Saltscapes Hits the Road this Summer

The Gourlays — Thu, 15 Mar 2012 15:34:33 +0100

The experience of creating something from nothing is infinitely satisfying—albeit more than a little challenging by times. The genesis of this magazine was nothing more than a conversation that manifested into an idea and then a business plan.

The Saltscapes Expo was a little different. We were strenuously urged by a fellow magazine publisher to expand the brand into a consumer show. That was tough sleddin’ too for the first couple of years, but has become highly popular as people cel...

Join the club

Kevin Brown — Fri, 17 Feb 2012 13:10:56 +0100

Experience is the best teacher when it comes to photography. Whether you have been taking pictures for years or you just bought a new camera and don't have a clue how to use it, joining a photography club is a wise move. I joined the Sackville, NS, photography club to help me feel more at ease taking photos, to learn more about my new Canon G12 camera and to share my passion with like-minded people.

The club has about 160 members who have a wide variety of experience-from beginners to...

Bravo, Alain!

Angela Mombourquette — Fri, 02 Dec 2011 14:21:30 +0100

Saltscapes' food editor wins first-ever Culinary Ambassador of the Year award.

The Taste of Nova Scotia Prestige Awards were handed out last week during the Annual Tourism Summit in Halifax. (Taste of Nova Scotia is a province-wide marketing program, whose members have met and are committed to maintaining the program's quality standards for food, service and hospitality.)

We are pleased to say that Saltscapes' food editor, Alain Bossé (aka the Kilted Chef), won the inaugural...

World Famous Snowblower

Angela Mombourquette — Fri, 02 Dec 2011 14:11:52 +0100

Saltscapes contributor Alec Bruce steps up to buy the snowblower that wowed the world

By now, you've probably heard about the cleverly worded snowblower ad on the online classified site, Kijiji. The ad, which you can read here was written by a Moncton man, Weh-Ming Cho.

So far, the original ad has been seen by more th...

Winners all round

Heather White — Fri, 18 Nov 2011 15:43:11 +0100

This has been a banner time for awards! Faith Drinnan, our defacto circulation director at the Oyster Group, received a Women of Excellence award on November 16 at the World Trade and Convention Centre, in Halifax. The annual event is organized by the Canadian Progress Club as a fundraiser primarily for Phoenix Youth Programs (Phoenix is a non-profit organization that provides shelter and resources for homeless and at-risk youth). More than 600 people were at the $150/plate dinner to celebrat...

A Peek Behind the Scenes

Angela Mombourquette — Fri, 07 Oct 2011 16:52:17 +0100

Saltscapes' food editor, Alain Bossé, took a few moments from a photo shoot at his house for the November/December issue to snap these candid behind-the scenes shots. That's our handsome staff photographer, Perry Jackson, hard at work, capturing mouth-watering images of the Sweet Chili Meatballs you'll find the recipe for in our upcoming issue.

Saltscapes Road Trip Day 24

The Gourlays — Fri, 26 Aug 2011 13:01:01 +0100

Today dawned a beautiful sunny morning after a rainy and windy evening and overnight at the Stonehame Chalets in Pictou County NS. From a vantage point of 800 feet, the view from this location, especially on such a morning, is simply outstanding. A great swath of Pictou County, including Pictou Island, is visible with PEI off in the distance.

We left the main highway at Masstown for a Fundy Shore visit to Parrsboro and environs. It has been a while. We had, perhaps, forgotten just how ...

Saltscapes Road Trip Day 22

The Gourlays — Thu, 25 Aug 2011 03:00:00 +0100

This was to be a long day.

We left Margaree Harbour on a gorgeous morning (Lord knows we deserved it) for a scenic drive across western Cape Breton Island, up along Lake Ainslie and down to the western end of Bras d'Or through the Isle Madame area where French replaces gaelic on bilingual road signs. This was a new experience for us both: very pleasant communities.

We had the usual wait at the causeway (where 100 vehicles line up to allow two boats to pass) and t...

Saltscapes Road Trip Day 21

The Gourlays — Wed, 24 Aug 2011 17:25:59 +0100

Still in sunny Cape Breton thus morning: fingers crossed.

Departed Ben Eoin Campground after a great breakfast on the deck overlooking the mirror flat Bras d'Or Lakes; pretty magical.

And, of course we visited the Cape Breton Farmers Market in Sydney. It so great to purchase products direct from the source (we are fortunate to have dozens of farmers markets across this region from our local tiny one in the Stewiacke Valley to the large and impressive Fredericton location). We f...

Saltscapes Road Trip Day 20

The Gourlays — Wed, 24 Aug 2011 12:25:59 +0100

The MV Atlantic Vision docked in North Sydney right on time on a beautiful morning with an encouraging weather forecast (that we surely deserved after four and a half days of sunshine in 19 on the road).

Moving dogs and kennels and personal on-board items down seven decks was a bit if a chore, but the crew were very helpful - and the dogs noticeably thankful after 15 hours penned up.

We circled down to Louisbourg, curious about the origin of visitors to the fortress this ye...

