Nova Scotia - St. Peters

Nova Scotia - part 8

(sightseeing)

July 28, 2018 - July 31, 2018

Driving from Stillwater to Saint Peters we went from the mainland of Nova Scotia to Cape Breton Island which is separated from the mainland by a narrow strip of water.  

Cape Breton is dominated by an enormous "lake" called Bras d'Or (Arm of Gold). 
It's actually an inland sea of partially fresh/salt water.
It's connected to the Atlantic by the two narrow waterways stretching upward from Baddeck on the map above.
In addition there is a canal built in 1869 that connects the lake to the Atlantic on the south side.

This is the canal connecting the lake to the Atlantic on the south end of the Island.
Swimming the canal is a big event on an early weekend in August every year.

The lock on the canal at the south end of the island.
Depending on the tide, it raises or lowers boats in the lock up to 4.5 feet.

A couple of boats in the lock waiting to go from the Atlantic (in the distance) to the lake (behind me).

Bridge over the canal to Bras d'Or Lake (in the distance).
Until recently the bridge here had only one lane over the canal. It was controlled by a traffic light.
Backups became huge when the bridge opened for a boat to pass.  

The working part of the bridge which swings to one side when it opens.
When you live in earthquake country, this seems like a perilous design but it works here.

Our reason for staying at St. Peters was to see a French Stone Forge on Isle Madame which is relatively near by.  When we got to the forge however, it was closed.  No sign of why or for how long so we were disappointed. We continued to drive around the island, stopping to have a picnic at a beach someone told us about.

Once off the island we continued with our scenic drive along the coast of Cape Breton Island as we made our way back to St. Peters.

Looking across the River Bourgeois.

Another scene along the River Bourgeois.