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