Gaffs, Secrets and History in Lunenburg Region of Nova Scotia

Cliffs on Gaff Point in Lunenburg Region

As we work our way closer towards Halifax, Nova Scotia we time-warp into villages ozing pastel colors, pirate folklore and fishing and boat building histories.

First there were the pastel buildings of Mahone Bay, Nova Scotia (previous blog). There were art galleries, outdoor patios, gift shops, antiques, bakery, B&Bs, marina and all the other fixins required for a good community walk-about.

The sidewalks were potted with flowering plants camouflaged in with the pastel colors of the buildings. Flags clung to buildings waving hello in the wind. And around the harbour were sitting benches leaning over the blue waves of the ocean bay… which by the way… reminded me of a large bathtub full of toy sailboats fighting for elbow room.

Lunenburg Village of Pastels

The hunt for pastel landscapes continued with our next visit to the historic community of Lunenburg, Nova Scotia. Built on a hill, butting up against an ocean bay, the streets of Lunenburg were decorated in pastel glory. Almost every building on main street and down side streets were blushing pastels and looking historic. The oldest building in Lunenburg (Altestes Haus) dates back to the 1760s. Old by Canadian standards.

On the waterfront, the pastels gave way to wooden fishing shacks, boat construction domes, dory boats, sailboats, piers and wharves. Lunenburg is the home of some pretty impressive heritage sailboats like the Bluenose II and the Picton Castle. On this trip the Bluenose was under construction but the Picton was out showing off its history.

South of Lunenburg is a small fishing village called Blue Rocks located on the tip of a peninsula. We were told the rocks were blue in hue. It was a change from the pastel colors of the coastline villages. It was something new. On arrival we were a bit disappointed in the rocks.. not that they had anything to do with the information we received… but it was a long stretch to say they were blue. However, the fishing village was a photographers dream… shacks on stilts, rocky cliffs, boats in coves and kayakers setting out on an adventure exploring the hundreds of islands in Mahone Bay.

On the other side of Lunenburg Harbour is another peninsula stretching south with more adventure and sightseeing destinations. We visited the shallow wet sand beach called the Sand Dollar Beach… but with no sand dollars? We took a drive out to the Ovens Natural Park and poked around. And then we got lost…ug.

Hiking on Hirtles Beach

All the tourism literature pushes us to visit Hirtles Beach and the Gaff Point Trail near Kingsburg, Nova Scotia. One problem though… none of the information tells us directions on how to reach the adventures nor could the tourism information centres that we visited give us good directions. Road signs were inconsistent or they were too small to see with overgrown bushes eating them up. We found that very odd to market an attraction but do not tell them how to get there… new type of marketing gimmick I guess.

After a wrong turn here and a missed sign there we arrived at Hirtles Beach. And… good news… it was also the trailhead for the Gaff Point Trail. Another important point that was never explained to us from the literature. So… in our eyes… we lucked out by bumping into both of the destinations in one spot. \

Hirtles Beach is a peach of a beach. It measures almost two kilometres of sandy shore. The east end of the beach is protected by the towering cliffs of Zinck Point. The west end of the beach is the start of the Gaff Point Trail. There is no sign welcoming you to Hirtles Beach. In fact the only sign is an 8 inch by 1 foot sign located at the beginning of the boardwalk trail leading to the beach. We had to get out of the vehicle to make sure we had the right spot.

Shale Cliffs on Gaff Point Trail

Gaff Point Trail was the highlight of the day. It is funny how karma works… after all the trials and tribulations the last item on the list was the prize. From the Hirtles Beach parking lot there is a trail map. We digested it and set out on the hike. The beginning part of the Gaff Point Trail involves hiking 1.5 kilometres along the sandy shores of Hirtles Beach. Timing the beach at low tide is well worth the effort as the beach landscape, the views and the slapping of the waves provide good company.

At the end of the beach is an information sign peeking out from the forest entrance to the trail. Up we went following a double wide path through a forest. Tree roots exposed for the odd high stepping but otherwise easy going. The forest trail opens up on a cliff. This is where things get good. The trail follows the cliffs providing amazing views of Hirtles Beach, bronze cliffs and Zinck Point. As we approached the point the shoreline exposes its jagged shale rocks which are obviously tormented by winter storms.

The waves crashed the shores spitting white water into the air. As the waves pulled back the white water sparkled like a fresh coat of paint. Around the bend the trail leads out onto a long rocky outcropping with some Inukshuks left behind from previous hikers. We were at Gaff Point. We sat down among the Inukshuks and had a lunch. Not much was said as the views did all the talking. Soon later we suited up and continued along the loop trail back to the Hirtles Beach walk.

Climbing out of Secret Beach Cove

On the way back some locals pointed out another trail which leads to a private cove, caves and sandy beach. It sounded like way to much fun to pass up so we side-tracked to what is called Secret Cove. After a short hike we came to a rope which led us down some cliffs dropping us into the cove. It was a great find for views, cliffs and crashing waves. Probably best to visit at low tide. We did not stick around for high tide as the beach is most likely engulfed in crashing waves.

The day was a great success. We enjoyed the hot sun and the beauty of Nova Scotia.