MacIntosh Brook Falls.
I felt a bit like Little Red Riding Hood as I hiked along Cape Breton’s MacIntosh Brook, toting a classical picnic basket complete with a red-checkered table cloth, courtesy of Parks Canada. Parks Canada has embraced a new mandate with a vengeance, making adventures happen for voyagers throughout the land of Celtic magic that is Cape Breton, Nova Scotia (or “New Scotland”). Whether you wish to stay overnight in a 300-year-old fortress, or just fire an 18th century cannon, it is all here.
It is said that members of the Knights Templar once walked the beaches of “New Scotland”. Indeed, two monuments to Prince Henry Sinclair, who visited the province in the 1390’s, grace our shores.
But, whether you want to learn how to consume succulent lobster on surf-washed shores, or wend your way through dappled hardwood forests to dine by the rush of a woodland waterfall, it is all there. You might not want to immerse yourself in the experience in quite the manner I did. Before sitting down to dine, I skipped across several large rocks in the river, missing my footing and ending up going for an unplanned swim. Nonplussed, I pushed on and climbed the waterfall, waving at my more sensible companions below. By now, I had worked up quite an appetite, and after snapping a few photos, I made my way back downstream.
No “big bad wolf” will greet picnickers along the banks of MacIntosh Brook. You might see a coyote or maybe even a moose…though all I saw was a myriad of golden swallowtail butterflies that swarmed me as I sat on the bank, admiring the falls and savouring the contents of my Parks Canada picnic basket. The contents, whether chicken, lobster, or vegetarian, are up to you through the Perfect Picnic site. To quote Parks Canada:
“It’s as easy as 1, 2, 3!
Place your order;
Pick up your basket;
Find your perfect picnic place in Cape Breton Highlands National Park, and enjoy!”
Co-authored by George Burden and Stella van der Lugt
Photo Credits
Photos by Stella van der Lugt – All Rights Reserved
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