With a ferry to catch, we had to continue to cover ground on the second day, from northern Quebec right through to North Sydney, Nova Scotia. We said farewell to Quebec in a heavy fog, and settled in for another long day of driving....which included losing an hour as we crossed into Atlantic time.
We still had time for the odd short stop, including surprising Jane with a stop at a potato chip factory in Hartland, New Brunswick.....you can tour the factory and get a bag of fresh chips, hot off the line. Somehow she missed all the signs as we drove up (likely busy posting something on Facebook), so when she looked up and saw a big stainless steel tank, she assumed I had taken her to a micro-brewery!
Of course, one can't stop in Hartland and not visit the world's longest covered bridge, for which the chips are named anyway....
By afternoon, we were well into Nova Scotia. We crossed the Canso Causeway into Cape Breton, and made our way to the Marine Atlantic ferry terminal to await our midnight crossing on the MV Blue Puttees, one of several new ferries since our last visit to The Rock. We started boarding at about 930pm, part of a bizarre new loading strategy to get us on early and then sell us more food and drink. The reasoning behind early loading also become evident when we saw the "new" boarding method.
Apparently the new boats have a special compartment in the very belly of the ship, with a ramp that closes and becomes part of the deck above. The best part is that they send a few cars down the steep ramp at a time, and have people pull U-turns and back up into marked lanes.....not everyone is good at backing up or maneuvering in tight spaces, let's just say.....and also means you're last off as they have to empty the entire deck above before they can lower the ramp again.
At any rate, we were on the water and headed for Newfoundland at 1159pm.....
Nearing Edmunston, NB and about to lose an hour!
Mmmmmmm....fresh chips!
Well worth a stop if you're passing through Hartland - right off the highway!
The bridge at Hartland - one lane only, so wait your turn!
New Brunswick Highway 2 becomes Nova Scotia Highway 104
Canso Causeway
Waiting for the ferry....
Our ferry, the MV Blue Puttees
Bizarre parking "down in the hole" on the lowest level of the ferry
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1 comment:
Two things:
Now I'm craving chips (thanks a bunch) and the covered bridge is a flipping long way away (darn!)
The ferry scene makes me think you should have stopped at a microbrewery instead (just saying)
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