And Everything Goes to Hell...

Burncoat Head Park - view from lighthouse

Here I am in Nova Scotia finally having a great time in a beautiful location, with glorious weather, and friendly people. I've been looking forward to August this whole trip knowing I'd be in Nova Scotia maybe for the month to avoid the hot weather of the states. August 1st I left the Kingston Walmart parking lot and head east visiting Wolfville which is a cute little university town, then turned south and then north around a loop to get to Burntcoat Head Park. I was told at the visitors center this is the highest/lowest tide in the world! You can walk out for a long ways looking at all kinds of sea creatures on the exposed ocean floor! I love beach walking anyway!

Burntcoat Head Park view of parking lot from lighthouse

They had a little lighthouse. Unlike lighthouses in the states that look like cylindrical towers, these in Nova Scotia are like little houses. This one was the center for the park so I was able to go in and all the way to the top to take photos of the scenery.

Burntcoat Head Park - view of "island"

The woman was very nice and welcoming. I found out later her name is Anita. I asked her about the tide and she said it's not all the way out, but still out quite a ways. She said it's quite muddy,but if I stay along cliff it's drier. I thought she said don't go to the left of the island, go to the right of the island. She said the mud is not deep in most cases, just a thin layer. OK.

I hike down the hill on the very nice trail, down some cement steps that are wet with high tide ocean water. When I get down to the beach, I watch others and followed suit, walking along the cliff and then onto the ocean floor. It was muddy, but not deep like Anita explained. As I'm watching very carefully where I'm going, the little girl who was about ten feet away started screaming because she hated the mud on her shoes. It's caking the bottom of her shoes as it is with mine.The mother kept assuring her it'll wash off. I considered at that point turning back, but I also thought, Oh! It'll wash off! I want to see things! Be adventurous! I get to the right of the island. I feel thankful my shoes aren't that dirty. This is the route others are taking. There are about thirty people on the beach at this point. I take a photo of the island wall and then...

It happened in a split second. I slip, lose my balance, twisted my foot, fell onto my foot, and I heard my ankle SNAP. OMG! The pain. I straightened out my foot slightly in hopes of alleviating pain or maybe hoping just to put it back into place. When I went down I screamed. A very nice woman nearby walking back from the beach asked if I was OK, I said, "No. Something snapped and I can't move my foot!"

I'm sitting in the mud. My camera is covered in mud because I was holding it in my hand. I keep saying, "No, no, no, this can't happen!" I'm trying not to cry. They say there must be someone around and I tell her there a woman who seems like a park official or information person in the lighthouse. Her husband says he will go get her. She asks if I'm here with anyone and I say, "No." She stays with me. I'm in a panic mostly worried about emergency hospital costs. Are they going to have to airlift me? Oh god. I'm shaking, not because I'm cold but because of the unbearable pain.

Anita comes down to assess my condition. My foot is swelling. She calls for paramedics and anyone who is in the area to assist. There was about an hour wait. I said I could try to scoot closer to the park and off the beach, but she said not to move. It was all I could do to hold my leg to try to alleviate the excruciating pain at my ankle. Many first responders, emergency workers and then paramedics showed up. It took about an hour. They discussed the procedures of how best to get me off the beach. That took another hour. The tide was not coming in so there was no danger present, but I think each one of them on a separate occasion said, "Sorry, I am new at this!" (I heard that a lot during the day which did not give me any confidence.) They assessed if I was injured anywhere else and thank god, I was not. I was able to help hoist myself into a better position and then onto the evacuation board. (OMG the pain!) They tried to support my foot/ankle because it felt like it was separated and floating. (OMG the pain!) They strapped me onto the board and then maybe eight people carried me through the mud, off the beach, then UP the hill, through the park, in the parking lot where the ambulance was waiting. 

Anita took my camera, my glasses and then my shoes to hold them for me. One of the first responders, Minau said with Anita's help they would move my van to her house so it would be safe. OMG! Thank you! At least I had enough brain to tell them I would need my purse and my phone as I'm sure someone will need my ID, etc. Before I leave Minau comes to the ambulance and tells me to call when I am discharged and she will pick me up and bring me to her house. I had done a good job controlling my crying, but at that point I started sobbing. I was so relieved, so thankful and so scared!

