Apr 302013
 
Sailing from Gaspe, Quebec to New Brunswick, Prince Edward Island and Nova Scotia’s Eastern Shore in our Niagara 35 sloop Phantasia II. We’ll be following the green line on the chart below.

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Back to Gaspe by train, we have a room complete with meals aboard Via Rail’s “Chaleur” for the 24 journey from our home in Cobourg on Lake Ontario. Beautiful rural scenery glides by our window, and this relaxed mode of travel is the perfect way to get in the right frame of mind for sailing.

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We have booked one night at La Maison William Wakeham in Gaspe to allow us time to get Phantasia dewinterized before moving aboard. Proprietor and Chef Desmond Ogden gives us a preview of the lunch menu, we’ll be back for dinner too! Desmond specializes in “Market Cuisine”, expertly preparing local seafood and produce. His bouillabaisse is fantastic!

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Marina Gaspe it adjacent to the train station and it’s only a short walk to Gaspe’s shops and restaurants. We wash, wax and prepare the boat for launch, tomorrow morning first thing there is a suitable high tide. We’ll spend a couple of nights at the dock and then go for a short sail past Rock Perce to l’Anse-a-beufils, it’s about 30 miles, just to make sure everything is working ok.

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Not much sailing as we pass Perce in the fog but our Yanmar 38 horse diesel gets a good workout.

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It’s a surprise to find the usually quiet harbour filled with boats racing to Gaspe, they are celebrating the 475 anniversary of Jacques Cartier’s arrival. We raft up.

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With the sun for company, we set out across Baie des Chaleur, on the 100 nm overnight sail to Miramichi, New Brunswick.

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We plan to anchor behind a ring of sandy islands that have formed in the mouth of the Miramichi River.

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The current is so strong I have to tie a life preserver to the boat, so I won’t be swept away. At dusk & dawn the boat is surrounded by leaping salmon.

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Our idyllic summer anchorage turns into 25-30 knot winds overnight. With Phantasia’s CQR 45 anchor and 160 feet of chain out we’re uncomfortable but in no danger, after 12 hours of this we’re both getting kind of sea sick! The wind, tide and river current combine to lay us on our “beam ends”. I put up my lee cloth to keep from being rolled out of my bunk!

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Jayne makes a painting that captures the subtle beauty of this amazing place. A passing fisherman stops to chat, he can’t believe we spent last night at anchor, “here” !

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On to Buctouche, about 40 nm down Northumberland Straight. Prince Edward Island is now clearly in view to port. Buctouche has a great marina and it’s just a short walk to town. Where the marina stands was once Sawmill point owned by the Irving family.

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20 km away by bike through forest trails is the Irving Eco-Centre, La Dune de Bouctouche. A spruce planked boardwalk stretches out over the sand, it’s the perfect place to spend an afternoon walking, and painting.

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Next stop Summerside Yacht Club on Prince Edward Island, a 40 nm reach across Northumberland Straight under spinnaker. Summerside is easily accessible by foot and the yacht club has a waterfront restaurant.

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On to Charlottetown, Prince Edward Island, 45 nautical miles down Northumberland Straight, past PEI’s famous farmland, and under the Confederation bridge.

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Downtown Charlottetown is a relaxing stroll from the marina. A tour of the provincial capital building, Province House, is a must.slide0027_image097 slide0027_image095

There are many options for dining, just a few blocks from the marina.

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Back across Northumberland to our first ports in Nova Scotia, Pictou and the Caribou Harbour anchorage and then a glorious sail around Cape George, to tiny Ballantynes Cove, Nova Scotia. The largest Bluefin Tuna caught by rod was taken here. These magnificent creatures are officially on the endangered list due to over fishing, largely on the European side of the Atlantic.

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Passing through the Canso Canal lock is simple after tackling the seaway, there is fuel at Port Hawkesbury, Cape Breton, just the other side. Once through the canal, we’re treated to a blustery sail down Lennox Passage, and anchor at Haddock Harbour behind Isle Madame.The open Atlantic is just the other side of the Island.

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And then we get our first taste of that cold, wet Atlantic fog we’ve heard so much about.slide0036_image121 slide0036_image123 slide0036_image125 slide0036_image127

A blustery day takes us across Chedabucto Bay, to Canso, our first port on Nova Scotia’s Eastern Shore. The entrance to Canso Harbour is tricky, there are about 20 marks and lights to guide you when entering from the north.

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Colourful frame & shingled houses line Canso’s streets.  Each summer the town hosts the Stan Roger’s Folk Festival.  The towns excellent Whitman House museum tells the storey of the local fishing industries glory days. Since the early 1990’s ground fish stocks have declined sharply and Canso’s large fish plants have closed.

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The next several anchorages we’ll enter will all require very careful navigation. We’re on the open Atlantic now paralleling Nova Scotia’s remote Eastern Shore, heading south west towards Halifax. First stop is Whitehead Harbour’s Yankee Cove, 25 nm, partially through thick fog.
There are about 5000 know wrecks on Nova Scotia’s shores.

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The air is fragrant with Balsam Fir and we share the anchorage with only our selves.

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Next it’s 50 nm down to Liscombe Harbour, we choose to anchor up the Liscombe River, near the Lodge.slide0045_image153 slide0046_image157 slide0046_image155

Another 50 nm down the coast to anchor at Popes Harbour puts us whithin a days sail of Halifax.

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Suddenly we’re there, tied up at the foot of Sackville Street in old Halifax. In the middle of Busker Fest.

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A dock away from visiting tall ships like Amistad and across from the Maritime Museum of the Atlantic.

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It’s just a short walk up the hill to St Paul’s, the oldest church in Halifax, and the impenetrable fort, The Citadel.

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Alexander Keith’s, and more than a few good places to eat are also close to the harbour.

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The next, our last port of call this season, is Tantallon, in St Margaret’s Bay, a foggy 45 nm sail, passing Peggy’s Cove.

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We have a few days to haul out and winterize our boat and then it’s time to start planning for next summers trip, down the South Shore to historic Lunenburg and the La Have Islands.

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