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Nova Scotia Week Bonus: Kayaking Lobster Bay with Lobster Bake at Argyler Lodge

 

My last day in Nova Scotia was downright dreamy. Clouds and the early morning mist were swept away by blue skies by the time I arrived at the 6-bedroom Argyler Lodge. What a glorious locale! A mere 25 minute drive from where the Nova Star ferry arrives in Nova Scotia at Yarmouth, the Argyler sits on the shores of the vast Lobster Bay with spectacular views of the sea and islands. My sea kayaking guide, Matt Delong, soon arrived with two kayaks for us to explore the wide open water. Matt spent 5 years paddling in BC before returning back to his native Nova Scotia to take the fortunate few to treasured spots like this one. We spent the next three hours paddling a loop around the numerous islands—Nanny, Camp, Birch, Bonds, Potato, Gordons—viewing ospreys in their nest, a loon plunging into the water, and cormorants drying their wings on their rocks. The most spectacular part of the whole adventure was the fact that there was not one boat in this mammoth-sized bay. Not even another kayaker. Lobster fishermen finish the season in late May so their traps and boats were long gone. 

 
3 hours later, we returned to shore where Chef Jonathan was already busy boiling water over an open fire for our night’s lobster bake. A picnic table was set for my sister and I, Luckett’s L’acadie Blanc on ice. Jonathan soon dumped everything into the pot including corn, potatoes, clams, mussels, and lobsters. The sun set behinds Gordons Island as we roasted marshmallows for our s’mores. Then the bright night sky lit up with stars. A perfect ending to a perfect week of travel around Nova Scotia. 
 

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Climb Mount Monadnock

Climbing the broad-shouldered peak Henry David Thoreau called a “sublime mass,” Mt. Monadnock, is a rite of passage for many New England children. Just over the border of Massachusetts in southern New Hampshire, Monadnock is less than a two-hour drive from Boston. Its accessibility and locale, smack dab in the center of New England, has made it one of the two most popular mountain ascents in the world going toe-to-toe with Japan’s Mount Fuji. 

 
Early May, when the black flies have yet to arrive, is the ideal time to bag this 3,165-foot peak. Head up the White Dot trail, one of the steepest ascents, but also one that rewards with you with incredible vistas in a very short time. Above treeline, the forest recedes to form open ledges covered with low-lying shrubs like mountain cranberry bushes. This gives you ample opportunity to rest and peer down at the soft blanket of treetops, small towns with their requisite white steeples, a smattering of lakes and ponds, and farms that fan out to anonymous ridges. Soon you’ll reach the summit, where Thoreau watched in dismay as his fellow mid-19th century trampers inscribed their names in rock. You can still spot names like “T.S. Spaulding, 1853” clearly etched in the stone. 
 
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Stella Retrospective At the Whitney

I finally made it to the new Whitney Museum of American Art in Manhattan over Christmas break. The new building is located on Gansevoort Street, just off 14th street on the western edge of the island. The day was unseasonably warm when we went, so we took full advantage of the outdoor balconies to stare at the view of the Hudson River down to the Statue of Liberty. From the outside, the Whitney looks small. Once you walk in, however, and peer at the oversized works of sculptor and artist Frank Stella do you understand the immense length of the new building. Very few art museums could put on a retrospective of Stella because one sculpture can take over an entire room. The Whitney does an impressive job of showcasing his works. See the show before it leaves on February 7th and then take a walk on the nearby High Line, the popular 1.5-mile linear park, built from the dilapidated ruins of an elevated railway. It has completely reenergized this once overlooked part of the city. 

 
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Fantasy Islands Week: Rangiroa, French Polynesia

It’s cold, gray—the best time to put on a bathing suit and commune with fish.

Here are five of the world’s best places to do it.
 
