Nova Scotia West Coast Road Trip

A common idea I have heard tell of for years at soccer tournaments, was the fabled Nova Soctia Frenchys Run. What are Frenchys? They are a  chain of used clothing stores that run mainly up through the Valley and back around the South Shore of Nova Scotia. The original one opened in Digby in the year 1972. Also important to note that the original and authentic Frenchys are called "Guy's Frenchys". All the others are knock offs. This year my mother and I decided to do a little road trip around the western half of the province and stopped at some of the Guy's Frenchys along the way.

Day 1

Leaving around 0900 in the morning, we arrived at our first target just before 1000. Our first Frenchys location was in Coldbrook. I am unsure why Frenchys made the change from mostly using bins to having more clothing on racks, but I am so glad they did. Sorting through bins was not fun. Though I found it extremely irritating that they sort the mens clothing into size but the womans shirts and sweaters they do not. I literally have to sort through all the womans clothes. Which sucks when you think you find something you like then realize it's either too big or too small. I did manage to find a nice pair of shorts and we found a couple things for my brother.

Next stop was the Frenchys in Berwick. This was a smaller one which much less selection but I did find a few gems. My mom found this nice white silk long sleeve shirt that I thought would be great whenever I visit a country with hot temperatures and deserts. I also found a nice Ralph Lauren sweater and a Pikachu shirt. I think this was the Frenchys I bought the most from. Amusing since it was probably the smallest. I also noted a Naruto sweater, but it was quite ugly so I did not purchase it.

Next it was time to eat! We stopped at a place in Berwick called The Union Street. It was a very cozy feeling restaurant with antiques lining the walls. I really enjoyed the atmosphere. I enjoyed their pasta while my mom had the fish and chips. Both of us fully enjoyed our meals. Before leaving Berwick we also stopped at a bakery just around the corner from the restaurant called; Apple Valley Pies Plus Outlet. The chocolate chip cookies were absolutely amazing. We love trying cookies from every bakery we can, and this one was definitely one of the better chocolate chip cookies! 

Before our next Frenchys we decided to stop at a independent bookstore; The Inside Story. Not that it's any secret but, I love bookstores and actively seek them out on my adventures. This one in particular had a lovely selection of books and collectibles. There were a lot of really beautiful editions of classics. I really was hoping for a Peter Pan one. They had just about every classic except for Peter Pan (just my luck). I did end up buying Don Quixote. The owner also had her Bernese Mountain Dog with her which was really cute.

Now, onto the Wilmot Frenchys. This was another decently sized one. Though the parking lot was really awkward to get in and out of. It was right by the main road. I found a nice Nike long sleeve for myself that looked like it had never been worn. I also got myself a pair of American Eagle pants. The nice thing about Frenchys is that everything is the same price regardless of brand. My Nike shirt cost me approximately $5 whereas at a place like Value Village it would have been more like $30.

With another hour or so to go, next stop was Bear River to check into our 1800's house. When we got there, the owner showed us around the house, and showed us up to our bedroom with a King sized bed. It had those tight spiral stairs that so many old homes have. She showed us the main dining area downstairs that was designed to look like a ship cabin so the owner of the house originally (who was a Captain) would feel at home. We were then giving a tour outside where the farm was with all the animals. The place itself is called Our Farmacy. They had chickens, pigs, sheep, goats, a cow, and a couple horses. The goats were so cute and there was one that followed us around the grounds. There was also a few short paths that had some nice views of the river. 

Since it was after supper, we headed back to Digby to check out the last Frenchys of the day and to grab something to eat. Though before leaving my mom had left the keys upstairs and the window was open to the car. When trying to open the trunk the car alarm went off. She rushed upstairs to grab the keys. We were both quite embarrassed and hoped the noise didn't bother the animals too much! The Digby Frenchys was the original one and is supposed to be the biggest, and it did have a lot of selection, but I was unable to find anything. My mom didn't either. It was our first one where neither of us had found anything we liked. Afterwards we ended up grabbing some subway before heading back to the house.

Since the weather was absolutely beautiful, we decided to eat outside on the chairs in the yard. We walked around the farm for a little bit, petting some of the animals and enjoying their presence. It is a very relaxing place. We went for a quick walk to check out the river views. The tide was up so the river was at its highest point. It made for some beautiful sights.

