Rest Day

Bike in Annapolis Vally that may be my bike when I'm 85


View of the Settlement


This is part of my daily job.

Yesterday we rode from Wolfville along the Annapolis Valley to Annapolis Royal. the route was hilly, lots of rollers, with a fairly consistent head wind. People were tired at the end of the ride, having ridden for several straight days. What a good day for rest day. It rained most of the morning. We toured the settlement and I even took a nap.

Annapolis Royal is a town of about 400 people that has a long history. the first settlers in this area were the French in 1606, yes over 400 years ago. It has been the site of 13 battles and numerous changes in control from the French to the British and back. There is a replica of the original settlement occupied by the French and it was quite interesting to get an idea of their lifestyle and environment. They were pretty hardy souls.

Fishing seems to be the main occupation and of course it is very seasonal. There are 13 B& B's here, so now the tourist business is the primary industry. This area is affected by the Bay of Fundy, thus the tides are extreme, an average of 21 feet in each tidal change. They have one of 3 tidal power plants in the world. It is pretty odd to see a boat beached when the tide is out and floating in the water when the tide is in.

We rode through Paradise and West Paradise, Nova Scotia yesterday. So my favorite my favorite saying, "Just another ho hum day in Paradise" was quite apropos.

I am finding I like to ride along the coast or bodies of water better than riding in farm and rural settings like our ride was yesterday. There is a great deal of agriculture and trees in this part of Nova Scotia. Headed to the South Shore tomorrow, so should see more coastline.

The place we are staying has a dog that is the spitting image of the family dog we had when Iwas growing up, a poodle/terrior mix named Sampson. What a wierd sight to see such a similiar dog 40 years later.