Oh Canada! A Travel Tribute to Our Home and Native Land

With our wings clipped this past year, travel memories have taken on an even greater importance. I’m exceedingly grateful for all those pinch-me-I-must-be-dreaming moments that travel has blessed me with over the years.

In honour of Canada Day, I’d like to share with you six places in Canada that hold a special place in my heart. I’ve deliberately left out some of the more popular destinations. Of course, Vancouver is beautiful with its ocean and mountain views. Magnifique describes Montreal and Quebec City, known for their French flavours, festivals and combination of old world and modern ambience.  Banff and Jasper national parks in the Rockies are wilderness wonderlands as are the rugged lakes and forests of Northern Ontario.

All wonderful places to visit, but if you wander off the beaten track a little, you’ll be rewarded with beauty without crowds and a chance to discover a little more about the place we call home.

Trinity, Newfoundland

Our son was six months old when we visited Newfoundland, Canada’s easternmost province and incidentally the last to join confederation in 1949.  Carrying him in a backpack (now at 6’1”, he could almost carry me), we hiked the trails near the fishing village of Trinity. Though high season, there was hardly a soul on the towering cliffs that hugged the coast and looked out onto the Atlantic. We spotted whales in the water; and when we stopped to watch them, an eagle glided in front of us – a truly magical moment. The colourful historic buildings of the town itself looked like they belong in a movie set.

In fact, Trinity has been the location of quite a few films, including the Shipping News, starring Kevin Spacey and Julianna Moore. 

Prince Edward Island

Canada’s smallest province, a 140-mile-long island in the Atlantic, is known for potatoes, red soil and as the home to our most beloved of heroines – Anne Shirley from Lucy Maud Montgomery’s classic children’s book, Anne of Green Gables. As a huge fan of the book, I was worried that PEI couldn’t possibly live up to the idyllic description Montgomery penned; but as soon as we crossed the Confederation Bridge from New Brunswick the island charmed us. Anne was everywhere.  At least her spirit was, which lies in the young girl’s exuberant zest for life and in her ability to wonder at the beauty around her. So we found Anne not only in the Cavendish tourist sites like Green Gables Heritage Place and Avonlea Village, but also when we were biking the Confederation Trail, where every turn revealed new views of the sea or fields edged with wildflowers, and when we were cooking giant clams on the red sands of Boughton Island.

Annapolis Valley, Nova Scotia

Nova Scotia conjures up images of majestic tall ships, lighthouses, and views of craggy cliffs plunging into the Atlantic Ocean. And while you’ll certainly find all that, you may also come across some unexpected finds. A rich Acadian history, the world’s highest tides and fine wines were some of the discoveries we made on a visit to Nova Scotia’s Annapolis Valley, a 150 km stretch of fertile land known for its natural beauty and bountiful harvests. 

Don’t miss the Grand Pre National Historic Site, where a commemorative church stands as a memorial to those who were exiled in the 18th century, along with a statue Evangeline, the romantic Acadian heroine who inspired Henry Wordsworth Longfellow’s famous poem.  A stone throw away from the interpretation center is Evangeline Beach, which at low tide offers a panoramic vista of red sand stretching far out to the receded water. This landscape was shaped by the powerful Bay of Fundy tides, which produce the highest tides in the world, reaching up to 54 feet. Every day, approximately 100 billion tons of seawater rush in and out of the bay, more than the flow of all the freshwater rivers of the world combined.  

Saguenay Lac Saint-Jean, Quebec 

C’est Géant is the catchphrase for the Saguenay Lac Saint-Jean region, located 125 miles north of Quebec City. Literally, it means ‘It’s Giant’, but it doesn’t translate well. In French, it encompasses more, referring not only to the vast glacially-sculpted landscapes and the deep fjord edged with 350m-high cliffs, but also the region’s personality.  A strong sense of place exists here, and you can see and feel it in the area’s culture, history and people. Some gigantic adventures and sights to take in include Val-Jalbert Historical Village, one of the best preserved ghost towns in Canada, Fjord-du-Saguenay Park and the Saguenay-St. Lawrence Marine Park. At the latter, you can observe the most famous of the region’s giants –whales. Thirteen species, including the endangered beluga and the blue whale, migrate in summer to feed off the rich krill found where the fresh water of the fjord meets the salt water of the St. Lawrence.

Manitoulin Island, Ontario

Growing up in Northern Ontario, we always referred to Manitoulin simply as ‘the island’.  At over 100 miles long, it’s the largest freshwater island in the world with close to 100 lakes within it. The island has a spirit and light of its own, so much so that I’m hesitant to even write about it in case crowds spoil it. But I’ll make an exception for you. The best way to get to Manitoulin, located along the northern shore of Lake Huron, is via the MS Chi-Cheemaun ferry, which departs from Tobemory on the Bruce Peninsula (yet another gorgeous place to visit). Once on the island, visit Bridal Veil Falls, hike the Cup and Saucer Trail or experience its rich First Nation. culture.

Golden, British Columbia

The small town of Golden, British Columbia, situated in the Columbia Valley between the Rockies to the east and the Columbia Mountains to the west has no less than six national parks within a two-hour drive: Banff, Jasper, Yoho, Kootenay, Glacier and Mount Revelstoke.  After a recent visit filled with hikes, wildlife sightings, friendly people and most of all, the ever-present mountains, it was hard to even think about getting on a plane home. Golden highlights included a visit to Glacier, Canada’s second largest national park and home to the historic Rogers Pass, a route discovered in 1881 through the ‘impenetrable peaks’ that now connects our nation from coast to coast. Kayaking the Columbia Wetlands on water so still it reflected the mountains around us was an unforgettable moment as was the view from the top of Kicking Horse Resort, which is also the location of Eagle’s Eye, Canada’s highest restaurant.

 Lastly, don’t miss Yoho National Park with its natural attractions like Takakkaw Falls, one of the highest waterfalls in western Canada, and Lake O’Hara and Emerald Lake, famed for their shimmering jewel-like colours.