Cookn Travels: Peggy's Cove and Lunenburg, Nova Scotia

Peggy's Cove and Lunenburg, Nova Scotia

After Funday National Park, we stayed 2 days in Halifax and spent 1 day in the town of Halifax being tourists. We visited the Citadel and walked the boardwalk, where we had a really good lunch. The town itself isn't really big compared to other cities we have been too but was a good 1 day trip. ( I just posted a few pictures on my Facebook account of our time here.) One of the best things was that we found a liquor store, where I bought some of these yummy Orange Crush Vodka drinks and Doug bought some hard ciders. You can also buy cannabis in the liquor stores in Nova Scotia- just an FYI, not a tested fact.

We left are camp ground and made a stop off at Peggy's Cove, about an hour south of Halifax, on our way to Lunenburg, where we stayed for 3 days.

Lunenburg from "The Photo Spot"

Peggy's Cove

Peggy's Cove was once a thriving fishing and lobster village of 300 people. French settlers arrived here at early as 1766, but it became an established village in 1811 when land grants were given to six families of German descent. While talking to the small museum volunteer, we learned that there are about 30 people that live in the small village today, with only 2 children that are bused to a nearby school. Most residents are retired and home get passed down from generation to generation. If a home does become available, it is sold between those in the community before it is publicly known.

Peggy's Cove is now best known for it's lighthouse, one of the most famous and most photographed in Nova Scotia. The original wooden lighthouse was built in 1868 but was replaced with the concrete lighthouse in 1914. It is still operational today.

The Fisherman's Monument- depicts 32 fisherman, their wives, and children. It is a lasting memorial to the fisherman we risked their lives at sea.

I like the picture of Doug and I but the dogs refused to look forward for this one.

It didn't take us long to walk around the town and lighthouse before we went back to the visitor center, were we parked the truck and camper, to have a picnic lunch. While eating, the fog rolled in very quickly and in a matter of minutes the look of the town changed. I loved it both ways.

Lunenburg, Nova Scotia

An hour and 15 minutes from Peggy's Cove sits the picturesque town of Lunenburg, a town of 2,396 year round residents, that receives about 416,000 visitors each year. The town is known for its colorful, well preserved British Colonial architecture. It is because of this that it was designated a UNESCO World Heritage Site in 1995.

We spent our time walking the town, which is very dog friendly. Almost every store allowed the dogs inside, had bowls of water for them, and sometimes gave them treats. They did very good and loved all the attention. I found a yarn store, and for those of you who know me- well let's just say I was in heaven. All their yarn was Alpaca and so soft. I bought a kit to make a shawl for myself. I can't wait to get started! There are many galleries, with items of local artists, book, clothing and souvenir shops. Plus every kind of restaurant and ice cream parlour you could want. Seafood is very popular because Lunenburg is still ultimately a fishing village.

I booked us a sea kayaking excursion while we were here. Lunenburg sits on Mahone Bay, which hosts around 315 small to medium islands. Most uninhabited. We kayaked with our group of 6 and guide Margaret (pronounced very French but she is bilingual) about 7.5 miles through Mahone Bay and around the islands. We also got to see seals and stop on one of the tiny islands for a snack.

Rounding out out trip, we visited Hirtle Beach for an evening with the dogs, went to a farmer's market one morning and ate way too much, and also had a nice meal at The Knot Pub, a more local hangout with a very English flare.

Kayaking Mahone Bay

The last remaining original fishing shack. The floor boards are not nailed down so they float if it gets flooded. It is thought that this is the reason it has survived.