Ballantynes Cove
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| Followed us for ~30nm? |
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| Cape George Light |
While the winds were up, then down, and then back up and then quite breezy near the end of our 40 mile leg south-east, the sea-state was
continuously lumpy. The swells were a couple of feet high, but because the period was so short, they were quite uncomfortable. A couple
of times we would punch our bow through the next wave bringing some water along the foredeck. As we approached the Cape George Point where we would
turn for protection, a wind line crossed over us from the east, and added about 10 extra knots to the wind speed to add insult to injury.
Our destination, Ballantynes Cove, is a small fishing harbour that also includes a number of docks for recreational boaters. It is located just inside Cape George Point. Tall, red earth cliffs
surround the area with the point topped by an old lighthouse. The harbour, protected by stone breakwaters, is just a mile or two around the point, and
reasonably protected from the swells.
Finnish Line entered a little before us and just as we entered the
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| Rain just getting started |
harbour it started to rain. Buy the time we had fenders and lines
on, and were coming into the harbour to find our slip, it started to pour. Bob was standing at the dock to catch lines along with the
poor girl working the marina. Unlike Bob, she had no raincoat on. As soon as we got ourselves secured, we sent her away to try to
stay dry. Marriah said "no problem, I have three changes of clothes here." Sounds like she's accustomed to expecting the unexpected.
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| Harbour full of red |
At that point the skies opened up and we experienced the biggest downpour of our trip so far. We quickly installed our awning and watched
the rain from a little bit of protection. I pulled out the boat soap and scrub brush and took advantage of the fresh water dousing to do a
bit of cleaning.
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| Red run-off entering the harbour |
Once the rain settled down a bit, you could still hear some small waterfalls in the background rushing with rain runoff.
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| After shot .... you can see the hard transition in the distance |
The soil and landscape around here is similar to PEI ... red. The fresh water that was now flooding down the hill sides and into the harbour
(that's where the three separate water falls/rivers and culverts terminated) was VERY red. Being fresh water, with doesn't readily mix with the salt water.
The result was a harbour full of red fresh water, flowing out of the harbour mouth and into the surrounding salt water, and not really mixing
at all, and forming a distinct line of separation. It wasn't until morning that the colour of the water returned to normal.
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| Ramble On among the fishing boats |
Our slip was located on the opposite side of the harbour to where the fishing wharfs and the marina office was ... where
the washrooms and laundry where located. On one of Linda's trips around the harbour to use the facilities, she noticed one of the fishing
sheds had it's doors open. Upon sticking her head in and looking about she struck up a conversation with the technician doing off-season repairs. He was very friendly and informative and took the time to explain the use of the tanks and the lobster fishing side of things once the lobsters are brought ashore.
The tank at Ballantynes Cove was built to hold up to 50,000 lobsters. Their claws are banded and are the lobsters are kept 100 to a crate, which are then submerged in the large pool. The pool is highly regulated for temperature and salinity, to keep the lobster in a calm dormant state. A few degrees warmer and they can become aggressive with each other or start molting.
Apparently there is a website where you can enter the number that is printed on the elastic claw band
so that the fisherman who caught the lobster can be identified. He said this is quite popular in Europe where they are very interested in proof of sustainable fishing practices. I learned that there are three categories of lobsters: caners-that will be processed before they are sent to market, Canadian-sold live but around 1 lb, and American-sold live and are 1-2 lb. Although called American, it just means that they're acceptable for the international market. He told me that Yarmouth has a larger storage facility and they are building one to house up to 1 million lobsters that will also hold them for longer periods so that live lobsters may be available year round.
Also part of the marina office was a Tuna Interpretive Center. Up until this point, the fisheries were predominately lobster, crab, oysters and mussels. Here was the first time we had seen anything about the tuna fishery. The centre was a one room display, but although small had interesting information about the fishery. Marriah told Linda that it can cost up to $2000 for 4 guests to go tuna sport-fishing (catch and release) for a few hours.
From here we would leave in the morning to head for the Strait of Canso!
Hawksbury/Strait of Canso Yacht Club
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| New snuffer worked perfectly! |
Our sail from Ballantynes into the Strait of Canso started off with a perfect opportunity to put our spinnaker snuffer to work. We had a comfortable reach all the way, and snuffed a couple of times to sort out minor rigging issues. Ultimately we had to fire up the motor in order to make it to Port Hawksbury so we didn't arrive in the dark.
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| Large quarry on west side |
By the time we approached the strait, the wind had piped up again to about 20 knots. There is a man-made causeway across the strait (originally called a "Gut" as is common on the island) completed in 1955. As a result, there are locks and a swing bridge on the Cape Breton side of the causeway. The lock manages the difference in water level that result from tides and flow on each side of the strait.
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| Finnish Line exiting lock |
As we approached the lock both Finnish Line and ourselves mistook a red range light for the lock light when, in fact, there
was a very small traffic light at the lock entrance which neither of us saw until quite close. It was green and may have been for quite a while.
Our passage through the lock was complicated by the stiff breeze from behind in addition to a bit of following current. Both Finnish Line and ourselves had a hard time keep aligned in the lock due to the wind pushing out sterns out from the wall. Fortunately, it was only about a 2' drop so it didn't take long.
