Peggy’s Cove

The road into the village of Peggy’s Cove allowed glimpses of the waves breaking against the rocks.

This fishing community is located on the eastern shore of St Margaret’s Bay, about 40 km from Halifax.

The village is a collection of  wooden houses perched on the rocks of a narrow inlet, which is protected from the full force of Atlantic storms.

On a blustery November day, the village was quiet, with little activity and few tourists.

It was nice to be able to enjoy the views without the summer crowds and tourist traffic.  

Peggy’s Point Lighthouse

A last-minute plan to visit Halifax turned into an overnight stay, so we took the opportunity to play tourists and visit the iconic Canadian lighthouse at Peggy’s Cove.  It is one of the most photographed locations and is packed with tourists during the summer but, we had it almost to ourselves on this cold and windy November afternoon.

I wasn’t really dressed for this visit, but at least I had my waterproof jacket.  I gave up trying to keep my hair out of my eyes and just enjoyed the breeze!

Standing on this site since 1868, the original wooden lighthouse was built here at the entrance to St Margaret’s Bay and quickly became known as the Peggy’s Point Lighthouse.  The wooden structure was replaced by the current lighthouse in 1915 and is still a working light.  It beams out into the Atlantic Ocean, warning ships of this treacherously rocky coastline.

Walking across the rocks, we faced the full force of the strong winds coming off the sea.

Viewed from a distance, the lighthouse stands on the rocky promontory in the distance.

It wasn’t really a day for standing watching the waves, as it was just too blustery, but we certainly got our fill of fresh air and enjoyed our return visit, as it had been a few years since we last stood on this spot.

Victoria-by-the-Sea

Towards the end of August, we headed out to explore the fishing village of Victoria-by-the-Sea, which is better known today for the artisans who have made it their home.

It was a hot afternoon, so we were glad to spend some time closer to the water, where there was a slight breeze to cool the afternoon.

It is a sweet little place, but I didn't manage to get that many photos because it was busy with tourists and the narrow streets were rather crowded.

Mr Candytuft captured this view of one of the many brightly painted homes when there was a lull in the traffic (yes, I'm the one in the hat in the distance).

We enjoyed our time there and will likely visit again, now that the summer season is officially over and life is getting back to normal.

I've not been blogging lately because I've been unwell with the worst virus that I've had in years.  It started like a dose of flu with fever and chills, body aches and pains and generally feeling ill, but it has dragged on for two weeks and I'm still coughing.

Needless to say, I'm behind with everything and I have a list a mile long of all the things that I should have done, but haven't.  Added to which, I'm still dragging myself into work, which isn't exactly aiding my recovery (employers are not very sympathetic when it comes to illness).

I wish you all a pleasant weekend.  I'm off to tackle some of those jobs on what is supposed to be my day off, before I have to work tomorrow.

Lake of Shining Waters

Back in June, we visited Anne of Green Gables’ house and we stopped at the Green Gables’ Museum on the way home.  

The main reason for stopping here was to see the Lake of Shining Waters.  

We didn’t actually go into the museum because it was packed with tourists and it was a hot day.  We chose to sit in the shade on the veranda and watch the world go by for a few quiet minutes.

I know it is late publishing this post, but I thought that I would share it, as I know that I have some readers who are fans of Anne of Green Gables.  

Open Gardens

I can’t believe that it has been six weeks since I last posted.  I have had issues with posting photographs and only recently discovered that Google no longer supports Picasa, which has made moving photos difficult.  Anyway, I seem to have managed to upload some photos, so here they are.

July and August are the months for open gardens at the garden club, which we joined in the spring.  A chance to have a look at some of the gardens was too good a opportunity to miss, though we haven’t managed to tour all of them.

One of the gardens which drew the largest crowds was the woodcarver’s garden.  The first photo is the intriguing view of the garden from the road, but a short walk to the rear of the house revealed a variety of carvings.  The fairy garden (above) was one of my favourites.

 

There is something very tactile about carvings and I ran my hands over this bald eagle, marvelling at the fact that all of these carvings were done with a chainsaw.

 Another favourite garden was this one.  The front garden was pretty, with sweet little touches like these stars and the peace sign (below).  

 

Behind the house, we found this baby barn which had candle lights in the windows and a willow wreath on the door.  I love those red flowers, but forgot to ask what they were.