The paramedics again assessed my condition, removed my shoe, cut my sock off, wrapped a pillow around my foot, shifted me onto the gurney and then into the ambulance. In the ambulance I was hooked me up to the machines to monitor my blood pressure, respiratory, pusle, checked my heart, etc. Everything was fine, although my blood pressure was high from the pain. I then got multiple pills of Tylenol and Ibuprofen which reduced the pain level from a 10 to a 9. They said the good drugs will be here soon.

About after a half hour of driving over potholes (OMG the pain!) we pulled over and another paramedic joined us. I said, "You must be the drug dealer." YEP! I got a dose of MORPHINE! I told them I'd like some Demerol, but they said Demerol is outdated, but morphine will do the trick. First, my whole body tense up. It was not comfortable. Then I felt loopy and very relaxed. Most of the pain went away, down to a 1, but the tightness of the swelling was still there. I asked about cost. One of them said the ambulance is not covered by anything so it will probably be around $2000. OUCH. The drug dealer offered another hit of morphine. I said I can't afford it. He said the drugs probably won't cost anything. The "probably" gave me pause. I doubt if they know and this is going to be expensive. Very nice paramedics, conversational and funny. 

It was forty-five minutes to the hospital in Truro. I was sent in for x-rays. I broke my ankle in two places, breaking three bones. The doctor said it was a clean break which was a little encouraging. He then sent my information to a surgeon. While we waited for the prognosis, they cast my foot up to my knee. The surgeon came back and said I would need surgery or the foot would not reattach and it would constantly break. They told me to call Medicare to find out what is covered.

Of course, Medicare is useless. They can only read from the manual what the rules are. Foreign travel is covered under three different scenarios only and none of them fit my situation. I'm in a panic. Holy mackerel. I start sobbing again.

They sent me for another x-ray to make sure the foot was aligned correctly after the cast. I called both Anita and Minau to inform them I'm still waiting in the hospital. Then I had to wait some more. My first doctor left and it was hours before another doctor arrived. I'm worried Minau won't want to drive an HOUR to pick me up and drive me back an HOUR to her house in the dark. But I didn't have a choice. I need to get to my van and where else would I stay? How would I even get there?

While I waited, I called Visa to see if there were any international travel insurance benefits on my card. NO. I posted requests for information and help on the Facebook women van groups. Some told me to call the U.S. Embassy. Others said somehow to get back to the states to do the surgery. Others said Canada is cheaper, just stay there.

Dr. Marshall shows up and he is another who tells me he's new. Hearing this all day does NOT give me confidence. I'm not sure why I had to wait for him. I tell him insurance isn't covering anything and I might need to go to the states for surgery. He gives me the copy of the blood labs and diagnostic reports they did planning I would have surgery there. I did not get another EKG since if I go to the states I'd have to go through all that again which is just more cost.

He offers me pain drugs and I tell him in the states they charge a patient $25 just to write a prescription so no. He assured me the prescription writing would not cost. I still don't believe it, but I took it. I worried I don't have an address and the one I have on my drivers' license is just for show. I won't get mail until I get back to Tucson. I offered my email for billing. He said, "I doubt very much if they will be sending a bill to Tucson and how will they find you if you live in a van?" I said, "I don't want collections destroying my credit or coming after me because I didn't pay a bill."

I tell him I don't know if this stranger who might pick me up will want to drive in the dark. He said they could discharge me and then I can just wait until morning for the ride. I didn't trust it and worried they'd charge me for being admitted to the hospital or if they charge me for the hours I am there.

How do I get crutches? I have to go somewhere and buy them...it's almost midnight. The hospital doesn't provide any assistance.

Anyway, Minau arrived and took me back to the van. She's a retired teacher, artist, first responder volunteer, and hosts international students in her house! She's my angel! She brought me out some chicken she had for dinner. Oh god, it was so good especially since I hadn't eaten all day. Maneuvering around without crutches was difficult especially since the cast takes 48 hours to dry. Trying to hoist myself up into my very high bed in my van was such a challenge! I was worried all night about blood clots. I took two ibuprofen for pain, but I was really uncomfortable all night. Going to the bathroom was really difficult.

