We then flew to Halifax, Nova Scotia and drove up to Cape Breton.

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Then on to Prince Edward Island via ferry.

This dirt road, through a potato field, is the road to one of the most famous beaches on PEI!

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I love this composition:
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This is the floating boardwalk at PEI's Greenwich Beach
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A PEI lighthouse
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Next we drove to Bay of Fundy, and stayed in a yurt overlooking the Bay. Here it is at sunrise, low tide.
The tide rises almost 50 feet.
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Next stop St ANdrews and then Bar Harbor;
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Then on to a tiny island off the Maine Coast, from which we caught a private boat to our lighthouse.

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The lighthouse, which is operational and we had to ourselves, had three bedrooms, a living room, was furnished with antiques, and a watercolor set!

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The lighthouse came with kayaks for exploring:

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Finally Ogunquit, Maine.
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THE END

It was a beautiful trip. Relaxing and easy. For us, relatively few flights. No cultural adjustments, save a chance to use high school French!

You're not kidding it was a wonderful trip!

Do you have any pics of the inside of the yurt and the lighthouse...how fabulous to stay on a lighthouse...any ghosts? They all always seem haunted....

Wonderful pictures! Funny, I was in Burlington, VT, at the end of July, with my son (toured UVM) and just last night made reservations to go to Bar Harbor in October (we have been there twice). Some of your other stops (Quebec City, PEI) are on my to-visit list. And Oqunquit is one of my favorite places. Thanks for sharing.

LOL, No, no one moved my curling irons. : )
It was very cool though, especially for people who like historic buildings, like we do. It was also full of antiques. The sense of quiet and peace is unique; we loved the fact that noone else was there. And you could not have better views. I highly recommend the lighthouse, with a few caveats.

1. It is a not for profit preservation project, not a hotel. It requires a fairly hefty donation to stay, but it is not a luxury property in a traditional sense. Adjust expectations accordingly.

2. They are fund raising in part to install a system for hot and cold running water. The lowest level of the lighthouse, which has the current "bathroom" and in-progress kitchen, will one day offer showers and a full kitchen (the owner has already installed a plum AGA and an old butcher block!, but it is a construction site in the kitchen). So if you go now, think camping. There is some solar power, a marine toilet, and a small fridge. But no running water and you cook on a grill on the deck. For a short stay, no problem.

3. You take a 1hr ferry from Rockland, ME, to the tiny island of North Haven. From there the ligthhouse folks take you on another, small boat, to the lighthouse itself (5-7 minutes). If I had to do it over again, id rent our own boat so we could explore even more than we did on kayaks. Plus then we could go back to North Haven to eat .... (highly acclaimed Nebo Lodge is on N Haven).

Our lighthouse photos are not so great and have a lot of us in them. I will link a youtube video that they have below. I'd love to inspire others to consider supporting this cause, and having fun doing it!

Here is a link that might be useful: Stay in your own ligthhouse!

Annie,

In re the yurt, again, my photos are filled with sleeping kids. So I am linking to the park service site.

If anyone is interested, there are only 5 yurts, and only two have the great views, so be sure to ask if you go. They also book up the minute reservations open, so you need to call first thing on that day. But it's only $115 a night!!

We had booked two yurts since there are 5 of us and we werent sure how comfy and spacious the beds would be. But we only ended up using one ... it was plenty big and the beds were great (byo pillows, sheets, blankets ... we bought them in PEI). It was spotless, pleasant, and had a propane stove with a thermostat! It is also very well located if you want to walk (hard to tell from photos but you are on a cliff), with steps down the mountainside to walk into town.

There is a dedicated structure for cooking food, just for the yurts. And it is a 2 minute walk to the communal bathrooms, laundry and shower (all of which were perfectly fine, for a park).

Here is a link that might be useful: Stay in a yurt!

Hi SueB,

That is funny! This was part of our "quadrant project". We divided the US/Canada into 4 quadrants, and we are trying to see highlights in each region. Last year we did the SW, this year NE/Canada. I have planned our SE and NW trips, but I am not sure exactly when we will do those.

