Festival Background

The Annual Stan Rogers Folk Festival (aka, Stan Fest) is held in Canso, NS.  This was the festivals 23rd year.  The festival is in honor of Stan Rogers who was a Canadian singer / songwriter with a commanding baritone voice.  Stan died in his 30’s during an airplane crash.  His friends and family continue to honor him with the annual festival.

The festival starts with a kick-off party on Thursday night and music ends Sunday night, so three and a half days of music.  On Friday, Saturday and Sunday, performances on the main stage start at 7:00 pm.  Prior to the main stage activity, workshops and performances take place starting at 11:00 a.m. and running until 6:00 p.m at one of three smaller stages.  The main stage performances last until mid-night.  Late night music occurs in the Arena (normally an Ice Rink, which is on site) until a little after 1 a.m.  So, you will get a full course of music before the festival is over.

Inside the festival brochure, the concert producer had a short write up about his connection to the festival.  I think he correctly summed up the festival vibe by stating ” This weekend you will experience Canso’s legendary friendship and hospitality, world-class music onstage and at hundreds of campsites, great food, a diverse artisan village, beautiful scenery and so much more.”

My Journey

After leaving Cape Breton, I drove to Canso, established as a fishing village over 400 years ago.  With the decline of fishing, the village has gone through hard times.  It currently has a population of around 500 people.

Before reaching Canso, there were a number of signs posted along the road to attract the attention of those driving to the concert.

One of the signs noted a “spirit” stop for festival beverages. 

I pulled into the Authentic Seacoast establishment and was told that they were not open yet.  Hmm? An hour later, I left having completed a tasting, a tour, and “spirit” purchases.  The gentleman at Authentic Seacoast noted that Stan Fest was notorious for bad weather (rain, fog and cold).  This year the festival organizers had moved the festival date to later in July in hopes of having better weather.

Upon arrival at the festival site, I set up camp.  You can purchase on-site camping as a ticket option.  With everything in place, I pulled out a camp chair and enjoyed a beer.  It was not long before my neighbors asked me to join them at their site for drinks.  What a great group.  The first night it was a brother (Mike) and sister (Alyssa).  The next day, three of their friends arrived. They all grew up in the Cape Brenton area.  Mike and his girlfriend now live in Halifax.  The sister and two friends still live on Cape Brenton.  I really enjoyed their company throughout the festival.

A pic of my neighbors:

A pic of camp site, with Mike and Alyssa camper to the left of the van.

Thursday night, Mike, Alyssa, and I went to the kick-off party in the Arena.  Three bands played and the crowd was feeling festive.  Everyone was dancing and having a great time.  My neighbors headed back early and I left after the music finished.

While walking back to the campsite, there was a lady (Carol) walking in front of me.  She was zig-zagging her way along.  I made a police siren sound and she stopped and turned around.  I told her that I was pulling her over since she could not hold a straight line.  We both had a good laugh. When we arrived at her car (she arrived late and did not set up tent yet), I noticed it had Ohio plates.  Having grown up in Ohio,  we shared a few stories.  More on this later in the blog.

My days were spent cycling in the morning, catching shows / workshops in the afternoon and then the main stage each night.  The weather was great during the whole event and the music was outstanding.

Some pics from the music fest and cycling the area:

The main festival takes place in a valley.  Camping is available in a ridge above the valley or in the valley close to the stages.  Tent camping is in the the valley.  If you have an RV, I recommend staying in the ridge area.  If the weather does turn bad, entry and exit is better above the valley.  Showers are located in the ridge campground.  They are coin operated.  Food and beverages are available in the festival area.

This panorama picture is taken from the ridge and shows the festival layout.

Sewage hook ups are not available.  So an entrepreneurial mind had this idea the morning of the festival close.

I had a great time and highly recommend Stan Fest.