Just chilling...in pain...with great views!

We'll see what happens. The ambulance may cost $2,000 and the form I signed had the amount of around $5,000 for ER. Who knows about the two different sets of x-rays or the blood lab. Medicare did tell me to submit a "foreign health care claim" anyway. But surgery scares me...$$$$$

On top of all of this, the Canadian surgeon will call me Tuesday. It seems there is a long Canadian holiday weekend! The Embassy still opens on Monday so I'll find out what they can do and maybe I can find a surgeon in Maine. It is 6 hours to Bangor. We'll see if I can drive with my left foot...

So now I'm on hold, worried sick about the logistics of everything and in pain.

Oh Canada! Nova Scotia

Northern Maine is nice and cool! Maybe a little too cool or damp as there was condensation on my windshield in the morning. That is not good! I worked for a few hours then made a run for the border at Calais. No line which was surprising! It pays to pick your border crossing carefully. Canadian border agents are so nice! Unlike the American agents, I've never met a mean or snarky Canadian border agent.

I headed through New Brunswick. Not much to see from the freeway so I dipped south along a little highway to Fundy National Park, but only to drive right through going to Alda which is right on the coast. If you don't stop in the park, they don't charge you, BUT Canada has some kind of national park promotion going on and the national parks are free this summer until September 2nd. I stopped at The Lobster Shop and ate lobster roll and seafood chowder all gluten-free! So good!

I so rarely eat at restaurants I had to take photos. I have never had a lobster roll (above). It's just a lobster sandwich. Normally they are on rolls, but they only had gluten-free bread. They are expensive ($29 for lobster roll, $19 for chowder, CAD) which is probably why.

Arrived in Halifax around 7pm or about nine hours behind the wheel. Another butt-numbing driving marathon. It's really windy which means there are few mosquitoes. Perfect weather...low 70s and sunny. I stayed in the Cabela's parking lot. There were two RVs and another van. I like not being alone even if we don't ever speak to each other.

Nova Scotia Provincial Flag

The next morning I drove in circles trying to figure out where Siri wanted me to go. She took me down closed streets and a closed freeway entrance and gave me a street name that was no where to be found. UGH! I finally made it to the Ford dealership in Halifax. The charming young man at the counter got me an appointment IMMEDIATELY! Wow! The mechanic did a diagnostic check (besides the oil and filter change) and his assessment...all my problems are because the OVERSIZED TIRES! Along with a lower gas mileage and the speedometer is off, in other words if it shows I'm driving 60 mph I'm really going 65 mph. Why didn't the Nelson Ford people know this? Why did they sell me these tires? It seems the transmission is trying to compensate for the oversized tires which is why it struggles so much. So he adjusted the transmission to match the tires. Didn't even cost anything, well, other than the extra diagnostic charge. Such a relief!!! I just hope it works because the tires are still on the van.

I attempted to find parking in downtown Halifax so I could visit the visitors center. Yeah right. I gave up. Instead I left for the Fairview Cemetery where the Titanic victims who were pulled from the sea are buried. I drove all over Halifax and then found the cemetery was right across the street from the Ford dealership! Heck, I could have walked over while they were working on the van!! I find I am NOT good with online instructions, Google Maps, and verbal directions. I want a map to hold in my hand so I am visually oriented to where I am. 

The story about one of the few identified buried victims, Michel Navratil, was fascinating. He was from France, and it seems he kidnapped his two young children and was taking them to America. He was a second class passenger and a man so was unable to board one of the few lifeboats, but got his kids on one. His oldest son realized much later in life that his father was buried in Nova Scotia.

I searched for other Nova Scotia visitors centers in the area and drove to the coast to Peggy's Cove on the southern coast:

Peggy's Cove has a wonderful visitors center that gave me all kinds of information. When I asked where to find free camping/parking, she said, "You can park in our parking lot!" What? There are signs that say "No Overnight Parking". She said they put those up because too many people were parking and burning campfires right on the parking lot! They didn't want it to be a free-for-all campground for a bunch of stupid people. So here I am. There is one other van. It's a perfect 67 degrees and sunny.

