Six Star Magazine Six Star Magazine Fall 2016 | Page 13

NOVA SCOTIA
Charismatic, cosmopolitan, casual
Halifax is a city teeming with world-class theatre
productions, great shops and galleries, unique festivals,
and historic sites. But not all attractions are highly publicized,
such as the ghost tours at the Halifax Citadel. A guide will
take you to little-known places where you’ll learn about the
famous (and infamous) characters that have formed the warp
and woof of the region.
For a walk on the wild side, visit the Timber Lounge on
Agricola Street. It’s the Maritimes’ only adventure lounge
featuring axe throwing. Or you could cross the Angus L
Macdonald Bridge into Dartmouth and treat yourself to the
definitive version of fish & chips at John’s Lunch on Pleasant
Street. The place is legendary; personalities as diverse as
Adrienne Clarkson, Rob Lowe and John Ralston Saul ate there.
Head next to Main Street for a visit at John W. Doull
Bookseller, home to the largest collection of marine, nautical
and Atlantic Canadian books in the country. Doull’s also
has rare manuscripts worth thousands of dollars, such as
Rudyard Kipling’s Jungle Book.
Find your way to Rte 207 heading north. Slip into Cole
Harbour for a hike and some great bird watching at the
Salt Marsh Trail. Back on the 207, you’ll pass through
Lawrencetown Beach, an international year-round destination
for surfers, and Conrad Beach, a vast and secluded oasis.
PHOTOS: BENOIT BRÜHMÜLLER

Another hour’s drive will find you in Tangiers, home of the
100 Wild Islands, with more than 250 km of coastal habitats
and 400 acres of wetlands, forests, bogs and barrens that have
remained isolated for more than 10,000 years. If kayaking is
your thing, this is nirvana. You can register for an unforgettable
excursion with Coastal Adventures at Mason Point, a worldrenowned outfitter.
If your journey takes you to the famous Cabot Trail in Cape
Breton, head up the west coast to Gampo Abbey, a Buddhist
monastery in Pleasant Bay. Be sure to visit the stupa on site,
and read the stations surrounding it. Close by, you can enjoy an
exhilarating 7-km hike to Pollet’s Cove—a storybook setting that
offers a unique combination of isolation and accessibility.
Once you arrive in the cove, you’ll discover every topographical
feature your heart could desire: a fine sand beach through which
a clear mountain river flows; a wildflower-filled hillside pasture
on one side and steep forested banks on the other; and, in the
middle, blue-grey hills
folding into each other as
far as the eye can see.
You may also see horses,
a collection of curious
and friendly creatures that
pasture there for the
summer. If you happen to
be so fortunate, an apple
in your pocket would not
go amiss.
TANGLER
DARTMOUTH