Travel to Nova Scotia

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When the average person is asked about the accomplishments of Alexander Graham Bell he or she will probably lift up a cell phone. However in Canada he is known for his accomplishments with voice transmissin and providing the very first heavier-than-air air machine to ever fly in this country.  For over thirty years Bell spent his  summers in Baddeck, Nova Scotia, with his wife and family but he brought his work with him. This included the world’s first hydrofoil and an airplane built under his direction by the Aerial experimental Association in Hammondsport, New York.

In 1909, after successful tests in the U.S., Bell had his craft, dubbed The Silver Dart, disassembeld, crated and shipped to Nova Scotia for trials here. When assembeld the aircraft had a wingspan of 14.9 meters and weighed in at 390 kilograms including the pilot, who had to be careful about his weight.

On February 28th, the aircraft was dragged to the ice of Bras D’Or Lake by a team of horses. The plane was constructed of wood with a silk fabric covering over the wings and powered by a Curtiss, water-cooled engine that developed 40 horsepower. This engine sat on the back of the plane and the propellorwas desgned to push the craft.

The next day,  February 23rd, J.A.D. McCurdy, an engineer who worked with Bell, made history by piloting the first powered airplane a British subject within the British Empire.

If you fast-forward 100 years there is a former-Canadian astronaut, Bjarni Tryggvason, who just finsihed the trials of a modern Silver Dart.  Closely modeled after the original airplane Tryggvason got his version a few meters off the ground at a test run in Hamilton, Ontario. Now the “pilot to the stars” is packing up his craft and shipping it to Baddeck, Nova Scotia, to fly this crude machine into the very airspace where McCurdy thrilled Bell and a host of Canadian and foreign onlookers.

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People love old forts. Even if you are anti-military the old forts bring out a feeling of timelessness that anyone can enjoy.

The Citadel in Halifax is a great facility that has been used for everything from a real fort to a prisoner of war camp. Today it houses one of the best military museums in the country as well as a living museum featuring the 78th Highlanders.

The citadel was patterned after British designs in the early to mid-1800′s that featured a star shap and a dry moat. This was so that the attacking force would be subject to crossfires from any angle and woe betide the soldiers who tried to enter the moat. However, the fort never fired a shot in anger.

Completed in 1856, this version of the Citadel is the fourth built since 1749 on the same  hill overlooking the harbour. It still features a working cannon that is fired every noon hour, even on Christmas day. Inside are many of the original barracks, fireplaces, muskets and powder magazines. These stand ready to fight an enemy that never did attack – the Americans. After the Civil War the modern technology had rendered the non-rifled barrels of the cannons obsolete and it could have been bombarded from miles away. But no one came.

Today there are some fine shoes there and a living history featuring the 78th Highlanders, who proceed to do a daily routines as tourists wander by. They even fire off their muskets as they train.

Parks Canada does a great job keeping up the fortress and has spent years rebuilding it to its former glory. It is a definite must-see for any trip to Halifax.

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Around 200 years ago ships traveling into the Bay of Fundy around Cape Sable were under constant danger from changing tides and weather. Many merchants, military men and politicians marveled at how the natives went from Halifax harbour to the Bay of Funday by canoe and began studying the cource.

For centuries, the Shubenacadie water path, a system of 115 rivers and lakes, had been like a highway for Mi’kmaq natives for travelng between the Bay of Fundy and Halifax harbour with few portages – having to pack the boat because of rapids or other obstructions. In fact the First Nations people had been doing this for almost 11,000 years.

It was not until 1824, when the Shubenacadie Canal Company had the motivation and money to build a canal was the opening up the inland areas for the merchants of Halifax. The locks were the built by masons were brought in from Scotland and laborers from Ireland and was designed with a draft of 8 feet for steam and sailing vessels. When it was finally finished over 30 years later it carried smaller boats and only ran for 20 years until the railroad put it out of business.

You can still canoe the Shubenacadie Canal and many do each year. The Shubenacadie Canal and waterway is being brought back to life by a volunteer commission. It is now a provincial treasure and is surrounded by a greenbelt, spanning the Province from Halifax Harbour to the Cobequid Bay and linking the communities enroute. In the northern part of the canal the tidal bore rapids offer a challenging environment for both canoing and rafting.

The Fairbanks Centre of the Shubenacadie Canal Commission offers a great tour of the history with maps and guides. they can also show you the best way to prepare for a canoe trip.

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Oak Island Nova Scotia is home to the longest running and most famous treasure hunt in the world. The treasure hunt began in 1795 with the accidental discovery of the “Money Pit”. No one knows what treasure is buried there and no one knows who buried it. Some theories suggest that it could be Pirate plunder, Spanish gold or the lost fortunes of the holy warriors, the Templar Knights. Oak Island waits for you to solve the mystery.

Oak Island Nova Scotia is home to the longest running and most famous treasure hunt in the world. The treasure hunt began in 1795 with the accidental discovery of the “Money Pit”. No one knows what treasure is buried there and no one knows who buried it. Some theories suggest that it could be Pirate plunder, Spanish gold or the lost fortunes of the holy warriors, the Templar Knights. Oak Island waits for you to solve the mystery.

These are the words of the Oak Island Tourism Society daring you to come on an adventure that has claimed lives and has fooled hundreds of treasure hunters including a young Franklin Delano Roosevelt. Every year the society has Explore Oak Island Days and this year (2008) it will be held June 20 – 22 at the Oak Island Resort Spa and Convention Centre in Western Shore, N.S.

