(Final Installment #7 - Saturday - Sunday)
Photos and many edits to follow.
Our next stop now on the way home was at the info centre on the border between Nova Scotia and New Brunswick where we stopped and watched a piper play sending eerie wails of Celtic history over the Bay of Fundy. After a brief stop to fly a kite in the ever present Fundy winds we headed off to Fort Beausejour.
Fort Beauséjour National Historic Site of Canada commemorates the role of the Fort in the struggle between France and Britain, and between Britain and the American colonies, for North America, 1751-1783. At Fort Beauséjour England and France were caught up in a tug-of-war for supremacy in Acadia.
Today the Fort’s ruins sit atop a hill overlooking the Isthmus of Chignecto, the land bridge between New Brunswick and Nova Scotia. Watching only the occasional passing train which traverses the low land below the Fort. As we wandered around the fort a VIA Rail passenger train passed below the fort making a wide arch around the low lands it was an incredible site to see the contrast of history and modernity. The powder magazines have been recreated realistically with some of the original stones, thus there are inscriptions (graffiti) on the walls dating back to the 1700's.
In an effort to find a campsite during the daylight hours we headed off stopping only once in Edmondston New Brunswick to look at Fortin du P'tit Sault Blockhouse
Constructed in 1841 at the height of the hostilities between the United States and England, The P'tit Sault Blockhouse was one element in a long line of defence installations stretching all the way to the province of Québec. It was destroyed by a lightning strike in 1855 and reconstructed, thanks to the generosity of the community, in 2000. Unfortunately we were only able to take a look from the outside as the Blockhouse was closed when we got there.
Our final campsite of the vacation was at Camping Cabano out side the village of Cabano this area is another historic one with echos of the War of 1812 all around there is an interesting but underfunded fort named fort Ingle just across the road from the Camp ground. This area was also made famous by Archibald Belaney AKA Grey Owl. Belaney adopted an Indian identity and the name Grey Owl, married an Anishinaabe woman, Angele Egwuna, worked as a fur trapper, wilderness guide and forest ranger. He told everyone he was a child of a Scottish father and Apache mother and had emigrated from the US to join the Ojibwa. Even though he was a total fraud his writings had an impact on environmental conservation in Canada. If you can find a copy of his writings read them they are inspiring. The Fort was interesting but small and so underfunded the uniforms used by the animators looked like Children’s Halloween costumes.
The rest of the trip home was not so pleasant. I have to admit that I am a bit lead footed when on the highway so I go on average 120 kph (which 7 out of 10 people do) but I neglected to remember that the Quebec police are not so forgiving of speeders as the Ontario police and especially unforgiving of speeders with Ontario plates. While I KNOW I was driving 120 kph I passed a Quebec provincial police car and quickly slowed and moved into the right lane, which was my mistake because it was then he followed me and pulled me over. He addressed me in French and when I said I did not speak French he grunted and said “I clocked you at 132 KPH” this he repeated 5 times as he handed me the ticket. I kept my cool and explained that I must have been watching the speed of traffic not the speedometer (but wisely I did not argue). I could have pointed out that every other freaking car on the road which was bumper to bumper was going the same damn speed but what the heck it was not worth it. I could have argued the speed on his radar was wrong but this guy seemed to be waiting for me to disagree, I suspect so because he kept repeating the speed to me.
So from now on in the province of Quebec I drive at the speed limit, no more no less.
Knowing we now had a sizable fine and a small bank account I headed Due west Arriving in Ottawa around 9:00 PM I would have made better time if I drove the speed of traffic but that as you have read was not an option.
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