The temperatures are not too bad and there is little fog in the morning. Once we head out, we follow Hwy 1 until it reaches the Trans Canada Highway. The fog is getting ridiculously thick now and visibility is getting much worse. Pay a toll and continue on, and the temperatures are getting into the 50's now. Oddly enough it felt at least 5 or 8 degrees colder than what my gauge was showing me.

When we reached Moncton I had to give in and finally pull over, to add a layer along with the cold liner for my jacket. Gas up while we are there and continue on. Just shortly after getting back on the highway we finally enter Nova Scotia. I almost miss the sign due to the thick fog we were still riding in.

I was getting very worried about our trip since we have come a long way and the weather was not looking so good. Although initially I would have taken anything that wasn't rain or extreme cold, but the fog we were in was so thick, that I was worried that the scenic routes would be of no worth to us.

But just as I think our trip might be a bust, I feel the temperature change. I can only hope this means we may be nearing the end of this fog, and in fact it does! The skies open up and after some time of playing hide and seek with us, the sun finally comes out. Although the road stays wet for some time, the temperatures felt incredibly good and we were finally given an opportunity to relax.

While on the road we come across an older gentleman on a new KLR and give him a good wave. By the looks of it, he is on a long trip himself. I miss the province his license plate is from, but he looks like he has been on the road for some time. We continue on Hwy 104 for the rest of the tank, heading towards Hwy 105 that leads us to Cape Breton, home of the Cabot Trail.

The highway has us going through the middle of nowhere, the only thing to see being an endless blanket of lush trees. After about 40 miles, we come upon civilization again and pull off at the first gas station we see. Soon after filling up, we meet up again with our KLR buddy who pulls into the same station for gas.

Taking a minute to hang out in Nova Scotia:

After filling up, he pulls up next to our parked bikes to chat. This guy was a complete trip to talk to! And to call him a "character" would be an understatement. Apparently he had enough of work in his lifetime and decided he would rather ride. So he does. He had a few stickers on his bike, including those from IBA and SCMA. He had done the SCMA "3-Flags" tour and also has done the SCMA "Four Corners" tour, consisting of a 11,000+ mile journey he completed in just eleven days! Amazing! I could have talked to him all day long. Both Judd and I were in awe about his treks and his passion for riding. With his experience, there was a lot of knowledge we could have gained from him.

Here's our buddy we met, he was quite the character!

His ride. Notice the IBA and SCMA stickers:

Soon after getting back on the road, we join up with Hwy 105 and head north. The scenery was getting even better and more mountainous. We came upon the land bridge that takes us into Cape Breton but had to wait for the bridge there to let a boat pass by. We took the opportunity to get off the bikes and take a minute to stretch the legs.

We got stopped by the bridge, so we took a quick break:

They were doing some construction or mining back on mainland Nova Scotia:

The land bridge. The train tracks had a wierd setup to get the rails to line back up when the bridge got back to normal position:

Following the signs to the Cabot Trail, we eventually make our way to one of the last gas stations we would see for quite some time. We pull off, albeit early, to fill up before hitting the northern coastline.

After filling up we pull the bikes off to the side to grab a quick snack. There are some local Indians hanging around and just hanging out. They ask about the bikes and where we are from. We chat for a little while about the area and what exactly to expect. They give us warnings about the moose in the area and we're told that we'll definitely be seeing them in that area if we pay attention. They were pretty cool guys and tell us a lot about the area.

Judd hanging out with the locals:

While we're chatting, one of the guys has a German shepherd that's chilling with him. Judd snacks on some beef jerky and the dog soon gives him his undivided attention. Judd breaks off a small piece and shares it with his new friend. The dog walks over to me while I'm eating my candy bar. I'm not going to give the dog any chocolate, but after I finish I pet her for a little bit to make up for it. The dog was a total sweetie and loved the attention.

She was a total sweetheart:

Chilling out next to my bike. This is seriously one of my most favorite pics from the whole trip:

Head out and head towards the Cabot Trail and we decide to do the loop counter clockwise. Make our way to the park entrance and are told entrance is free since it is Canada Day. Awesome! Once we get on the Trail we get through a lot of forest but to be honest the scenery wasn't as good as I was expecting. After a few miles we are both probably thinking if it would get better or not. The road comes up to the mountains and starts getting pretty twisty. It was probably comparable to the tight sections on Wolf Pen Gap road in North Georgia. Unfortunately the road conditions were very rough and it was really hard to get into the groove and really enjoy the area around us. The pavement just got real rough on some of the tight parts and was a bit hairy.

