Digger's insider tips about Digby and Annapolis

Digby - Tried and True

2010-07-27T07:59:00.002-03:00

Digby is a small fishing town of 2,300 people blessed with a stunning location. Located on the Annapolis Basin, it's natural harbour gives shelter from the mighty Bay of Fundy to fishing boats and sailboats alike. Although Digby is not right on the Bay of Fundy, the Digby Gut does connect it directly to this amazing piece of Marine environment. The wharf proves a great background for the vertical effect of the tides.

Annapolis Royal - Canada's true birthplace

2010-06-09T08:57:00.005-03:00

Annapolis Royal has earned its place in history. This little town of about 500 is a place of many firsts. At the same time there is a great awareness of the historic importance and value this area holds, with a great sense of responsibility. It is therefore that a small town like this holds a stunning 143 Heritage Properties, not to mention the 8(!) National Historic Sites in the area.

Besides all this, Annapolis Royal is also a very pretty place to visit. The Historic Gardens are wonderful, both in delicate smells and colours, and the views over the Annapolis River have a very calming effect. The many little shops offer something for everybody: eclectic art galleries, a leather and book store, the smallest little pub in Nova Scotia, little cozy cafes, and a fair trade store mostly focused on Asian arts, Fat Fetched Antiques and Art Gallery.

Annapolis Royal is only 35 kilometers from Digby and can be reached by car or by the convenient local Kings Transit bus.

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Bear River - a day trip with a silver lining

2010-05-19T10:30:00.018-03:00

Well, the title says it: this post is all about giving you a day trip with a silver lining (or maybe a bicycle would be more practical for some of you ;-). Lets get the practical part out of the way: Bear River can be reached by bicycle (which we rent to our guests) or by car - 15 kilometers away from Digby.

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Red Head and Aliens

2010-05-05T09:30:00.013-03:00

You're probably wondering whether I've completely lost it looking at the title, aren't you? Well, continue reading and you'll find that I really do make sense (somewhat ;-)! We took some of our guests that had helped us out in and around the house on a trip down Digby Neck and islands.

As often happens in Nova Scotia on those days that start off cloudy and rainy: the day started with clouds, continued with some rain, then came beautiful hot sunshine and we finished the day off with the fog rolling in.

We first stopped at Red Head cliffs. These cliffs are cut in red triassic sandstone, which underlies the jurassic basalt. I would highly recommend to take a walk on the beach at low tide and walk down. As beautiful as it looks from the road (rte 217 near Rossway), it just doesn't quite make the same impression as when you stand right there looking up at these red cliffs with the waves rolling onto the rocks on your other side.

Now you're probably still wondering what this has to do with aliens, aren't you? Hang on, I'll get to it.

First a couple of other pictures though, simply because it is such an easy place to show off.

I would like to mention though that I do not endorse people taking pictures like the following few... jumping while balancing on the tip of a rock, or hanging onto the roots of a tree that has recently fallen from the top of a cliff are by definition great ways to injure yourself.... *No people were injured in the taking of these photgraphs by pure luck*

Ok, the following picture is proof aliens have landed at Red Head! We think they were attracted by the bright colour of the rocks, or maybe they were attracted by the simple beauty of the cliffs.
All this to give this little special spot that is so easily overlooked, and so little mentioned, some well-deserved attention. Just stop running and chasing all the 'must-see' sights and simply enjoy these colourful rock formations and the quiet power of the sea. You'll find yourself realizing that it isn't always about running around to see all the best known touristy spots (even though many are great!), it's about finding those little spots that give you an opportunity to quietly soak them in and feel truly connected to everything that surrounds you.

Digby: ever-changing views and succulent seafood

2010-04-26T16:57:00.019-03:00

One of my favourite parts of living in Digby is the view that is always changing. Some days start with this beautiful fog that literally rolls out into the basin; other days offer the most amazing sunrises to be seen right from the window.

The picture above is just a quick picture taken from the window on a random morning. Isn't that nice to wake up to?