What came as a complete surprise was this bed under the trees - the perfect spot for a nap on a hot afternoon. 

Complete with cotton sheets, a cotton nightgown and a teddy bear, it looked so inviting. 

I love this luggage label, which reads, ‘I’m going to make everything around me beautiful - that will be my life’.

How could I resist a photograph of this fireplace, which was on the deck, shaded by a pergola and complete with armchairs for a shady spot to sit and relax. 

We have been out to two more garden tour dates, so I will share some of those photos soon.  

Hope you are all surviving this hot, humid weather.

Spring Drive

Our recent day out took us to Cavendish and then back along the shore from Green Gables.  The view above is taken just down the road from our stop in New London, at the birthplace of Lucy Maud Montgomery.

The weather was perfect for taking photos, as the sky was clear enough to see into the distance.

We stopped further along the road to admire the tranquility of the light reflecting the trees in the water.

We found a secret place which is likely missed by the thousands of tourists who flock to Green Gables in the summer. Mr Candytuft is  always keen to go down mystery tracks and see where we end up.  This is what we found at the end of one - it is called the Swimming Rock.

There is a little sand beach - likely a bit bigger when the tide is out.  The red sandstone rock is typical of Prince Edward Island.

The land was purchased by the Sterling Women’s Institute in 1963 and is now a picnic place, with benches and a little shelter.

Continuing on our journey, we stopped to take a photo of St Thomas’s Anglican Church.

The gravestones closest to the road appeared to be fishermen’s, as they had boats carved on them.  The fishing industry is big in Prince Edward Island and not without danger.  Two fishermen tragically died only a week ago.

One of the most painted panoramas of Prince Edward Island is of the tiny community of French River with its painted buildings, overlooking New London Bay.

 

This is the view looking to the right.  It wasn’t possible to get a good shot of the whole bay, as there was a tour bus of Japanese tourists all clicking away with their cameras.  The Japanese are huge fans of Anne of Green Gables. 

 

 

Lucy Maud Montgomery

Last week, we had a beautifully sunny, warm day and we decided to make the most of it and go out.  Our spring has been mostly cold and wet, so it was a joy to finally see blue skies.  I had the choice of where we were going, so I decided on a trip to see Green Gables, before it is overrun with tourists.

 

On our way, we stopped in the pretty village of New London, at the birthplace of the author, Lucy Maud Montgomery.  She was born in this tiny house on 30th November 1874.  

 

 

Opposite the house is this pretty century home, with a porch and a couple of tempting rocking chairs. I imagine that the owners sit out there and see the world go by - quite literally.  The Anne of Green Gables  series of novels is hugely popular, especially in Japan.  Bus tours of Japanese tourists descend on this part of Prince Edward Island every summer.

 

 

There is a plaque at the front door noting that this is Lucy Maud Montgomery’s birthplace and a blue plaque stating that it is a Canadian Heritage Place.  

 

 

This the front door to the house, which is white clapboard with green trim.  There is also a little white picket fence in front of the house.  

 

 

Entering the house, the front hall is lined with books and souvenirs relating to Lucy Maud.  

 

To the left of the front door, we toured the lower floor of the house with its cosy little rooms.  I didn’t get any photographs because it was quite dark indoors and also rather cramped because of the number of tourists (mostly hanging around taking photos!).

 

We managed to get ahead of the pack and see the rooms upstairs.  I tried to get a photo of the quilt on the bed, but I couldn’t get the detail, as the room was viewed from the hall.  The quilt was made in 1916 by the New London Women’s Institute, to raise money for the war effort: each person who contributed 10 cents had their name embroidered on the quilt (notice the sign at the door, which is also in Japanese).

 

 

The tiny rooms under the eaves of the house looked quite cosy and inviting, but I couldn’t imagine living here and surviving a Canadian winter without any form of heat in the bedrooms.

The main bedroom is furnished with a rocking cradle and a rag rug on the floor.

 

I noticed this mat at the entrance to one of the rooms.  It is Green Gables, which would later be the inspiration for the Anne stories.

 

I did manage to get a photo of Lucy Maud Montgomery, which was hanging on the wall of her birthplace.  I wonder what she would have thought, had she known that tourists from all over the world would make the pilgrimage to visit the places which are associated with her stories.

 I will write about my visit to Green Gables in another post.