Quick picture when we find the coastline:

There were a few docks in the area, many promoting whale watching tours:

We take a casual pace and get tailed by some newer Chrysler. We end up getting behind him and he really starts wicking it up on the first real big uphill climb up the coastal mountain. I decide to play chase for a little bit which wasn't too bad at all, he was keeping a pretty smooth but quick pace through the turns. It was a real fun experience doing it here as the coast really opened up and the scenery really got stunning.

Riding through the next section really became jaw dropping. The rough coastline is pretty comparable to what I've seen from the Pacific coast of the States. The roads are definitely comparable to a canyon road from out west. I start getting on the lookout for a real good pull off to take some pictures. Unfortunately most of the ones so far aren't as good as the scenery where there aren't any pulloffs, naturally. But we come upon one really nice pulloff and take it.

The view from this area was really nice so I can't help but start taking some pictures. There was also water coming from the top of the cliff on the uphill side of the road. I can't help but walk up and get my hands wet. It is incredibly hot in the sun now so the water feels great. The water was amazingly cold. I can't help but drink a little bit of it, didn't taste bad actually!

Closer shot of the coastline. Water coming from the mountain can be seen in the middle of the pic entering the beach and flowing to the ocean:

Water coming down the cliff, although the picture does not show it well. The water was cold but felt great:

A little further down, we stop again:

The coast was close so we climbed down the rocks to get a bit closer to the water. It was COLD but felt great:

We hang around for a little while longer, talking and enjoying our surroundings, and decide to keep on. We've still got a long way to go. The next part of the Cabot Trail has us departing from the coastline and getting more inland. I thought this might be a boring part but I could not have been further from the truth. This next few miles could only be described as a Cherohala Skyway on steroids. The road has us go between two mountains on a wide winding road. Aside from having to pass a few semis, it was a real fun experience zipping through this incredibly lush mountain range. Our fun only lasted so long as we came upon some construction that had the road closed for about 20 minutes while the crews cleaned up their work from the day.

Some shots of the mountain ranges, the pictures do not do it justice:

While waiting a guy on an older VFR comes up behind us and we chat for a short bit. He's from New Jersey and hanging out up in this area for the week and will be heading up to Newfoundland later that night. He invites us to head up with him but we resist the temptation. We chatted about getting up there earlier but it would just be too tight of a schedule for us to get back by the coming weekend. The ferries to get into Newfoundland just factor too much time into the equation. Time we really don't have. Once the construction clears up we continue on our way back to the coastline and follow it for a few more miles.

Back at the coastline:

Our buddy on the VFR behind us, taking a few minutes to chat about the area:

There were a lot of switchbacks on this section as it climbed back up the mountain. It was fun hanging out and watching the bikes come up and down, which there were a lot of around here:

Another spot showing the road heading along the coastline:

I think so far we've been 60 miles into the Cabot Trail. We initially think we should make our way back into mainland Nova Scotia but after riding a bit we come upon a camping area, directly off of the Cabot Trail. We could have ridden further but having this one given to us on a silver platter is just too convenient to pass up on. Once we get there, we realize we made the right decision. The surroundings at this camping spot could not have been better.

It was directly off of the coast, with an easy access to the beach. We walk down and are shocked by the beach as it has no sand; it's made up entirely of smoothed rocks. Behind us is a lush mountainside. We set up camp and try and relax for a little bit, and enjoy our surroundings.

After a little bit we head towards a town just a couple miles ahead to grab some supplies and dinner. We thought we might cook some food while camping, but eating in a nice air conditioned restaurant just sounds way too nice at this point.

A shot of the town just south of our camp:

We stop at a convenience store and the guy there recommends a place just a little bit down the way. We figure we'll take his advice and head there. We look through the menu and after hearing so much about the Poutine dish, we figure that has to be what we need to order. I have to admit it was some really good stuff! We both ordered just the side of Poutine, but the waitress promised it would surely be enough as a whole meal. She wasn't kidding. I almost couldn't finish it! But it was good!

The traditional Canadian dish of fries with cheese and gravy. I had mine "all the way" with a few extras:

On the way back to camp, we see a few cars pulled over and we slow down to see what is going on. A few people are out of their cars and have cameras. Strange! After pulling in closer we see what the big deal is... a moose! Finally, our first moose sighting! We couldn't help but be total tourists and take a few pictures ourselves!

A bit dark but there is definitely a moose's butt in this picture, LOL:

After heading back to camp we finish getting ready and hang out for a little bit. The sun has set but there is still some light out on the beach, it was very calm and tranquil.

We're both pretty tired but satisfied with what we've done for the day. It's now dark, and we decide to call it a night. Before getting in the tent for the night, I look up at the stars. I can't describe just how bright they all were. I've been to some remote spots and seen the stars, but nothing I've ever seen before has compared to this. The stars were just everywhere. I take it all in, as it might be a while until I see so many stars again in the future.