Vanlife in Cape Breton
The Most Famous Trail in Nova Scotia
Following my return from Newfoundland to Cape Breton, I spent a day in North Sydney at a Starbucks. I didn’t intend on spending the day there but it took longer than expected to back up my photos, edit the new ones, and upload a vlog. Then I headed for the Cabot Trail.
The Cabot Trail extends across the upper reaches of Cape Breton through a national park of the same name. Some rate it as one of the most scenic driving tours in the world with stunning ocean vistas, old-growth forests, prehistoric rock scarred by glaciers, and the ever present Cape Breton Highlands. My journey was undertaken in September under somewhat cloudy weather so it wasn’t the best but neither was it the worst.
I began before the park with a long hike at a Department of Natural Resources and Renewables rest area. The trail was infrequently used and largely overgrown but it eventually led to a nice viewpoint looking into the national park.
Down below I could see some beaches and a landform that stuck out into the water. The beach turned out to be mostly rocks and quite steep so I’m not sure who would want to go swimming there but people must because there was an outdoor shower and washrooms.
The landmass was a narrow peninsula that separate two crescent mooned bays where there was a fancy inn and a hiking trail. The Middle Head trail wasn’t too difficult and led to a headland where the wind was blowing strong waves onto the rocks. It was, however, threatening to rain so I didn’t stick around very long.
That rain came and so stopped early at one of the campgrounds hoping that the next day would be better. The most interesting place I visited was not actually in the national park but north at a place called White Point. It was probably because I lucked out with some blue skies in the morning amd was able to get some photographs with the sun.
It’s a good thing I got good photos at White point because shortly after I visited a beach at Dingwall just as the clouds were covering the last of the sun. After that it began raining and I didn’t see any more of the sun.
I understand why the Cabot trail is so highly regarded. It has a beautifully scenic drive along the west side that rolls up and down the headlands with views to the water and forest valleys. Even along a rainny day I could appreciate how dramatic the landscape was.
Cape Breton might be most famous for the Skyline trail, a boardwalk that descents a precarious ridge on the edge of the water. It is the poster child for the region and well deserving. I wasn’t sure if I would hike it because it had been raining all day and when I arrived so I ate lunch. When I was finished eating I lucked out with a break in the rain so I hurried out.
The sky opened up right when I arrived at the boardwalk with a misting rain that soon turned to a downpour. Not to be dissappointed, I braved the wind and rain, getting soaked but capturing some decent pictures. I would have liked to do some more hiking and I really did want to see the Skyline at sunset but the forecast was for more rain so it didn’t make sense to stick around. Compared to Red Bay though, I think the Skyline is so well regarded because it is easily accessible and has more visitors. Even though I saw the Skyline under poor weather, I think Red Bay is a greater hike for sunrises and sunsets but that might be because I saw it under clearer skies.
The remainder of my time in Cape Breton was fairly wet but I managed to stop at several pull-outs along the road to grabs some photos. The stormy conditions made it more like storm watching than beach going so it was just a different type of experience.