And then there are some days that just call for a relaxed cup of coffee on the balcony in the morning, with no other sounds than all those different birds and the soft wind blowing through the trees. The bird on the right was one of many visitors we get - the variety of birds we get to see never seizes to amaze me, I am still struggling to identify all (hence the 'bird' identification, but hey, what do you expect from a lobster?;-)

Of course there are the amazing Bay of Fundy Tides constantly changing the view as well. See below 2 pictures taken on the SAME day, just hours apart. Would you even recognize this as being the same place?

Digby might not offer the highest tides (the Bay of Fundy tides increase further down the road, with the highest tides recorded in the Minas Basin), but about 8 meters of difference in 6 hours is nothing to sneeze at. Because of the clear view of the wharf and the accessibility of the wharf Digby is widely considered to be one of the better spots to observe the vertical effect of the tides. When you look closely at the pictures above you'll see a daily challenge our fishermen have to deal with: would you want to climb up and down those ladders to get to and from your boat?

All the more reason to take a moment to truly take delight in the fruits of the hard work of these fishermen. That fresh succulent seafood deserves your full attention - whether you choose to get haddock, lobster, scallops, ... - and I promise you: you'll have a hard time even thinking about anything else once you take your first bite!

There are plenty of great (seafood) restaurants around, but there are a few that deserve a special note:

1. Royal Fundy Seafood Market, just off the wharf in Digby - I am delighted to say that I saw the note on their door: they're opening up by Wednesday April 28th for the season!

2. Boardwalk Cafe, Digby - this little restaurant offers beautiful meals with all fresh ingredients, no deep-frying involved. Right now only open for lunch.

3. Lavena's Catch Cafe, Freeport (Long Island) - this spot is open most of the year and simply offers some of the best meals in the province.

Eastern Cougar

2010-04-12T09:36:00.008-03:00

Now here is a much discussed subject... there is little proof that the Eastern Cougar still exists in Eastern Canada. A hair sample collected in Fundy National Park in New Brunswick, however, has given believers a whole new argument. (www.pc.gc.ca/nature/eep-sar/itm2/eep-sar2c.aspx and www.pc.gc.ca/eng/docs/v-g/ie-ei/at-ag/sec5/page1.aspx ). While believers of Cougars in Eastern Canada have been painted as 'foolish' in the past and any sightings were shrugged off as 'impossible' or 'inconclusive', hair samples collected in Fundy National Park in the last years have been confirmed to be of cougars!

I, Digger, am a believer! When in Saint Andrews, New Brunswick, the tracks we saw at the top of Chamcook Mountain were decidedly BIG and decidedly CAT. We never saw or heard a thing, but when heading back down the tracks going right ACROSS our own tracks in the mud were unmistakable.

And then look at Kejimkujik National Park and the Tobeatic Wilderness Reserve in Nova Scotia - the largest remaining inland wilderness reserve in Atlantic Canada. Many rumours go around about alleged cougar sightings, but none have been confirmed. It seems to make sense that cougars, among many other endangered species, have found a safe shelter in this wilderness area where so few people ever come. Considering as well that it took them from 1938 till recent years to confirm cougars were still around in Fundy National Park... It tells you a lot about the elusiveness of these creatures.

Kejimkujik and the Tobeatic Wilderness Reserve are home to many species at risk, a few of them being: the northern ribbon snake, the southern flying squirrel, brook trout, and the blanding's turtle. It is for good reason that these 2 areas together form the core of the SouthWest Nova Scotia UNESCO Biosphere Reserve.

In 2007, volunteers Harold and Diane Clapp discovered a new population of blanding's turtles in the Tobeatic Wilderness Area - the first population of blanding's turtles found here. It gives hope for this endangered species, and it makes you wonder who else might be hiding out there. This amazing wilderness area still holds many secrets for us, why not the Eastern Cougar as well?

Get this image as a card:

visit www.merseytobeatic.ca/fundraisers.php to see all cards available and support a great cause!

Meet Digger!

2010-04-09T11:02:00.003-03:00

Hi all, meet our new mascotte: Digger! He will keep you updated on all news, events, happenings, festivals, upcoming tours, and whatever else he digs up ;-)

The Digby Farmers Market (http://www.digbyfarmersmarket.ca/) has started up last weekend and was a great success. This little market is showing lots of potential with some real interesting local arts and crafts. You'll find the Farmers Market every Saturday and Sunday at the Heritage Center, just behind the hostel - a 200 meter walk!