August 31, 2014 Merde, J'ai oublie mon francais!

Sunday August 31, 2014

 I am bitchen.  I am a stud muffin.  My cute-ocity pegs the cute-o-meter.  And I use these assets on my humans.  When I am riding in the little house that moves, I curl up in the center knowing that my appeal will lure them into petting me on occasion.  I don't let them know that I like it.  I act aloof, after all, I am a feline.  But I like it when the pet me. 

 Today is getaway day.  We leave this part of the Maritimes behind and start heading towards Quebec.  PEI has been such a pleasant surprise.  We are glad we played golf yesterday, because this morning, the winds are strong and it is a little nippy.  Rain is in the forecast for this afternoon, tonite and tomorrow, so leaving now seems the right thing to do.  We navigate across the island without Samaaaaantha.  The winds are strong, but we make it over the Confederation Bridge, above the choppy whitecapped seas without incident.  Towing in the wind can be an Olympic event, but nothing Spouse can't handle.

 

We head north to Shediac, and stop for lunch.  More lobster?  If I must...  Then it is my turn to drive.  I am not on the road for 25 miles when my eyes start to close.  I do all the tactics one does to try and stay awake.  Even the streams, trees and hills can't keep me awake.  Finally, after 70 miles, I have to turn the wheel back over to Spouse.  Now, if he would only shut up and let me sleep!

 

We continue north past the town of Bathurst and find an RV park.  It is the Labor Day weekend and we are not sure how crowded places are. But we are away from civilization, so we were able to find a spot.

 

We were going to take a walk across the street to the beach, but we got held up and a few minutes later, the skies opened up.  So much for the walk...

August 30, 2014 Hole-y Mackerel, the Browns of Green Gables

 Saturday August 30, 2014            

 It's cold.  I crawled under the covers and snuggled up to my maternal human.  And I stayed a loooong time.

We checked the weather forecast.  It is calling for 20KPH winds and slightly warmer temperatures.  We check the marine forecast and it is calling 1-2 meter seas (3-6 ft) and increasing winds.  Sounds doubtful for fishing but the wind is coming from the south, and we are on the north, so we could be in the lee.  We call our captain and he says it's a go.  So Jake and Lynn and Spouse and me head off to Rustico Harbor.  It is a fisherman's harbor.   The sun is out, it is pretty breezy but we put our trust in Captain Wade.  (Don't think the theme song from Gilligan's Island didn't run through my head!).

 

 

 

 

 

The coast is beautiful from the sea.  A little village, modest homes on large properties.  There is one round house that Capn Wade says rotates with the sun.  It is a B&B.  The seas are a wee bit choppy.  There are whitecaps.  It is pretty chilly but refreshing.

 

Our first stop is for mackerel.  This is a good gig.  Capn Wade or his helper Sean have the poles ready, we catch the fish, they take it off the hook and we are good to go again!  They are fun to catch and I can't believe I am into this!  I guess it is fun because I only catch the fish, I don't kill it.  After we fish here for a while, we move further out for some cod. 

 

Cod is more difficult to catch and takes more patience.  Spouse caught 4, 3 of which were keepers.  I caught one and when Capn Wade fileted it, he found a partially digested lobster tail inside!  I almost wanted to keep that too as it looked pretty darned good!  But, think about it... eeewwww!   Capn Wade says the reason why the lobster is so good these days is that the cod is smaller.  You don't see the 20 pounders anymore, and they are the ones that usually eat the lobster.  So, more lobster are able to grow bigger.  He doesn't think the cod is being overfished, but shifting with the currents and such. 

 

As the morning went on, the wind actually subsided a little and it warmed up just a tad.  The whitecaps were much fewer and now we are heading back to port.  We bid adieu to Capn Wade and Sean as well as Jake and Lynn as they are off to continue their adventures.  And then Spouse made us a cod lunch!  MMMMM!

 

It is just past noon, so we decide to do some cleaning up and then go play golf at Green Gables.  It is busy, after all, it is a holiday weekend.  But they are able to get us off at 3:40.  They say we should get the full 18 holes in before dark.  And we did... barely.  It is a pretty course with a few killer views, mainly on the back nine.  The wind is vicious, but the trees that line the fairways do a good job of blocking the wind... at least on the fairways that have the trees.  On the few that don't, well, let's just say it cost me a couple of strokes.  As did my beloved Spouse.

Spouse, take the cart and tell me if that stream goes all the way across the front of the green.

It doesn't.  (It does).

Spouse, take the cart and tell me if there is a hazard over that hill and if I should lay up.

You don't want to go down there.  (It was grass and a hill, I should not have laid up, argh!).

