Well, we were up and down the coast today: Mahone Bay, Lunenburg, Bluerocks, and Chester. For all the talk you hear about the east coast drying up (socio-economically speaking), it’s been encouraging to see that these places are far from dead. There are still folks typing up boats at the docks, sailors coming ashore and asking for directions to local restaurants, and craftsmen fashioning masts for sailing vessels. Of course, I’m not sure how much fishing folks actually do out here, but the docks are in use, and the ports are full of boats.
The first two stops were probably the most visited by tourists. Mahone Bay is decidedly quaint and historic, and hosts an annual wooden boat festival (which we sadly missed). It’s old, too, having been “a treasure since 1754.” Lunenburg, of course, is the home port of the Bluenose II, and is one of the major tourist destinations in NS. As it happened, the Bluenose II was elsewhere at the time of our visit. Chester, our last stop, was noticeably upscale. Luxury automobiles lined the streets, while fancy yachts rested at anchor in the harbour.
At the suggestion of a local who we met up with in Lunenburg, we visited the nearby village of Bluerocks. Devoid of ice-cream stands and souvenir shops (well, aside from a kid we passed who was selling lemonade at the end of his driveway), the small vishing village was the antithesis of Lunenburg’s maximum-tourist ethic. You do not have to pay to park your car in Bluewater, NS. Here, a man can breath the sea air, and it will make him tired and hungry. Even at low tide.
A Handful of Coastal Villages
Well, we were up and down the coast today: Mahone Bay, Lunenburg, Bluerocks, and Chester. For all the talk you hear about the east coast drying up (socio-economically speaking), it’s been encouraging to see that these places are far from dead. There are still folks typing up boats at the docks, sailors coming ashore and asking for directions to local restaurants, and craftsmen fashioning masts for sailing vessels. Of course, I’m not sure how much fishing folks actually do out here, but the docks are in use, and the ports are full of boats.
The first two stops were probably the most visited by tourists. Mahone Bay is decidedly quaint and historic, and hosts an annual wooden boat festival (which we sadly missed). It’s old, too, having been “a treasure since 1754.” Lunenburg, of course, is the home port of the Bluenose II, and is one of the major tourist destinations in NS. As it happened, the Bluenose II was elsewhere at the time of our visit. Chester, our last stop, was noticeably upscale. Luxury automobiles lined the streets, while fancy yachts rested at anchor in the harbour.
At the suggestion of a local who we met up with in Lunenburg, we visited the nearby village of Bluerocks. Devoid of ice-cream stands and souvenir shops (well, aside from a kid we passed who was selling lemonade at the end of his driveway), the small vishing village was the antithesis of Lunenburg’s maximum-tourist ethic. You do not have to pay to park your car in Bluewater, NS. Here, a man can breath the sea air, and it will make him tired and hungry. Even at low tide.