BH in October sounds perfect, btw.

Glad you like Ogunquit. We went househunting while we were there and we are contemplating putting in an offer on a house. The other beachhouse thing is still not resolved (driveway is partially on neighbors property) and I am tired of waiting, plus the Maine house it NOT a teardown, just fun stuff.

I could totally hang out with you, mtn. Love your travel plans. Our middle DS graduates from high school next spring, and we are planning a trip right after graduation -- the "twist" is that HE gets to choose our destination. We are all waiting with suspense to see what he picks. We told him he needs to decide by December. Ideas so far have included a safari, a trip to London (we have been, but last time he was maybe 8-9 years old), Spain, or some convoluted US trip that would involve following his beloved Red Sox to a couple of away games in interesting cities.

Anyway, about Ogunquit. We vacationed there for 5 years in a row, and the whole time I fantasized aloud about buying a place there. DH finally vetoed the idea because he loves to swim in the ocean, and the water is just too cold. Ogunquit has so much to offer, including its proximity to other great towns like Kennebunkport, Portland, Portsmouth. I know, you get a place in Ogunquit and we'll do a vacation house swap!

SueB!

Yes, I think we are of alike minds, indeed! I long ago promised my girls a Paris trip when they are 16! And my son gets to choose his trip for his 16th. It's a few years away but he has bounced around Greece, Iceland, Hawaii and Scandinavia. DH and DS go to Fl for Sox spring training every year! Following the team is a cool travel idea! I would vote for safari, it's just something everyone always enjoys and finds memorable.

As for Ogunquit. Yup, the water is cold. That is why we are not putting in an offer until we can make certain we can put in a pool (heated) where we want to. We have been looking for a year and I really like the town (esp the food and of course the Marginal Way and all the charming architecture). I like the idea of the kids getting around by trolley if they want.

And compared to BI, where would have to demo and build, this is ready to stay at. And no ferry stress, either.
Plus, as you know, we have been looking a year and I have never seen an oceanfront property with this much land and privacy (it's only 1.6 acres, but we looked at similar properties on 0.12 acres, LOL!).

PS What kind of camera do you use, or is it one of those complex ones? You took some great great shots!

Some of my pics are from my iPhone, but the ones that look good are from DH's fancy Canon camera, for which he's bought several additional lenses. Apparently he is planning to quit his day job and go to work for National Geographic...based on the time and money he's put into this hobby. I think it's his version of a midlife crisis, which is preferable to an affair or crazy sports car!

Ahh yes, I feared they could not possibly from a point a shoot. I seem to be one of a scant minority who never took a photography course, so I've no hope of using one of those.

Have a good weekend!

Mtn,
Lovely pictures, thanks for sharing them. I do enjoy seeing a few judiciously chosen pics of vacations. How long do we have to wait for the trip to Paris?

Sueb,
Hahahaha, I agree, as midlife crises go an expensive camera hobby isn't too bad. A least you also benefit by getting nice pics of you and the kids.

Thanks for the links....looks like so much fun, but I was getting acrophobia just from the pics of that top deck on the light house. But such great views.

Love the photos, mtn, especially those of PEI. Did your girls channel Anne of Green Gables? I have fantasized about going there and renting a house for a week and reading the books aloud.... But I would undoubtedly have to do it alone :-(

Your itinerary was ambitious, and it sounds as though the trip suited all of you. I too loved Quebec (and the opportunity to drag out the rusty French) and would REALLY like to go for winter carnival, which is my idea of rustic. Yurts and lighthouses.... oh my!

It will be a great trip for the rest of us if you buy a beach house from it...... You know we all love the fun stuff as much as the tear downs. I'm ready for pictures of the house already!

Thanks for sharing your trip. Beautiful, all of it. The Lighthouse and Yurt are my favorites for your lodging.

HHI Reno, Paris is a long way away ... 5 years in fact!

Annie, lol, the second level deck was plenty high for me.

