Port Bordon to Summerside August 30

A lazy morning, with breakfast at anchor, followed by a short sail to Summerside's Silver Fox Curling and Sailing Club once again. We are planning a two day layover hoping for north winds to take us across to Shediac.

We had been talking about doing some biking and went in search of a rental shop. We found the shop all right but it had been closed for some time according to a fellow we met close by.  We chatted a bit and he and his wife offered us two other bikes, which we gladly accepted.  We rode about 25 km, across the island to see the ocean on the north shore then down the confederation trail before we returned the bikes. Upon thanking them for their hospitality we found out they have a sailboat in the harbour and they made a similar trip as ours 15 years ago.  Also her mother was from Croatia - Small world.....

Wood Islands to Port Bordon. August 29th

We where up early to utilize the flooding tide for the first half of the 42 mile leg to Port Bordon. We sailed the whole way with a 15-20 knot head wind, took us 12 hours. I think we traveled 63 miles. Once there, we anchored beside an abandoned ferry dock that had been used to stage the building of the confederation bridge. The area looked like the remnants from World War II but it was a safe harbour and we were glad to off the Strait.

Pictou to Wood Islands August 28th

Started the day with a hike along the Pictou River shore, then watched a crew turn the Hector end for end in preparation to beach her and tip her on her side for some below water level haul repairs.

Then off the mouth and set the anchor to try fishing for mackerel. I make eggs Benny on a bed of lobster for breakfast while Bozidar fished and caught a 3/4 pounder. Had a good sail across the strait to Wood Islands port. 

Wood islands is a ferry port connecting Pictou, Nova Scotia to PEI. There is also a large fishing industry here. Because there are no floating docks and we are in a full moon cycle we had to consider the 5 ' tide when setting our mooring lines. Wood islands was a nice harbour with high sides, there was more room then we expected, and for an added bonus we could get WIFI from the ferry once it was parked for the night. There is a light house park area, a restaurant and a lobster shack that makes a great seafood chowder. We meet an interesting fellow with a hand make wooden ketch who is a bee keeper on PEI. He told us he was asked to leave one of the north shore harbours because he had not had his boat decontaminated for invasive species that are already on the other side on the island.  Good to know if you are heading that way.

Historic Pictou August 27

Left Ballantyne's Cove at 7:00 am. Exiting the well protected  harbor, we were saluted by the skipper of a German catamaran. We waved back and wondered where are they off to next. If not fully alert by now, we were briskly woken up by the 15 knots of Southeasterly causing violent chop just to make the hoisting of the sails more interesting.

Once set, we made for the Cape George. This was very enjoyable as the waves were only about two feet high which was less than expected comparing to our experience over the last week in the Northumberland Strait. This can probably be explained by somewhat shorter fetch and deeper ocean around the Cape (30-40' vs. 20-30'). Hugging the coast at safe distance of a mile or two we tried our fishing skills without success.

Arriving at the entrance to the natural Pictou harbour we found the approach to be narrow but well buoyed in the fashion typical of the harbours in the area. Entering the marina was a different story. Our attempts to contact the Pictou town marina office by VHF or cellphone went unanswered, so we entered the marina and tied on to an empty finger dock until we sorted out the formalities. This was a bit stressful as we were unfamiliar with the marina and were being pushed towards the docks by the Southeasterly. All was fine ounce tied in. The registration was completed without having to move to another berth. The water and power are available on the dock, and the marina facilities were comparable to other marinas in the area. 

During our stay in Pictou there was not much traffic in town, however according to the locals the town is regularly frequented by tourist and this was indeed unusual. Most tourist arrive by land in RVs and trailers and a few smaller cruise ships make Pictou their port of call each season.  As it is fitting for a tourist community, Pictou has a number or restaurants some right on the waterfront and some just a couple of blocks in. 

