiary work

A nice shady haven on a hot day

begonia basket with bandstand in distance

The next green space was Victoria park, followed by a cemetery (Catholic then bordering onto a VA, Veterans’ Affairs space). A previous prime minister buried in the former.

Later Jean and I boarded a ferry to Dartmouth to watch the sunset on the harbour. Well worth the effort. The waterfront was busy with a Jazz Festival and Friday night crowds but the ferry fairly quiet.

Bridge to Dartmouth at sunset

waterfront at sunset

from the ferry on return

That ends day 2 – except to note that I finally got the tires on the bike inflated properly! No need to visit a bike shop tomorrow which is a blessing as there are none close and a Pride Parade in town apparently shuts down most of the downtown core….

Highlights of the day? Seeing the bluenose in person. Being introduced to the gorgeous coastline.