Hi KSWL, I went to PEI as a 10yo, and my Dad bought me the three book set, which I read as we travelled. My girls have read or have had read to them,from the very same set of books. We did make the trip to see the house on which GG is based. I had heard before that it is very popular with Japanese tourists and indeed it is; I found out that it is required high school reading in Japan, LOL. My book club actually read Anne a year or so ago. A lot if us shared it with our daughters.

As for the house, insert me jumping up and down here. We are still investigating appropriate comps and verifying pool placement. I hope to bid on it soon. ANd of course I will deluge you all if/when we are under contract!

Sounds like a dream vacation. We did Maine a few years back, Portland, Camden and Bar Harbor. It was my favorite vacation ever. I want to do Lake Champlain next.

mtnrdredux, replying to you over here instead of the build-a-house thread so I don't hijack :) Glad to hear you liked Niagara on the Lake. It's one of my favorite places! Your pictures are beautiful! It looks like you guys had a great time! Did you see a play in Niagara on the Lake or just enjoy the little village? What did you think of Niagara Falls (did you go?)

Maine was OK I thought. There were things we liked and things we didn't love. Don't know about where you were but it was incredibly buggy where we were, more mosquitos than I have ever encountered anywhere in my life! We were also in a really tiny town with only 3 restaurants and not much to do. Fine for a week or so, but less fun for a month. We will not be buying a house there for summers... Think we are going to rent a different place every summer for a month until we find someplace we love.

We did love Bar Harbor and Acadia National Park (the dogs really loved it, it was their first time ever getting to go out to a restaurant, they came out w/ us to dinner twice)

How exciting about possibly finding a house you like. I do kind of selfishly wish you'd buy that other one so I could see your remodel though :)

Hi Beagles,

Glad you replied over here!

Yes, we had a lovely vacation. To some, it looks like a busy itinerary. For us, it was a more relaxing itinerary than usual.

We didn't see a play at NOTL because there was nothing that really would have worked for all of us. Plus to be honest we are a little spoiled, having NYC for that sort of thing. We did see NF, at dinner, at night and by horse carriage. It was not really something I personally would have gone out of my way for, but the kids wanted to see it and staying in NOTL made it much more pleasant then the alternative, methinks!

It's funny you'd mention mosquitoes in Maine. My DH, who grew up in Mass., always rates locales on the size and numbers of their mosquitoes! He always wants everything screened! As it happens, we had no mosquitoes at all where we were! None. I think that partly sold him. Were you on the ocean? I always hear that breezes keep them at bay.

Also funny you'd mention restaurants. In Southern coastal Maine, we had excellent food. And not just stuffy dinners, but great cafes and casual places too. That was another huge plus.

As far as the house we are looking at, don't worry, plenty to amuse the GW club! It needs a new kitchen and 3 new baths and a pool. As compared to the other house, which needed demo and totally new construction. By comparison, to me, kitchens and baths are "fun stuff". If we stick with the other property, we have at least a year till we can stay there!

Anyway, what are you looking for in a summer place? Maybe the board has some ideas of places you should try.

Yup, definitely better off in Niagara on the Lake than NF! The carriage ride sounds nice though. The last time I went to the falls w/ some friends we took them on a hot air balloon ride which was also a nice way to see it.

We had great food too, don't get me wrong! Lots of seafood and lobster chowder and delicious muscles! Did you have PEI muscles on Prince Edward Island? We ate lobster, but I actually liked the lobster stews and seafood stews better than just the plain lobster for the most part. We just got a little sick of the local restaurants in the area where we were since we ate out every single day for a month (it was nice to eat in Bar Habor, Calais, Eastport and the other places we visited!)

Did you go to Acadia National Park on your trip or no? We did a nice lighthouse/ nature tour in Bar Harbor, which had gorgeous scenery.

We were on a lake, not the ocean. We picked a lake b/c we were told the water was much warmer on lakes in Maine and actually swimmable as opposed to the ocean which was too cold. May have been why there were so many mosquitos!

Glad to hear that you'll be doing some remodeling at least :) A new kitchen, baths and a pool sound fun to do! We're embarking on a backyard landscape/screen porch project soon, but no swimming pool.

