Staying in Musquodoboit Harbour, Nova Scotia

I begin my 7-day road trip of Nova Scotia by staying my first night in Musquodoboit Harbour, just east of Halifax. I practiced saying the name over and over again on my flight from Vancouver, imagining the various inflections that those Nova Scotians might use.

I got to the car rental company (did you know that if you redeem your Aeroplan points for a rental car with Enterprise, they don’t charge you fees, taxes or an extra cost for returning the car to a different location? My bill actually said $0.00- who says you can’t get things for free these days?!) and asked for directions.

“Where are you going?”

“Um, Mus-qu-o-do-boo-it Harbour,” I stammered in my best fake confidence.

“Where? Oh, Must-go-dob-it Harbour. Don’t worry, no one can say it properly.”

I spent the next 45 minutes driving to Musquodoboit Harbour repeating the correct pronunciation and I’m proud to say that now, one week later, I can say it right without hesitation

I was lucky to rest my head at the pleasant Salmon River House Country Inn, full of Nova Scotia charm. I drove up and walked right to the water: the inn is balanced on the riverfront, an unbelievably calm waterway lined with mountains and forests of trees on either side.

The Salmon River House Country Inn was built in 1850 as a settler’s cottage and now runs year round as a great place to stay in the Musquodoboit Harbour area.

Each of the rooms has a very subtle theme, from the Captain’s Room to the Honeymoon Room and Romance Room. There’s also a lovely little cottage with a fireplace, small kitchenette and soaker tub for those who want privacy.

Unfortunately, I didn’t get to eat in the Lobster Shack restaurant, but it has a great atmosphere and, as the name implies, probably great lobster! It overlooks the river as well and has an outdoor patio perfect for dining on.

I was only able to have my continental breakfast and then was out the door in the morning, on my way to Sherbrooke Village.

What I liked:

Riverfront setting

Free wireless in rooms

The staff also speak French and German

Tags: canada, east of halifax, Lobster Shack restaurant, ns, Salmon River House Country Inn