Our third day-trip out of Shediak, New Brunswick was planned for visiting Halifax, Nova Scotia but turned into a different two-day excursion. The less than fantastic experience in Charlottetown had us change our minds about visiting one more big city on the chance of being disappointed again. A quick google search for top sites to see in Nova Scotia recommended: Peggy’s Cove and Lunenburg. So we bypassed Halifax and headed further southwest along the southern coast. We needed to spend the night along the coast so that we had sufficient time to see both sites. I made an online reservation at what I thought was a bed & breakfast near Peggy’s Cove called the Clifty Cove Motel.

The Swissair Flight 111 Memorial

While reading about the motel, the description indicated we would be within walking distance of the Swissair Flight 111 memorial. This tragic incident vaguely rang a bell to us, so we googled it to refresh our memories. Swissair Flight 111 (often called “The UN Shuttle”)was flying from JFK to Geneva, Switzerland on 2 Sep 1998. Fifty-two minutes into the flight, the crew detected an odor coming from the cockpit air-conditioning. Only 21 minutes later, the MD-11 airframe crashed into Margarets Bay at 345 miles per hour just 8 miles southwest of Peggy’s Cove. The plane disintegrated upon impact, and all 229 passengers and crew were killed. The Canadian government launched an immediate and massive search and rescue operation and conducted an investigation that ultimately cost $48 million and took 5 years. The short version of the cause was determined to be a fire in the ceiling behind the cockpit ignited by an electrical short in the in-flight entertainment system. The fire propagated quickly and took out required flight systems only 7 minutes before the crash. Once we knew the facts, we had to visit the site.

There was a winding crushed stone path from the edge of a small parking lot that led to the double-slab granite memorial located atop Whale Back promontory. One triple-slotted slab commemorates the 229 men, women, and children who perished and the other recognizes the many people who participated in the search and rescue and comforted the families who came to mourn.

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Peggy’s Cove

Peggy’s Cove was located within a mile of the memorial. This still-active fishing village was founded in 1811 by a land grant to six families of german descent. While they farmed enough to eat, fishing was what supported a community schoolhouse, church, general store, lobster cannery, and lots of fishing boats. By 1900, the popuation peaked at 300, and the site had already become popular to artists and nature lovers due to the picturesque town and coastal geology. The current population is reported to be 40.

Peggy’s Cove Skyine From The Swissair Flight 111 Memorial

In 1915, a lighthouse was erected on Peggy’s Point, and today it is 1 of 160 historic lighthouses dotting Nova Scotia’s North Atlantic coast. After World War II, Peggy’s Cove became a growing tourist attraction. Today, 2.4 million people annually walk the town and surrounding grounds. The Peggy’s Cove Commission Act was inacted in 1962. This legislation set aside 2000 acres for conservation and protection of the area by preventing future development. Most recently, a $3.1 million project was funded to expand visitor parking, improve the flow of traffic through the town, and construct an accessible viewing platform. The project was supposed to be completed by June 2021; however, they were still working feverishly on the platform during our visit in September, trying to get finished before winter weather arrived. We were lucky to visit when there were no crowds, which in our opinion would completely ruin the experience. We couldn’t imagine being there with 1,000’s of people lining the streets, clamoring over the terrain, and filling the limited retail shops and restaurant.

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We ate dinner at The Sou’Wester restaurant and gift shop and spent the night at the nearby Clifty Cove Motel. It was clear quickly that the Clifty was NOT a B&B (repeat that fast five times), but we enjoyed ourselves sipping wine and watching something on TV. Of course we had seafood for our meal.

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The nearest breakfast in the morning was back at The Sou’Wester. Since we returned to town, I took the opportunity to take some pictures of the lobster traps fishermen were stacking near the visitor’s center. After breakfast and pictures, we headed for Lunenburg about an hour further southwest.

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Lunenburg, Nova Scotia

Lunenburg was founded as a port town in 1753. The British attempted to create the first protestant settlement in North America. The town was located between Mahone Bay to the east and what later became Lunenburg Bay to the west. Its legacy as a prominent fishing village was geographically and economically established early. From the moment we entered town, the colors, the architecture, and the local vibe had us hooked.

Lunenburg was designated a UNESCO World Heritage Site in 1995 because it was considered to be the best example of a planned British colonial settlement in North America. The old town was said to have retained its original layout and appeartance from the 1800’s, including the wooden vernacular architecture. “Vernacular” here means buildings were constructed outside of academic tradition and without professional guidance. As such, what was built used area-sourced materials and reflected local traditions and cultural practices.

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We walked, shopped, drank a great coffee, and dined for lunch in what is considered Old Town Lunenburg. As we walked around, we saw these fish sculptures hanging from many of the utility poles, which lined the streets. We finally came across a plaque that explained what the sculptures were all about. I kept taking pictures of them until MFI groused, “Are you going to photograph all twenty versions?” I actually had thought I might at one point. This type of improvement supports the World Heritage Site designation.

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We considered staying one more night in Nova Scotia to visit Halifax; however, once we started back to Shediak the thought of sleeping in our own beds was too alluring. We got back to the RV park well after dark but slept comfortably. Our first week in Canada was now over, and it was time for us to move on and head north toward the St. Lawrence Seaway.