The south end of the beach at Hua Hin, Thailand.
Where are Kevin and Ruth now? Hua Hin, Thailand.

Where are Kevin and Ruth going next? Maldives on March 23rd.

Saturday, May 7, 2011

Near Crescent Beach, Nova Scotia

By the time we finished breakfast yesterday, the sun was shining! It was still cool and a bit windy, but at least we had the sun. We took Whiskey for a nice walk all the way around Graves Island.

The entire island is a provincial park. But it is under “construction” as they have built a 3km (1.8 mile) gravel walking path at a cost of $136,000. This kind of thing irks me to no end, and is one of the reasons we refuse to pay the $25 a night they want for a parking spot in the park. The simple question is, what would have been wrong with just a foot worn path? You know, like the kind our ancestors used to hike on! Why would they waste that kind of money to build a trail? We don’t get it, but I’m sure some government bureaucrat has a 50 page report about why they needed to do this.


$136,000 for this.

One of the nicer campsites on Graves Island

Then we drove about half an hour over to the town of Bridgewater. There’s not really a lot to see in this town and it’s not really on the list of Nova Scotia tourism destinations. However, it does have a free RV dump station at the Irving rest stop.  (GPS 44.3914 -64.5272).

We purposely avoided the town of Lunenburg because we wanted to get to couchsurfer host Dave before the weekend. We’ll stop at Lunenburg for a couple of days early next week on our way back up the coast.

Sherman, parked up at couchsurfer host Dave's house.


And we arrived at Dave’s around 4pm. He got us set up and we went inside and chatted for a while. We were invited for supper, but not until around 7:00pm so that gave us time to walk down the coast a bit and also visit Rissers Beach Provincial Park which is only a km or so from where we are parked. Despite the sun, it was cold and windy right on the coast. But it was still great to have the blue sky all day.

Out for a windy walk near Rissers Beach.

Rissers Beach Provincial Park

There were six of us for supper, and Dave had made a nice haddock fish dinner. We supplied the wine, and Dave’s daughter Anna made an almond cake for dessert.


Dave works in Halifax so he left early this morning and won't be back for a few days. But he said we can remain parked here for another night or two, no problem. There’s lots of walking paths in the area, and hopefully the weather will cooperate for a bike ride, although it’s still pretty chilly, but we’ll probably sit here until Monday morning and leave then.

Today's drive, 75 kms (47 miles).

7 comments:

  1. Being handicapped, a gravel would allow me to see the beauty the park has to offer, that I believe, might be part of the reason for spending that kind of money. I,ve been to some parks that didn't have access for walkers, wheel chairs or mobility carts and was somewhat disappointed. I'm still fascinated to watch people with the ability to walk, dance, and just stand with their eyes closed without falling.
    I never thought of disabled people in that sense until I became one.
    Thanks for taking me along through you're pictures.
    M.

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  2. This particular gravel path would not be safe for walkers, wheelchairs, or mobility carts. And they've destroyed the natural appearance of the park in order to build this. Maybe they would have been better off building a paved section of half a km or so for those inclined, and left the rest of it as a rustic path for those capable of using it.

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  3. Usually as soon as you get "planners" involved, all normal thinking goes right out the window. That gravel just doesn't look right. Not sure what could be done for those with mobility issues, but the gravel isn't it. You watch, it'll all be washed away by this time next year.
    I also couldn't help being struck by the honkin' big pile of slab wood in the dooryard. Just seems to go with the landscape some how.
    Hope that weather warms up a tad.

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  4. i think at graves island the trees were destroyed by hurricane juan back in 2003 they in return had to do renovations :) but i do agree they didnt have to spend $136,000.
    Lindsey

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  5. yes alot of money for something not necessary, but at least you got to see some nice scenery and enjoy the hospitality of your couchsurfing host!

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  6. Our dogs do not like gravel paths...tiny paws!! We have/had friends in Chester, wonder if they are still there. A lovely area to enjoy despite the weather. Recipe coming soon!

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  7. Bob...You're right about the gravel and I won't be surprised to see it washedout as some of it is on the side of a hill.

    Lindsey...I do agree with you that some of those trees were already down, but there was still a lot of plant life that was removed to put this path in. Plus all they did was push it to the side, very unsightly! We saw bits and pieces of the old trail and it was nicely packed down and even grassy in spots and looked much more natural.

    Geore and Suzie...We did see some nice scenery, the funny part is that a lot of the scenery that we saw could been seen from the road that goes around the park that would be much easier to navigate with a stroller or wheelchair.

    Contessa...The gravel was definitely very course. I agree it is a lovely area and we are making the best of it.

    Kevin, Ruth and Whiskey

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