Road Trip Day 19

The Gourlays — Mon, 22 Aug 2011 18:48:08 +0100

What an amazing and spectacular drive we had today. The day dawned clear, but a fairly hefty wind came up early and strengthened during the day. That meant as we toured the absolutely rugged coastline of the Bonavista Peninsula that some major surf was pounding rocks everywhere with spray flying into the air. It was quite something.

We had to slow for our second moose of the trip - a young bull who didn't seem in any particular hurry to get across the highway. It was a long, straight st...

Road Trip Day 18

The Gourlays — Mon, 22 Aug 2011 18:31:10 +0100

Departed Gander Bay for the short drive to Gander this morning (watching for moose and taking our time). Enjoyed a hearty brunch at the good old Albatross Hotel where unique menu offerings include toutons and molasses, poached kippers and real salt codcakes.

From Gander we headed east toward the renowned Bonavista Peninsula - but the rain got worse and worse, so heavy we were down below 50 kms an hour at times. Our plan was to capture images throughout the Discovery Trail and v...

Road Trip Day 15 & 16

The Gourlays — Mon, 15 Aug 2011 03:00:00 +0100

A bit of a lay-up is planned for the next day and a half.

We hit Gander Bay in late morning and Jim was assembling fly fishing gear as soon as his feet hit terra firma. As regular fishing visitors to the Gander, we have friends in the community who are employed by the lodge we usually visit, so it was a bit of old home week camped there overlooking the river estuary.

The gorgeous weather we were enjoying is, of course, not welcomed by salmon fishermen (a perverse breed cons...

Road Trip Day 14

The Gourlays — Sun, 14 Aug 2011 03:00:00 +0100

Back on the trans-Canada early this morning heading east, then a secondary road northeast through Lewisporte and Baytona (that's right, no typo) toward the Fogo Island ferry. We found more super-fresh local seafood - another huge feed of crab from Treats from the Sea for dinner later, and some crab and lobster sandwiches from Chelsea's takeout - a simple little place by the side of the highway featuring sit down tables with umbrellas - and a million dollar view.

(There's no big secret...

Saltscapes Road Trip Day 13

The Gourlays — Sun, 14 Aug 2011 03:00:00 +0100

Steady Brook, just north of Corner Brook, is only 30 scenic minutes or so from Deer Lake, which is really the gateway to Gros Morne National Park and the Great Northern Peninsula. This is unquestionably Newfoundland's most popular and best-known tourism attribute, and we can never resist, but our focus on this trip is on the less iconic places off the beaten track.

So by afternoon we were heading across the island for the north coast.

The key visual impression greeting the firs...

Saltscapes Road Trip Day 12

The Gourlays — Fri, 12 Aug 2011 03:00:00 +0100

Ah, the Rock! We were up at dawn (what's new?) but Bob Shortt beat us to it and was outside the RV catering to his two newly-arrived Lab puppies and grinning like a new father.
The Margaree Valley is a spectacular place to wake up, and a tough place to leave - but we had a ferry to catch.

Marine Atlantic's new MV Highlanders are an impressive vessel. We had a great crossing - left North Sydney smack on time and had pretty plain sailing across the gulf. The crew were just great -...

Saltscapes Road Trip Day 11

The Gourlays — Thu, 11 Aug 2011 13:24:00 +0100

Day 11 and, except for traveling, the closest thing we've had to date to a day off so far. Besides navigating the back roads of two provinces in a cumbersome vehicle, tending to the needs of a pack of puppies, meeting with as many folks as humanly possible - we have been electronically tending to business back at the office where a very competent staff have been putting two magazines out simultaneously. We've been literally falling into bed for the few hours of sleep the pups allowed us.

...

Saltscapes Road Trip Day 10

The Gourlays — Wed, 10 Aug 2011 11:26:07 +0100

Awoke in Augustine Cove to heavy rain and wind (record-breaking rainfall was reported for some parts of the Island). It goes without saying the weather is taking the edge off the RV camping experience.

The good news is that, for some reason, the green and lush PEI countryside is just as endearing without sunshine - an interesting phenomenon - but the beaches are pretty much deserted as vacationers seek out indoor activities.

After a welcome (indoor) shower, we continue...

Saltscapes Road Trip Day 9

The Gourlays — Tue, 09 Aug 2011 14:15:33 +0100

Sunday was a sunny day too. We started the day with a ton of puppy laundry and a thorough sprucing up of the RV prior to crossing the bridge to PEI.

We made many unexpected discoveries in our week long visit to NB and know there are dozens more untouched "finds". This process of playing tourist in our own region and seeing things anew in that context has been very enlightening so far. Our overall impression has been very positive. We travel a fair bit ourselves, ...

Saltscapes Road Trip Day 8

The Gourlays — Tue, 09 Aug 2011 14:12:52 +0100

Hooray - rose to sunshine today and loads of prep for our friends' wedding festivities in the afternoon. Graeme Bancroft and Mel Jellett are young organic farmers living on a 90-acre property in Murray Corner, NB, in just a lovely setting.

Linda made a commitment on behalf of herself and Katharine to prepare salad (with only locally-sourced ...

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