Three Weeks in May

From North Carolina to Newfoundland

I left home after lunch on May 1, 2025 and camped at a Cracker Barrel Restaurant near Bristol TN/VA. US 219 took me 2 1/2 days from there, by way of Katy’s Cafe, to Buffalo and Niagara, NY.

Photo by Tom T Traywick

I had never visited Niagara Falls. I was surprised that it is located downtown. I drove many blocks on city streets to get to the entrance to the park. You must carefully frame your photos if you do not want to include a skyline of skyscrapers. The forces of nature at work there are impressive none the less.

I drove and camped along the south shore of Lake Ontario in New York and then along the South shore of the Saint Lawrence River in Quebec out to Cape Gaspe. Tanne and I had planned this same trip from Quebec City out and around Gaspesie in September 1981 but aborted at Riviere du Loup, QC, because of weather, and turned for home through New Brunswick. This time I stayed the course through the same type of weather — heavy rain, wind, and fog obscuring the view — and followed the rugged coast around to the south along the shore of the Gulf of St Lawrence to New Brunswick and Prince Edward Island.

May 12th and 13th I camped at a milking goat farm, Island Hill Farm, in the center of Prince Edward Island. I drove around the eastern half of the island and it looked like farm country anywhere in the US, with red dirt like my home place. They were tilling and fertilizing and getting ready to plant potatoes I was told.

Photos by Tom T Traywick

My pen mates there were 4 Scottish Highland heifers. I hung out with them and got in two good hikes before heading back over the bridge to make the 320 mile run to the Cabot Trail Campground near Baddeck on Cape Breton Island, Nova Scotia.

While on Cape Breton Island I checked in on my old haunts — for beer and seafood chowder. It was too early in the season for the music scene. I tended to house keeping and rest and recuperation and planning of the next several weeks of travel on this personal Iceberg Tour, before heading to North Sidney for the 7 hour ferry crossing of the Cabot Strait to Newfoundland. I had spent three weeks meandering from my home in the southern mountains just following my nose and making it up on the go

On May 20th I sailed from North Sidney, Nova Scotia, to Channel Port aux Basques, Newfoundland. I camped that night, near the ferry, in an official boon docking parking lot at Red Rock, Newfoundland.

On to Fogo.