Thursday August 22 ... A glorious day on the Cabot Trail!

Wow were we feeling blessed and grateful this morning!  We woke to a beautiful sunny day in North Sydney and after a light breakfast we were on the bike and heading for the Cabot Trail at 8 a.m...our earliest start yet.  Harry has been watching the weather network and we know that bad weather is on the way so we were hoping that we'd be able to get our day on the Cabot Trail in before the wind and rain started.  The weather gods were surely on our side as the day was a beautiful one...both in terms of the scenery and the weather.  It got to 31' at one point - add to that humidity and you can imagine how warm it was.  No complaints from us though as we'd been cold riding the day before.  We just kept peeling off layers of clothing...my first day riding with just blue jeans and my motorcycle jacket.  Usually even when it's 20' I have quite a few layers on, so this was definitely a record for me in terms of warmth on the bike.

Enough about that - what about the Cabot Trail you ask?  Well - it's everything they say it is and more.  We started at Englishtown and headed on the ocean side of the trail...definitely the best way to see everything up close and personal.  Vista after vista after vista of amazing scenery.  I was thinking today on the bike about how best to describe the ride and realized that all the superlatives I've been using throughout the blog postings ... amazing, scenic, picturesque, beautiful, etc. etc. are just words.  Even the photos don't do the things we've seen justice, but they do a better job than my words can I think.  So ... here are a few photos to whet your appetite for making this journey.

One favourite spot was Ingonish...a lovely beach, the stunning Keltic Lodge (which I'm sure costs an arm and a leg to stay at but which I am determined to return to some day :)), a golf course Harry would love to try, and numerous little pull offs where one can enjoy a private bit of sand and/or rocky beach...depending on your preference.

We also found a real "babbling brook" at MacIntosh Brook where we had a picnic lunch and took some more photos of ourselves...seems we never get tired of seeing our own smiling faces captured on film! :)  I think this was another favourite spot of mine today.

The one photo everyone sees when researching the Cabot Trail is of Cap Rouge....and just about ten minutes before we hit that spot the camera battery died....seemed I had taken way too many photos up until then! :)

Other fun things we saw included:

Lots of big churches, hard to say if they are still being used but the buildings sure are impressive. And the most quaint cemeteries ... many with headstones leaning as if blown by the ever present winds.  The history and stories the stones could tell if they could speak intrigue me...

Finally got a photo of Inukshuks,,,though these were just by the side of the road and not on top of rock outcroppings where we normally see them...

A sod shed of some type...just got a glimpse and quick shot of it passing by, but like so many things on the road, there was no where safe for a bike to pull off to get a closer look...

And the leaves...starting to turn already...yikes!  We did say we will return here some fall to see the splendor of the many different types of trees in their fall coats...

I also took lots of photos of houses...still can't get over how big people's lawns are...and how neat and tidy all the houses look.  Some of them near the ocean also have lobster pots and crab pots in their yards...

And will throw in a few other pics just for fun... :)

We hit New Glascow with only an hour or so to Truro but we were both hot and tired so decided to stop for supper at a little cafe on main street which was boasting home cooked meals.  And - it was THE best meal we have had to date...a simple fare of turkey (real stuff!), potato salad, cole slaw (made with something other than mayonnaise...should have asked what it was...seemed just like shredded vegetable goodness to me) and fresh tomatoes and cucumbers.  It tasted delicious!

The sky looked like something out of a biblical story as we headed back onto the highway...

Rolled into Truro about 7:30 p.m. and after checking in Harry washed the bike, we both had a shower and now I'm writing this blog while Harry keeps tabs on the weather channel in order to plan our day tomorrow.

All in all - another wonderful day on the bike...and a bit closer to home!  Hopefully we'll make it to Halifax for a day of exploring tomorrow, but the weather will determine what happens in the morning.