A story – which I will title as The Sailboat:

 

I mentioned above that I “pulled” Carol over the first night of the festival for not holding a straight line.  The next morning before heading out on my bike, I stopped to see how the night went sleeping in her car and to see if she needed help putting her tent up.

When I arrived, she had just finished the tent set up and was transferring camping equipment from her car to the tent.  After helping her finish the transfer, she noted that the night in the car did not go to well and a nap was in order.  However, she recommended that we set up chairs at the main stage while good spots were available.   She had two camp chairs and said I could use one of them, versus going back to my van for one of my chairs.  After placing the chairs, I headed out for a ride and she was nap ready.

That night we met at the chairs and enjoyed the main stage music.  We did the same on night two.   We got to know those sitting next to us during breaks in the music.

The third day, Carol visited my camping area.  I was having drinks with the neighbors.  After introductions,  she joined us for a beverage.  During discussions, she mentioned that she lives in Ohio for 6 months of the year and Belize for the other 6.

She also noted that she met a gentleman earlier in the day who is from Canso.  The gentleman said he has a sailboat and spends time in Canso during good weather and then sails to Belize for the remainder of the year.  Given my bike rides took me by the harbor, she asked me if I had seen any sailboats.  I highlighted that there were 3 really nice sailboats in the harbor.  She then headed out for the day.

That night she did not show up for the main stage seating.  The folks sitting around us asked me what happened to Carol.  I stated “A Sailboat!!”.

 

I will break my Nova Scotia travels into 3 parts.  The first is Cape Brenton Island, the second is a music festival called Stan Fest, and the third is the remainder of my time in Nova Scotia.

The ferry from Prince Edward Island lands near Pictou, NS.  From there, I drove to Antigonish, NS and stayed overnight at the local Walmart.  Antigonish is a small town, rich in Gaelic history nestled in the north eastern part of the province.   It is home to one  of one of Canada`s most prestigious universities, St. Francis Xavier University.

I went into town for dinner at the Townhouse Restaurant. I highly recommend a stop here.  They had “old” wooden tennis rackets hanging on the walls as decorations.  I mentioned to the bar tender that I could add to their collection with rackets still hanging in my garage.

The next morning, I was off to Cape Brenton Island which is located at the northeast corner of Nova Scotia.  Nova Scotia itself stretches east to west with a little tilt.  The tilt puts the eastern end a little higher north than the western end.  While the island is physically separated from the Nova Scotia mainland by the Straight of Canso,  you can drive to the island via the Canso Causeway, a 4,544 ft. long rock-fill with a paved road on top.

Settlement on the island included Native, French, and Scottish / Irish cultures.  The mix of cultures and geographic location formed a community rich in music and tradition.  You can still feel this richness, pretty cool.

The Island is also known for the 185 mile Cabot Trail  and Cape Brenton Highlands.  The Cabot Trail is a scenic highway that completes a loop through the northern part of the island.  It is named after the explorer John Cabot who landed in Atlantic Canada in 1497.  Many cyclist consider the Cabot Trail as a classic / must do ride.  You will want to train before trying.

The western and eastern sections of Cabot Trail follow the rugged coastline, with views of the ocean. The southwestern section passes through the Margaree River valley before passing along Bras d’Or Lake.  The northernmost section of the 185 mile Cabot Trail passes along and through Cape Brenton Highlands National Park.

My first stop on the island was at Judique for a bicycle ride on the Celtic Shores Coastal Trail and to catch music at the Celtic Music Interpretive Center.  The Coastal Trail is 90 miles (one way) of gravel. dirt, and pavement that is set aside for hiking and cycling.  There are 20 entry points (where you can park) along the trail.  I rode the section from Judique to Port Hood Station, approximately a 20 mile round trip.  If you like to cycle, it is worth spending some time on the trail.  Some pics from the ride:

Cape Breton is well known for its traditional fiddle music, which was brought to North America by Scottish immigrant. The traditional style is well preserved in Cape Breton.  Judique is recognized as ‘Baile nam Fonn’, (literally: Village of Tunes) or the ‘Home of Celtic Music’, featuring the Celtic Music Interpretive Centre.

