jaspertl

Having never been to this part of the world it's always hard to figure out how much time to spend in each place and how long it will take to get from point A to point B.

I've read numerous posts and posted some of my own questions but still need some help with fine tuning:
And let me say also, that we love car trips and driving....

How does this sound? Is it do-able without being a forced march?

Sept 30 overnight in Clinton NJ(another story)
Oct 1 over night somewhere on the way from Clinton to Quebec City
Oct 2 QC
Oct 3 OC
Oct 4 Moncton NB
Oct 5 Annapolis Royal
Oct 6 Lunenberg
Oct 7 Baddeck
Oct 8 Baddeck Golf and Touring
Oct 9 Baddeck Tour CB
Oct 10 Alma (via route 6) ?
Oct 11 Alma Bay of Fundy
Oct 12 Bar Harbor
Oct 13 Kennebunkport
Oct 14 Boston
Oct 15 Leave for home

Your thoughts would be very much appreciated!

wow

Oct 8th is Thanksgiving Day so the golf course @ Bell Bay in Baddeck is going to be very busy that day. I would take that day to set out from Baddeck & tour The Cabot Trail (counterclockwise.) The Cabot Trail is the jewel of Cape Breton. You could stay over night in Ingonish & play golf there @ The CB Highlands Golf Course ,one of the top ten golf courses in the world. Book tee time ahead b/c of Thanksgiving. Or, you can "do the trail" in one day & return to Baddeck that night. The next day I wld play golf in Baddeck.

Tanya

Sounds like a busy trip. Why don't you look at doing Hopewell Rocks, Alma area on your way to NS? Upon entering NS, head directly to Cape Breton and return to the States via Yarmouth (assuming the CAT is still running in October).

Scotia

After leaving Moncton, were you planning on taking the ferry from Saint John to Digby? Saves a lot of driving miles if you are headed for Annapolis Valley. Then you could go to Annapolis Royal, cut across province to Liverpool, proceed to Lunenburg and then on your way to Cape Breton. Info on ferry is:
http://www.bayferries.com/
Or do as Tanya suggests, then do Lunenburg on return from Cape Breton, cut across to Annapolis Royal and proceed home via Yarmouth ferry.

Scotia

Forgot to add, it is about six hours from Lunenburg to Baddeck. About one hour's drive from Annapolis Royal to Liverpool.

jaspertl

We thought rather than taking the ferry from Moncton to Digby...we'd heard that hwy 215 the drive along the bay of fundy would be nice....it's keyed out in frommers as one of the nicest drives in nova scotia....

has anyone taken that drive and what did you think of it??

Scotia

I have taken that drive and it was lovely--what I could see of it! It was foggy and rainy. Same time of year that you are travelling. You could cut across to Windsor (I think it's Highway 14) and drive to Annapolis Royal through the Annapolis Valley. That would take a couple of hours but you will probably want to stop along the way. A full day in Annapolis Royal would be plenty. Glad to see you are taking the back roads to see the province but it is a lot of driving especially when you include Cape Breton as well.

jaspertl

Thanks all for your replies. We keep changing our itinerary as it's so difficult to know how much time we'll want to spend in each place.
I'm going to read my guide book tonight again and see if I can't fine tune a little more.
Thanks again...I'll be back!!!