Ah winter, that magical time of year that compels hordes of otherwise well-adjusted folks to shop for bathing suits and sarongs, jet to far-flung isles, don masks, fins, even oxygen tanks, all to hang with the fishies. Nothing chases away garden-variety seasonal disorders like getting up close and personal with some colorful creatures. Deluxe resorts are rolling out their (waterproof) red carpets to divers these days. Better yet, many resorts have gotten wise to the fact that divers do not live on plankton alone. We also crave some activity where the air comes free. With that in mind, we’ve selected five of the world’s top diving spots this week. Ones that also offer great above-water activities, from trekking in Mayan ruins to sea kayaking along secluded beaches to kicking the coconut shells. 
 
First stop, Rangiroa, French Polynesia. When Requin! Requin! (French for Shark! Shark!) is shouted in these waters, swimmers do not speed to shore fearing for their lives. The snorkelers and divers who come to this oval-shaped coral atoll stay in the water for a face-to-face encounter. Grey reef, black-tipped, and hammerhead sharks peer at divers in Tiputa Pass, a channel that connects the island’s lagoon with the open sea.  The perfect place to recover after your adventure with Jaws is Kia Ora Village, Rangiroa’s premiere hotel. Stay in one of the overwater bungalows along the lagoon. Or if you’re looking for a bit more seclusion, retreat to Kia Ora Sauvage, a private island about an hour’s boat ride away. The island has just five basic bungalows and two cooks, who prepare all the meals. That’s what we call getting away from it all.  
 
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Stop and Smell the Rugosas

I love stumbling upon an unexpected gem in a small community. The first time I entered the Clark Art Museum in Williamstown, Massachusetts, I was blown away by their collection of Impressionism, with impressive works by Monet, Manet, Degas, Renoir, Cezanne, and a room devoted to American master Winslow Homer. I felt this same way in early July when I entered St. Andrews, New Brunswick, a seaside village of 1800 people and entered the Kingsbrae Gardens. Wave after wave of color greeted me from the bed of perennials, planted like an artist’s palette. Hummingbirds flew under the tall chestnut trees, water lilies dotted the fountains, and everywhere you looked, there was some whimsical sculpture or children’s playhouse nestled within the 27-acre grounds. My favorite section was the Scent and Sensitivity Garden, where you can smell the tangy lemon-scented geranium or the tropical pineapple sage (that really does smell like a pineapple) or touch the velvety soft leaves of lamb’s ear. On the way out, I bent down and took a big whiff of the sweet-smelling rugosas. For a moment, everything was bliss.

(Photo by Lisa Leavitt)
 

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Stay in a Treehouse in Ohio’s Amish Country

Drive about 90 minutes northeast of Columbus or 90 minutes southwest of Cleveland and you’ll reach Glenmont, Ohio, the heart of Ohio’s Amish Country. This is where you’ll find The Mohicans, best known as the country’s largest treehouse village. They offer 6 treehouses, 2 of which were designed by Pete Nelson, the star of the Discovery Channel’s series, “Treehouse Masters.” Moonlit Treasure looks the best to me, but all are impressive. Nestled in the woods, this is a place to relax, walk the paths, and then dine on tasty farm-to-table cuisine. It’s perfect for families looking at colleges in Ohio. 

 
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Enjoying Winter, Whatever Weather Comes My Way

Ole Punxsutawney Phil crawled out of his Gobbler’s Knob hole and delivered his annual Groundhog Day weather forecast yesterday. He saw his shadow and thus we’ll have six more weeks of winter. With skunk cabbages and dandelions already sprouting in Boston during 60-degree days this week, I’m wondering what type of winter is that groundhog talking about. Certainly not the winter weather the Farmers’ Almanac predicted back in August, “a season of unusually cold and stormy weather.” I happen to like the occasional snowfall in winter, the reason why I live in New England. Still the warm climes won’t deter me from skiing at Stowe this weekend, which received over 15 inches of snow this past week. Have a great weekend, and whether you hike, walk, ski, snowshoe or jog, get outdoors and keep active!

 

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