 

In any event, it is a challenging course and we were happy we got it in before dark.  As we were finishing on 18, a red fox went across the fairway.  Beautiful critter, that will eat Rudy if given the chance...

August 29, 2014 Toto, we aren't in Kansas anymore

Friday August 29, 2014

 Gee, a lot of noise last night and look at all the movement outside!  wow...

Lots of wind last night.  Hard blowing wind...  We are supposed to play golf.  I don't think that is going to happen...  When daylight actually came, it was really windy.  Forecast is calling for 60 kph winds.  And it is cold.  There is a drop or two of rain, but that is not the issue.  It is just friggin' cold and windy!  We talked to Jake and Lynn.  They agreed golf in these conditions would be no fun. 

 Guess it is time to explore some of the island.  We put our winter coats in the truck and decided to go to the west side of the island and up to North Cape.  The island is beautiful.  More rural farms and charming homes, streams, ocean inlets, bays and marshes form the landscape.  We stop in Alberton for lunch.  It is still windy and cold.  The clouds are almost gone and the sun is shining.  Continuing on, we see the angry seas churning up the red sands of the coast.  Arriving at North Cape, there is a lighthouse (no shortage of those around these parts), a number of wind towers and a wind observation station.

 

 

 

 

The tide is out and you cannot really tell because of the windy conditions.  Along the cliffs, there are dozens of iniuks (rocks stacked to welcome and wish safe travels).  There is an interpretive trail, but it is too cold to wander around finding all of the plaques.  We go on a dirt road around the perimeter.  Slowly we crawl... inch by inch...  the truck rocks to the left... then to the right towards the cliff.  We are not sure about this idea but what the heck, until it ends up on a wooden walking path.  Never mind...  Spouse was able to back up and turn around without going over any cliffs.  (I walked during this process!).  What a nice way to break in new friends!

 

We went back on the center road.  Tomorrow, we are supposed to go fishing.  The winds have calmed some, but there will be more tomorrow, so they say...

August 28, 2014 Les Ouefs (for those who went to Tahiti), or Say Cheese (for those who did not go...)

Thursday August 28, 2014

 

I can't believe my paternal human let me run free.  I saw a critter and went for it.  Then I watched as both humans looked for me.  I hid for a little bit, but the maternal human was dragging a string and I had to reveal myself to chase it!

 

Woke up to a rainy day.  We weren't in any hurry to do anything so we took our time getting ready.  Today we were going to tour part of the island.  We started along the coast, but the visibility was not so good, so we decided to head towards Charlottetown.  Our neighbors told us about a cheese place so we thought we would go that route on our way.  We are going along hwy 2 and as we get near Charlottetown, we start seeing the usual city stuff, like Wal-Mart, Target, etc.  And it is getting busy.  We get to the harbor and the visitor center gives us the scoop on the cheese place.  It is moving and it is in one of two places and they gave us both addresses.  Is anything easy? 

 

While there, we walked along the harbor and checked out the tall ships that were allowing visitors.  It is a pretty harbor and there is a dock with about 20 pleasure boats, the first we have really seen anywhere around.   Then back on the cheese hunt... Spouse couldn't let it go...  the sun is coming out and I would really like to tour around the island, but we have to hunt down the cheese place.  Back through the busy Charlottetown... back past the Wal-mart, Target and the Atlantic Superstore.  It isn't in spot one.  Samaaaaantha can't even find spot 1, but I don't trust her anyway.  We actually call and get the address, and tell Samaaaaantha where we are going.  That witch tried to take us in the most roundabout way!  Good thing I had my paper map or we might still be on the road!

 

 

 

We find the cheese place, spend all of about 15 minutes, buy our stuff, then leave.  There are lots of dairy farms around, yet you cannot smell the cows, or the sheep for that matter.  Interesting...  The dairy farms are small, there are not a lot of cows, but they still don't smell.  And it makes for some really picturesque scenery.

 

 

By now, it is almost 3pm.  We are meeting our neighbors for dinner at around 5:30, so our day is essentially shot hunting down some stupid (but tasty) cheese!   I guess we can relax...

 

Until Spouse decides to let Rudy off the leash to go after a squirrel.  Then we got to play "Where's Rudy?"  I knew he wouldn't be far, but if he went into the nearby woods, the hunter could easily become the hunted.  So Spouse headed one way, and I stayed around, dragging his leash, knowing that if he saw the leash, he would chase it.  And that is what finally happened.  He didn't even complain when I picked him up and put his leash back on.   What a guy!  Spouse has been grounded for life...