Please stay tuned for the agenda as soon as we have it formalized. Book your rooms early to avoid disappointment, contact the Resort here : Oak Island Resort and scroll to the bottom on the left hand side. Special rates and package prices are listed there.

*Explore Oak Island Days Agenda

-June 19 Thursday at 5:30 PM. Special “members only” tour of Oak Island.

- June 20 Friday. Enjoy a guided walking tour of Oak Island and learn about it’s 213 year old history. As a special treat, we will be hosting a Mi’Kmaq Sweet Grass ceremony, not to be missed, read more here (Sweet Grass Ceremony). The tour starts at 6PM and lasts about 2 hours, be sure to register in advance by calling 902-275-3718 or e-mail the Society at

- June 21 Saturday.

• The doors to Oak Island display, artifacts, movies and more open up at 10AM. Come and learn about the mystery at the Oak Island Resort in Western Shore.
• First walking tour of the day starts at 11AM. and lasts about 2 hours, be sure to register in advance by calling 902-275-3718 or e-mail the Society at flhs@eastlink.ca<
• 12:30 Our first guest speaker of the day is Mr. Graham Harris.
• 2:30 Our second guest speaker of the day is Ms. Joanna Atherton owner of the world’s premier Oak Island Web Site
• Second walking tour at 4 PM<
• Dinner and entertainment at the Oak Island Resort later on. Details to be announced.

June 22 Sunday.

• The doors to Oak Island display, artifacts, movies and more open up at 10AM. Come and learn about the mystery at the Oak Island Resort in Western Shore.
• First walking tour of the day starts at 11AM. and lasts about 2 hours, be sure to register in advance by calling 902-275-3718 or e-mail the Society at flhs@eastlink.ca
• 1 PM: TBA.
• 4 PM: Second walking tour

* This is a tentative agenda that will change as more events become secured.

Book your rooms early to avoid disappointment, contact the Resort here : Oak Island Resort and Spa and scroll to the bottom on the left hand side. Special rates and package prices are listed there.

Sweet Grass Ceremony:

Conducted by Mi’Kmaw elder Ellen Hunt, the Sweet Grass ceremony will cleanse & purify the land. You will be taught the Sacredness Mi’kmaq Medicine, the four Direction Prayers and how we should respect the land and Nature. Smudging will be available for those who wish to receive it. Smudging a person cleanses them from negative forces around them. Following the Smudging, there will be drumming and singing.

She will conclude with a Sharing of Friendship Ceremony. Ellen wears traditional dress. As respect for women and in keeping with Mi’kmaq Culture, women can wear a skirt or dress.

The skirt can be worn over jeans or slacks during the ceremonies. Come and enjoy this special sharing event with our Mi’kmaq Friends. Its a golden opportunity to learn more about the history and culture of the First Nations in Nova Scotia.
It is a sharing of a culture that must be experienced at least once in your life. Book your spot now, call 903-275-3718 and ask for Danny or Yvonne Hennigar.

franklin delano roosevelt, History, holy warriors, oak island nova scotia, oak island resort, sweet grass, templar knights

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Photo byWayne Glowacki / Winnipeg Free Press

 

Two Guys, a 767 and a Calculator

One of the most famous aircraft that ever took to the skies (next to The Memphis Belle, The Enola Gay and The Spirit of St. Louis) was The Gimli Glider. Because on July 23, 1983 - a very memorable day for the racing enthusiast who gathered in Gimli, Manitoba, just north of Winnipeg veteran pilots – Bob Pearson and Maurice Quintal, in the cockpit of Air Canada Flight 143, made one of the greatest “dead stick” landings in history. Thus began the legend of The Gimli Glider.

The aircraft was a new Boeing 767 and because of a mistake in fuel calculation (Canada had yet to convert all measurements to metric) the big jet was under-fueled. When the fuel ran out Pearson glided the 767 at 220 knots with Copilot Quintal began making glide-slope calculations to see if they’d make Winnipeg but he calculated that Winnipeg was going to be too far. He advised Pearson to turn north to Gimli, the site of an abandoned Royal Canadian Air Force Base around 12 miles away.

Drag Strip Runway

Quintal was familiar with Gimli because he’d been stationed there during his time in the Canadian Air Force. However, unknown to him and the air traffic controllers in Winnipeg, the 6800 foot runway he chose was now being used for auto racing and a steel guard rail had been installed down most of the southeastern portion dividing it into a two lane dragstrip.

This just happened to be “Family Day” for the Winnipeg Sports Car Club with go-cart racing for kids. Parked around the sides were dozens of cars, campers, kids, and families.

Front Wheels Don’t Lock Down

The Ram Air Turbine, a propeller driven hydraulic pump tucked under the belly of the 767 are supposed to supply hydraulic pressure to move the control surfaces and enable a dead-stick landing. So down came came the landing gear – almost. there was not enough pressure so a manual override was attempted right out of the manual. The main gear came down but not the nose gear. As it landed two tires blew with explosive force as Pearson jumped on the brakes. Then the unlocked nose gear gave away and the giant aircraft sprayed a shower of sparks as the nose skidded on the tarmac. Luckily everyone cleared away and no one on the 767 was injured.

A commander of one of the space shuttle flights said later, “It was one of the greatest dead-stick landings in history.”

In a few days Air Canada Aircraft #604 was repaired enough to be flown out of Gimli. After approximately $1,000,000 in repairs #604 started back on its schedule and flew without incident until its forced retirement on January 24, 2008.

The Boeing 767 – Canadian air registration C-GAUN – is now parked in the desert.

Air Travel, air canada flight, bob pearson, boeing 767, gimli glider, gimli manitoba, History, jumbo jets, Uncategorized