Ferry Nova Scotia, Canada

July 15, 2009
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I was really happy with the small ferries in Nova Scotia. I took three, one from Port Bickerton to Isaacs Harbour on my way to Guysborough, one to and from Iona in Cape Breton, and one from Jersey Cove to Englishtown. They’re $5 each way and take under five minutes to cross. Barring weather hurdles and breakdowns, they run 24 hours a day, all year long. The guys who run them are as friendly as you can get and I found myself chatting and sadly being cut short each time.

A Short History of Nova Scotia Book by Ed Whitcomb, Canada.

A Short History of Nova Scotia Book by Ed Whitcomb, Canada.

Nova Scotia Ferry from Port Bickerton to Isaacs Harbour
This little ferry is a weird one to find. On the map, it looks like you drive along highway 7 until you reach a sign that turns you right to get to Canso. But along the way I saw a tiny sign for the ferry to Canso.

Thinking it might be fun, I followed the road all the way down to the dock and it actually cuts off a worthwhile amount of time from the drive. But the ferry guy was telling me that travellers don’t know about it because it’s always left out of “those guidebooks.” Well, I was in Nova Scotia to update “one of those guidebooks,” so I made sure to include it :)

This is also the ferry that I met Dr. Ed Whitcomb. This man has served in Yugoslavia, Thailand, Indonesia and India with the Canadian Foreign Service, and is about as well-travelled as you can get. He was in Nova Scotia to tour his newest book, A Short History of Nova Scotia, one in a series of history books about Canada published by his company Sea to Sea Enterprises.

His wife is a Thai dancer in Ottawa and, coincidently, I’m working on a book about cultural dancing in Canada! It was one of those serendipitous meetings that I love so much. Needless to say, I read his short history of Nova Scotia with great interest and am keeping it on hand as a reference book.

Ferry Nova Scotia
I also took the small ferry to Little Narrows and Iona, as well as from St. Ann’s Bay to Englishtown. Same warm chatting with the guys working the ferry, but, alas, no more meeting diplomats like Ed Whitcomb.

What I Liked:

  • I’m sure there are many complications with running year round passenger ferries, but every one I took was easy and fun (some of the locals are very passionate about whether there should be bridges instead of ferries, as sometimes the ferries don’t run unexpectedly). Otherwise, though, they run about every 5 minutes or whenever there are cars waiting.
  • The ferry to Englishtown is particularly scenic, as you drive along a spit in Jersey Cove before crossing.


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    One Response to Ferry Nova Scotia, Canada

    1. Jet Set Life on July 15, 2009 at 5:58 pm

      Thanks for the post. I believe this could be a nice location for our next video shoot. Great info! Be well.

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