Aspotogan Peninsula, Nova Scotia

When we first moved to Canada, we rented a house on the Aspotogan Peninsula.

The Aspotogan Peninsula is the piece of land that separates Mahone Bay from St. Margaret’s Bay. The coast is dotted with fishing communities.

We particularly enjoy the rugged coastline here near Northwest Cove.

It is not too far from Peggy’s Cove and so the geology is the same. Large granitic boulders were deposited here after the Ice Age, leaving an area of rugged beauty.

We always have the coastline to ourselves –  this is our favourite picnic spot.

The first time we saw this building we were confused. Here was this massive Hotel complex in the middle of nowhere which had never been completed.

It seems that it was built as a Sea Spa in 1993.

The plan was ‘to have spa treatments focusing on seawater and a wide range of massage therapies, skin cleansing and spa-related health services, complemented by world-class hotel accommodations and cuisine.’

This is the link to the location on Google Maps

http://maps.google.ca/maps?ll=44.510592,-64.013729&spn=0.004598,0.011362&t=h&z=17&lci=com.panoramio.all

‘131 guest suites would face the ocean, with large windows overlooking the wave-battered rocks, the tidal pools or the islands of Mahone Bay.

The plans  also included a spacious dining room and convention facilities in addition to the saunas, steam rooms, Swiss showers, Vichy treatment rooms, seawater pools, aerobic training rooms, rehabilitation facilities, squash and racquetball courts, and generously laid out common areas.’

The property is still for sale, so if anyone has any ideas for how this massive building can be utilised?

http://www.aspotoganseaspa.com/

Lobster pots bob in the bay.

And lobster boats haul their creels.

It is a perfect spot, where even the road  had to be cut between the erratics.

Winter in Mahone Bay

I love the different seasons and enjoy each and every one. In the middle of summer, I am too busy enjoying the coastline here to think about winter. But then when winter comes, it has its own beauty.

Here Cameron and I are taking out his canoe for a first trip on the Back Harbour at Lunenburg in 2008.

Then Jeff and I bought a kayak and again launched it from the little beach at Back Harbour,

before paddling around the Bay and into Martin’s Cove.

But every winter the bays change and are more suited to hockey, skating and fishing.

This is looking across from our launch beach.

A few miles along the coast is Mahone Bay, where we first rented a kayak and tried out the sport.

The yachts are all lifted out of the water and wrapped up for the winter.

These three churches are on all the pictures and calendars of Mahone Bay.

We kayaked around this island, on that first paddle. It is called Strum Island and is one of 300 islands in Mahone Bay. It was bought in 2003 and denuded of all its trees, causing a great deal of controversy.  The owners built this massive mansion on it, which sticks up like a sore thumb.

Looking across to the town of  Mahone Bay from the Oakland road.

That same wharf from the other side.

The ice splits and heaves up around boulders.

This seal found a break onto the surface to rest. But Jeff took this photo for me and didn’t seem to be able to zoom in!

I dont seem to have photos of Mahone Bay in the summer – when it is packed full of yachts. That’s a project for this summer.

The Lost Gallery, Mahone Bay

Friday night was the gala opening of the new contemporary art gallery, The Lost Gallery, in Mahone Bay. This is the exciting new venture of Lynette and Angus Park.

Lynette and Angus moved to Nova Scotia, from Aberdeen, 2 years ago and have been dreaming of the day when they would open their own gallery. They bought a former bookstore, at 532 Main Street and Angus has spent the past winter renovating the 1850 building into an impressive area to display modern art.

Here Lynette stands with her painting of the famous Mahone Bay churches, which are just opposite the gallery.

(copied from press report)

Lynette paints abstracts and abstract impressionist paintings. Pride of place in the gallery is  an eight foot square canvas, ‘Big W”, Lynette’s reaction to how George W Bush handled hurricane Katrina. It shows people drowning, the Statue of Liberty holding a hamburger, American money, skyscrapers and building plans.

The ‘Big W’ painting.

This painting is entitled ‘The Harbour’

Here is another abstract entitled ‘The Handbag’.

The coastal scenes of Nova Scotia also feature in Lynette’s paintings, from Peggy’s Cove, and Blue Rocks, to Lunenburg.

>

Lunenburg Waterfront

As well as Lynette’s paintings, the gallery exhibits 3-dimension work by Angus,  and work by other Nova Scotian artists.

This gallery is a great addition to the South Shore and I wish Lynette and Angus every success in their new venture.

Ice Yachting in Nova Scotia

Winter has well and truly set in, with temperatures well below freezing every day this past week. The result is that all the bays around us here are completely frozen over and so it’s time for the locals to have fun on the ice.

We went out walking yesterday and I forgot to lift my camera before I left! As we drove around Mahone Bay, we spotted a couple of ice yachts flying across the ice. Then on our way home we saw the whole racing club set up at Mader’s Cove end.

I did a Blog on these iceboats last year, but I think they are exciting enough for a second Blog. I took a couple of photos on my mobile phone, but then I don’t have a connector yet to put those photos onto my computer.

So I have taken these fantastic photos from the Nova Ice Yacht Club’s site. I’m sure they won’t mind the publicity.

Yesterday was sunny with bright blue skies,  although some of these photos are a bit cloudy.

Here are the racers ready to start.

This is how an ice yacht looks up close.

Not much contact with the ice.

And they’re off.

Speeding along.

Some manoeuvres look tricky,

but exciting.

Last year I gave links to a couple of you tube videos. Here are different ones.

The first shows just what we saw yesterday.                http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=IYbLGYvqP8E

The second shows, how to get to work in 30 seconds.             http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=M7goQpopDng&feature=related

And the third that it is quite a dangerous sport!                      http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=SgGmRKLd7h8&feature=related

I was wondering if there would be ice yachting at the Winter Olympics, but have found that it might be included in the 2014 Olympics as a demonstration sport. Maybe after that?