The town started as a centre of Scottish settlement of the Maritime provinces of Canada, to became a mining town now succeeded by a pulp mill and a small shipyard. The Main Street features many gift and craft stores, one tartan and a commercial fishing supply store. There are many impressive old buildings, some designated as a historic buildings, echoing more prosperous times and hopes for a greater future. Especially interesting are the old WMCA building from 1879 and the Canada Post building now in a great disrepair.

Anyone with an interest in boats and things of maritime nature should visit the Ship Hector Museum commemorating the start of the settlement of New Scottland with the arrival of Scottish on the three masted tall ship Hector in 1773. The museum has a 
replica of the ship Hector and shops used by various craftsmen working on it's restoration. 

Montague to Ballantynes Cove August 25th

Today we headed to Ballantynes Cove on the end of Cape George, NS. Sailing was awsome, beam reach to close hauled, 10 to 12 knots all day with 3 foot rollers. Just 34 naughtical miles for the day. 

This area of Nova Scotia is quite a bit higher than New Bruniswick and PEI and you could see land about 20 miles out as appossed 7 miles out for the flatter land. 

When we were 1/2 an hour away from the harbour, I called family friends, Alec and Tina Boyd to invite them to the boat for a rum. By the time we arrived, they were at the marina to greet us, also with  Sandy Boyd to take us up on the rum. They in turn invited us to their place for dinner, so off we went. It was great to see them and learn more about the history and commercial fishing industry of the area. Their house is on a lovely lot with a great view of the bay. On a clear day you can see across St. George's Bay to the Strait of Canso and Port Hawkesbury. A great time as had by all.

Beautifull Charlottetown (2015-08-24)

As a proper day of rest and recovery should be, today is relatively uneventful.  We remained in Charlottetown so Andrew could catch an early morning plane back to Winnipeg and to replenish our supplies.

Like most of the province of Prince Edward Island (PEI) Charlottetown is picture perfect.  Most of the buildings in the quaint downtown, date back to the 18 hundreds, are made out of sanstrone, and most are beautifully renovated. Sandstone facades, flowers, manicured lawns, and old style hanging business signs are present on every street.  Every view builds a mental picture of times past when the streets were walked by sailors, fisherman, merchants, and farmers so when you hear a young waitress refer affectionately to an elderly acquaintance as "skipper" makes all these pictures so much more vivid. 

Only a block away from the marina we stayed in is the PEI Heritage Museum. It is an excellent place to search for the information on what to do in Charlottetown and the rest of the province. On most days you can even rent bicycles. If at all interested in the Canadian history or curious about how Canada was formed out of a number of former British colonies, then you should take the interpretative tour of the museum. The tour is an reenactment of the events in 1867and the political manoeuvrings which lead to formation of Canada which Doug and enjoyed.

The Gold Cup and Saucer horse race happened to be scheduled for this evening and we intended to go to this to this equestrian event which has the largest prize pool.  Unfortunately the race was rescheduled for the next day due to the incoming storm.

Charlettown to Pictou Island August 23

Winds were light and the waves where small so it was a perfect opportunity to install the new macerator pump that Bozidar had brought down with him. We where quite surprised to learn that in Charlettown the marina staff had no idea what a pump out station was about - I guess if you live on the ocean with large tidal action it just isn't recognized as source of pollution.

Once we arrived at the island we found lots of people waiting for the Sunday boat shuttle to go back to the mainland with their coolers full of fish. 

Pictou Island is mostly privately owned with one main road and a small park on the east end. The island is off the electrical grid and the homes use solar power for electricity and propane for cooking and refrigeration. There are only about 12 family that live there all year round.

It is about 5 miles long and 1 mile wide. 

We saw lots of rabbits and types of trees we hadn't seen before. 

We discovered an electrical problem with our own solar panel system due to salt water corrosion and I almost set the boat on fire with an electrical short, trying to fix it. After 1 1/2 hours the problem was rectified and Bozidar was off collecting fresh mussels for appetizers.