Rocky; Bullwinkle

Yeah, that was the most appropriate title for yesterday's post, only I didn't want to give away the punchline about seeing a moose.

But I couldn't resist using it today because –– cute, right?

Rocky does seem to have been the theme for me this week, though. Rough rocks, smooth rocks, jagged rocks, fossil rocks, rocky cliffs and coastlines. They're everywhere, and they engage me in a way that I wouldn't have expected. 

Here are some rocks from today:

The image here doesn't do justice to the colors in these rocks on the eastern coast of Cape Breton.

Wider shot of those rocks.

The day started out with a forecast of rain, so we amended plans to hike in the park again and decided to drive to a remote location we'd heard and read about. Plus it had an irresistible name.

Meat Cove. 

And though it's no Baffin Island, it's pretty remote. You don't get here by accident. You have to drive WAY out of your way, including the last five or so miles over unpaved road. There are people living along this road––a house here, a trailer there, everything very far apart –– and you wonder how anybody ends up living here. I have to think it's because this is where they were born. 

And then you arrive at Meat Cove, which has a campground, a little "restaurant" (photo evidence, below), a trailhead, and fantastic scenery.

The rain was still holding off, so we took a hike. It was billed to us as an easy 20-minute walk up to a grassy knoll. 

Not SO easy, for the likes of me; fairly steep and muddy. 

But I did it. 

View from the top.  

And I got down, too!

Our reward was lunch at Meat Cove's one and only eating establishment. 

Excellent lobster roll.

This little fellow was waiting for his owner outside.

Here's the rest of the day in façades. Happy weekend, everyone!

At first, we didn't realize we needed goat milk soap. But we did.

Mid-afternoon stop on our drive to our next location. I loved this coffee shop. I want to live here and write a novel in this coffee shop. I don't know who those people are, but they are all going to be characters in the novel I write in this coffee shop.

Here's where we're staying tonight, in Louisbourg, still on Cape Breton Island. It's very charming, with a very friendly innkeeper who cheerfully printed out copies of the Friday New York Times crossword puzzle for us. 

And here's where we had dinner tonight. My TC had the "best mussels he ever had" and I had a comforting and tasty seafood chowder. Not a drop of ambience, but a sweet waitress and delicious food.