The crow, the princess, the whales and other stories Sea kayaking around the Cape Breton highlands |
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Around the Cape Breton Highlands
After reading Scott Cunningham's description of this itinerary in his book "Sea Kayaking in Nova Scotia", we wanted to experience the magnificent scenery of Nova Scotia Northern tip on the water. While they only afford the car bound tourist the occasional glance from high up on a cliff look out, the rocks, cliffs and beaches where land meets the sea have a magical charm for the paddling visitor.
Scott Cunningham's as well as other trip stories and the guided tours descriptions from local outfitters warn about the dangers of this exposed coast line. The history of hundreds of wrecks attests to the severity of these waters, and of the reefs and shallows that follow the coast line, although it can be hard to imagine the violence of wind and sea hidden behind the gentle swell of a beautiful Summer day.
What follows is the story of our trip. Click on the links for more details of each section. Other links will bring you to short stories, possibly inspired by some waylaid Celtic spirits that we may have encountered on this land that many have compared to the Scottish shores or to the green Eire.
Tuesday, July 16th
Cape Breton Highlands National Park, Cheticamp
Access fees: $18 / person for a season's pass; Park camping ground: $18 / night and more depending on services required.
Wednesday, July 14th
La Bloque - Fishing Cove
13 km, steep and rocky shoreline with the occasional small gravel beach, sea caves, likely sightings of Minke and Pilot whales. Camping allowed at Fishing Cove. Reservations are mandatory at the National Park Office : 8 sites, food hanging structure, dry toilets, $18 / night.
A strong South West breeze keeps us ashore for an extra day which we use to explore the small valley and catch up on our reading away from the wind.
Fishing Cove - Pleasant Bay : 9 km, staying a little bit farther away from the coast line to avoid reflected waves and choppy water; rocky cliffs almost all the way with no easy landing sites before Mackenzie Point (where Pleasant Bay's beach begins).
Pleasant Bay - Pollett's Cove : 13 km ; rocky shoreline with the occasional beach. Wilderness camping at Pollett's Cove.
Saturday, July 20th
Pollett's Cove
Morning greets us under a grey and rainy sky. A good day to hike around this green paradise and meet the locals (cows, that is).
Sunday, July 21st
Pollett's Cove - Bay St.Lawrence
Pollett's Cove - Meat Cove : 25km ; more cliffs and rocks, with few beaches but spectacular formations. Large seal colony, as well as whales and bald eagles. Lunch break at Lowland Cove, just before Cape St.Lawrence, in a sheltered spot between rocks, near a stream. Farther on, there is a sandy beach and a private campground at Meat Cove.
Meat Cove - Bay St. Lawrence : 7.5 km ; high cliffs and large beaches at Wreck Cove and Bay St.Lawrence. Camp for the night just off the beach 1 km before the entrance to the harbor of Bay St.Lawrence.
Monday, July 22nd
Bay St.Lawrence - Money Point
10 km ; sandy beach turning rocky near Cape North and Money Point. Possibility of currents and waves near Money Point. Camp on a small sandy beach about 1 km past Money Point, with a small stream. Use caution when approaching as a N.E. wind can make landing more difficult anywhere along the coast beyond Money Point, even if the sea seems calm in Bay St.Lawrence.
Tuesday, July 23rd and Wednesday,
July 24th
Money Point
We decide to stay put for a day to enjoy this beautiful and secluded spot, and take advantage of a record hot day (35°C in the shade) to wash in the small ice cold stream, hike around and read in the shade.
The wind turns into a Northern gale during the night. Our tent holds, even if the tarp that I used as a wind breaker gets ripped from under the rocks which anchored it on the beach. On several occasion, I awake with the tent roof and an aluminum pole pressing down on my face! At 8am, the temperature has dropped to 10°C and the sea is covered with whitecaps. Rollers wash over the protecting reef and try to reach us, but we are safe. We feel no urge to leave our little beach...
We enjoy another relaxing day of reading and hiking.
Thursday, July 25th
Money Point - White Point
25 km ; rocky coastline, with little opportunity for shelter before the long beach at Aspy Bay; look out for sea caves at the cliffs' base; stop at the well-protected harbor in Dingwall (limited food and supplies off the wharf, restaurant, water at the wharf) and at the village of White Point; nice hikes on White Point; we camped on a small beach at the base of White Point cliffs.
Friday, July 26th
White Point - Ingonish Island
26 km ; rocky coastline, choppy sea until Cape Egmont, with little shelter; semi-protected cove behind a jetty at New Haven; protected harbor and nice sandy beach at Neil's Harbour (food, supplies, water); some landings are accessible further on, depending on wave direction, at Green Cove, Black Brook Cove, Brad Cove / Rocky Bay (National Park camping ground), Ingonish and Ingonish Island; eagles on Ingonish Island; we camped on a North-East facing beach on the island (privately owned).
Saturday, July 27th
Ingonish Island - Ingonish Harbour
12 km ; there are sandy beaches in the center of each half of Ingonish, separated by rocky Middle Head; choppy sea around the points.
This last leg of our trip brings us from Ingonish Island, around Middle Head, into South Bay. At the back of the bay, a channel crosses a sand bar at Ingonish Ferry and enters Ingonish Harbour. As we enter the back bay, we encounter two sea-kayakers (the first ones we meet in all our trip). They are just finishing a 2-hour initiation trip with their guide, Mike Crimp. He invites us to meet him at his base near the road at the back of the pond.
We join him at the "Muddy Rudder" for some hot and nourishing chowder, and delicious fresh mussels.
I still need to get back to Cheticamp to get the car. It takes me 5 hours to cover the 110-km part of the Cabot Trail to the Western Park entrance!
Hung out to dry after a good rinse - Broad Cove Campground
Epilogue
After spending the night at the Broad Cove campground, we slowly retrace our way by road toward Woods Island and the ferry to Prince Edward Island. On our way, we encounter...
Sunset over North
Rustico, Prince Edward Island National Park
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