I gave up on that post; you're gonna have to settle for this one.

I had plans.  All sorts of plans to write one of those month-by-month summation of the year past posts.  

I would have written the post as much for me as for you, as I think you know by now that I do not remember my own life.  There are no pictures in my head to help me remember.  When Sandy or Pat come for their annual visit, I pull up photos on my computer from their last visit to show me what we did.  Otherwise when one of them arrives I might declare "just wait till I take you to Hall's Harbour, you're gonna love it!".   To which they of course will respond, "Oh I loved Hall's Harbour when we went there last year."

Exhibit A:  Pat at Hall's Harbour.  Tide in.

Exhibit B: Sandy at Hall's Harbour.  Tide out.

 If I haven't taken a photo of it, it never happened.  And even then when I look at a photograph, it just proves that it happened, but my mind doesn't fill in anything surrounding that photo.  No conversations or memories of other things we did... worse still ... no feelings.

The Old Burying Ground in downtown Halifax

Last March I flew to Ontario to visit family and friends.   I'd booked the flight many months in advance.  My timing was either appalling or fortuitous.  I was due to arrive on March 12 and leave on March 19, BUT Covid-19 became "a thing" mid-visit. Still,  I got to see but not touch many folk I love and care about.

A message from Porter airlines telling me to "return home immediately" meant that I flew home two days early. So I got to spend my 70th birthday doing something I love more than just about anything; flying.

Birthday lunch at 25,000 feet !

So, no annual visit last year from my chums in 2020 and let's face it, they won't be able to come again in 2021.

And it's been a year since I was able to celebrate birthdays with Sara and Kelly.

Daily walks in the woods with my dogs are still my sanity savers.

Not to forget gardening, and exploring this glorious little province.

Happily I can still get together with a friend from a distance.

And life goes on.

I'm not sure what I set out to tell you.   

Life is different and the same.  I think more than anything I miss hugging.  Covid has changed the distance between us but not between our hearts.  Sounds schmaltzy but it's true.  

When it's all done in a year or so will we appreciate so much more the things we took for granted before or will we quickly forget ?

I'm so glad spring is coming.  How about you ?

Waiting two weeks for a walk ...

In most places on this planet going for a walk along the shore does not require one to wait two weeks before setting out; but that is not the case if you are planning on walking along the shore of the magnificent Bay of Fundy.

I wanted to go  walking along the shore at Blomidon Provincial Park.

Blomidon in sight.

Given Fundy's 35 ft. (11 m.) tides that required some planning.    I needed to find a day when low tide was just after mid-day; then to allow for the maximum walking time I would arrive two hours BEFORE low tide.  I had waited two weeks for the tide times to be right. Yesterday low tide was at 1:30; so friend Mickie and I got to Blomidon at 11 am.

Once at the park we decided to check out a trail to Borden Brook Falls.   Sadly the only ice around was on the trail which made for some perilous walking but the dodgy walk was well worth the effort.  The slope was slippery and you can see that even Sooki didn't like the unsure footing.  But oh my gosh the water fall was beautiful.

We couldn't make it up to the top of the falls.  I had a few false starts of trying to scramble across the greasy slope, clinging onto trees to keep from slip sliding down to the rocks and river below.  It was quite an adventure but aside from a muddy bottom I got out relatively unscathed.

The one route to the beach was via a closed staircase that was signed: "Unsafe structure.  Keep off".

Well ... since it was the only way down, we took it.  It was only when we were coming back up after our walk that we saw the reason for the sign.  The support poles under the steps were pretty much floating in air as the earth around them had been washed away !

Walking on the ocean floor and avoiding the very mucky bits.

Mucky bits.

The eroded cliffs are quite spectacular.  I think that all those Birch trees were once growing at the top of the cliff and came down with a landslide but since enough earth came down with them, they have been able to survive in their new location.

Walking closer to the cliffs we were able to see roots and trees hanging over the lip of the cliff.

These blue and red chunks have fallen down from above.  They look solid but crumble easily.   

The sun came and went but the winds were constant as you can see by Wendy and Sooki's blowing ears and Remi's furry face.   We walked outbound with the wind at our backs which meant that when we turned back we were facing into the wind.

At one point I leaned against the cliff and was surprised by the constant plinking of what I thought were ice crystals around and upon my head. I was startled to realize that they were tiny pebbles.  Notice the piles of sand and stone to the right in the picture above.  At one point the pebble fall grew a bit more forceful and Mickie and I comically dashed away from the cliff bottom thinking the whole thing was coming down !   In truth the odds of being in a car accident on the way to these cliffs are far greater than the chances of having the cliff come down on our heads.

I am certainly more than willing to take that chance in exchange for the experience of just being here.

Three special walks ...

The dogs and I go for a walk every day; some walks are close to home and pretty routine while others are more in the "adventure" category.

I love walking in new places.

Wednesday found me walking at Mount Uniacke Estate with chum, Janet.  Mount Uniacke is only about 20 minutes from my house and yet I've never been there before.

The country house built between 1813 and 1815 by Attorney-General Richard John Uniacke  is one of the finest examples of Georgian architecture in Canada.  While it is possible to tour the house, Janet and I opted to check out a couple of the seven trails on the over 2,200 acres estate.

