August began at camp with a series of visitors where we enjoyed suppers off the smoker, swimming and quiet evenings on the screen porch. That ended abruptly with the closure of NS woodlands to travel, camping, and recreation. We quickly packed up, after a midday announcement, and pondered next steps. Initially, as it is visiting our own property, we intended to return after checking in with DNRR. However, under further consideration, we decided against visiting lest we be the ones to burn down a very dry Guysborough County.
Never a couple to sit for long, we did a quick survey for an interesting campground to get out and about. Perhaps we might manage a little “bunkie” research. We settled on Norse Cove Campground, on NS’s rugged Eatern Shore. We spent two nights in Nordic Huts, a simple structure with very little beyond bed inside. The beauty of this location was we wound up exploring a variety of Janie’s childhood haunts. Martinique Beach, The Railway Museum, her family home, several local stores… it was a great couple of days of relaxation and change of venue.
In the second week of August we embarked on Toronto ‘25, a group trip to the Six to catch a couple of Blue Jays games. It was a busy 6 days, driving to Ontario and back, via overnight stops to and fro in Montreal and Quebec City. The blog (link above) for that trip takes you on that journey where baseball, meals, and cityscapes were the highlights!
Upon arrival in NS, we quickly turned our attention to the Canso Regatta (jeez… August was as busy as July). This homecoming, where we usually don’t have any event responsibilities, was a great opportunity to reunite with family. We especially enjoyed getting to see Mike, Joanne & Brian who had rented their family homestead as well as our night with Eric, Brenda and the girls on Union Street. We tucked back home in time to hang with Peter / Emilie, as well as a pit stop from Monica / Evan!
After a short reprieve in Cloverville, we kicked the can on another alternative style accommodation, booking a dome stay at Seabreeze Campground. The rental seemed quite reasonable so we jumped at it and expanded the adventure by diverting around the well worn trip down Rte 16 to Canso, touring through the Lundy Rd via Larry’s River instead. Gorgeous afternoon. Arrival at Seabreeze was smooth, and we nestled into the big chairs outside the Fox Bay Dome to enjoy the rattle of beach grass, the rumble of water on shoreline and a fair wind off Chedabucto Bay. Totally relaxing!
The domes are well equipped, with bed, fridge, chairs, BBQ, water and kitchen supplies. We instantly fell in love with it, booking a second night’s stay as soon as we walked in! It was quiet, beautifully set, and cozy / comfortable. We had a great BBQ with the Mom/Dad/Sis/Curtis looking out over Chedabucto Bay! Like our visit to the Eastern Shore, our Canso visit was spent reconnecting via a harbour tour / Grassy Island visit, the boardwalk and playing tourist in my hometown ☺️. So interesting that the Eastern Shore and Canso visits played out so similarly … 🤯!
After a day turnaround we were off to “Chittyfest”!!! Held in the Tatamagouche area, it becomes a stay with friends of ours Mike & Tammy Chitty (from BEd days at Acadia) who have become part of our extended Stanfest family. They have music at their lakeside home all afternoon carried out by the youngsters, but we sometimes play a few songs later in the evening after festivities settle to a more relaxed pace. Pete and John Peter were there as well and it’s fun to play alongside and scooch, adding little bits as I can here and there. Very nice not to be centre of family / friend musical functions… loving the new (and easier) complementary role!
Summer ended with Monica’s Birthday celebration, Pete’s gig at Candid and a long awaited return to Smelt Lake after the ban on woods travel was lifted. Water levels there are as low as I can recall, and I’m seeing rocks that may have never been above water! Quite a summer really, with very little downtime. Of note, as we embark on September and a new school year we are once again tackling some much needed household maintenance, so looking at what may shape up to be a busy fall as well. Nicely, everyone is healthy and we’ll attack it all with one foot after another. Cheers!