Ants on a hill...there is no getting away from the tourists.

I love turquoise houses! Other popular colors are bright blue, dusty light blue, and aqua! Yum!

Great hike to the water's edge...

The water is so clear!

I got up the next morning early and went for my walk in the fog. This is the time to see anything with no tourists lurking about! Just me and the professional photographers hiding in the rocks. LOL!

There is a little women's artists' co-op in town called "Hags on the Hill". Outside it has an elderly mermaid carved in wood. I love her:

Then I headed east on the coast. The great thing about Nova Scotia is these little roads are right on the water, unlike Maine where there were no views of the water as I drove. With the mild temperature, the windows were rolled down and the ocean air smelled so good.

My first stop was the Swissair 111 Memorial. The passenger jet with 229 victims crashed in the water off Peggy's Cove and fishermen in the area helped to bring in bodies. It seems the entertainment center wiring caught on fire and filled the plane with fire disabling the flight controls. I can't imagine the horror those people went through in their last moments of life. I can't imagine having to be the ones to search for bodies. There was a bunch of diamonds and a Picasso onboard worth millions of dollars.

I continued down the Lighthouse Route through gorgeous villages like Chester and Mahone Bay.

Love this porch!

I felt really relaxed and less stressed now that I know Big Blue is fine and just doesn't like her tires. I'm trying to slow down and take my time since I hope to stay here through August to stay cool. On the drive I passed this beautiful church and needed a butt break so I couldn't help but take a photo...

.

And then horror struck and I did the inevitable....I ran over a living, innocent if not stupid, critter. Damn! My record was so clean even after driving through Alaska, Montana, Wyoming and the Yukon where wildlife warning signs were posted all over, the critters were all over the roads and too many of them kept jumping out onto the road. This little guy, a chipmunk, I think...let's call him Alvin...just came out of no where and ran in front of my van.

I've read when this happens don't swerve in front of oncoming traffic, don't slam on your brakes so the guy behind hits you, just coast and hope (pray) for the best. This has worked for me until now. I felt a little squish and he was gone. I felt so bad! For hours I kept second guessing myself, Maybe if I would have swerved just a little? Or braked slightly? I've driven 40,000 miles in the last eight months so it was bound to happen, I just hoped it wouldn't. There are too any chipmunks in Nova Scotia racing across the highway...some not so alive now. A few days later a shrew ran across the highway and I did a slight swerve. No squish this time.

I stayed overnight in Port Medlow's lighthouse parking lot. Sunny, 74 degrees, breezy, and beautiful. Very quiet. I was going to stay in the parking lot of another lighthouse, but I read when the fog rolls in the fog horn goes off every five minutes. LOL! No fog horns here.

I spent the rest of the afternoon cleaning the refrigerator. I decided not to freeze anything and use the whole space as a refrigerator this way more salad fixings can fit and maybe I'll eat more salads! It also takes less energy.

I visited the local historic cemetery and learned about "death head" imagery on tombstones. The winged skull symbolizes life on earth is short-lived and death will always win.

It is on the oldest tombstone in the cemetery dated 1783:

I also went to a community history tour which was just an exhibition of old photos in two different buildings. The first building was the "The Warehouse: A Community Event Center". It was basically an old mechanics garage. It had  bit of a musty smell, but tolerable. The other building looked to be from the 1700s, maybe an old community meeting house? The windows looked like arched church windows. I walked in and I was immediately suffocating by the mold so I left.

The next morning I did my early walk in the fog and from a distance I saw what I thought was a dog in the road staring at me. But no barking. Not wishing to wake the neighbors so early, I stopped. I noticed said dog had a bushy tail and two others frolicking nearby. They were FOX! Mama fox watched me closely while the teenagers ignored me completely. I kept walking toward them and I heard her give a little yelp and all three disappeared in the bushes.

