To many of us, traveling plays a primary role in our personal evolution, especially when we leave our country behind to explore unknown cultures. The euphoric feeling we get from a 6-hour plane ride to paradise is irreplaceable, but not always possible. The advantage of being a van owner is that even when you have to stay a little closer to home, you can still find ways to hit the road. After careful research, it was unanimous, Nova Scotia was the chosen province we were going to explore.
We left behind the city of Montreal in the afternoon and decided it was best to keep driving until we got there. After an endless drive through the forest-lined highways of New-Brunswick, we embarked on a 3-hour ferry ride from St-Johns, NB to Digby, NS. If you happen to be there in the right season, you can get lucky and see many whales and belugas along the way, and the ferry has over 5 floors. There are also restaurants and observation decks on every floor to enjoy the picturesque views of the Bay of Fundy.
After meeting a few friends at Dakeyne farm’s sunflower maze, some nearby locals gave us directions to secret waterfalls that go by the name of ”Three pools” by ”Hellsgate”’ in a small town called Wolfville. After a 15-minute walk in the woods, you are greeted by numerous falls pouring into one another creating 3 beautiful basins to swim in and enjoy the day. There are also 3 jumping points, for the courageous, starting at 10, 20 and 30 feet.
The eastern shore region of Halifax has quite a few campgrounds to choose from, but Porters Lake provincial park is by far the most scenic and largest campground. Reputed by all locals as the most popular lake of the region. Nearby are the suburban communities of Lawrencetown & Dartmouth where you have a great balance of surf and urban living. We recommend Martinique beach or Lawrencetown to catch some good waves and Hirtles or Summerville to soak in some warm rays. Be sure to stop in Dartmouth, to visit our friends at Two if by sea coffee shop (also Anchored coffee headquarters), and feast on what I can guarantee are the biggest & best pastries ever! we dare you to try and eat two!
Lunenburg County, situated on the province’s South Shore, located on the Fairhaven Peninsula, is a must-see when in Nova Scotia. This Canadian port town offers colorful and unique architecture and is a National Historic Site of Canada. We recommend taking a walk around the harbour or taking a boat tour, where you will observe a variety of boats from here, and many places from all around the world. Before heading out, give your taste buds a treat and make a stop at the Fish Shack located on the waterfront, where you will enjoy the freshest seafood classics with a side of sunset.
The Cabot trail national park in Cape Breton will definitely go beyond your expectations and should be on everyone’s bucket list. As we made our way up the scenic winding roads, the mountains slowly changed from dark greens to pink and orange hues from the sunset hugging the mountains and slowly resting itself on the ocean that surrounded us. 1500 km later, we were cracking open some beer ‘s at the summit, right on time for the magic hour.
We have rounded up our favorite pictures to accompany our video that we hope you will enjoy as much as we enjoyed filming it. Nova Scotia has a lot to offer for all age groups & is definitely one of Canada’s hidden treasures. We couldn’t have done it without the hospitable and generous locals! We salute & thank you for making this trip one we will forever cherish.
Enjoy & don’t forget to visit Nova Scotia when passing through the Maritimes!
Thank you to our friends at Prana Bio who made that adventure possible!