We planned half-day excursions for the Tuesday afternoon (June 22) prior to the conference and and full-day excursions for the Saturday (June 26) following the conference. See below for details.
Tuesday, June 22, 2010
There is a lot to see and do in Halifax, and much of it is within walking distance or a short taxi or public transit ride from Dalhousie. All excursions are self-guided (we will post more detailed directions as the conference approaches), and you can choose whichever suits your interests and schedule. Download detailed directions (opens as PDF) for each excursion.
Harbour Hopper Tours offers hour-long excursions around the streets of downtown Halifax in amphibious vehicles, culminating with a splash-down into the Halifax Harbour itself. Departures throughout the day from the Halifax waterfront.
Halifax Citadel National Historic Site
“Citadel Hill” is one of the most prominent geographic features in Halifax. Completed in 1859, the star-shaped fort that sits on top of the hill was an important British defense fortification. Approximately 1.8 km (1.1 mi) from Dalhousie, two blocks from the Garden South Park Inn. Open 9:00 am – 5:00 pm, admission approximately $12 CAD for adults, guided tours available.
Formal Victorian gardens in the heart of the city. Approximately 1 km (0.6 mi) from Dalhousie, one block from the Garden South Park Inn. Open daily 8:00 am to dusk, admission is free. You may want to walk through the Public Gardens on your way to Citadel Hill!
Nova Scotia Museum of Natural History
Currently closed for renovations, the museum is scheduled to re-open on June 4th, 2010. Approximately 1.5 km (0.9 mi) from Dalhousie, 2-3 blocks from the Garden South Park in. Open 9:00-5:00, admission approximately $6 CAD for adults. Located near both the Public Gardens and Citadel Hill.
Visit the Halifax Harbour and the surrounding downtown area with its historic buildings, museums, galleries, shops, and restaurants. The Halifax Harbourwalk is a 3 km (1.9 mi) boardwalk stretching from Casino Nova Scotia to Pier 21 (where we’re having the closing banquet!), passing by Historic Properties and the Maritime Museum of the Atlantic. Nearby you’ll find the Granville Mall (a small Italianate-style pedestrian plaza) and the Art Gallery of Nova Scotia. Approximately 2.4 km (1.5 mi) from Dalhousie (1.25 km/0.8 mi from the Garden South Park Inn) to the Halifax waterfront.
Dartmouth Harbourwalk Trail
For some of the best views of Halifax, head across the harbour to Dartmouth. From downtown Halifax, take the 12-minute ferry ride to one of Dartmouth’s two ferry terminals, then follow the trail (approximately 3.2 km/2 mi) along the Dartmouth waterfront to the other Dartmouth ferry terminal, and return to the Halifax side. You’ll want to download the ferry schedules:
- Halifax-Alderney (opens as PDF)
- Halifax-Woodside (opens as PDF)
Fort McNab National Historic Site
McNabs Island is located at the mouth of Halifax Harbour; private passenger ferries depart regularly from the Halifax waterfront. The island features a series of walking trails and old naval fortifications. McNabs is a fairly large island and has little in the way of facilities; if you go you should give yourself ample time for transit (approximately 1 hour round trip from the waterfront) and exploration, and bring food, water, and appropriate footwear and clothing.
Located at the southern tip of the Halifax Peninsula, Point Pleasant Park contains several kilometers of multi-use trails along the water and through the woods, and features a small beach, public monuments, and abandoned military fortifications, including the Cambridge Battery and the Prince of Wales Tower National Historic Site. Approximately 2.25 km (1.4 mi) from Dalhousie, 1.8 km (1.1 mi) from the Garden South Park Inn. Open daily, free admission.
Note: The Forest Ecology major workshop scheduled for Thursday will take place in Point Pleasant Park.
Salt Marsh Trail and/or Lawrencetown Beach (transportation required)
The Salt Marsh Trail is a beautiful rail-to-trail with spectacular views of the Cow Harbour estuary and the Atlantic Ocean. Suitable for walking and biking, but if you don’t have a bike you probably won’t have time to do the entire trail, which is nearly 10 km (6 mi) one way. Luckily, the best views are about a third of the way along from the trail head, so you can walk out and return in good time. Approximately 16 km (10 mi) from Dalhousie and the Garden South Park Inn.
The Salt Marsh Trail ends at Lawrencetown Beach; if you have a car you can easily visit both in one trip by walking the first third of the trail, returning to the trail head, and continuing on the highway to Lawrencetown (approximately 27.4 km/17 mi from Dalhousie and the Garden South Park Inn).
We would like organize an afternoon outing to the Salt Marsh Trail and Lawrencetown Beach for those who may be interested, but it is cost prohibitive to make arrangements this early without guaranteed numbers. If the weather looks good for that day, we’ll contact attendees a few days before the conference to assess interest in the trip, and see if we can arrange group transportation at a reasonable cost.
Crystal Crescent Beach Provincial Park (transportation required)
White sand beaches (one of which is a nude beach!), boardwalks, and the trail head for the Pennant Point hiking trail (20 km/12 mi round trip). Approximately 29 km (18 mi) from Dalhousie and the Garden South Park Inn.
Saturday, June 26, 2010
All Saturday excursion ticket prices include transportation, any admission/participation fees associated with the activity, a boxed lunch (except for tidal bore rafting, which includes breakfast instead), and 13% HST. All excursions will go ahead rain or shine, unless the weather is bad enough to pose a safety hazard.
