BS: Driving in Nova Scotia

Subject: BS: Driving in Nova Scotia
From: SPB-Cooperator
Date: 04 Oct 18 - 09:54 AM

Having come back from one of the most beautiful places I have ever been to, I can say that I had very little trouble adjusting to driving on the wrong side of the road. However, condition of the road surfaces, even on the trunk roads were, to make an understated, pretty uneven.

The only real problem I did have were:

(1) Negotiating a five lane road in Dartmouth
(2) The lack of clear signage when trying to pick up Highway 103 at night in Halifax coming from the Eastern Shore.
(3) Difficulty getting back on the right route after taking the wrong exit off the freeway - although that did once or twice result in a couple of scenic long diversions.

I really hope we can go back in a couple of years - this time for three weeks so we can spend more time on Cape Breton Island, and spend more time on the mainland exploring off the beaten track.

Subject: RE: BS: Driving in Nova Scotia
From: Mooh
Date: 04 Oct 18 - 11:32 AM

I've driven from Ontario to Nova Scotia 7 times, through Canada every time. Some folks would cut through Maine but I want to see my home and native land too much, besides crossing the border with loads of music gear makes me nervous.

It's been a few years (six, I think) but I like the Trans-Canada, smooth open road, but some of the secondary roads are a little less than perfect, though on the whole I don't find them worse than Ontario roads.

Beautiful part of the world, and nice people.

Subject: RE: BS: Driving in Nova Scotia
From: meself
Date: 04 Oct 18 - 01:06 PM

You (SPB) obviously have a far better brain for driving than I do! I was in Halifax recently, and found the driving quite stressful - and I was driving on the 'right' (correct, for me) side of the road, and lived in Halifax for many years .... Glad you managed so well!

Subject: RE: BS: Driving in Nova Scotia
From: Charmion
Date: 04 Oct 18 - 03:40 PM

Thirty-five years ago, I was a graduate student at the University of New Brunswick. I vividly remember the moment when I crossed the border from Quebec into NB near Edmunston, because I drove off an adequate if not particularly generous two-lane blacktop highway onto what felt like the impact area of a mortar range. My poor little Volkswagen Rabbit hit that cratered surface at 100 kilometres per hour and damned near died. I don't know why that stretch of the Trans-Canada was so awful -- perhaps somebody had moved an entire regiment of Centurion tanks over it -- but it wasn't repaved for months.

When I lived in Nova Scotia, back in the 1970s, the condition of the province's roads was an evergreen issue in provincial politics. The best way to get elected was to promise road improvements, and the best way to get re-elected was to deliver road improvements.

I'll bet nothing much has changed.

Subject: RE: BS: Driving in Nova Scotia
From: Joe Offer
Date: 04 Oct 18 - 05:28 PM

I suppose one could say it's "just a travel promotion," but I really like it that Nova Scotia has mapped out 6 coastal drives or "trails." I took the ferry from Main to Yarmouth, which is the beginning of the Lighthouse Trail. I asked how long it would take to drive the Lighthouse Trail, and was told three hours. It took me three days, so that's most of what I've seen of Nova Scotia. I loved it.
-Joe-

Subject: RE: BS: Driving in Nova Scotia
From: SPB-Cooperator
Date: 05 Oct 18 - 09:52 AM

I enjoyed the trails, and found them less tiring a drive than the freeways, even if they were slower and more windy - That's before diversions for the odd beach, lighthouse, or harbour. We only took two long trips on the freeways - when we visited Yarmouth, and on the way to Cape Breton Island - thought we were lead astray by a couple of lighthouses near Antigonish.

And we also found that the Nova Scotia people were kind, generous, nice and not too taken aback by a couple of quirky Europeans - every attraction we visited, we were not allowed to leave until we signed the guest books.

The only stressful bit regarding driving at night was trying to work out what direction we were going in after we took wrong exits.

Subject: RE: BS: Driving in Nova Scotia
From: robomatic
Date: 05 Oct 18 - 07:15 PM

One of my versions of Heaven is driving 'round Nova Scotia listening to recordings of Gordon Bok.

Subject: RE: BS: Driving in Nova Scotia
From: ollaimh
Date: 05 Oct 18 - 11:08 PM

i hate to think of holy joe sullying our fair province. evil grows.


but the roads are a lot better than in the sixties and seventies. but they are not great. signage is poorif you don't know the way they do things, but i have seen worse, such as new brunswick. drivers are erratic but usually slower than most places, so it's reasonably safe.

best drive in the province is the cape breton cabot trail, but the loop around the south shore is beautiful and there is the habitation. the first lasting and continuous european settlement north of mexico, a few years before those people from south of the border who keep trying to destroy us.(from the ethnic cleansing and genocide of acdiens in 1755 to 1763 to trumps totally illegal tarriffs--but american obeys no laws)

the guysborough shore is also great and few go up there. not much traffic and lots of beautiful bays as well as the sherbrooke historic village:"how i wish i was in sherbrooke now"

i grew up on minas basin so i like the north shore of that, but it isn't as popular with tourists.

Subject: RE: BS: Driving in Nova Scotia
From: SPB-Cooperator
Date: 06 Oct 18 - 07:52 AM

We were hoping to drive around while listening to Stan Rogers cds- unfortunately the hire car was so modern it had USB ports instead of a CD player, so we were listening to local radio stations.

We drove on the south shore trail three time - to Sherbrooke and back, and back from Cape Breotn Island - unfortunately the day we drove round the Cabot Trail was the only day it rained. We found a nice pub at Sheet Harbour - the only place we ate at twice