New England Trip

With so much to explore on Cape Breton Island, we had some trouble planning our tour, but or the first day we settled on a drive through a region of inland salt-water lakes called the Bras d’Or Lakes. The name Bras d’Or means Arms of Gold, and although we did not see any gold, the lakes are long and narrow, reaching like arms across the land toward the Atlantic. The town of Baddeck (emphasis on the “deck”) is especially nice, with restaurants and shops, and a yacht club where we took a picture of what we think was an Etchells, to bring home to Ed Sherman. We ate lunch in Baddeck, and then drove on around the lakes to Sydney Mines, where we went all the way to the coast and took a picture of a lovely old Catholic Church with a convent next door. We wound up the tour with a stop at a Highland Village, a museum that is actually a re-enactment of an early settlers’ village, with local historical society people playing the parts of the settlers. It was impressive to learn how the Scots who fled the take-over of Scotland by the English in the early 1700’s, and took passage on sailing ships to the “new world,” were often dropped off on beaches without any of the cleared land and development they had been promised. They managed to survive bitter winters, bears, and poor nutrition, and established small communities in Nova Scotia, which they named as their “new Scotland.” They built log houses, and eventually frame houses; raised sheep, pigs and chickens, and kept horses for transportation and farming work. At the Highland Village we visited, Wicket was allowed to go on the tour, and met a pig, some chickens and a horse, all very exciting for him. We learned the Gaelic welcome, Failte Is Furan Oirbh, which means Welcome on you.”

Several pictures of the Bras d’Or Lakes follow.