Lunenburg, Nova Scotia – Overland Travel Photography – Trans-Canada '25 (XII)

June 29^th, 2025: Day Twenty-Five

Distance Travelled: 245KM
Distance From Home: 4919km
Days in Hotels VS Campgrounds VS Guest: 9/12/3

Hilden, Nova Scotia –
Lunenberg, Nova Scotia

As I write this my ankle is wrapped.

I woke up at a decent time but past my alarm. It had been raining most of the night and was coming down pretty good with a healthy dose of fog. This meant converting like a Rubix Cube, that is, leaving everything confined to the car while moving it all around. It takes a little longer.

The first gas station I hit had a Tim Hortons instead of their own coffee and I refuse to drink that moose piss.

Today posed a problem. Where do I go in this weather? Not only that, but the single room within my budget in Halifax was yanked from booking between the time it took me to view it on the toilet and back at the car, starting the ignition.

At one point I made a detour for a Starbucks in Bradford. Totally worth it.

Taking the advice from yesterday, I drove to Lunenburg after realizing that waiting this all out was futile.

I drove below the speed limit, and no one seemed to mind. The town was as beautiful as I was told but parking was insane. No spots to speak of. But deeming the town worthy of my time I found a camp.

I was given a map and told the boat that was featured on the dime was docked here. Plus, another that travels the world.

I decided to risk my camera in light rain and keep it in the bag during heavier downpours.

The “dime boat” was off sailing but I got photos of other one. I did my best to wipe my lens often but I’m sure a few images will show blurry droplets. We’ll call it a creative filter. Cokin would be proud.

I stopped by the gift shop for postcards and seeing as I was soaked to the bone, headed back.

It was a steep uphill walk with frequent rests.

After informing reception the showers were occupied minus the handy cap, I was told to go ahead as they never have guests who need them.

I converted the car and went for my shower.

The room was a palace compared to the bathrooms I have had to deal with. A giant standing shower with multiple jet streams, lots of room to get organized and a toilet. Most important: All the hot water I could ask for.

Now, I didn’t time myself but my internal chronometer wants to say forty-five minutes.

All was right…then I heard (and felt) a pop.

My left ankle made a small but distinct pop, followed by a pain like I twisted it.

Going down the stairs was difficult and when I got to the car, worse case scenarios revealed themselves.

I possibly strained my Achilles tendon between P.E.I., my eight kilometer hike yesterday, and today’s inclined roads. 42,818 Steps in four days. Just over 30 Kilometers.

I iced/elevated it, and now it’s wrapped. No swelling. No redness. No gap in the tendon. Unlikely a rupture. But I’m not a doctor and unfortunately mine is on the other side of the country.

So, while I wait out the rain I can also wait out this ankle thing and hope it’s better by morning.

POST TRIP NOTES: This was especially disappointing because the fog was amazing and I wanted to take some photos of the town at night but couldn’t risk further injury.

My food supply is nill so that is priority numero uno manana.

June 30^th, 2025: Day Twenty-Six

Distance Travelled: Approx. 170KM
Distance From Home: 5210KM
Days in Hotels VS Campgrounds VS Guest: 9/13/3

Lunenberg, Nova Scotia –
Dartmouth, Nova Scotia

When I got up this morning my first concern was my ankle, and I was happy to note an improvement. Throughout the day the ankle would get better. I’ll see if it’s worse tomorrow morning and the movement is what improves it.

While I was packing up and the night before I was drawn to the smell of the flower bush by my car and I thought, I’ll take a stem off and freshen things up in my ride. I grip a branch and twist, only to be impaled by thorns. I pierced the skin on three fingers, which were now bleeding. I go twenty-four days without needing the first aid kit and then have to crack it open twice in twelve hours. Chat GPT told me they were Rosa Multiflora…the thorns are a dead giveaway, too bad I didn’t see them.

I missed the boat. The dime boat that is. I was thirty minutes from town before I realized I forgot to make a detour to photograph it. Ah well, I can’t capture everything.

I was originally going to go to Peggy’s Cove first, but I ended up detouring to Halifax for Starbucks…priorities. After that I figured I may as well scout my top two choices for accommodations before heading out because both had some compelling pros and cons. The first was in Halifax, and a hotel. I could not see a room because they were still occupied or dirty. I made a reservation without the need to pay and headed for the motel in Dartmouth: a city attached to Halifax but not quite Halifax. Also the motel was technically closer to downtown Halifax. The motel was a hundred cheaper, had a better rating (slightly), and had a room I could take immediately, allowing me to get all my ducks in a row.

Throughout the day, in no particular order, I went to the laundromat, got some sandpaper, and soap at Walmart, went to Sobey’s for groceries, took the Kryptatron to the car wash (I still can’t get these tires clean, I think I’ll use a scrubbing brush next time) and ate an entire medium Hawaiian pizza. I almost carb crashed at one point but fought through it.

The roads in this area are highly intuitive and I felt very comfortable. Every city and provincial highway has its own quirks and learning curve but so far the …GHA(?) has been great.

I threw away a bunch of stuff I either didn’t need, didn’t use, or ruined from leaving it on the roof rack. Water jug? Gone. Stupid telescopic seat? Gone. My tools, shoes and half the stuff from the roof rack? Ruined. Also, that stupid mole organizer which ended up holding next to nothing of use. Everything in it was either trashed or relocated. The organizer itself? Gone.

The good news is I can fit in underground parking again. When I finally get home I won’t have to think about scraping the ceiling in the parkade. While I was unloading items from my roof rack, I noticed a guy I saw at the laundromat (quite a ways away mind you) and we had a chat and he fist bumped me while I was hanging off my car. People’s eyebrows rise when they realize how far I have come, how many kilometers I have put in, and how long I have been on the road. Not too many Alberta plates out here. In fact, I haven’t seen another one in a while.