The Cabot Trail circles northern Cape Breton Island, passing through highlands and forests sprinkled with wildflowers, as well as tiny Scottish and French villages. We recommend that you explore as much as you can of this beautiful part of Canada. The highlight of the trail is Cape Breton Highlands National Park on the northern part of the island, with its rocky shoreline overlooking the Gulf of St. Lawrence. One park entrance is at Ingonish Beach, about a two-hour drive north of Sydney. Along the Cabot Trail in the national park, you'll see many places to pull your car over and admire the view. The lookout at Big Intervale is breathtaking. The eastern side of the park, closest to Sydney, has the most spectacular scenery, and the western part is best for hiking—there are trails to waterfalls and overlooks. If you take one of the 27 hiking paths, keep an eye out for moose, red fox, mink, snowshoe hares and bald eagles. You can buy audio guides of the park for about Can$14 at the visitors centers in Ingonish Beach and Cheticamp. There is a Buddhist retreat near Cape North called Gampo Abbey, where novices can spend a week of silent vacation rising before dawn to assist with farm chores.
Keltic Lodge Signature Resort is a pleasant stop along the eastern side of the Cabot Trail at Ingonish Beach. This luxury resort, owned by the province of Nova Scotia, offers outstanding views, and you can have lunch in one of the two dining rooms. If you continue north on the Cabot Trail and then west from Ingonish Beach, you'll enter the Grande Anse Valley. Watch for signs for the Lone Shieling, a replica of a Scottish crofter's home that's set in a hardwood forest near a stream.
If you stay on the Cabot Trail as it winds southward, you'll enter Acadian country. Just before you reach Cheticamp (pronounced shet-UH-camp), you'll find a gallery filled with richly colored historical tapestries at Les Trois Pignons (The Three Gables). Local artist Elizabeth LeFort, whose work has hung in the Vatican, Buckingham Palace and the U.S. White House, created the tapestries.
The national park ends at Cheticamp, but the Cabot Trail continues south. At the Acadian Museum in Cheticamp, you can see spinning, weaving and rug-hooking demonstrations, and if you're interested in Acadian rugs, check out the craft store upstairs.
South of Cheticamp near Cap Le Moine is Joe's Scarecrows. About 40 or 50 wildly dressed scarecrows—ranging from clowns to Canadian prime ministers—reside in a field beside the highway. Joe Delaney began making the scarecrows around 1986 in homage to the Acadian celebration La Mi-Careme. Years ago, when Acadians decided they wanted a respite from the hardships of Lent, they disguised themselves and went from house to house, where they were greeted by wild music and dance. The scarecrows represent the costumed Acadians. Some Acadians still celebrate this holiday about halfway through Lent. Joe Delaney has since died, but his family continues to make and display the scarecrows. A small cafe and gift shop are adjacent to the scarecrow assemblage.
Instead of touring the national park, you could drive to the Gaelic College of Celtic Arts and Crafts in the village of St. Ann's, about 45 minutes northwest of Sydney. (The college is on the Cabot Trail but not in the national park.) This is the only academic institution in North America offering a full curriculum in Gaelic. The Great Hall of the Clans there recounts the history of Scotland and the island's Scottish settlers.
A short detour off the Cabot Trail to Englishtown (near St. Ann's) will take you to the Giant MacAskill Museum. It contains artifacts belonging to Cape Bretoner Angus MacAskill—all 7 ft 9 in/236 cm of him—who worked in P.T. Barnum's circus. (He could hold Tom Thumb in the palm of his hand.) His outsized chair, bed and clothing all remain on display. MacAskill died in 1863 and is buried nearby in the Englishtown cemetery. For more information, call the museum at 902-929-2106.
