Just discovered that a post we thought had published while we were both on the road - Debi in Africa, Judy in Cambodia and Vietnam - didn't.
With many apologies to our hosts, here is
Diggin' Digby Pines Resort. Chronologically it goes between
Driving to Digby and
Fundy Ferry to Passamaquoddy Bay.
Diggin' Digby Pines Resort
We arrived at Digby Pine Resort and Spa in the late
afternoon, a place oozing with character. The golf course and gorgeous gardens
surround the main lodge, a 1929 Norman-style chateau. This building offers 85
guestrooms including six luxury suites and common areas. Those wishing a more
private setting, choose among 31 one, two and three-bedroom Maritime-style
cottages. Each cottage has a homey living room, with a cozy fireplace and
spacious veranda. Complimentary wireless Internet is available throughout the
property.
 |
Digby Pines Resort and Spa
Photo @ Debi Lander |
The lobby takes one back in time though everything has been
refitted. I enjoyed the slideshow on the computer showing the Digby Resort back
in the 1930's-50's. The veranda is a gracious spot for an afternoon drink, and
we found the main bar and restaurant, plus the gift shop downstairs.
 |
| King Room with view of Annapolis Basin |
My room on the third floor offered a King-sized bed and
magnificent panoramas of the pool and Annapolis Basin.
While the room itself was not over-sized, I felt comfortable there. I could see
the tiny town of Digby across the Bay of Fundy. That evening we dined on famous Digby
scallops, known among scallop lovers for their tender, sweet, succulent and
bigger size. Digby is the Scallop Capital of the World.
 |
Scallop Appetizer at Digby Pines Resort
Photo @ Debi Lander |
The Pines first opened in 1905 as a large wooden hotel.
During World War I, army officers used the facilities. After the war, its new owners, the Canadian
Pacific Railway, replaced the original
wooden hotel with the present building that opened on June 24, 1929. The
Government of Nova Scotia purchased the hotel in 1965. In 2001, management by
New Castle Hotels and Resorts took over.
In 2005, the hotel officially became the “Digby Pines Golf Resort and Spa” in
recognition of the past and celebration of the future.
The Town of Digby and Bay of Fundy
 |
Looking toward the Wharf and Marina in Digby
Photo @ Debi Lander |
 |
Greg Turner of Gael Tours
Photo @ Debi Lander |
After stepping into the town's Visitor Center,
we met Greg Turner of Gael Tours, who led us on a walking tour to discover
Digby's Stones, Steeples, Ships & Seafood. Digby was named after Admiral
Sir Robert Digby, who organized the original community in the 1760's. The town
became incorporated in 1890. Hence, it is celebrating its 125th anniversary.
 |
Downtown Digby
Photo @ Debi Lander |
The streets of Digby are alive with maritime history and flavor.
We investigated the Admiral's Walk and Boardwalk, Fisherman's Wharf and the fishing
fleet.
Unfortunately, many of the
lobster and scallop boats were out working, and we were too early to see their
return.
What a shame because I think
that event would have been one of the trip's highlights. We did see the much
needed steep stairways on floating docks that rise and fall with the incredible
tidal changes.
 |
Lobster and Scallop Boats make up the Fishing Fleet
Photo @ Debi Lander |
We continued and climbed the hill to see historic homes
along Queen Street
and the Trinity Anglican Church, a National Historic site and cemetery before
eventually returning to the Visitor
Center. We learned that
little Digby hosts the largest multi-day motorcycle rally in Canada, the Wharf Rat Rally, on Labor Day
weekend. Imagine tens of thousands of
bikes and bikers. (We're glad we missed that one.)
 |
Interior of Trinity Anglican Church, Digby, NS
Photo @ Debi Lander |
Greg explained the tides on the Bay of
Fundy, a
famous natural wonder for its miraculous shift of water, the highest in the
world. Twice a day, 115 billion tons of water move in and out causing a rise
and fall of 20, 30, often 40 feet. During a full moon and high winds, Bay of Fundy tides rise as high as 53 feet. In
Digby, it ranges from 27 to 32 feet. (Next trip, I want to try Tidal Bore
rafting.)
 |
| Low Tide |
On our drive back to the resort, we witnessed low
tide. Whoa- what a change. For anyone who ever read the children's
classic book, The Five Chinese Brothers, I swear it looked like my recollections of
the brother who drank up the sea. Within our
two-hour tour, a tidal pool of tremendous proportion was created.
 |
| The Tide Returns to Digby |
 |
| High Tide restores beauty to the shores of Digby. |
We returned in time for lunch at the 19th Hotel at Digby Pines
Golf Course. From this vantage point, the course looked beautiful and not too crowded. What did we pick
to eat? Why, seafood chowder, and a lobster roll, of course!
 |
Digby Pines Golf Course
Photo @ Debi Lander |
Afterward, the Aveda salon at the resort pleasured us with spa
treatments. I indulged in a facial that left me feeling moisturized and relaxed.
Digby is surrounded by interesting little villages, scenic coves and inlets and other surprises. One side trip took us to
Rendezvous-vous de la Baie Acadian Interpretive Center in Church Point where Denis and his daughter Isabelle Comeau were waiting for us.
Surprise,
surprise, they were distant cousins of a friend of Judy's. No surprise,
every Comeau in North America is related because they are descended
from the one Comeau who came here.
We sampled a classic
dish, rauture or rattie, grated potatoes and meat stock, tasted dried
fish, then learned about the French colonists who stayed in Canada
rather than be deported to Louisiana.
Back to Annapolis Royal for
Dinner and a Ghost Tour
 |
| Fish and Scallops at Cafe Compose in Annapolis Royal |
Not too much
relaxation allowed, we are working girls, so
headed back to Annapolis Royal for dinner at Cafe Compose. The
restaurant became a surprising delight. My fish was tender and light;
the sauce
divine. The Viennese owners serve delicious seafood and an audacious
apple
strudel a la mode. I squeezed in one bite of Sacher torte that was
passed around the table, but found it a bit
dry. The restaurant offers scenic views of the Bay; however, some tables
sit
directly in the sun as it sets.
The evening ended with a Candlelight Ghost Tour at what is
now the Fort Anne Historic Site. Originally started in 1629 as Port Royal, the
area fell to the British in 1710 and was renamed Fort Anne.
Heritage interpreter Alan Melanson leads
a tour in Garrison
Cemetery, formerly used
by the French military, Acadians, the British military and the parish of St.
Luke’s. The headstones that survive
represent only a portion of the total number of people buried in this
graveyard.
 |
| Ghost Tour at Fort Anne |
Melanson begins by talking about the traditions surrounding
his outfit. He wears a ribbon on his hat called a “Weeper,” given to members of the funeral
procession as a gift from the host.
Most participants pick up a candle-powered lantern to carry,
and as the light fades, the tour sets off,
bobbing and weaving through the darkness. The lanterns create a pleasing
atmosphere but one that attracts mosquitoes and not one especially adequate for
photography. Soon we were being eaten alive and called it a night. Sadly,
Melanson is a good storyteller, and this ghost tour is far better than most.
However, douse yourself with bug spray if you want to enjoy the tour of one of Canada’s oldest
English graveyards.
Overall,
we dug Digby Pines Resort and the tidal change in the Bay and Fundy is
something we will never forget. Annapolis Royal also gets our
recommendation for a day trip.
 |
| Digby Pines Resort and Spa, Digby, Nova Scotia |