The weather here on the coast during the day is fantastic: low 70s, sunny, beautiful. At night the fog rolls in along with the dampness that makes everything outside and inside the van feel wet. I keep the ventilation fan on all night for condensation anyway, damp or not. I was putting my windshield cover up for privacy, but I discovered that creates condensation so now I just hang a towel from the van's headliner. This makes me wonder if most buildings in Nova Scotia or just on the coast are filled with mold. I used to live on the coast of Washington State and I know it's common there. The fog burns off around 10am.

Tried to drive the Lighthouse Route, but I kept ending up on Hwy 103 which is boring until I started ignoring Siri and just went the route I wanted through Liverpool, Sable River, Lockport and Shelburne. Stopped in Shelburne to walk the historic Dock Street right on the water. It reminded me of England. 

Next I visited Hawk Beach near Clark's Harbour. The beaches here are a little "wild" - out in the middle of nowhere. I envisioned jumping in the water for a nice swim. The temperature was only 70 degrees and I think the water must have been about 40 degrees.  I strolled down the beach in the water instead. No jumping. No freezing. The ocean air smelled heavenly.

Love this purple house!

I want this Sundae Bench in my future backyard!

Even the porta potties are pretty!

Once one gets to the west coast the choice of routes changes from Route 1 more along the waterfronts which is called The Evangeline Trail and the highway is 101 which is the boring in the bushes option.

Yarmouth was nothing special. Lots of stores. Walmart doesn't want overnight parking. Blah. Situated just a little bit off the coast, Yarmouth was hot and muggy! I high-tailed it back to the coast, but there were so few camping options! I ended up driving a lot further than I expected and parked on a road between Belliveaus Cove and St. Bernard that dead-ended at the beach. I'm always worried in these little communities if the locals might get nervous with strangers, but I was left in peace. I met two lovely women the next morning out for a beach stroll and they said many people park here for a night. They don't care.

This is in the Clare District that is predominantly French so there are Canadian and French flags all over. There are several massive churches in the area. This first one is Sainte Marie Church in Church Point. It is the tallest wooden church in North America. I had to take a photo through a chain-linked fence so it's not good.

This one is Sacred Heart in Saulnierville:

The coolest one was this Romanesque looking monstrosity, but by the time I took these two photos I was thinking, I am taking too many photos of churches AGAIN! So I stopped.

Next I headed to Digby. Someone told me it was cute. I wasn't impressed. 

I headed to Bear River because info lady said it's on stilts. It is, but it's so small. The tide was out so the stilts are easily seen, but when the tide comes in everything is deep in water. Very quiet little town. They do have some great art galleries.

Then Annapolis Royal. This was a cute town with a nice waterfront promenade with historical displays so you can read and learn about the history. It had a nice health food store.

They also have Fort Anne National Historical Site. Not only are the national parks free this summer, but also the national historical sites. I timed my travels perfectly. Very nice museum in the Officers' Quarters with a Powder Magazine, a "Black Hole" and a Cemetery. There were lots of placards with history...and grass moats.

Then I headed to Kejimkujik National Park & National Historic Site. I did the Mill Falls hike because it was short and it was already afternoon. 

What I didn't realize is you can swim!! See the kids in the background? So I did the hike and I was so sweaty from all the forest mugginess I didn't even bother to put on my swimsuit, I just took off my hiking boots and socks, and got right in with my clothes! OH! It was so wonderful after too many days with muggy sweat clinging to my skin. The water was deep and cool, but not cold.  I smelled a bit like pond scum after since the river has a lot of algae that looks like brown, grassy seaweed. It also gives the water a brown haze so I tried to sponge bathed it off and washed my hair. It felt so good to be sort of clean!

I drove the loop up to Kingston and camped behind the Walmart. I had to seek out mall management but no one was there so I asked security and he escorted me to his boss. She was hesitant although I told her a lot of people have said they were given permission just instructed not to park in directly front of the store. She had me park BEHIND the store. I was alone and I felt isolated in a creepy way. Didn't look like there were any lights until it was dark and then the whole place was lit up like an airport runway with bright lights all along the walls of the stores!

The next morning headed east along the northern coast of Nova Scotia...and then my trip went to hell.

To be continued...