Nova Scotia Bicycle Tour - Day 8 Chester to Mount Denson

Nova Scotia Tour

Day 8 Chester to Mount Denson

Mahone Bay early in the morning

The beautiful weather continued for yet another day. After breakfast and packing, I stopped to visit the campground hostess. We studied the maps together. Because of the location and direction of the roads crossing the peninsula, visiting Peggy's cove would cost me two days.

I decided to stick with my original plan, crossing to the Fundy side via Route 14. Tragically, the whole world would come to know Peggy's Cove a few weeks later. A Swiss Air jet crashed into the ocean off Peggy's Cove while attempting an emergency landing at Halifax. There were no survivors.

Before leaving the campground, I stopped at a pay phone and called my family. It's always nice to hear their voices and know that everyone is OK.

"Alt for Norge"
Following the suggestion of the campground hostess, I made a short side trip to the center of Chester. The small harbor was really beautiful. For the first time, I saw sailboats and other recreational boats moored in the harbor. This was clearly the most affluent area I had seen so far in Nova Scotia.
The town common contained some war memorials. One really interesting small monument caught my attention. When Hitler invaded Norway in 1940, a group of Norwegian fisherman fled to Canada. These men set up a camp near Chester. They trained and eventually returned to help liberate their homeland. They erected this small monument to the people of Chester thanking them for their hospitality. It was inscribed in Norwegian on one side and English on the other.

I left Chester on Route 14. The road began climbing immediately. The road climbed and descended a relentless series of steep hills. The wind started blowing hard out of the North as usual. This time, I was riding directly into it all day. Route 14.jpg
Route 14

The Annapolis Valley
I finally descended a long hill to the Annapolis Valley. The valley runs North East to South West parallel to North Mountain and the Bay of Fundy. I was still fighting the headwind. At least I was out of the hills.

Block House at Fort Edward

I arrived in Windsor and had lunch. After lunch, I visited Fort Edward. A British Fort overlooking the Avon River. This fort was instrumental in the deportation of the Acadians.

After this, I visited Haliburton House, home of Judge Thomas Chandler Haliburtion. Haliburton was the author of Sam Slick.the Yankee clock peddler. It was an interesting old victorian house.

I left Windsor and continued to Mount Denson. I found a small campground on a hill overlooking the Avon River. I was tired from fighting the headwinds and hauling the trailer up and down all those hills. I dropped off the trailer and rode a short distance to Hantsport for groceries.

I returned to the campground. The wind continued tormenting me as I set up camp. The wind kept blowing the lid off my pot while I was cooking supper. Finally, I put a rock on it.

Avon River

The wind was also kicking up a lot of pollen. This raised hell with my allergies. I made a mental note to try to find some antihistamines.