Eastern Canada, the maritime provinces - hey, I live in the northeastern United States, so Nova Scotia is close, right? Wrong! There's a bit of water between here and there, or a really long drive. At this point I have several options. I can fly to Halifax, I can drive all of the way to Nova Scotia (via New Brunswick), or I can take The CAT ferry from either Portland or Bar Harbor, Maine.
Maybe I should leave the decision up to my bike. OK bike, do you want to travel in a suitcase (checked as luggage on a plane) or ride in the back of my car or feel the waves under you on a ferry? Ah, it sounds like a ferry ride sounds right to you too.
Rover tells me that the ferry sounds good to him too! But he insists that he wants to explore the ferry and he plans to take pictures of our journey across the water.
Oh, and he also told me that he looked at the map of Nova Scotia and he doesn't think we need to have explicit directions (or plans) for wandering there. A few glimpses at maps should do.
This photo? It's at the end of my first full day of riding in Ireland back in 2003. Rover liked it there, and he wants to go back someday, but he agrees that Nova Scotia sounds like a good place for wandering too.
Ferry over water...
This year is the first year that The CAT ferry (originally running from Bar Harbor only) operates out of both Portland and Bar Harbor. It runs from Bar Harbor to Yarmouth Monday through Thursday, and returns from Yarmoth to Bar Harbor Sunday through Thursday. The CAT between Portland and Yarmouth runs on Friday, Saturday, and Sunday.
Initially, the addition of Portland to the schedule sounded like a good thing for my trip since Portland is a one and a half hour drive from home as opposed to the 5+ hours it takes me to drive to Bar Harbor. Then I took a closer look at the schedule and realized that the schedule from (and to) Bar Harbor fits much better with my planned touring days. And if you haven't already realized it from reading some of my other journals about trips to (or passing through) Maine, I really like riding at Acadia National Park. "Ferrying" from Bar Harbor means I'll have another opportunity to roll through there again. Another plus...
Another possibility would be for me to take the ferry from Portland to Yarmouth then return to Bar Harbor and ride down the coast of Maine to pick up my car in Portland. Based on rough mileage estimates, I believe that would be three days of riding. If I was planning a longer trip that would might be a good option, but with only two weeks, I'd prefer to spend as much time as possible in Nova Scotia.
Jumping off point: Bar Harbor...