After the bike ride, I cleaned up (in the van) and walked to the Celtic Music Interpretive Centre for a show.

I arrived to the show 20 minutes late, given my cycling.  When inside, all the tables were taken.  One of the smaller tables had an empty chair and I asked a lady if anyone was sitting there.  She (Casey) said no and asked me to join her.  Two musicians were playing, one with a fiddle and one on a keyboard.  The keyboard player also had a little kick board.  They played traditional Gaelic music.  So much fun!!!!!.

In between sets, Casey and I talked.  She grew up on the island and knew a lot about the music and local traditions.  She shared a lot of insight with me.  She noted that music on the island grew in ways different from music elsewhere and that in Cape Brenton that the musicians play to the dancing versus dancers reacting to the musicians.

The initial crowd included locals and tourist.  After a couple hours, most of the tourist had left and the locals started dancing traditional dances.  It was awesome to watch.  The dances looked like square dances with a local twist.   I was asked to join but declined as all the dancers were just too smooth.  I would need a few lessons before trying.

Casey’s daughter was a waitress at the Center.  After I first sat down, she came over to see if we needed anything.  I think it was more to find out more about who was this guy sitting next to her mom.  I had on a flogging Molly t-shirt.  It was one of her daughters favorite bands, so I quickly got the OK.

Casey told me that I should try to catch a show at the Red Shoe Pub at the town of Mabou.  She said they have traditional music most evenings.  She also told me to watch for moose on the road as I drove to Cape Brenton National Park, given it would be around dusk when I was driving.  After the show finished, I met the musicians and then thanked everyone for giving me such a “royal” treatment.  Such a good time.

On my way to the National Park, I passed through Mabou and stopped for a picture of the Red Shoe Pub.  I was not able to catch a show there but will during a future visit.

And sure enough, as I got closer to the National Park, I came around a curve and in the middle of the road there was a mama moose with baby.  By the time I had the camera ready, they were trotting away.

My original plan was to enter the park on the west side, taking in the views and hiking a few trails.  I would then end on the east side and camp four nights at the Broad Cove Campground.

However, with a full day of cycling and music, I arrived at Cape Brenton Highlands National Park near sunset.  At the La Rigoueche Visitor center, I talked with a ranger and she recommended not driving to my campsite on the other side of the park for safety reasons (road and animal).  Even though all campgrounds were full, she found a site for me on the west side for the night and contacted the Broad Cove Campground to let them know I would be a day late.  Mighty nice service!

This worked out well for safety reasons and also let me explore the west side of the park before driving to my campsite on the east side.  My first stop was the Skyline trail.  This is a must do in the park.  I did the trail as a 5 mile loop.  It can also be done as a out and back.  The trail provides a great overlook of the rugged gulf coast.

During the hike, I saw two moose.  Not the best pics but …

I then hiked the Bog and Benjie’s Lake Trails.  One more moose on the Benjie’s Lake Trail.

A great scenic drive to the Broad Cove Campground along the Cabot Trail.

One of my friends asked me to describe the park.  I told him it was like Smokey Mountains National Park (in the US) meets the sea.

I spent 3 days at the Broad Cove Campground.  The weather was drizzle and overcast all 3 days so I spent time at the camp with hikes down to the beach.  I found that many Nova Scotia retirees will book campsites together at the Broad Cove Campground for most of the summer.  Since I had booked my site as soon as allowed, I ended up camped right in the middle of the group.  One gentleman even called himself the mayor.  Fun times swapping stories.

After leaving the park, I spent the morning in Baddeck, checking out the town and also the Alexander Graham Bell National Historic Park.  It was interesting to understand the breadth of his inventions which included hydrofoils and aircraft.  He had a home and research facilities in the area.   

Next stop, Stan Fest in Canso!!!