This blog post was contributed by Shirley Scobie, a staff member at CanaDream RV Rentals, after a 2011 RV vacation in Nova Scotia. CanaDream enables visitors to Nova Scotia to experience Canada at their own pace in an RV. For more information about renting an RV in Nova Scotia, please visit www.canadream.com.
Not being 'crowd' people, our family prefers to take RV vacations out of season and the prospect of a Fall vacation in Nova Scotia was definitely appealing, not only for the spectacular Fall colours, but also because it provided the opportunity to travel at our own pace, making decisions 'on the fly' as to where we travelled and stayed. Rving is the best way for our family to do this - no hotels to pre-book, no fixed itinerary, our beds, kitchen and food on board and the sheer freedom of being able to spontaneously change our route while throwing time to the wind.
Our RV adventure began with an early morning pick-up from the rental location in Halifax, allowing us to hit the road with most of the day to explore. Travelling south on Highway 333, we passed by numerous lakes, marveling at the brilliant colour displays from the trees around them, before we reached the picturesque village of Peggy's Cove. There was much excitement in our family as they'd all seen the famous lighthouse on postcards and in magazines and couldn't wait to see it in person. Our early arrival afforded us the luxury of having the area virtually to ourselves and we sat by the lighthouse listening to the crashing of the waves against the rocks below us. It felt so serene and we wondered how many boats owed their safety to the welcoming light of the lighthouse's beacon radiating out into the darkness. As we continued along highway
333, looping around the shoreline of St Margarets Bay, fishing boats, pleasure craft and small cottages dotted in and out of view. We were headed for Mahone Bay. We'd seen pictures of the three churches there reflected in the tranquil waters of the Bay and, as an avid photographer, I was determined to take a better one! Unfortunately the conditions weren't right but we soaked in the Fall colours along Main Street and meandered through an assortment of artisans galleries, eclectic shops and admired the century old architecture.
Lunenburg is one of Nova Scotia's most historic and beautiful towns. A walk through the Old Town had us believing we had stepped back in time. Architectural delights abound with many of the buildings dating back as far as the late 1700s. A visit to the Fisheries Museum of the Atlantic gave us an insight into the town's German heritage and the importance of the fishing industry in the history of the town. A drive around Tannery Road took us to a spot where I was able to capture the classic postcard image of Lunenburg featured in travel books.Further south, near Liverpool, we stopped at the Fort Point Museum and Lighthouse. Offering expansive views of the surrounding countryside and inner harbour, this historic site was the perfect place for a very late lunch from the kitchen of our RV. Having two young children with us, we found both the kitchen and bathroom facilities on board a godsend. As well as saving us money by not having to eat out at restaurants, we were able to cater to the pickiness of both of the children and never had to worry about finding a toilet on route. We've enjoyed RVing as a family before and wouldn't do it any other way.
Being early October, the days were drawing shorter and we soon found ourselves thinking about where we'd stop for the night. While a campground would be ideal, we weren't averse to finding an out of the way pull-off, preferably with a view. We found such a place just off the highway on Crescent Beach Road which we reached as darkness was falling - a pullout overlooking the ocean. With no-one around to seek permission from and no signs prohibiting overnight parking, we settled in for the night. Food, washrooms, warmth (we had a furnace onboard) weren't a concern as we settled the kids down for the night and pulled our camping chairs from the massive storage compartment at the rear of our RV and sat gazing out towards the LeHave Islands, enjoying the tranquility of the moment under a star filled sky. We awoke early next morning to a spectacular sunrise and the promise of another amazing day ahead in our RV - but that's another adventure.
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