Day 44. July 04, 2014. Friday. Cheticamp Campground to Tatamagouche, Nova Scotia.

Celebrate USA Day; it was interesting to note that we saw not a single tip of the hat to America on her birthday.

We awoke to a beautiful day (sunny with light breezes -- truly the lull before the storm!) and spent time relaxing in camp and birding the area because we needed to pay for the campsite and the entrance station didn't open until 9 AM. We eventually headed out and found wifi in Cheticamp Town at their local information center. I sat in the lobby working on the computer while Liz visited their museum. I'd say it was a perfect arrangement.

Heading west, we stopped for lunch, and then stopped at the Lismore Sheep Farm, a working sheep ranch where they do real "living history" taking wool from sheep, spinning it, and producing goods for the tourist trade. We then continued west to Tatamagouche where we got a room at the Balmoral Hotel to wait out the impending Hurricane Arthur (now a tropical storm), which should affect this area during all of the daylight hours tomorrow.

After checking in, we continued west to Wallace Bay National Wildlife Area for a bit of evening birding. We didn't see much (it really is a duck migration area), but we did hear a male Ruffed Grouse drumming in the woods (flapping his wings in a way to produce love notes for his lady grouse). We returned to town, got dinner in a nice chowder house and retired to the hotel for the night. The leading edge of the storm is upon us, but the winds still are pretty light and we remain dry.

Note: All distances, elevations, and other facts are approximate.
; Last updated 190104