Last night we went to the Annapolis Royal Historic Gardens but were chased away by the mosquitoes.
Above – an Acadian house within the gardens.
Today we were going to go for a hike, but as we drove to the trailhead the paved road turned to a gravel road which then turned into something requiring a 4WD so we turned and fled – stopping at Port Royal Historic Site.
There were 3 Port Royals over time: Samuel de Champlain called the whole area Port Royal. Then in 1605, a settlement was created at Port Royal (its present location) for the purposes of the fur trade. However, an English expedition from Virginia attacked and burned the settlement to the ground. Later the settlement at what is now Annapolis Royal was called Port Royal – later named Annapolis Royal for Queen Anne.
I wooden shoes were called Sabots – almost identical to that worn by the Dutch.
Above- Annapolis Royal from the other side of the river.
By the time we finished touring Port Royal it was time for lunch so we returned to have lunch at the Fort Anne Cafe. We then headed out to Margaret’sville. On the way we stopped in Bridgetown.
Finally after a detour (road construction) we arrived at the lighthouse in Margaret’sville.
Margaret’sville had that apostrophe added a long time ago and some people are still not happy about it. The town had several earlier names – the most recent named after the wife of a justice of the Supreme Court of Nova Scotia. Then they added the apostrophe and the controversy began.
The lighthouse in Margaret’sville was going to be left to fall apart but the townspeople have taken it over. It was open at the time and we went in; I almost bought the T-shirt but at least Kim did leave a donation.
Of course there are lots of stories. Apparently one of the earlier names for the place was Peter’s Point after a man who lived in the community and is believed to have caused a shipwreck and taken what he could get. Six seamen drowned as a result and Peter was ostracized for 20 years by the community. He died – fell off a cliff when he lost his way in a blinding snow storm.
Anyway – tomorrow we head off for Wolfville. Below – a few more shots taken this evening around town.
WR Foster 