 

Now, I have to tell you all...  I know you have all done it...  I told you about the bug bites I got the other day.  I had been good about not scratching... until today.  Then I scratched... It felt soooo good.  I scratched more, and more and more!  If I could, I would scratch down to the bone.   I could have put some medication on it, but it felt too good scratching it.  And then it stopped itching.  No meds needed.  Ok, it kind of looks like I have a tattoo, but that will fade in a few hours!

 

As for dinner, Jake and Lynn joined us at Carr's seafood on the bay in Stanley Bridge.  Gosh... more shellfish.   We suffer so...

August 27, 2014 Island hopping

Wednesday August 27, 2014

 

My maternal human walked with me and let me go far.  I took her across the grass to this ledge.  We went down and there was all sorts of new stuff for me.  Smells... wow!  And there was sand.  I got to dig.  It was fun.

 

It was an incredible night with the stars.  It was very dark and the view from my window in bed is of the sky and the ocean.  I kept waking up and looking outside.  A nice breeze blew through Hannah all night long.  It was so refreshing.  Come morning, the breeze was a bit strong and cool.  I did my morning walk enjoying the landscape.  What I like about this place is that it is not overbuilt in the least.  Here, the soybean fields have a killer view of both sides of the bay.  There is a house here, and one way over there.  They are not mansions,  but they are nice.  It seems... wholesome and real.

I took Rudy down to the beach.  He liked playing with clam shells and sniffing kelp.  He dug in the sand (just for fun, not for potty).  If he was not on a leash, he might have stayed for days!

 We readied Hannah for her trip to Prince Edward Island.  We followed the Northumberland coast, then cut over to Amherst to do some shopping.  We then got on the road to the Confederation Bridge over the strait.

PEI is known for the book 'Anne of Green Gables'.  I think I read it as a kid, but I do not remember it at all, but the island sure does capitalize on her fame!  Samaaaaantha is guiding us to one of her campgrounds in the Cavendish area.  Across beautiful farms, hills, valleys and streams, Samaaaantha deposits us on a rural road in the middle of nowhere.  Really?  We fight, I use my paper map.  She tries to fight back, but I am more powerful.  She finally succumbs to some degree.  We found the RV park, and she was still wrong, but at least she was on the right street this time.

 As we are checking into the RV park, we see our neighbors from Cape Breton.  Looks like we will be playing golf and fishing with them over the next couple of days.  When we were in Cape Breton, we checked into fishing and heard horror stories.  One person said it was $1200 per person, and the captain keeps the fish.  (Gee, that sounds like fun).  The next person said it was $800 as the blue fin tuna is in season and you split the fish with the captain.  And he was a navy person who was wishing to come back in after only one hour as he was so sick (as was the captain).  The gulf stream runs through up there and apparently the seas are ... challenging.  Here?  $45.  We can do this!  And hopefully we won't puke!  But that is Saturday...

 

August 26, 2014 Leaks, golf and bugs

Tuesday August 26, 2014

 What a busy morning watching critters.  Now, I am in the little house that moves and I must take a bath.

 

Hannah has been having a problem.  The carpeting right by the dining area is wet and it won't seem to dry.  Spouse originally thought it was due to a heavy rain we went through and maybe the seal was not good.  But there hasn't been a rain for days, we have a fan on the wet spots, and it isn't getting better.  I think there is something going on.  Dr. Spouse to the rescue.  He takes apart this, then looks there.  Then he finds it.  There is a leak in a riser.  Since we were kind of planning on leaving Cape Breton today, this sealed the deal.  No chance of finding the part here, so we readied Hannah for departure.  Someone told us about an RV repair place in New Glasgow, and it is right on our path, so off we go.

Cape Breton is beautiful, but it is remote.  Mainland Nova Scotia is more likely to come to our rescue.  Stone RV... you can't miss it...  Yes you can!  At least if you are coming from the east.  But we found it, and they did not have the part.  They referred us to a plumbing store.  As we leave, Spouse did not know which way the plumbing store was.  Really?  You didn't think to ask?  Argh... We stop at another place and they give us directions.  Spouse got a part, and it seems to be working.  Only time will tell.

We leave the main highway and turn north on hwy 106, then get on to hwy 6 west.  We decide to cruise the Northumberland coast on our way to Prince Edward Island.  Our goals was to get within 100 km of PEI so it would be an easy drive.  Didn't quite make it...  Around 150km from PEI, a campground in the Tatamagouche Bay with ocean views threw itself at us, plus gave us a discount at golf, and we succumbed.  I know, I know... we played golf just yesterday.  But hellllooo!  That was yesterday and this is today!