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| Evening view from CSYC |
Once we exited the lock, we had only 3 nm to go before we arrived at the Strait of Canso Y.C. (the same entity as the Hawksbury Marina) where we would be staying for the night.
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| Hot steaming ... industrial! |
Our initial stop was the gas dock. The marina attendant was on lunch break when we arrived, but after a short wait, we were able to fuel up. To our surprise, however, the marina only accepts cash! So Linda walked a km to the nearest ATM so that we could make payment. The club/marina was a nice building, with a odd "U" shaped dock system that required us to walk away from the club, along a interesting wooden wave attenuator, and then back to the club. Bob and Chris ventured into town for a short walk and explore.
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| Loading up on something dusty |
All of us were kept amused by the train engines the were being shunted around, in particular right beside the clubhouse. Lots of rumbling diesels, clanking tracks, engine horns, and other noises that broke the quiet at regular intervals. There is a bunch of heavy industry nearby and saw our triplet of engines appearing at various factories and industrial site a mile or two away.
St. Peter's (Bras d'Or Lake)
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Seals feeding at the tip
of Isle Madam |
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| Porpoise |
Today we departed Hawksbury to head into the Bras d'Or Lake(s). We might normally take the inside route through the Lennox passage, but the bridge has been under construction since the spring. The latest news reports were from April and had estimated completion as June 30. However, after interrogating all our sources, we determined it was not yet open.
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| Cormorants doing their job |
The bridge was suffering from problems of expansion in the heat, and at one point the local fire department was unable to get to the island because the bridge would not close properly and the fire consumed the building. Until the repair work began, the decision has been closed for safety. Thus mariners have had to take the longer route around Ile Madame. Not a big deal as it only added a handful of miles to the leg.
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| Jerome Point Light |
We had a great sail around the island, and after we rounded, we took a north heading to find the entrance to the Bras d'Or Lakes. The entrance to the lake is via the St. Peter's canal which is tucked into a small bay. The entrance is almost indistinguishable except for a small lighthouse nearby.
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| Exiting traffic |
Once close we circled around, while in radio contact with the lock people, to peek down the small canal to see the progress of the boats exiting the lock. It is a very short canal, with just a couple hundred yards on each side of the lock. But in high season (mid-July through mid-September) they lock through anywhere from 20 to 40 boats a day.
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| Then us! |
The lock is a national historic site, and this was their 150th year in operation. As a result, we got a cute little certificate for passing through. We're boat 261 this year! The lock is similar looking to the Rideau locks (older stonework structures, pretty grounds, etc.) but the lock are hydraulically operated and the gates are more modern steel structures.
There is also a new (2 years old) swing bridge that passes over the canal (an upgrade to the old single lane bridge). Once we passed the bridge we were quickly into the "lake(s)", and after erroneously following the buoyed channel the wrong way (and then questioned by Finnish Line on the radio as to "um, where are you going?") we turned left and headed the short distance to the St. Peters Marina.
The marina is located at the end of a small quiet bay that contained a number of mooring balls as well. We were greeted at the dock by the full staff (training day?) of about 5 people. As friendly as you could ask for!
The marina was owned and run by the Lions Club. It's located on a small hill overlooking the docks and the bay. There is a large lounge and kitchen for use by the boaters and regularly used for evening ceilidhs.
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Fender boards against rock walls
of lock |
The town of St. Peter's is only about 15 minute walk from the marina, and contains a Coop grocery store, NSLC, Home Hardware, authentic German bakery (Carmen's), and a handful of other stores plus a few restaurants, Mac Bouche being one of them. This was where we had dinner our first night, accompanied by a open mic ceilidh. Each entertainer was allowed three songs. The most unique act was a former local, "Chuck", who was more of a poet than a singer, but sort of said his poetry to a melody. The content was mostly about the rat race in Toronto and comparison to his old life in Cape Breton. Chuck had two other songs that followed the same melody (no chorus, just verse after verse). I wish I had made a short video of it! The other entertainers were mostly local. The content was purely from a maritime perspective, and for the most part quite good.
Our schedule going forward is to head out for a few nights to some nearby anchorages, and then return where Bob's crew, Chris M. would catch a ride to Shediac with Tarja and at the same time she would pick up Ben from the Moncton airport to have him join for a week while we explore the Bras d'Ore Lakes.
While in the lakes we will connect with Peter and Ze and perhaps will cross paths with Tom and Sue again.
The tank at Ballantynes Cove was built to hold up to 50,000 lobsters. Their claws are banded and are the lobsters are kept 100 to a crate, which are then submerged in the large pool. The pool is highly regulated for temperature and salinity, to keep the lobster in a calm dormant state. A few degrees warmer and they can become aggressive with each other or start molting.
Apparently there is a website where you can enter the number that is printed on the elastic claw band 
Our sail from Ballantynes into the Strait of Canso started off with a perfect opportunity to put our spinnaker snuffer to work. We had a comfortable reach all the way, and snuffed a couple of times to sort out minor rigging issues. Ultimately we had to fire up the motor in order to make it to Port Hawksbury so we didn't arrive in the dark. 
The bridge was suffering from problems of expansion in the heat, and at one point the local fire department was unable to get to the island because the bridge would not close properly and the fire consumed the building. Until the repair work began, the decision has been closed for safety. Thus mariners have had to take the longer route around Ile Madame. Not a big deal as it only added a handful of miles to the leg.
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