12 Day Itinerary Nova Scotia

Old Jan 11th, 2016, 07:11 PM
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12 Day Itinerary Nova Scotia

We are Australians, aged early 70s and fit, planning to visit Nova Scotia for 12 days. We are interested in photography, nature, history, local culture, music, and walking. Our preliminary itinerary follows and we would be grateful for any suggestions.
We fly into Halifax on the evening of Friday 19th August and stay overnight at the following locations (if manageable).

1 night Bus from airport and stay downtown Halifax
2 nights Lunenburg via Peggy Cove etc. after picking up rental car
2 nights Annapolis Royal (graveyard tour and historic gardens)
1 night Pictou
2 nights Baddeck (day trip to Louisbourg from here)
1 night Cheticamp (Skyline walk?)
1 night Ingonish (Middle Head walk?)
1 night Antigonish or Halifax
1 or 2 nights Halifax
31st Depart midday train from Halifax

I have printed out the tide times for Hall’s Harbour (Baxter’s Harbour) and Hantsport and hope to see the tides at their extremes at one of these locations either from Lunenburg as part of a day trip or on the way to Pictou from Annapolis Royal.

Ideally, we would prefer to spend longer in fewer locations, but there is so much we want to see! We are open to any suggestions from this very helpful forum.
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Old Jan 12th, 2016, 07:35 AM
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I wish to address the drive from Annapolis Royal to Pictou. To me, it is a long drive. Depending on the tide times, I would have a lobster lunch at Hall's Harbour where you can view the high/low tide. OR you can go to Grand Pre, outside of Wolfville, have lunch at the Café at Evangeline Inn, and go to Evangeline Beach where you have a great view of Blomindon and the tides. At low tide, you might see the shore birds feeding on their way to the south. It is a remarkable sight. In Hantsport there is a very, very small park to view the tides but I would not recommend going there.
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Old Jan 12th, 2016, 12:00 PM
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Thank you Scotia. That is just the sort of local information we need. Low and High Tides at Hall's Harbour on the day we drive from Annapolis Royal to Pictou are 10:16 and 16:31. I have wondered about staying in the Wolfville area and doing a day trip to Annapolis Royal, but that would mean missing the graveyard tour as we wouldn't want to drive at night on strange roads.
If the internet is correct, it is only just over 2 hours from Grand Pre to Pictou.
We are open to any suggestions.
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Old Jan 13th, 2016, 01:30 PM
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Again, I am thinking of the driving. It is a long drive from Ingonish to Halifax. The new highways are faster but boring. The old highways are more scenic. I would stay in Antigonish to break up the trip before heading to Halifax. I am sorry I cannot recommend a place to stay in Antigonish. You do know that is the home of St.Francis Xavier University.
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Old Jan 13th, 2016, 09:06 PM
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Thank you Scotia for your help. We have decided to drive from Ingonish to Pictou and stay there again. Pictou appeals to us more than Antigonish. It is further but very manageable. Also it will free up time the next day to perhaps see something on the way to Halifax.
I have a question re the route from Grand Pré to Pictou. Is the Glooscap Trail the more interesting way to go or not?
Thank you to anyone who can give suggestions.
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Old Jan 14th, 2016, 04:41 AM
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Yes, Pictou is definitely more interesting than Antigonish. The Scottish settlers landed in Pictou 1773 on the ship Hector. Today there is a replica of that ship in Pictou along with charming stone buildings.

Perhaps Fodor readers can give a more up to date review of The Glooscap Trail. It is interesting, lots of twists and turns and when I was there last, road needed repair.
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Old Jan 15th, 2016, 01:53 AM
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Thank you for the information. It is much appreciated.
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Old Jan 17th, 2016, 01:35 PM
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I would definitely second Scotia's recommendation about a stop in Grand Pre. The National Historic Site there is great, with beautiful gardens. I would go into Wolfville for lunch, lots of cute pubs and bistros, similar to Annapolis Royal, but with its own charm. The shopping is great, and because it's a university town (home to Acadia) it is always lively. You can see the exceptionally high tides, and the dykes built by the Acadians, as well as a small museum (Randall House) and the historical train station, which now houses the library. If you're going to Grand Pre, Wolfville is well worth a visit also. Only an hour from Halifax!
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Old Jan 17th, 2016, 10:23 PM
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i only spent about 90 minutes in pictou but thought it looked like a lovely place. i was camping at the nearby campground - caribou / munroes provincial park. if you like beaches, i recommend you check that out. it's pretty and you can watch the pei ferries coming in.
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Old Jan 21st, 2016, 01:34 PM
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The Fodor's site has been under maintenance and I have only just read the responses from andthenimetrachel and ltt. Thank you both.
A few more days in Nova Scotia would help! Our itinerary now looks like this.

We fly into Halifax on the evening of Friday 19th August and stay overnight at the following locations (if manageable).

19 Bus from airport and stay downtown Halifax
20,21 Lunenburg via Peggy Cove etc. after picking up rental car
22,23 Annapolis Royal (graveyard tour and historic gardens)
24 Pictou
25,26 Baddeck (day trip to Louisbourg from here)
27 Pleasant Bay (Skyline walk?)
28 Ingonish (Middle Head walk?)
29 Pictou
30 Halifax
31 Depart midday train from Halifax

Perhaps we could go via Hall's Harbour to Annapolis Royal from Lunenburg and spend some time in Grand Pre on the way to Pictou from Annapolis Royal. Would this work? All responses appreciated.
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