North River Bridge to the Trailsman Motel

September 11, 2020

Day 6

The Chanterelle B&B is a charming inn run by a woman who came 20 years ago to buy antiques for her business in Colorado, but she fell in love with Cape Breton. She then bought the land for the inn, designed the building and filled it with amazing antiques. Yes, the Chanterelle was a treat at the end of an unforgettable week. The breakfast was close to a ten, starting with delicious fresh fruit and strawberry turnovers, followed by eggs, ham and all the fixings. Most everything served is sourced in NS (and as locally as possible with both the ham and eggs coming from a farm just down the road).

We said our good byes and headed out for our last day of cycling under yet again clear blue skies and warm temps of 25 degrees.

The Chanterelle to the Gaelic College was 16 kms of quiet Cabot Trail road that curved along the aptly named St. Ann's Bay. It was a lovely, scenic and quiet route.

Gaelic College - Colaisde na Gàidhlig is first and foremost an educational non-profit institution, offering year-round programming in the culture, music, language, crafts, customs, and traditions of the immigrants from the Highlands of Scotland.

The peaceful ride ended when we turned onto the Trans Canada Highway. It does have a wide shoulder, but trucks zooming by five feet away at 100 km\h, was no fun. We put our heads down and barrelled the 7 kms to the turn off to the town Alexander Graham Bell made famous, Baddeck. It was then 12 kms on a quiet secondary road down to the lake and the Bell National Historic Site. We were hungry and knew that we had a long drive home at the end of the day, so we stopped for pizza at the Yellow Cello Cafe overlooking the Bras D'Or Lake.

We quickly covered the four more kms on the shore road before we joined the Trans Canada for our last 10 kms back to pick up our car at the Trailsman Motel in time to make the drive to Bathurst that day.

We made it; we had circumnavigated the Cabot Trail!

Today's ride: 50 km (31 miles)
Total: 330 km (205 miles)

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Scott AndersonThanks for taking us along. We’ve talked about biking the cape for a long time. Now I really want to go, if for nothing more than just to eat at the Yellow Cello. What a great name!
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3 years ago

ann and steve maher-wearyTo Scott AndersonYou must come east and check out Cape Breton. I have been following your adventures for the past three years and love your writing, pics and videos. We have learned so many tricks about cycling touring from you and Rachel. You have been a major inspiration in our planning. 2020’s trip was put on hold but we are hoping that in the fall we can do the islands of Croatia that you have now done a few times. We love your journal, thank you for your dedication to keeping it up. Lots of work but much appreciated.
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3 years ago

Rachael AndersonTo ann and steve maher-wearyYou will love Croatia!
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3 years ago

ann and steve maher-wearyYes, we are hoping to make it! I have re read your blogs of your Croatian trips several times and have made copious notes, especially of the islands and ferry rides. It sounds divine! We ended our last trip in Holland in the summer of 2018. We did not post it. It was so hot that summer that we did the coast from Rotterdam to IJmuiden before heading to Amsterdam and home. It was fabulous, we loved the dunes, the paved cycle paths, the warm water and so many cyclists.
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3 years ago