After reviewing the trail map we decided to take the Barrens Trail then connect with the Wetlands Trail and come back via the Post Road Trail.  It didn't take us long to wish we'd read the trail reviews before setting out.  

Sections of the first two trails were laced with boulders and roots and where they were less bouldery and rooty they were wet; very, very wet.

Perhaps we should have been more suspicious of anything named "Wetland".

Happily Wetland Trail connected us with the Post Road Trail which was delightfully wide, clear and grass-covered.

After three hours of slogging, sliding and strolling we finally made it back to the house vowing to come back again in Fall and walk the easier trails.

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For a couple of weeks I had been hoping to visit the Bay of Fundy shore near Walton.  Thursday the tides and weather provided the perfect conditions for me to finally have a walk there.

It was a warm beautiful day.  The dogs and I hiked along the shore.

The folds in the rock are stunning.

We stopped for lunch.  Nothing like a picnic while staring out across the magnificent Bay of Fundy.

Wendy was eager to go for a paddle in the Bay so we set off to find the water.  

The problem was the water was far, far away.  There WAS muck but still no where near enough water for Wendy to swim in.

So we kept on walking.  These rocks, covered in seaweed serve to remind me that in a few hours the place where we're walking will be under many feet of water.

These rocks are covered in Barnacles which close up their "mouths" so they can survive for several hours out of the water .  

It became obvious that we were not going to be able to reach the very elusive water.

We sought out ridges of pebbles that enabled us to walk out as far as possible and headed back along a similar ridge.

It was a wonderful magical day.  

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Saturday my friend Mickie and I met up at Hemlock Ravine Park.

Hemlock Ravine is a lovely park in a residential area.  Many of the trails are designated ON leash but one big loop is OFF leash.  

We sought out that loop and then proceeded to set the record for the world's slowest, pokeyest walk.

There were so many neat things to see.  Mickie was tickled when I showed her that Red Backed Salamanders can be found under rotted logs.  Our final tally of found Salamanders was SIX.  Our goal was ten so we need to go out again next weekend to continue the search.

Mickie took this marvellous shot.

Our walk consisted of walking and stopping and walking and stopping.  We spotted this amazing pattern of Lichen (?) growing on this dead tree.

Mickie took this lovely shot of Wendy and Sooki.

Friends and dogs and places to explore -- Oh my!

  

At the risk of repeating myself; "Who's a lucky girl?".

What I did on my summer vacation...

OK right off the top that's a stooopid title for a blog post.  What is a "summer vacation" when you're retired ?  It's my lazy way of saying I haven't posted for a while and have a bunch of photos I don't know how to distill into a cohesive blog post.

Ooooh Look ! Look !   I'm sitting on THE  red couch.  "Big freakin' deal" you say.  Well, to me it was. I'd heard about the red couch that would be touring Canada for our 150th birthday (I'm ignoring the fact that we claimed a land where people had been living for thousands of years).  I heard the couch would be at Pier 21 and sought it out so I could give my two cents about what Canada means to me.

I went camping.  I haven't camped in a couple of years so this was a big deal.   I've passed that age of wanting to sleep on the ground or a cot so I sleep on a mattress with real sheets and pillows ... in my Honda Fit !

Doesn't that look cozy ?

I have a Napier tent which goes over the open hatch of my car.  I don't bother to put in the tent poles as I don't need that much space ... and can't be bothered.

The tent has room for the cooler and a blanket for the dog to lie on and for a water bowl and room for me to change.

I drove up the Cabot Trail and from there took a gravel road to Meat Cove.  Once there, I was lucky enough to land this campsite overlooking the beach.   I could lie propped up in my bed and look out at the dark sky.   I woke briefly at 3 am to see a sliver of crescent moon and Venus rising above the sea and then at 5 am I woke to watch the sun rising.   Because the tent has "windows" that can provide fresh air I enjoyed a lovely bug-free sleep.  

Wendy and I hiked up a nearby hill with a marvellous view.

The trail was a bit narrow near the top and I feared I might slip and fall to my doom; but I didn't.

I travel quite light.  This is my stove.  It's a marvellous tiny little set up that nests inside itself when not needed.  I have two pots and a frying pan and most importantly can boil water for my mint tea in 3 minutes flat !

On my way to Meat Cove and the Cabot Trail I camped at Whycocomach  (say: why-co-go-mah) Provincial Park where Wendy and I (Sooki stayed home) had a marvellous hike.

 

The trail though less than a kilometer long was VERY steep, so I guess I should not have been surprised when a side path brought us out to this stunning view of the Bras d'Or Lakes.

To say that the Cabot Trail is a scenic drive would be like saying Everest is a big hill.   The trail winds its spectacular way around Cape Breton with frequent lay-bys where travellers stop to gawk at the stunning views.

It's hard not to stop at every opportunity.  

 There is a very difficult 12 km return trail that leads to remote Fishing Cove in the background (below).   The hike would be way out of my league.

I love the freedom of stopping whenever the mood moves me.

Cabot Landing.  How's that for summer crowds ?

On the way back I stopped in the town of Baddeck to see a photo exhibit of the works of Roberta Bondar at the Alexander Graham Bell National Historic Site.

 Through a friend I got invited along on a catamaran cruise on the Bras d'Or Lakes.  It was an unexpected treat.

It was the perfect end to a lovely holiday.

Who's a lucky girl !