Dear ADV riders, I'm planning on taking my 2012 Triumph Tiger 800XC to Nova Scotia at the end of this summer. I'll be leaving Brooklyn on Friday Aug 28. I have to be back in Brooklyn 14 days later - Sunday, September 12. While I once went cross country on a 2006 BMW 650GS, I've never really been off the grid before. Which I would like to do a bit of on this journey. Please flood me with advice! Ride reports. Advice on camping and camp sites. Gear. Tires. Dos. Don'ts. Etc. Etc. Thanks all!
Great trip ... and yes, there is a lot of planning and advice threads already in here so do a bit of looking. My 2 cents: skip the ferry ... you have 14 days so you have tons of time so ride through NB and just keep hugging the shore until you get to NS. Camping is plentiful - though you may want to get reservations early for key campgrounds - like Meat Cove. Provincial Parks are very well sorted and make roughing it really easy. I also think you'll be there through the Wharf Rat Rally in Digby (its late Aug/early Sept IIRC) so lots of riders likely around there at that time.
If you take the ferry one way you save duplicating the same route 2x and can spend the time saved exploring more in NS and NB.
Halifax is pretty awesome Citadel was really cool RPM cycles in Dartmouth if you need anything for the bike
did this last summer, great trip. i took the ferry from portland, partly to save time, but mostly for the experience - going this direction is an overnighter, so you don't lose any riding time. i camped quite a bit and never had a problem w/o reservations. cabot trail was a great ride and meat cove was cool - you might want to get there early in the day or consider reservations. i would also recommend bringing some decent rain gear.
http://canadamotoguide.com/2014/07/22/spring-tour-2014-southern-ns/ That's the story of my trip around the southern coast last year. Highly recommended. I also rode a Beta street-legal enduro through the Highlands in Cape Breton in 2014 and wrote that up in a recent issue of Roadrunner - I highly recommend that trip as well. I live in NB and can give you some intel on roads here, and pretty much all of the Maritimes, really. PM me if you want more.
We rode up through Maine and into New Brunswick to cross over to Nova Scotia. If you time it right Bay of Fundy is a stop you might want to make. When you cross into Nova Scotia Head I would recommend you head to Cape Breton and the Cabot Trail. We found a nice little restaurant called the Manitou Restaurant & Bakery on Main St in PORT HOOD. We enjoyed dinner very much we ended up back there for breakfast in the morning. From Port Hood traveling north on RT 19T make a short side loop on Rte 219 from Dunvegan to Margaree Harbour On a whim we stopped at The Whale Cove Cemetery and the views were fantastic. Another side trip of off RT 19T is to Meat Cove. We camped that night at Hideaway Campground and Oyster Market in South Harbour. In the morning we made our decent from the Highlands via Mackenzie Mountain. We hung close to the shoreline and enjoyed the views and the people. Personally I wouldn't want to do the return trip via New Brunswick. To be honest once you are up on the Plateau It is a fairly boring ride. ( unless you are going off road. I have heard of some wonderful trails up there but I have not ridden any of them. We came back via the Cat out of Yarmouth, NS and landed in Bar Harbor ME The attendants at the pier were great.They had us park where they could keep an eye on our bikes and gear so we could walk around town a little and have lunch at Rudders Seafood and Brew Pub. We made reservations in Bar Harbor at the Robbins Inn for the night and headed up to Cadillac Mountain in Arcadia national Park in the morning.
Check out my ride reports (link below). I've been through Nova Scotia quite a few times -- read the Labrador/Newfoundland RRs as well as the Maritimes one, since all of those trips involved coming back through Cape Breton. Also read the Gaspé/St Lawrence RRs. Because my advice, given the two weeks you have to work with, would be to ride through Nova Scotia and Cape Breton, hit up the Cabot Trail, camp at Meat Cove, and then work your way over to Gaspé and around the peninsula. Then take the ferry from Matane across the St Lawrence to Baie Comeau and ride along the north shore of the St Lawrence. Visit Tadoussac, and ride up Rt 172 to Chicoutimi (awesome road), then down Rt 381 to Baie St Paul (even more awesome road -- trust me, you'll thank me). Then cross the St Lawrence again at Quebec City and work your way homewards via NH and/or Vermont. Lots of great camping along the way, good places to eat, amazing scenery, and fantastic roads. You'll have an amazing trip. --mark
I did this trip (from NJ) this past August. I was solo for 90% of the ride. Feel free to PM me if you need any information.
I've been thinking about doing the same trip around the same time (NJ to NS). We should at least share trip strategy and planning.
I'm planning a post-US Labor Day trip to Nova Scotia from my home in CT. I've been up the coastal Maine route a few times, so I'm planning to travel north into NH and take U.S. 2, then on to Maine Rte 9, the Airline, to Calais/St. Stephens. I was thinking of taking the ferry from St. John NB to Digby NS. From there my route is uncertain, but I will probably return via the Yarmouth NS-Portland ME ferry. I have a few questions that maybe folks could help me with: What is US 2 like--traffic midweek, road conditions, etc. Topography should be beautiful, especially the stretch through NH to Bethel ME. I'll be in no hurry, so any recommendations on sights to see also welcome. St. John-Digby Ferry--are reservations necessary, or can one just show up? Yarmouth-Portland Ferry--How far in advance should I book? I don't want to tie myself to a set schedule too early. I'm riding solo on a KTM 1190 Adv. if that matters. Any help much appreciated.
How much time do you have? You'll have no trouble on route 2 mid-week and the Airline is likely going to be vacant as well. Are you looping the province, if so then the trip back via ferry might make sense - otherwise if you're spending time in the east then getting back to Digby might be a challenge. Again - all depends on how long you have and how aggressive your plan is. The weather should be great ... no bugs and likely a light chill in the air. My favorite time to be there is post Labor Day.
Thanks, Patch. I can take as long as 2 weeks, and I do plan to ride the Cabot Trail. I'm thinking of staying in Baddeck for 2 or 3 nights, and then in no hurry down the eastern shore to Yarmouth. I've done most of this trip by car, so I do know of some places I don't want to miss.