Adventurers @ Large: Roadtrip: Lunenburg to Kennetcook

Wednesday, September 2

Experiences of the Day

We read about Concrete Creations and decided to stop by today. From the road, it looks like a normal nursery. I asked the young guy if there was more to see as there were just a few pieces up front. Nonchalantly, he says yes and points the way.

Wow. Just wow. We walked over a kilometer through the garden paths and saw dozens of sculptures. There is work going on, and we saw three young men go by in a pickup truck headed out towards the back. It looked like they might be putting in more trails back that way.

Then we heard a backhoe startup and saw it heading out that same way. And pretty soon a man moving very quickly as though he were late to work was coming toward me. I looked at him and recognized him from the website. It was the artist, Ivan Higgins. I thanked him for his work and told him how wonderful I thought it was.

We have been to so many botanical gardens and never have I seen anything like this, and it was free.

We hopped in the car and continued on to Kejimkujik NP where the Blandings turtles live. They are only found in this park. Park volunteers protect the nests from predators. Additionally, the park celebrates the Mi'kmaq are the indigenous people who have a long history at this lake.

Our last stop was at Grand Pre, where we learned about the deportation of the Acadie people. They had come from France in the 1600s, but generations later identified with the land of the Maritimes. They were farmers and developed a system of dykes and kept the saltwater out of the farmland. They lived peacefully with the Mi'kmaq and would not commit to fight for either the British or the French. On top of that, as French Catholics, they were not seen as supportive of the crown.

The outcome was that the British rounded up the Acadie: they were deported and their homes burned. At Grand Pre, the men and boys were gathered and held on ships for a couple of months. The women would bring them food. Eventually the women and girls were brought on board and the boats left and took the people to various locations. It was a tragedy. It happened in PEI as well.

Continuing up the road, we turned into the gravel driveway of our Airbnb and were pleasantly surprised to find an immaculate, temperature controlled cabin awaiting us. Although there was an awesome firepit outside, there were no ticks indoors and after seeing them outside on the chair cushions, we felt like a night inside our adorable cabin was the way to go!