CAMPING ON DIGBY NECK

Well, our first camping trip of the season was an amazing success. We packed as much as we could in to the car and headed off to Digby Neck Nova Scotia. Digby Neck is located on the Bay of Fundy side of the province in Nova Scotia, where they experience some of the largest tides in the world. There are two islands that are a part of Digby Neck. Long Island and Brier Island, and they are connected by small car ferries which run every hour. They are cheap at $5.50 return.

So it being Father's Day weekend I anticipated that the campground would be buzzing. There is only one campground on the entire Digby Neck so I assumed we would be in competition for a spot. When we arrived at Whale Cove Campground there wasn't a soul in sight. The owners had left for the weekend but were kind enough to have everything ready should anyone want to spend the night. There was a money box to pay for our stay, a small museum, wood, clean hot showers, and a zip line that occupied the kids for hours. In true Nova Scotia fashion they trusted that all would be well, that we would be honest and pay, and respect the grounds and their home. Now this always shocks me. Not that I'm not honest ( because I am, I even gave them a tip ) but I grew up in a city. I was raised in a place where you bolt lock your doors at night, lock your cars, have alarm systems, never leave anything of value lying around, and basically look over your shoulder when walking at night. So when I see something like this ( and I see it a lot ) I'm always somewhat taken aback. Anyhow, we found a very nice spot to pitch our tent, and only had to share the campground with one other lovely couple from Ontario. It was a wonderful place to camp, and was in close proximity to the ferry, and a lot of the sites we wanted to take in. Our first evening we just toured around the area. We visited Whale Cove, Little River and Sandy Cove to name a few.

After a wonderful night of good food, a campfire and scary stories, we awoke to another beautiful day. I have forgotten how quickly a tent heats up in the morning sun, so early to rise it was for us. We ate breakfast, packed up and headed out on the road for more exploring and fun. We hiked down to Balancing Rock, which is an unusual rock formation in the shape of a column that balances precariously over St Mary's Bay. Well worth the wet feet we got hiking in to see it.

After the lovely hike, we moved on to take the next ferry to Brier Island for a Whale Watching tour. We chose to go out with the Brier Island Whale Watching Tour Company. I liked the idea that you could be indoors if you so choose, have a bathroom, and comfortable seating. The captain of the boat was well experienced having been a Lobster Fisherman ( and still is ) since he was just a little boy, and he was full of knowledge and experience about the surrounding wildlife, marine mammals, birds and the surrounding area. We were treated to a wonderful display from the Humpback Whales, one of which they call Patchwork ( due to his patchwork design on his flukes ) These Whales return to the Bay of Fundy each year to feed and raise their young. They feed all summer long on the rich food sources of the Bay of Fundy before migrating south back down to the Caribbean where they will breed and have their young. We also saw Minke Whales and a variety of Bird Life. A truly life time memorable experience.

Once again Nova Scotia has taken me to another level. The beauty, friendliness and laid back approach of life here has been an elixir to the soul. Seeing the whales, hearing their mighty breath as they blew out as they came to the surface and then to see their enormous bodies slowly arch and then dive back down in to the depths of the sea was awe inspiring.

As the sunset on our beautiful trip and we headed home, I felt blessed to have the opportunity to enjoy all that is around us. There is so much beauty in the world. So much to see and do, it would take many life times to experience it all. But taking the time to do what we can, and enjoy what's out there for us, is truly a priceless gift.