We then headed back to our room to relax and read before heading to bed.

Day 2

With an early start and delicious breakfast provided by our gracious hosts we soon said our goodbyes, packed up and made our way towards Tiverton. It took us close to an hour to get there. To get to Tiverton we had to take a ferry from East Ferry, which was pretty cool. The boat was quite small but could fit a decent amount of vehicles. It was only a short 5-10 minute ferry ride before we were off towards the Balancing Rock. 

With no cars in the parking lot, it looked as if we would have the trail to ourselves. The trail was well groomed for the majority and had a few short sections of boardwalk. There were many signs giving descriptions of the trail and plant life seen alongside it. One funny plant that stood out was "skunk cabbage". I had never heard of the plant before. Supposedly it is supposed to have a foul smell, but we could not notice it. Once we saw the first glimpse of ocean we got really excited. It is funny how one can live no more than an hour from the ocean their entire life but still be filled with joy at the sight of it. We then walked down quite a few stairs to get to the viewing platform to see the "balancing rock". It was much larger than photos make it appear to be at 4 feet wide and 20 feet tall.  I suppose it would have to be large from all the hurricanes and storms it's withstood. We spent a good little while taking in the sights and the beautiful day we had to enjoy it.

Then we made our way back down the trail to our car. Said our farewell to Tiverton by crossing the ferry again and started towards Yarmouth. Our first stop was to find somewhere to eat. We located a restaurant called Jack's Family Restaurant and grabbed a slice of pizza each. I got to stop by another bookstore: Lams Used Bookstore. I wasn't able to find anything this time around but it had a large selection. We didn't have much time to see anything else in the town as our next stop was Cape Forchu.

Cape Forchu was really neat to see. They filmed a movie here called The Lighthouse that starred William DaFoe and Robert Pattinson. Though I have yet to watch it. Another cool part was that there was a short trail beside the lighthouse called the Leif Erikson trail. It is called that because they believe the viking explorer Leif Erikson may have actually landed on this shore. Really neat to see this potential viking history. Plus, when I go to Iceland in September I will see the real statue of Leif Erikson and stay in the hotel of his namesake! 

Then we were on the road again. Our next main stop was The Quarterdeck where we booked to stay the night, but before that we took a short detour to Shelburne. Neither of us had been there before. We walked around the water front and into the town. Some kids were jumping off into the water. I'm so used to Halifax where no one would dare jump into the water there. So strange seeing kids jump into water so close to a town. We also stopped by the Frenchys in Shelburne. They did not have any air conditioning so it was very hot walking around. We didn't have much success with this one either. We decided to head back on the road once again.

Finally, after a long day of driving and hiking, we made it to the Quarterdeck. And it did not disappoint. The rooms we had reserved were so nice! The first floor (because we had two floors) had a full kitchen, bathroom, and living room that opened up to ocean views. Upstairs we had the two bedrooms, bathroom, and each bedroom had doors that opened onto the patio which again had spectacular ocean views. This place almost makes it hard to go back to staying in hostels and budget hotels...almost, my recent $177 for four nights in Frankfurt begs to differ. We grabbed a bite to eat from the Quarterdeck restaurant to eat at our rooms before going out to enjoy a late evening stroll along the beach. Which we had almost all to ourselves at this time in the day. We almost wanted to invite my brother and dad down to enjoy this lovely stay, but they had work/plans the next day. We both would love to come back someday! Just don't order their cheesecake. My mom got it and while she thought it was really good, the portion was so small for the expensive price.

The next morning we decided to sleep and and relax in our luxurious rooms. We planned to stay until check out to get our money's worth. We went for another walk along the beach soaking up all that salt air before departing towards home. Along the way we stopped in Bridgewater at the Frenchys and a local bakery. This Frenchys seemed to have the largest selection of all the ones we've been to. My mom found some Levi's and I got myself a Calvin Klein sweater that still had the tag on it. Another successful Frenchys find. We got cookies, macaroons, and  cinnamon buns from the bakery. We also stopped by a cafe called the Barn in Mahone Bay for some coffee and hot chocolate. We took them to go for the journey home. 

My mom and I had a marvelous time exploring the west coast of our beautiful province. It is always fun seeing areas we have never been to before. Even revisiting places we have been is always a joy. We both found a lot of great items at the Frenchys along the way. Perhaps we will do this trip again one day!