Weekend Retreat in Cape Breton, Nova Scotia

This past weekend I was whisked off to Cape Breton to experience a Women's Outdoor Adventure Weekend. I took several workshops which included ice fishing. It was really great to experience some outdoor activities which I have never tried before. Ice fishing was definitely my most favorite thing to do....and surprisingly, I may just be willing to get out there again sometime and try it on my own. I was hoping to get a shot of me carrying my oh so colourful handbags....but you know, it was so0o0o0o cold out there that I could really only concentrate on staying warm. Yes, there are definitely times when fashion and colour simply do not matter!!! Ah, Cape Breton - how I love thee!!!

Check out my fishing hole!!!

Here is the beautifully shaped fishing hole that I managed to create using an auger. It took me quite a while to finally break through the ice (a whole five inches - heehee). What was really great was that I could actually see the bottom of the harbour through the hole - it was so clear I could actually see fish. I was trying out a beautiful hand carved fishing tool traditionally used throughout Cape Breton. I braved the wind and freezing cold temps for about 1 1/2 hours before deciding that I simply couldn't take the cold climate any longer.

It's bloody cold!!!

This is me trying to stay warm during an early morning retreat on the salt water harbour in Nyanza, Cape Breton. The wind chill on this particular day was a mere -25 degrees (YiKeS!!!!) The water just behind me was not totally frozen. I didn't catch anything, but I had so0o0o0o much fun trying. It was also great to see the locals set up their little shelters full of snacks, drinks and friends!!! They were brave enough to test the strength of the ice with the weight of their shelters - perhaps I will test their theory out the next time I venture out to go ice fishing!

Solitary Silhouette

This photo was taken of a fabulous German woman who had recently immigrated to Cape Breton. She, like me, wanted to try something that we had never done before. We created our fishing holes about 20 ft away from each other as the ice was only 5" thick. We didn't want to risk falling through the ice by being too close.

Wintery Mudflats in Wolfville

Ah...the frozen ice of the mudflats which overlook Cape Blomidon from Wolfville, Nova Scotia. It is currently low tide and the ice on the Bay of Fundy will rise to record amounts often referred to as the "Highest Tides in the World" . The view is a wintery shade of brown, grey and ochre - not my favorite colour palate....but it's bound to change as the seasons do!

For more info on the Bay of Fundy check out: http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Bay_of_Fundy