July 2, 2020. Western Head, Nova Scotia. . Traveling to Nova Scotia.

When we first moved part time to Nova Scotia, we had several options for getting here. We were living in Maryland so one method was to drive. Then we had another choice of either driving all the way through New Brunswick and then on home to our south shore home or take one of the two ferries in Maine. One ferry left Portland and took all night. We liked that ferry. You boarded at 7:00. We would eat dinner in a lovely dining room where we sat by the window to watch the departure and the sea. Next we retreated to our stateroom to read and sleep. First thing in the morning we retreated to our vehicle to debark in Yarmouth. On the 2 hour drive to home we would stop for breakfast. The whole scene was very civilized. But the boat was slow and old. Eventually that ferry stopped their service. For several years, there was a direct flight from Dulles airport to Halifax. That service was canceled ten years ago so to fly here requires two flights. Another ferry option was the Cat, the fast boat from Bar Harbour. The trip was somewhere between three or four hours, depending on the weather and the tides. When the slow boat stopped running, the Cat left from Portland three days a week and from Bar Harbour the other days. But at lest we had a ferry although I never really enjoyed the Cat. It was noisy, crowded and subject to weather. In other words, people got sick. But several years ago, the provincial government stopped subsidizing the ferry so we had no service at all. Then the ferry ran for one year before it had engines troubles so again we had no ferry. Of course, today you can not even drive to Nova Scotia because the border is closed from the US. And other Canadians must isolate for 14 days when crossing the provincial border. And the ferry is closed for the season. Now you can not get here at all. Twenty two years ago life seemed simple but not any more. It somehow does not seem like progress.