It might be possible to join these trips with your own transportation; please contact the ABLE 2010 hosts if you are interested.
There are many worthy day-trip destinations a little further afield from Halifax that are too far for a large group outing, but still suitable for smaller numbers travelling by car. If you are spending some extra time in the region, ask us for some recommendations!
Tidal Bore Rafting, $125
Ride the waves as the incoming bore of the highest tide in the world works its way down the Shubenacadie River! This four-hour trip begins with a leisurely ride from the point of departure to where the Shubenacadie River meets the Bay of Fundy, where you will await the tidal bore. Then spend the rest of the trip riding the rapids created as the tidal bore advances down (up? – either way, it’s an amazing experience!) the river. On June 26th, the predicted tide is classified as “high”, at 7.4 m (24.3 feet), which is just one foot lower than it was on June 27th 2009, when your intrepid hosts tried this trip out for ourselves (and had a BLAST!).
What to Bring: You will get soaked and filthy (there’s also mudsliding!), but there are shower facilities on site, so bring a change of clothes and shower supplies. Don’t plan to bring anything (like a drybag) with you in the boat – there’s not enough room for it, and anything that is not firmly attached to the boat or to your body will get swept away – including hats, glasses, etc. If you must wear glasses or sunglasses, make sure you have a strap that holds them tightly to your head! For your feet you’ll need sneakers or strap-on sandals; flip-flops won’t do. (They have a large supply of old sneakers that you can choose from if you don’t want to bring an extra pair just for this trip.) There are laundry facilities in the dorms, but you may want to consider bringing old clothing that you can discard afterwards, if you don’t want to go through the trouble of washing it when you get back (or packing wet, muddy clothes for your return trip home!).
>Gentle Warning: This trip is great fun and not particularly dangerous (the Shubie River is silt/sand-bottomed, so there are no rocks to hit if you fall out of the boat), but it takes some force of will and a bit of upper body strength to stay in the boat as 20-ft swells break over the bow. Be prepared to get knocked around a bit and to hang on tight for extended periods of time!
Itinerary: Rafters must be on site one hour prior to the boat’s departure; in order to make this deadline we have to leave Halifax by 6:30 am (time and tide wait for no man etc.). Boats depart at 9:05 am, and return around 1:00 pm. Depending on time and numbers there may be a meal stop (personal expense) on the way back to Halifax; otherwise it will be straight back to Halifax for mid- to late-afternoon and supper on your own. This trip includes breakfast (on the road) instead of a boxed lunch.
Peggy’s Cove and Sea Kayaking, $80
Located on Nova Scotia’s South Shore not far from Halifax, Peggy’s Cove is an iconic Nova Scotia fishing village. You’ll spend some time exploring the community of Peggy’s Cove itself, and take a guided walk through the surrounding coastal barrens landscape. Then it’s on to nearby Lower Prospect for a guided 2-hour sea kayaking adventure through the sheltered coves and inlets of Terence Bay. This style of kayaking is actually quite easy and safe – the boats are very stable, and no experience is required. Children are welcome to participate – the proprietor of ECO has been taking his son out kayaking since he was six months old!
What to Bring: Dress for the weather and your comfort (hat, sunglasses, sunscreen, rain gear, layers, good footwear, etc.). For kayaking, it is preferable to wear non-cotton clothing that will dry out relatively quickly if it happens to be raining or in the highly unlikely event that you flip your boat.
Gentle Warning: The biggest hazard on this trip is the coastline in and around Peggy’s Cove, where granite boulders meet the sea. The waves here are powerful and unpredictable, and getting knocked off the rocks is a real possibility. You should use extreme caution on the rocks, avoid approaching the water’s edge (especially if the weather happens to be choppy that day), and avoid walking on wet rocks.
Itinerary: Depart Halifax around 9:00 am, and spend the first half of the trip in and around Peggy’s Cove. On to Lower Prospect for 3:00 pm, to get geared up for kayaking from 4:00-6:00 pm. Return to Halifax for an evening meal on your own (less than an hour from Lower Prospect).
Blomidon Provincial Park and Winery Tour, $50
Located on Cape Blomidon atop 180 m (600ft) cliffs, Blomidon Provincial Park is a day-use and camping park with a network of trails, beach access, and picnic areas. You’ll spend some time exploring the trails and the beach (tide permitting) and enjoy lunch overlooking the Minas Basin. Then it’s on to one of several local vineyards for a brief tour and a sampling of local wines and cheeses, including ice wine, a local specialty made from grapes harvested during winter after they have frozen on the vine.
This is meant to be the most relaxed of the field trips; though there are 13 km (8 mi) worth of trails in the park, we don’t intend that you’ll walk them in their entirety – the best views are just a short distance from the trail head.
What to Bring: Dress for the weather and your comfort (hat, sunglasses, sunscreen, rain gear, layers, good footwear, etc.).
Gentle Warning: One of the Blomidon trails runs along the edge of the cliff, but it is barricaded appropriately. It will probably be close to high tide; if so, caution is required on the beach. If the tide is coming in, watch the waterline, because it moves fast (although there’s no particular danger other than getting wet feet)!
Itinerary: Depart Halifax around 9:00 am; transit to the Blomidon area takes approximately an hour or so. Leisurely exploration and picnic lunch in the park, followed by the vineyard tour. If time permits, we may be able to take in one or two other Annapolis Valley sights before returning to Halifax for supper on your own.