1971 Oldmobile Cutlass
Flickr Slideshow (click <24>) or Flickr Album
Atlantic Canada - July-August 2018
Our first trip to the east coast of Canada revealed a couple of truths. One, that we should not have waited so long to come here. Second, that we should come back as soon as possible! Or more likely just stayed there for awhile longer. Such is the fatal attraction of Canadian rock along the Atlantic Ocean's natural and rugged beauty.
1963 Lincoln Continental
It is technically possible (but not recommended) to drive in 4 of Canada's 10 provinces in the same day. OK, so that involves at least 5 one hour ferry and bridges as long as 13 kilometers, but you can do it. The borders of New Brunswick, Prince Edward Island, Nova Scotia, and Newfoundland and Labrador (counts as one) come together in a beautiful corner of the globe.
Best to find a little more time than that though - the size and distances of the land are deceiving.
1965 Pontiac GTO
Officially on a real vacation, we did keep our eyes peeled for old automobiles. No vacation from that is possible, so we did notice there was not a lot of old cars per capita - and there's not a lot of people here comparatively. Living near salt water does not help cars live a long life - corrosion kills.
Add (or subtract) a slimmer economy, high costs of local labor, parts and fuel expenses, and your old car can be a liability if you aren't totally into the classic car game. As very few local cars survive the weather, perfect automobiles tend to "come from away" - from the less-salty western Canadian prairies or southern US states.
1959 Cadillac Coupe de Ville at Car Life Museum PEI Canada
While we did not go looking for auto museums, we couldn't miss a large one right off the bridge into PEI - the 10,000 square feet of Car Life Museum in Bonshaw Prince Edward Island. Why Eddie got a whole island named after him we aren't sure, but the some of 150,000 inhabitants take care of their old cars and tractors nicely in his honor.
Fisher Boat Tribute
The most interesting part of these parts is the people - among the friendliest you have met in your life. It seems no one here is too rushed to talk, too self absorbed to ignore anyone else, or too distracted by the trappings of progressive life. Everyone says hi, and folks you just met at the pub want you to come to their place for dinner or to go fishing.
The inter-human barriers we put up to fend off such offenses quickly drop. It's not so bad to stop, look and listen once in a lifetime...
by Randy Berg
