Bridgewater's Duck Pond ...

The Duck Pond is located in parkland known as Bridgewater Woodland Gardens. It was donated to the Town of Bridgewater in 1921 by a Mr. H. W. Owen with the intent the area be used as a recreational park.

Castle Rock

Along with Lunenburg County’s other Scotsman ~ Alan, I was out early today to hike Castle Rock.

Located in East River, the hike begins along the Aspotogan Trail and in total is about 9km long. The first 3km of the hike is along the rails-to-trails flat, gravel pathway, which provides a good opportunity to warm up before hitting full stride at the Castle Rock Trailhead. At this point, the trail goes through a Christmas tree lot which is mostly uphill. After that it is decision time, to select the route from three levels of difficulty ~ Easy, Moderate, or Difficult which would take us to the top ~ we chose number 3 for both directions (up and down), which resulted in us navigating through terrain which quickly became rough, rocky and fun ………….

See the photos below taken from the rails-to-trails pathway of the adjacent the lakes and rivers, then the sweeping panoramic views from atop Castle Rock ….

A week in Cape Breton Island …

We have just returned from an absolutely stunning week in Cape Breton Island. Located at the eastern end of Nova Scotia, its Cabot Trail is a roadway encircling the island, passing forests and rugged coastline. 

After one night stop in Baddeck, we based ourselves in Ingonish where we had spent time during previous visits in 2012 and 2013. The weather was perfect, with exceptionally warm temperatures. Our week was a combination of wandering beaches, hiking trails, smiling at nature and taking many photos, of the plentiful natural beauty of this wonderful corner of Canada has to offer.

Baddeck and Bras d'Or Lake ~

On the way to Cape Smokey, Ingonish, Neils Harbour, The Skyline Trail ~ 

Pics from the Skyline Trail (1500 feet above sea level) ~

Mary Ann Falls and Warren Lake ~

Black Brook Cove Beach and Falls ~