Halifax/National Parks

When we altered the dates for Lori's trip back to Canada, I knew I was going to have a lot of time to fill before she got here so I planned a trip to Halifax. I hadn't been back since we left in 2003, so a trip was long overdue. Not all of my buddies still live in Halifax, but we were able to find a weekend we could all be there.

Instead of flying up, I decided to drive and make a few stops along the way. First, I spent 2 nights in Gros Morne national park. It is such a beautiful spot. I stayed in a little town called Woody Point and the hotel was called The Bonne Bay Inn. If anyone is going to visit the area, I highly recommend the hotel.

I went on a pretty tough hike while I was there. It's about 16km with a lot of elevation changes, so I knew it was going to be difficult, but because it had rained heavily prior to my hike, it was very difficult. I was beat by the end of it. I was in ankle deep mud at times and some of the stairs were washed out completely.

I also had to ford a river twice. I knew that before I went, but the water was a lot higher and moving a lot faster than I expected.

It was worth it though, because the views were incredible.

I left Gros Morne on Thursday and drove to Port-aux-Basques to catch the overnight ferry to Nova Scotia. I was going to drive the Cabot Trail on Friday morning, but it was so rainy and foggy, I skipped that and went right to Halifax.

I had a great time in Halifax. Catching up with my old friends, telling old stories and basically laughing the entire time.

We went out for dinner late Friday night, but that didn't stop us from going for a donair on pizza corner at the end of the night.

It seemed like a good idea at the time, but when I woke up with heartburn and donair sauce on my phone, it didn't seem like a good idea.

On Saturday we went to visit my buddy Pete, who is a firefighter for Halifax Regional Municipality and was on duty. He gave us a tour of the station.

It was so nice to see all those guys again. We made plans for another weekend next year. Maybe in Boston this time.

After the weekend, I drove back to Cape Breton so I could catch the ferry to Newfoundland, but this time I was able to drive the Cabot Trail and the Cape Breton Highlands national park and it was spectacular.

Once I got back in Newfoundland, I made one more stop in yet another national park for a hike. I stopped in Terra Nova national park before I made my way home.

Anyway, I know that's a lot of pictures to look at, but it was an eventful week. I'm back in St. John's now and it's only 2 more weeks before Lori get here.

db