It is only a 9 hole course with killer views of the bay.  The course is better than a cow pasture, but not by much.  But the holes were not easy.  If you overhit on this hole, you are in the bay.  Spouse found that out.  And the bugs that bite need to be figured in as they definitely affected my swing on a couple of occasions.  I have blood marks on my leg from where I swatted the little devils.  Even with all that, we enjoyed ourselves.  The manager told us we could play as many holes as we wanted, and that we could help ourselves to the ice chest with water and gatorade.  But we called it after nine to enjoy our campsite.  Besides, the welts on my legs are already starting to swell, why give the bugs more...

 

Back at camp, we visited with our neighbors and watched a beautiful sunset.  Life is good...

 

 

 

 

August 25, 2014 FOOOORE!

Monday August 25, 2014

 Look at that critter that hops!  Hop hop hop!  I want it!

 Today we are playing golf at Bell Bay Golf Club in Baddeck.   We got a twilight time, which as of today, starts at 1:00 pm.  That is pretty early.  Most of the courses around here have twilight starting at 3 or 3:30.  We stop to have a nice lunch before we play.  What are we thinking?  The food here is ... mediocre at best.  Hellloooo?  Have you heard of 'spices'?  They give flavor to food... 

 We thought about going into the Alexander Graham Bell museum, but realized we really did not have the time.  Oh well...

 

 

The golf course has some scenic views of Baddeck Bay and the sailboats on the horizon.  The course is not easy, and it doesn't help that my evil twin keeps showing up.  We were paired up with Bob and Darcy McSomething and they were at about the same level we are so it was a good fit.  I lost a couple of balls, Spouse ended up finding more than he lost (and he lost quite a few).  The weather was warm, but not hot, and there were cool breezes coming in off the bay.  It was really a great day for golf.  No holes in one.  But I love it when I am not sure of my club, then I make the decision and stick with it and it works! 

 

Sometimes, Spouse reminds me of our late dog Bart.  Spouse found a fig newton on the ground yesterday.  It was in the sealed package and he ate it, just like Bart would do.  He's always looking for treasures...

 

Rudy is seeing the frogs around here and he wants one!

August 24, 2014 What the Baddeck...

Sunday August 24, 2014

 Training of humans continues.  I usually can get my paternal human to let me out when I run to the door and ME-OWT several times.  I paw at the door.  He takes me out!  I win!

 We did a lot of sitting yesterday, so today we plan on taking a hike.  We first checked out a couple local golf courses.  Tomorrow, we plan on playing Bell Bay.  Or is it Bay Bell... oh well.  It is in the town of Baddeck and overlooks the bay.  Should be quite beautiful.  My back is a little better so hopefully, I won't be writhing in pain.

 The town of Baddeck is quite cute.  It is home to the Alexander Graham Bell museum.  It has a beautiful harbor.  There are actually a few cruising sailboats moored here.  For the most part, we haven't seen a lot of pleasure crafts in the harbor.  There are not a lot here, but they fit in nicely and they do not detract from the charm of the bay.  They have some nice looking restaurants and galleries.  One has a cute kitty - I admit, I cheated on Rudy.  Don't tell him, please!

 

We headed to Baddeck Forks to check out another golf course.  It was a cow pasture, but there was a nice hiking trail nearby.  It took us through the woods along a stream up to a waterfall.  It is interesting to see the roots of birch trees grasping on to boulders.  The trail is soft and lined with ferns.  Spouse is totally mesmerized by the variety of mushrooms.  He wants to learn which ones are edible.  I think he should stick to those that are sold in supermarkets!  The trail was not too strenuous, and Spouse seemed to do ok. 

 

 

 

 

 

 

The day is still young so we decided to head to Sydney.  It is the third largest city in Nova Scotia with over 30,000 inhabitants.  It is here that you can catch the ferry to Newfoundland.  We thought we would check out the waterfront where the cruise ships come in.  We were surprised with the lack of activity.  We were able to easily find a parking spot.  No cruise ships were in, just a couple of guys fishing for mackerel.  A giant fiddle has been erected to honor the Scottish heritage.  There really isn't much around the waterfront.  Across the street are modest homes with great views.  One block further away, there is actually some commerce, only it is Sunday, and it is a ghost town.  We thought of going to Louisburg, which is a french fort and living museum.  But it is getting late so we decided on the scenic route home along the Bras d'Or lake. 

 

 

 

 

Bras d'Or is a huge lake with lots of islands and inlets.  It would be a great lake for houseboats, but hardly anybody is on the lake.  We did see to sea-doos, but that was about it.  There are homes along the lake but they are small cottages on pretty large lots.  There is no feeling of overcrowding, even in the tiny towns where the homes and business are closer together.  The further we go, the bigger the houses get as well as the size of the properties.  But the houses never get too big.  It is not like they are mansions.  They are just two stories instead of one!