",,,,,,,,,,,gratitude is happiness doubled by wondet" (G.K. Chesterton)

"Do not regret growing older. It is a privilege denied to
many” (unknown but by way of Bonnie Gruetzmacher)

Most of you know that is less than a month I will be 75
years old. This is a privilege denied to my mother, both of my grandmothers,
and three of my great-grandmothers.  The
above quotation, provided by my friend Bonnie, is a sharp reminder of how very
fortunate I am. On this trip I have been especially aware of my deep gratitude
for the wonders that we encounter every day and of how blessed we are to be
able to enjoy them.

Our campsite at Five Islands Nova Scotia was one of the best
we have ever had, so we stayed there for a week. It was on a slice of headland
overlooking the Bay of Fundy to the southwest with the five islands in front of
us. We could literally walk on the beach for miles and of course the beach
changes every 12 hours with the incoming tides. It was also conveniently
located for us to rock hunt in the Parrsboro area. We visited the Fundy
Geological Museum and got directions to Wesson Bluff, site of lots of fossil
finds and our best rocks of the trip. We found a vein of …?……..and lugged back
some beautiful slabs. It was a long walk back and a steep climb out so Butch
brought the truck in as far as possible. It is a miracle we got it out again!  We took our finds to Tyson’s, a local
geologist, and met Helen. She was so gracious, helped us identify our stones
and gave us a tour of their fabulous historic home. We even climbed up onto the
Widow’s Walk.

Another day we spent at Advocate Harbor. Tons of driftwood
from the Bay winds up here and it is a trash hunter’s paradise. I had a ball
but Butch would let me drag home all the great stuff I found. On the way to Cap
d’ Or it began to rain but we enjoyed the view and we found a very accessible
cove where I found some good sea glass, including a black piece; a first for
me. Another day we went to Joggins Fossil Cliffs, returning via Advocate Harbor,
Cap d Or, and Horseshoe Cove. The amazing thing about Joggins is that lots of
the fossils are of the trees that lived here when this area was below the
equator.  The trunks are intact with
markings from the bark, amazing. Finally, we hiked at Partridge Island and had
a good afternoon exploring there. We climbed a long way out on the rocks and
found lots of interesting stuff that was far too big to bring home.

Leaving Nova Scotia was tough. We had such a good time there
and the people were absolutely super. We wanted to back to Hopewell Rocks, so
we made reservations for a couple of nights at Fundy National Park. I love
Hopewell Rocks. If you have ever been to Brice in Utah, it is like seeing the Hoodoos
standing on the beach and (at high tide) in the water. They are huge and have
fantastic shapes and formations.  At low
tide you can walk on the sea bottom among them and at high tide you can paddle
there.

I wanted to paddle and was willing to cross over to the dark
side and rent a kayak if necessary. Alas, this was not to be. The kayak trips
were booked for the next four days and there were 17 names on the waiting
list.  Dear friends, you would have been
ashamed of me. I whined about my advanced age, how far I had come to do this,
how it had been on my bucket list for years, how I might drop dead at any
moment without fulfilling this dream, etc. etc. etc. The young lady was
obviously moved, but they had committed all their kayaks. When I mentioned that
I had my own boat…bingo! She said I could not be a part of their group but
could tag along behind. Butch and I hurried back to the registration office to
get a permit and for me to sign a waiver. Then they even sent someone to open
the gate for us so that we could access the beach.

It was absolutely phenomenal! Butch walked along the cliffs
to the various overlooks and took photos of me, but the best part was deep in
the formations. There were arches and tunnels and mysterious shapes and the
sound of the surf echoing into the caves. 
And I was all alone with all that wonder. There are no words to express
the depth of my gratitude.

I should mention that the kayak outfitters were very good.
Their safety boater paddled over to me immediately and invited me to join them.
I followed along for a while, but they were a slow and clumsy group and I soon
wandered off on my own.

We crossed back into the USA on Wednesday afternoon and are
now at Sunset Point Campground in Herrington, Maine. We have stayed here before
and it is a favorite of ours. The owner steams lobsters in the afternoon and
brings them to your campsite if you order in time. I hope neither of us
develops a lobster allergy as we eat it almost every day. Wild blueberries are
in season and we stopped in NB and bought a 5 lb. box, two bottles of Blueberry
Wine, and a pie.  Life is good.