The first picture is from a calendar and is the Cabot Trail at sea level just before it begins the rise towards French Mountain and the highlands. Cape Breton Highlands National Park is maintained by the Federal Government and the part of the Cabot Trail that goes through it is beautifully maintained and nearly as smooth as glass. An absolute motorcyclists dream. I've been riding there for nearly ten years at least once, and sometimes twice, a year and every time I leave I can't wait to go back. Cape Bretoner's are very welcoming to strangers, friendly as all get out and love to talk to people "from away." |
The second picture is from the same calendar and is of Cap Rouge on the way up to French Mountain. It's just out of sight on the other side in picture three. This is where it starts to get really steep and twisty. Motorists on four wheels do a lot of gawking and hit the shoulders throwing out gravel on the pavement in the turns which is deadly for bikers. You have to watch the road and not do any gawking yourself. |
The third picture is also from the same calendar and is of French Mountain as the Trail wends its way up to the highlands plateau from the Acadian French town of Cheticamp barely seen in the distance. Wonderful French and seafood cooking there and everyone is bilingual. It's a fishing town of about 3000, but tourism is a close second to the economy. This is considered the most scenic part of the Cabot Trail because of the vistas and viewing areas. You can stand at a viewing area and watch whales for instance. In 1755 the British overran the French and drove them out of the area. Many were expelled to Louisiana and were the ancestors of the Cajuns (Acadians) that live there today. Many years later some French Acadians returned to what is now Cheticamp, Inverness and other Acadian communities. In the meantime Scottish, Irish and English settled there too and we have a strange mix of all the cultures. Nova Scotia is latin for New Scotland and the Scottish heritage is very strong. Geologists say that a few hundred billion years ago Cape Breton Island and Scotland were in one piece.. |
The fourth picture is from a postcard and is of MacKenzie Mountain and the Trail flows to sea level (or up of course if you're going the other way) and the village of Pleasant Bay - just outside of the picture. The plateau is only about 1,500 feet high and that is about the maximun height of the highlands. They certainly aren't the Rockies, but just look at those twisties! Very easy to get caught in a decreasing radius at too much speed. Thrilling to go up or down, but not to be taken lightly. I took the next three photographs and the first one is of the east side of North Mountain which is an inland mountain with no stopping on the west side. There are turnouts on the east side where you can photograph the awesome road. I had an encounter with two moose on the plateau there a couple of years ago. One I saw and avoided, the second I didn't and he almost took me out. He passed within an arms length as I was driving into the morning sun and was partially blinded. Very stupid of me to not be more aware. Moose and deer are protected in the park and are everywhere. |
There are some other thrilling ups and downs, but the next two pictures are of Cape Smokey which is further on and the steepest of all. Not the highest, but certainly the steepest. Quite an amazing ride on a motorcycle. There is no stopping on Cape Smokey on the way up or down, but I took these shots early in the morning before the traffic picked up. It's narrow and dangerous and to stop is absolutely forbidden. If the park rangers or the Mounties had caught me I would have been in deep doo doo. Maybe less so since I was on a motorcycle and not parked on the pavement, but I don't think they would have been pleased. You can walk up or down (about a mile), but vehicles must keep moving. Parking my bike on the narrow soft shoulder and staying out of the drainage ditches was quite a chore and I almost lost it a couple of times. A picture is indeed worth a thousand words and I just had to have pictures. Telling some-one about it in print can't capture the image like a photo can. |
Special thanks to Laurie "Rocky" Rockwell for this scenic cruise through the twisties of Nova Scotia's Cabot Trail ! |
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