Canada Coast To Coast

1. British Columbia
2. Alberta
3. Saskatchewan
4. Manitoba
5. Ontario
6. Quebec
7. New Brunswick
8. Prince Edward Island
9. Nova Scotia
10. Newfoundland

  This year Canada is celebrating its 150th year of Confederation.  We are lucky enough to have seen the country from coast to coast.  We have been to all ten provinces and even touched the tidal waters of Nunavut from Churchill, Manitoba.  The territories are on our travel wish list.  Below is a list of just one of our favourite things from each province.

1 ) British Columbia

BC has the animals, the Pacific Ocean and so much more. One of our favourite things was tea at The Empress Hotel in Victoria. Read More

2 ) Alberta

Alberta shares the Rocky Mountains with BC, but Alberta has Jasper, Banff and Lake Louise.  We fell in love with the snow capped mountains. Read More.

3 ) Saskatchewan

Yes it is flat, but the fields with rolls of hay and the blue skies have a feel all their own.  It also seemed to have a never ending sunset as we drove westward. Read More

4 ) Manitoba

This is the furthest north we have ever been in Canada.  Our favourite thing in Manitoba is the polar bears of Churchill. Read More.

5 ) Ontario

We spend most of our time in the province of Ontario.  Algonquin Park is our favourite place to really get away from it all. Read More.

6 ) Quebec

Hotel de Glace is built each winter just outside of Quebec City.  We spent a night inside this palace of ice. Read More.

7 ) New Brunswick

The Hopewell Rocks are formed by the high tidal fluctuations that occur in the area.  You can walk down beneath the unusual rocks and 6 hours later the water has returned and filled everything back in. Read More.

8 ) Prince Edward Island

Our brief two day visit to PEI was 48 hours of rain.  We did enjoy getting to and from the island.  First we drove across the marvel that is Confederation Bridge and then we saw the red soil when we left on a ferry.  We will return.  Read More.

9 ) Nova Scotia

Nova Scotia has Peggy's Cove and Cape Breton Island.  One of our best days in the province was spent at the Halifax Public Gardens. Read More.

10 ) Newfoundland

Iceberg Alley passes right around the top of Newfoundland.  We were lucky to see these gigantic 10,000 year old pieces of glacial ice as they floated in the Atlantic Ocean. Read More.

Ten provinces and ten wonderful memories.  

HAPPY 150th BIRTHDAY CANADA !!

---

Map of Our World
Banff Gondola , Saskatchewan , Hopewell Rocks Park , Halifax Public Gardens , Witless Bay
Empress Hotel , Hotel De Glace , Confederation Bridge
Tundra Buggy Tour , Algonquin Park (Lake Opeongo)

---

Post # 181

Confederation Bridge

Location: Prince Edward Island, Canada
Address: Confederation Bridge
Date: July 2006
Website:  www.confederationbridge.com

  If you wanted to bring a car to Prince Edward Island you used to have no choice but to do it by boat.  In May 1997 the Confederation Bridge opened and allowed people to drive across to the island.  The good news is that if you wish to visit Canada's smallest province it is free to drive across.  The bad news is that you will have to pay if you ever want to leave again.

  The bridge took about three and a half years to build.  It spans 13 kilometres over the Northumberland Strait.  It starts in the province of New Brunswick and ends in PEI.  When we last checked, the toll was about $50 per vehicle to leave PEI again.

  Another option for leaving Prince Edward Island is to take the ferry.  We chose this option.  The ferry will cost you as well so don't think you are getting away without paying your fair share.  As our trip was taking us further east this option made the most sense.  We drove from Shediac, New Brunswick to Cavendish, PEI.  After a few days visit we headed east again to Wood Islands, PEI where we caught the ferry to Caribou, Nova Scotia.  It was then eastern bound once more to Halifax, Nova Scotia.

  We had crossed the Confederation Bridge in a downpour and the rain stayed with us while we were on the island.  Despite the grey skies, our ferry trip allowed us to get up on the deck and finally get some fresh sea air.   The mud in PEI is red due to its high iron-oxide content.  Our ferry set sail and we left the red mud of Prince Edward Island behind.  We vowed to return when the sun was shining to check out this province once again.  Hey,  it wouldn't even cost us anything to drive over there.

---

Map of Our World
Confederation Bridge
Wood Islands to Caribou Ferry

---

Post # 121

Halifax Public Gardens

Location: Halifax, Nova Scotia, Canada 
Address: 5665 Spring Garden Road
Date: July 2006
Website:  www.halifaxpublicgardens.ca

  It was the perfect summer's day to relax in the park.  Our plan was to do nothing but walk around downtown Halifax.  We walked through the wrought iron gates of the Public Gardens and it wasn't long before we realized what a beautiful place it was.  We walked over a small bridge and stopped to admire the view.  A small stream flowed under the bridge past trees, flowers and miniature buildings.  The stream was also home to many of the park's resident ducks.

  Three ducks managed to steal the show.  Below they are devising a plan to get our attention.

And then they put the plan into action as a duck parade began and marched right across the pathway in front of us.  Well done! Attention received!  We followed the parade deeper into the gardens.

  Before we go further, one more word about these ducks.  We have determined that these were mallard ducks.  We also noticed that the heads of the two males were blue and not the traditional green.  It seems that there is much debate over this on the internet, much like how one person might see a dress as gold while another sees it as blue.  Some people claim that the blue is just a trick of the light reflecting a certain way.  Others have stated that the bright green is caused by the high testosterone levels in the ducks and that these blue headed ducks must therefore have lower testosterone levels.  A third option is that we have completely misidentified them and these are not mallard ducks at all.  All we know is that they put on one heck of a parade and it wasn't long before the ducks lead us to another pond.

  In the center of the pond is the Boer War Fountain.  It was erected in 1903 and has a soldier standing at the top of it to commemorate the Canadian soldiers who served in the South African War.  At the base of the fountain is a pond filled with ducks.  We also noticed many other birds in the gardens.  There was a Toulouse Goose being watched over by a pigeon and an American Pekin Duck waiting by the pathway hoping to take part in the next parade.  After following the birds around, we finally took a seat on a bench near the bandstand and relaxed for the rest of the afternoon.

---

Map of Our World
Halifax Public Gardens

---

Post # 53