Summer place: We want weather that is reasonable cool (no 80 degree days); a place where we can be on open water (lake or ocean, no houses visible) and a place where we can have at least 5 acres. I've learned my lesson after FL and I will never buy property on less than 3-5 acres again, I don't care how good the view is. It would be nice if it wasn't a super far drive from PA but that seems unlikely. If anyone has rental suggestions for next summer for a place for us to try, I'd be open to hearing them :) In the meantime, we're shifting our focus to finding a new FL house to buy (hoping the old one sells quickly this winter!) and will wait a few years for the summer home.

Sorry, Beagles, I realize I didn't respond.

Alas, we had no PEI mussels; DH and I are both allergic to shellfish. Consequently as well, our kids haven't tried much of it either. I did cajole them into trying lobster at least, but they didn't like it much (?!). I love it but can't risk it. We did have a lot of delicious fin fish on vacation though.

We did got to Acadia, but weren't wowed as we'd anticipated. Part of it may have been that the loop was partly closed. The rest of it may have been that we had just seen very similar scenery in Cape Breton, PEI, Nova Scotia etc etc...

So now, as to your quest:
We want weather that is reasonable cool (no 80 degree days); a place where we can be on open water (lake or ocean, no houses visible) and a place where we can have at least 5 acres.

I think that is pretty tough. Especially because although you don't say it, I assume you also want a nice selection of good restaurants. To be One point in re the 5 acres ... this is a lesson Ive learned the hard way. Our NY state lakehouse has 5 acre zoning. BUT, everyone builds as close as they can to the lake. So we end up much closer together than youd expect, and then all the acreage is behind everyone's house, and it just becomes something to drive through! Especially if they make the lake lots like pie wedges, which is very common (maximizes the number of lots you can sell and still provide everyone lake frontage).

So, all in all, I'm kind of at a loss!

Yea, we are realizing that finding the right location will be tough. I think that's why we will try different rental places each year for a while. There's really no rush, our house in PA is in a really nice area with nature and walking trails so it is kind of like a vacation home and we get the beach in FL for winters (I don't even really swim, only the dog uses the pool even). I just hate the heat. We're adding a screen porch w/ ceiling fans and if that is comfortable enough to sit outside, maybe we won't even need to buy a summer place.

Can't believe your kids didn't like lobster! If they didn't like it in Maine, guess they won't like it anywhere!

Mtn, when was your holiday? We may have passed you on the road! We drove to Quebec City, then to PEI for a wedding, took the ferry from the New Brunswick mianland to Deer and Campobello Island, then on the Bar Harbor, Acadia Nat'l Park and back home through New Hampshire and Vermont, staying with friends in Jackson. A great trip, as it looks like yours was! I should try post some pics. That lighthouse stay looks fantastic, I would have loved the kayaking.

Sochi,

That is so funny! What a similar itinerary. We were gone from July 21 to Aug 14.

How as Campobello? It was on our itinerary but we ended up forgoing it.

We were gone the same time, roughly. Funny. Campobello was really lovely, great parks and beaches. I found it very interesting. I'd like to go back.

Interesting that the coolness is what attracts so many people to the area. It is a tad too cool for me for summer, I'm quite comfortable in the heat. It just seems cruel to have all that ocean and not be able to swim in it! We did have a really hot day on PEI, the kids spent the whole day in the ocean, I went in up to my thighs (quite something for me, I normally don't do cold water).

I can't access many of our pics from my iPad, but here is one from PEI.

One more pic from the trip I love: the kids in Quebec City running across the Plains of Abraham towards the National Assembly, which from this angle is dwarfed by the Hilton.

Your pictures are fabulous. I love the red dirt road!

Thanks for sharing, Sochi! I wish we had known how closely our paths almost crossed, it would have been fun to have lunch!

BTW, how is your country home coming along?

Thanks for sharing, Sochi! I wish we had known how closely our paths almost crossed, it would have been fun to have lunch!

BTW, how is your country home coming along?