Voted one of the most scenic islands in the world by Conde Nast,
Cape Breton Island offered incredible beauty to the sightseer.  We drove along the Cabot Trail, named after explorer John Cabot, stopping along the way to take pictures and play on the pebble/rock beaches.  Although the day was overcast, the drive was still amazing.  I think my views on Cape Breton are best summed up by a quote I read by Alexander Graham Bell (who had a summer residence on Cape Breton) "I have travelled around the globe. I have seen the Canadian and American Rockies, the Andes, the Alps and the Highlands of Scotland, but for simple beauty, Cape Breton outrivals them all!"

In Cape Breton, Nova Scotia, one of the places Fodor's guide calls "wacky and wild," is the scarecrow site where the owner has placed over 100 scarecrows to delight and frighten.  So, yes, I made Kevin stop.  Kev, in the Philly Folk Fest sweatshirt, and Kyra, in matching raincoat and umbrella, partake in the fun with an especially freaky looking scarecrow...

Last Day in the ADK MTS.

On our last day in the mountains, we took our nephews Stephen and Hunter hiking.  Kev and I carried Kyra and Hunter in baby backpacks,  and Stephen walked on his own.  This hike was great -about 2.5 miles around Moss Lake.  During much of the hike, you'd only catch a glimpse of the lake itself - dashing between trees and getting great views where the woods would open for small waterways cascading down the mountain.  On Wednesday, we left the park for Bangor Maine.  While driving, we stopped in Montpelier, VT,  the capital, for lunch.  While walking down the street after a fantastic lunch at a trendy little bistro, I nearly walked head first into a woman.  That woman was none other than Karen Sciarillo, my fellow teacher from PA!  She and her husband were just coming out for lunch, as well!  How serendipitous!  I knew Karen was planning to go to Vermont for vacation, but what are the odds?  Tonight, we are camping in Nova Scotia right below the Cabot Trail on Cape Breton.  Tomorrow, we plan to drive the scenic Cabot Trail (considered to be one of the most beautiful drives in North America) and do some hiking before we catch the over-night ferry to Newfoundland (13 1/2 hours).  So far, Kyra has really enjoyed camping... other than fighting off mosquitoes.  Kev is sitting next to me enjoying a cigar - it seems to keep the little buggers at bay.  Looking forward to some amazing pictures tomorrow!

You know hiking will be fantastic when a family on their way back says, "the trail ahead is impassable; you will need to turn around..."  Undaunted, we continued and slid through mud, gunk and watery passes in order to see this - the Cascade Falls.  Brilliant!  Six miles round trip, and in addition to the falls, we found a prime viewing spot for Cascade Lake.  Like many lakes in the Adirondack Mountains, this one can only be reached by hiking the trail - there is no motor access.  While there, we saw a loon (too far away from us to get a decent picture) and heard his mournful cry (Hoo - whoo - hoo or http://www.ns.ec.gc.ca/wildlife/loons/sounds/wail.au to hear for yourself).  The sound echoed around the mountains...  Beautiful and somber at the same time...just breathtaking (or was that the hike?).  In any case, Kyra fell asleep in the baby-backpack on Kevin's back for the last mile.  A fantastic day had by all!

Kyra loved the scenic train ride from Thendara station, just a mile west of Old Forge.  There is a preservation movement here in the Adirondack Mts. to restore service to stations formally serviced by the New York trains.  The thought is that this would be much more ecologically friendly, and that it would encourage commerce between the areas.  Also, it's just beautiful to see the park by train...   We had a tour guide, and the comment I found most humorous went something like, "and we have had a much easier time expanding the moose population in the Adironacks since the introduction of females..."  In any case, I learned much about the logging industry and saw some beautiful foliage.

The Inlet Library is so nice - I sit here with three teenagers, all of us playing on our computers using their free wireless.  The rain did finally end late this afternoon, and we all had a chance to run around the park (well, Kyra ran - we followed).  After eating at The Rad Dog Tavern (best Tomato Bisque in the mountains) Kyra insisted on visiting the Northern Lights to see the "Ice Cream Man" and proceeded to get it all over her face (and hands, and shirt, and me...you get the picture).  We walked down to the lake to observe another beautiful sunset.  Tomorrow - the scenic train at Thendara and maybe a visit to an old friend near lake George.

We are at the point of becoming waterlogged; the rain continues in torrents.  Today, we did not even see the sun.  However, we did see something very interesting last night - a bear!  We were eating at The Lantern Restaurant and Bobo decided he too was hungry. What a big boy!  The owner told us he was only the "little" one.  Yikes! Looking forward to taking a train ride tomorrow in Thendara, which is slightly south of Old Forge.  Hopefully, the sun will join us...

This is the view from the boardwalk in Arrowhead Park looking out over Fourth Lake.

Finally - Wireless at the Public Library

After a weekend of much rain, we were able to get out on a canoe with Kyra on Sunday.  She loved it!  Fourth lake was choppy and we didn't cover as much of the lake as we'd hoped, but it was still fantastic. Our friends Steve and Amy kayaked along with us, and we all admitted that the workout justified the large breakfast consumed at the Tamarack.  Yesterday, Mom and Dad started the pontoon boat, which stalled several times.  We were stuck in the middle of the channel and saved by neighbors wielding two large poles (really thought Kev was going to have to dive in!).  After a change of gas tanks (my father will not be foiled by ANY motor) we got the boat out to the lake.  The motor was still acting up, perhaps the transmission is slipping, but we were able to ride down the length of Fourth Lake and around Alger Island.  There are some incredible camps that can be seen by water...  It is so beautiful here.  I just hope the rain stops (we are warned of thunderstorms over the next two days).