The Little Foxes of Marble Mountain

These two look like "book ends" or mirror images. (All photos by Anthony Benson.) *

On my May trip to Marble Mountain, my son-in-law Anthony accompanied me.  He proved to be a terrific traveling companion, not the least because he is an expert photographer.   And upon our arrival we learned that a litter of eight foxes was being raised in a den under the unoccupied Catholic church in the village.  The baby foxes with their adorable antics proved to be a perfect subject for Anthony's photography on this trip.

The Catholic church in the village is not used.  There's not a sufficient congregation in the area. 

The entrance to the den under the back of the church. 

Although folks in the village confirmed there were eight in the litter, we only saw four out at the same time, and usually there would be maybe one or two.

Four at play.  

The foxes seemed to be accustomed to a car driving up and people watching them from a distance.
First they would stick their head out to see if the coast was clear, and then they would venture out. 

  Is it safe to came out?

Staying close to the entrance to the den. 

Wondering "Who are you?"

The mother fox and the father fox were always close by and were keeping check on their pups.

Papa fox keeping check.  

Mama fox checking out what's going on. 

Eventually the foxes would engage in playful activities, just like little dogs. 

I named this one Forrest as in "Run Forrest Run!."  

I can't wait until we return next May, because I know that foxes often use the same den for raising their pups year after year. Maybe there will be a litter under the church next year.  I hope Anthony will be along and that he will have his camera ready.

*Many thanks to Anthony Benson for accompanying me on this trip and for these exceptional photographs. 

Gadding About in Nova Scotia with my Friend Jeanette

Our house in Marble Mountain as seen from our beach.

A few weeks ago my friend Jeanette traveled with me to our place in Cape Breton.  It was the first trip to Eastern Canada for Jeanette, and we tried to take in a lot of sights.

The first of the trip was very frustrating because we missed our connection from Toronto to Halifax because of bad weather and we were stuck in the Toronto Airport for most of a day.  I used this as an opportunity to introduce Jeanette to Tim Horton's, Canada's Krispy Kreme.  The maple frosted donuts are particularly tasty.

Maple frosted donuts. 

We spent a few days along the South Shore of Nova Scotia.  Blue Rocks, Mahone Bay, and Peggy's Cove are all worthy of a visit.

Blue Rocks. 

St. James Anglican Church in Mahone Bay.

Mahone Bay on the South Shore.

Peggy's Lighthouse. 

Dan's cousin Bruce and his wife Becky provided us lodging for the one night we were in Halifax.  It's always fun to see them, and we especially enjoyed their three Huskies.

The Huskies. 

Our main visit was to Cape Breton and our place in Marble Mountain.  It is such a pretty place that we need not have ventured away from there, but we did make a few day trips.

Full moon over the Lake with reflection on our pond.

St. Peter's is a pretty little town on the east coast of CB and has several little restaurants that I like to frequent.  While in that area we drove over to Isle Madame and enjoyed the scenic views from the Acadian Villages.

Jen and Christene having lunch in St. Peter's. 

Isle Madame

Jeanette is a native of Australia, so a trip to Sydney, Nova Scotia was certainly on the agenda.  On the way over there is a lovely view from Kelly's Mountain looking down on the Seal Island Bridge that we traverse to reach Sydney.  A main attraction at the Sydney Port is the Giant Fiddle.

The Seal Island Bridge that we crossed to get to Sydney.

The Giant Fiddle in Sydney, NS. 

I believe Jeanette's favorite part of the trip was the visit to Bird Islands.  (Check back later for a blog on just the Bird Islands.)

Jen on the boat to Bird Islands. 

The last day we went to the Cabot Links Golf Course over in Inverness and up the Cabot Trail for just a bit.  A trip all the way round the Cabot Trail will have to wait for another time.

Looking out over the Cabot Links Golf Course. 

I hope I have whetted Jen's appetite for more trips to the Maritimes of  Eastern Canada for she is a gungho travel companion.