Vacation in Atlantic Canada - Part 4

 12 September 2021

Riverside, NB - Mahone Bay, NS

     Those of you who have been following our trip via the installments on my blog will recall that we were not entirely delighted with our B&B for the New Brunswick leg of our journey. I think that Richard Pegler nailed it in his comment on the Part 3 installment when he figured that BnB stood for Basic n Bleak! Even the doors creaked - every one of them. A squirt of oil would work wonders.

     Our judgement was not enhanced when we went down to the kitchen to fix our own breakfast the second morning. Little had been replenished from the previous day; perhaps nothing in fact. There was but one single-serving tub of yogurt in the fridge, and the same sausages were still there. At least the fresh coffee we made was good.

     We were not sorry to leave.

     I could not help but note that the odd facsimile of a four poster bed looked like PVC pipe from the hardware store!

     The rural roads en route to the highway delivered some birding delights, including this family of Common Pheasants (Phasianus colchicus).

     The male seemed to be occupied with the care of the young; we did not see a female.

     This is a polygamous species with males known to defend a harem of two or more females, so perhaps we just missed them.

     We observed more Northern Harriers (Circus hudsonius) in this part of New Brunswick than we had seen for a long time and several birds were coursing over the fields.

     Bald Eagles were quite common throughout. Common they might have been, but never less than completely exciting.

     We did not have far to journey until we entered Nova Scotia and we stopped at a visitor centre to pick up a current map. 

     We had printed our Nova Scotia Safe Check-in Form, were armed with our proof of vaccinations and ID, but were not required to present them to anyone. We just sailed right on through.

     The journey to Mahone Bay was uneventful, and we arrived at this beautiful coastal community before lunch. It is known for three churches along the shore; they do indeed make quite a statement.

     We had lunch at Rebecca's, a delightful restaurant, where the meals, service and ambiance were all first class. Their menu was quite eclectic and dining there was an adventure.

     This is a very picturesque corner of the province.

     The Mallards (Anas paltyrynchos) were quite at home there.

     We were intrigued by what appeared to be little floating cabins.

     It was interesting to see this installation to encourage smokers to dispose of their butts in a clean manner.

     Judging from the ground it did not appear to be used much!

     It was time to check into our B&B.

     We were welcomed by our friendly host, Chris, who went through everything we needed to know, inquired as to how our trip had been so far, asked if we had particular interests he could help us with, and so on. Wow! This was like a real B&B!

     Our room was in a barn that had been converted to residences.

     We were situated in the room on the right corner on the lower balcony.

      This is the view from the side.

     Our room was called the Lion's Room, and I could never quite figure out how the image of a cow fitted in with that.

     The room was a little dated, but perfectly comfortable, and we even had two chairs to sit in!

     There were chairs outside on our portion of the veranda, where we could be comfortable while enjoying the view.

     We walked down to the bay and did a little exploring. An Osprey (Pandion haliaetus) was patrolling overhead.

     Having had a very good lunch in town we had stopped by the local supermarket before finding our B&B and bought cheese and pepperoni. Along with a bottle of Malbec this made a fine dinner, which we ate looking out from our deck.

     We were happy to be in Nova Scotia.

13 September 2021

Mahone Bay - Lunenburg - Bay to Bay Trail - Mahone Bay - Bayview Pines B&B

     Sunrise was spectacular and Miriam was out on the veranda to capture it.

     We went over to the main building for our first breakfast here.

      The dining room was charming.

     Breakfast was nicely presented and consisted of a choice of cranberry or orange juice, a small inverted pyramid-shaped dish of yogurt/granola which looked attractive, but it was difficult to get the spoon down to the bottom, bacon, two slices of fried tomato and poached eggs. Hot coffee or tea was available; of course we always chose coffee.

     The only minor quibble that I might have had with Bayview Pines was the fact that other then the eggs, breakfast was identical every day, poached eggs one day, scrambled the next, and so on. It was always well prepared and tastefully served, but entirely predictable.

     When initially planning our trip we had looked forward to a visit to the old town of Lunenberg, home of the fabled Nova Scotia schooner, the Bluenose, which is inscribed on our dime coin. 

     The Bluenose was out at sea during our time in Lunenberg, but to wander around the ancient streets with their original buildings was to experience great pleasure.

     The view out over the bay was very agreeable.

     The dockside area was picturesque, but almost completely devoid of birds, hardly a gull in sight or within earshot, the odd cormorant perched on a buoy, but nothing else.

     Actually many areas were closed off, and entire stretches of parking spaces unavailable. The TV show The Sinner was being shot there. I suppose that the revenue such an event brings to the town trumps the convenience of the regular tourist, and the residents too no doubt.

     It was actually quite interesting to watch as they did take after take of the same couple of scenes.

     Periodically we would be moved as the cameras angled our way and we were not needed in the scene. 

     It seemed to us that it took a whole lot of people to shoot every sequence. 

     Due to the road closures and the lack of parking we had left the car on the outskirts of town and saw a Great Blue Heron (Ardea herodias) and a Double-crested Cormorant (Nannopterum auritum) on the way back to it.

     We discovered the Bay to Bay Trail and it looked appealing.

     We walked a couple of kilometres before turning around and it was very pleasant.

     There was a great variety of fungi and ferns, but little in the way of birds. 

     Myrtle Warbler (Setophaga coronata) was seen; not often, however.

     American Red Squirrel (Tamiasciurus husonicus) was the most common species we encountered.

     It was late when we arrived at Rebecca's for lunch. We both had curried fish cakes which were made with risotto instead of potatoes as is customary, and they were quite fabulous. The chutney that accompanied them was equally delicious, with a great salad too.

     Back at our room we had cheese and crackers and a little pepperoni left over from the previous night, with a glass of wine, and that's all we needed for dinner.

Accommodation: Bayview Pines Country Inn B&B, 678 Oakland Road, Mahone Bay, NS B0J 2E0

902 624-9970, 1-866 624-9970, bayviewpines@gmail.com; www.bayviewpines.com

Rating: 3.5 stars out of 5.