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How to Walk on the Ocean Floor
Unless you’ve been hiding under a rock, you know that the Bay of Fundy’s Minas Basin has the highest tides in the world. Twice in a 24 hour period, these mighty tide rush in (as fast as a running horse ) to cover the ocean floor and lap greedily the base of cliffs. I’ve been blessed to live near this briney water my entire life. I learned to swim in it. I’ve fished smelts (yuck) flounder, striped bass. I’ve walked kilometers along the ocean floor, too. Walking on the ocean floor is a relaxing pastime for many. Depending, of course, on the tide times. This is the most important piece…
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Spring’s Coming! 10 Tips for Hiking in the Rain
Winter has been a blast for those of us who love to snowshoe, ski and hike in the snow and cold temperatures-but I get it-lots of us are looking eagerly forward to spring. With spring comes rain and that can be downright uncomfortable at the very least- and dangerous at worst. Without further ado, let me present a few tips for staying just a bit more comfortable hiking in the rain. Dress in layers Never has that age old nugget of advice been more important than when hiking in inclement weather. Layers are essential for keeping warm when you stop for a break and for cooling…
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Rogart Mountain Trail
As soon as I saw a post on Instagram about the Rogart Mountain Trail, I knew I wanted to do it. So I set about strong arming(not really ) a good friend into hiking it with me. Hikers are funny people . Or maybe it’s just me. If I have to walk up the hill on the road-I hate it. But give me some hilly trails and let me at them. I don’t know why. I loved Rogart Mountain Trail . The trail is a 6.3 km loop, and it’s beautiful, passing by brooks, softwood and hardwood stands, and lookoffs, including Catherine’s Lookoff which overlooks the Dalhousie and Ephraim…
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Exploring the Avondale Hiking Trail
It’s been a while since I moseyed over to explore the Avondale Hiking Trail- almost 5 km of winding paths through the woods and alongside fields. Last weekend a gaggle of us gals went to Avondale. It was a perfect day-not too cold, not too icy underneath. We had a lot of fun, and yes we got some exercise in too-lots of hilly ups and downs. We parked at Avon Sky Winery ,which has a fascinating history itself( click the link to find out more) But you can also go counter clockwise by parking behind the Avondale Community Hall. Either way you will have a little walk along the pavement to…
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Hike to Johnson River Falls
Johnson River Falls is an easy little hike not far from Waverly. It’s just a tad over 4.5 km round trip. The first part of it is along a dirt road. To get there, take exit 5 off the 102 highway. then turn right and go around the rotary. Take the 3rd exit (towards highway 118 ) Just up over the hill you will find Perrin Drive on the left. Drive to the very end. Lots of parking before the gate. The entrance to the trail should have a red and black trail maker ribbon like this: From there , cross a metal bridge, go up over a couple hills…
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Hiking the 9 Mile River Trail System
Honest to gawd, who can keep up with the burgeoning number of trails in Nova Scotia? We are so lucky to have so many, but I had never heard of the 9 Mile River trail until my friend invited me to try it out. This volunteer maintained trail (thank you folks!) consists of 3 loops with a couple more to come. Nova Scotia has had a wild winter with lots of rain and ice. The trail reflected that -very icy in most spots. My husband gave me a new pair of trail crampons for Christmas –Hillsound $70 -and they are awesome. Easy to put on, fit snugly and…
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A Winter’s Morning in Fishermen’s Cove
It’s been a while since I have written about anything at all, but with the start of a fresh year and decade, I hope to put my writers block/burnout/outright laziness behind. Being out and about this week has me all fired up to get to my laptop. I have been wanting to go see the Lobster Trap Tree at Fishermen’s Cove and made a point of getting down before it was disassembled for the season. While it was daylight and not as beautiful as it would have been all lit up in the evening, it was still pretty unique and charming. In fact, the holiday spirit was all around, no…
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An Evening Paddle with East Coast Outfitters
I can never get enough kayak paddling in. Stuff like work gets in the way. However, I did grab an opportunity to take my two daughters -in-law and head out for the Ladies Night Paddle with East Coast Outfitters recently. I’ve been out with them before but I enjoy trying out new adventures such as this Ladies Night and it did not disappoint. I love a leisurely paddle where I can take a moment to see, hear and smell what’s around me on the water. This is the ambiance I want others to experience in any outdoor venue-woods, water, whatever. Although this paddle started off as a…
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3 Big Mistakes I Made While Backpacking the Bluff Wilderness Trail
Last week, when the blog on the Bluff Wilderness Trail was posted, I promised to share the lessons I learned on this backpacking trip. They may not look like big mistakes, but together or even separately, they could cause big headaches or worse. Full disclosure: I ‘m a bit embarrassed to admit them, but here they are. I cheaped out on a sleeping bag. I have a good sleeping bag, but it’s big and heavy.I wanted one small and light for backpacking-and I got it. It was plenty roomy-I checked that out beforehand. But it’s kinda hard to gauge a sleeping bag’s warmth from the comfort of one’s…
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The Bluff Wilderness Hiking Trail
For a while, I have had this reoccurring thought that I needed to get out of my comfort zone. So when a friend asked me if I’d like to go back packing along the Bluff Wilderness Hiking Trail-I said sure. Back country camping was something I have been wanting to do, but …I’ll admit it.I was afraid of big furry beasties. Turns out, beasties were not the problem [click_to_tweet tweet=”Let me just say this right off- the Bluff is a bitch” quote=”Let me just say this right off- the Bluff is a bitch”] It’s all la-de-dah for the first 3 minutes along the boardwalk. Don’t be lulled…
