Peggy's Cove, NS

1. The SwissAir #111 crash memorial

2.-4. Peggy's Cove

Today TSO and I headed towards Peggy's Cove, stopping just outside the town to look at the Whalesback Memorial for the SwissAir flight #111, which crashed in 1998. It is amazing to look out at the ocean and think that this once held the wreckage of a plane crash, since as we looked out all we could see was beautiful, diamond-like sparkling waters.

Peggy's Cove is one of those absolutely lovely places that I fancy I will come across one day if ever I lose myself and magically pop out in a new world, sort of like Ewan MacGregor's character in Big Fish. I was more than just a bit surprised, however, that this scenic, little fishing town was so swarming with tourists so late in the season. Maybe it was that today was a particularly warm, sunny day in the midst of many cool and rainy days? I asked TSO where all the town people were hiding out, as it seemed all we saw were tourist--I definitely felt like Dorothy in Oz before the munchkins made their appearance! I will let these pics speak to the beauty of Peggy's Cove. Also, here are some cool facts we learned today from signs around town:

• Fish caught in this area tend to be of these varieties: Haddock, Herring, Cod, Pollock, Sole, Halibut, Tuna, Mackeral and Swordfish
• Occasionally leatherback turtles are scene in the Cove during the summer
• The gorgeous lighthouse also serves as the Post Office during the summer
• Lobsters are caught in traps with "kitchens" and "bedrooms." The food is kept in the "kitchen," and when they are done eating the bait the lobsters try and escape through the "bedroom," where they get trapped!
• In the early 1900s fisherman dynamited big rocks in the Cove making it more navigable. The big chunks of rocks blown away were towed away at higher tides by two ships towing the rocks along with huge chains
• Nowadays, fisherman in the area buy their nets, but most still know how to repair them by using a braiding needle and the lock knot sheet bend

Tomorrow TSO and I take leave of the Halifax area (and camping in the cold--last night was cold, though it stayed about 50 degrees Farenheit in our tent!) and head for the Bay of Fundy, which I think we will be seeing around the Truro area. Then from the Bay of Fundy we head home to MA.