Day Three: St Ann's and Scenic Bras d'Or Lakes

NOTE: The Extreme Group and Destination Cape Breton have contracted me to tour Cape Breton Island and blog about my journey for four days. I have editorial control of the content and promise to write honestly and openly about the things I see and do. I hope you will accompany me on this adventure by reading my posts and commenting as you see fit.

Artisans' loop

Traveling and writing are two of my favourite activities. Paired together into a paid work assignment—even better! This might be the best "job" I've ever had.

On day three, I sadly bid adieu to the delightful staff at Keltic Lodge and drove south to the St. Ann's Bay section of the Cabot Trail known for its many artisans.

My first stop was at Wildfire Pottery. I chatted with owner and potter Sarah Hake, who apologized for low inventory levels—she's had a good season. Her clay puffins were my favourite item. Sarah's inspired by the live puffins that nest on the small rocky islands that dot this coastline. Sarah also displays her art on locally sourced driftwood and stones. At the back she has a sizable used bookstore.

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Day One: The Ceilidh Trail

NOTE: The Extreme Group and Destination Cape Breton have contracted me to tour Cape Breton Island and blog about my journey for four days. I have editorial control of the content and promise to write honestly and openly about the things I see and do. I hope you will accompany me on this adventure by reading my posts and commenting as you see fit.

Getting jiggy with it

Before I set out on my four-day Cape Breton adventure this morning, I boldly proclaimed on Twitter that I was going to learn to speak Gaelic, highland dance, and play the fiddle—all by the weekend.  Well by the end of day one I'd already met my goals! Allow me to explain.

I crossed the causeway from mainland Nova Scotia and made my way north on Highway 19, on the Ceilidh Trail, where the road signs are in both English and Gaelic. My first stop was at the Celtic Music Interpretive Centre. I arrived at 1 p.m. which just as the daily ceilidhs was beginning. Today's performers were Michael Hall on the fiddle and Allan Dewar on piano. The centre was packed as two bus tours arrived, one carrying visitors from Barra in the Western Isles of Scotland. In between tunes, Michael gave a brief history of Celtic music's roots in Cape Breton. The form that is alive and well here today is the oldest style of Scottish music played anywhere in the world. It is traced back to the mid-1700s and was largely brought by Scottish Highland emigrants who had to flee Scotland between 1800 and 1850 due to religious persecution and economic pressures.

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