Sept. 8

I'm sitting in the camper finishing my morning latte, listening to the patter of rain on the roof, as I open my computer for the day's news, weather and blog.  It's surprisingly relaxing hearing the rhythmic rat-a-tat on the aluminum roof, especially when we're snugged up warm and cozy in bed at night. 

We've had a magical few days in Cape Breton Highlands National Park.  Like all of our fabulous parks,  it's beautiful, wild, rugged, and scenic.  Since it's after Labour Day, it's also been quiet and almost deserted which is especially nice after some of the noisy campsites we've seen lately.  We hiked the highest trail in the park, above Keltic Lodge, to a windswept rocky outcrop overlooking the Atlantic.  It was the most strenuous hike I've done yet, but worth the effort to be rewarded with the awesome view and the scarily blustery winds.  At the end of the day we were rewarded with a swim in the surf, an unexpected treat.

Yesterday we did some more hiking, saw seals, gannets, eagles, lots of chipmunks for Buddy, then set off to find a waterfall said to funnel right onto a sandy beach.  Hot and sweaty, we hiked down a lovely curved beach, and to our delight, there it was!  We sank into deep brown peet stained pools of fresh water, splashed under towering falls, while watching the birds splash in the surf below us.  What a treat!

The weather has been weirdly unpredictable - sunny and humid days, then rain showers, and two days ago a huge storm.  We had decided to camp at a tiny campground right on the cliffs overlooking the ocean, and through the evening the rain and wind escalated.  By dusk we couldn't even see the cliff edge beyond the windows, but we could hear the surf pounding below us.   The young couple in a tent moved into the lee of the shelter building, and the other campervan abandoned ship and drove away.  We decided the wisest move was to drink, so we opened a bottle of champagne.  We had bought lobsters for dinner, so in the midst of thundering rain and wind we cracked and picked our way through a most delighful dinner.  Somehow the exotic meal made us feel secure in the buffeting, swaying storm, and we slept soundly.  (I don't suppose the champagne had anything to do with our state of relaxation.)  We woke to sunshine, glittering surf, and another fine day. 

Last night we stopped near the tiny town of Mabou, 'home of the Rankin sisters', so we could eat at the Red Shoe Pub.  Great little place with live music, seafood chowder, and local brew.  I must say a huge improvement over the Glenora distillery up the road.  They produce Canada's only single malt whiskey, which we thought was overpriced, overdistilled, and overly snooty.  I'll stick with Laphroig thanks.

Today we leave Cape Breton, and if the tides and winds conspire, and the ferry is running, we'll be in PEI tonight.  We're hoping to do some biking on some of the 250 km of Trans Canada Trail  there, so we'll need some good weather.  Today is starting wet, so a good day for driving.  Anyway, what will be will be.  We'll take the good with the bad, and enjoy each day as it comes.