Whatever Your Interests Are,
Annapolis Valley Can Deliver!

That is my opinion, and I have lived in the Annapolis Valley all my life.

My name is Belinda Atwell and my favorite pass time is exploring the beautiful sights and learning about the interesting history found in this area I call home. I have visited and explored almost all of it. You can also read our casino classic reviews

As I work on this website I will be revisiting old sites and checking out new ones. I would love to share my experiences with you. I would like to show you around this wonderful valley and all the surrounding areas close by.

The Annapolis Valley is located in the south-western section of Nova Scotia. It is only approximately one hour away from either Halifax or Yarmouth and it is really worth the drive to see. But don't just drive through it, experience the valley. There is so much here to see and do, I could not fit it all into one summer. Keep that in mind when you plan your trip here.

Before you go any farther let me suggest that you have a look at this video on the Evangeline Trail produced by Wallie Hayes while listening to the soulful song "Nova Scotia Nature's Music" written and performed by Bob Quinn. Much of the scenery you will see in this video is from the Annapolis Valley:

Traveling from Halifax you are first greeted to the valley by the magnificent cliffs of Blomidon over looking the beautiful Minas Basin. The spectacular scenery continues through Kings and Annapolis Counties and into Digby County where you can observe nature's wonders at the Balancing Rock. Don't be afraid to turn off the major highways and you will surely be rewarded with the beauty of this valley.

Then travel over to the Bay of Fundy and see even more breath-taking sights. I will cover both the valley and the Bay of Fundy Shore on this website. This is because the Bay of Fundy is only a few minutes away from anywhere in the valley and should not be missed.

Ways To Use This Website

When I started this website I knew there was lots to see and do here in the Annapolis Valley, but I did not realize just how much there is!

The valley is made up of three counties - Kings, Annapolis and Digby. Even though each county considers tourism one of their major industries, each one is unique and promotes different aspects of it. All three counties share much of the same type of features and qualities. Kings County seems to promote their cultural events a little more, while Annapolis County has found new and exciting ways to promote their history and Digby County thrives on its rugged beauty and dependency on the Bay of Fundy.

Each section on this site covers all three counties and is usually broken down into sections for each. The order for the counties (Kings, Annapolis & Digby) only reflects on the order you would come to them when driving down from Halifax toward Yarmouth.

I have divided the pages into different sections which are shown on the navigation bar to the left. Depending on what your interest are for visiting this website you will find several pages full of information in each section.

I have written about so many different places and adventures in the Annapolis Valley, but there is still so much more for me to do. New pages are added whenever I have a chance. Sign up and keep watch on my "Valley Blog" to see when new pages are added, or old pages are upgraded.

WELCOME

The welcome section is most helpful when you are planning your vacation to the Annapolis Valley.

Learn helpful hints and ideas to assist you when planning your vacation. Learn about what our climate is like and when would be the best time weather-wise to come. Find out what type of clothes you should bring with you.

This section also covers ways to travel to here including useful links to airports, ferry terminals, buses etc. You will also find out the many different types of accommodations offered in the area and a list of places to stay in each type. For mealtimes I have added some restaurants that have been recommended, plus you may read the comments from other people who either recommend or advise you about the different places to eat.

It is always good to do a little planning ahead so you have more time to spend exploring and enjoying the area while you are here and this section assist you in doing that.

WHAT'S HAPPENING

In the section; "What's Happening" you will learn what events and festivals will be going on while you are here. Be prepared, there are tons of them going on at almost any given time of the year. Here in the Annapolis Valley we celebrate everything from our community’s birthdays, cultural events, our harvest to even our lighthouses, animals and weather.

I tried for awhile to keep an up-to-date calendar of events, but this proved to be way too time consuming as there are just so many. Instead I have decided to provide you with a list of the annual events complete with general information of when they are held. In most cases I have also made up pages of each festival again giving you a general idea of what this festival is all about. Where possible I have provided links to web sites where you will find more up-to-date information and current schedule-of-events.

WHAT'S HERE

The Annapolis Valley is home to some of the oldest communities in Canada. Port Royal was one of the earliest European settlements on this continent, settled by French explorers in 1605.

Therefore we offer several different National Historic Sites along with several other points of interest. Find out information about the Acadians; how they lived, how they built the dykes and then about the expulsion that took them from their lands in 1755. Then you will learn about the New England Planters and the Loyalist. After they arrived and started their colonies they had a big effect in sculpting our way of life.

The list of museums in the Annapolis Valley is almost endless covering all kinds of topics; history, industry, lifestyles, military, the citizens including their ghost, and even their hobbies. Almost every town and community has at least one museum located in it. Most of these museums will change some or all of their displays from year to year but they always keep a general theme. I have made up a list of the many museums and provided pages showing what type of displays you will expect to see there.

History is big here, but it is not all that we offer. We have so many other attractions that will spark your interest here also. These include theme parks, zoos, magnificent landmarks, gardens and oh so many parks of all sizes and locations for your relaxation and enjoyment.

 

WHAT TO DO

This is always a good section to check out, again there are just so many different things to do in the Annapolis Valley.

I really recommend that you check out our many different Guided Tours. These have become very popular, some even capturing world attention like our Candlelight Graveyard Tour in Annapolis Royal. These interactive tours provide a great way to learn about this area and are all fun for the whole family.

If you enjoy a peaceful walk or a more challenging scenic hike you may want to check out the pages on Walking/Hiking trails to be found in the Annapolis Valley and Bay of Fundy Shore. Not feeling like that much exercise today, no problem, we have some of the best scenic drives you will find anywhere.

For the more adventurous visitors we have them covered also. Take time in your plans to go on a whale watching adventure or try some sea kayaking. If you like mountain biking we have trails for that, plus we have great routes for bicycling tours. Have you tried geocaching yet? We have hidden several caches in places offering great scenery and adventure. And for the golfers we can offer you several different courses of different levels to challenge your game.

HERITAGE

My heritage section is more for your reading enjoyment. It is full of stories and tales from all over the Annapolis Valley and Bay of Fundy. Learn about some of our folklore like the Legend of Glooscap or the Injun Rocks of Kejimkujik. Find out about apple drying or information about some of our famous ships or businesses.

If you are looking for mystery then the unsolved mystery of Jerome of Sandy Cove might interest you, or the Margaretsville Mystery Woman. Read about unsolved murder mysteries that happened here or unusual landmarks found in the area.

Maybe you want to find some buried treasure? We have lots of it said to be hidden all over the valley and Bay Shore. You can read about other attempts made to find it, some of them were even lucky! You may first want to read over the rules of finding buried treasure; you do not want it to be your last adventure!

The final group of stories in this section is about our many scary ghost stories. We are some of the oldest settlements in North America, there have been numerous battles fought here and fatal hardships happened over the years, you know we have to have some ghost! We do, we have a lot of them, some are said to still be seen today.

 

FUN THINGS

In the next section titled Fun Things I have included several different topics for you to go over.

If you enjoy reading about local things then you will want to visit my book store. Here you will be able to buy hard cover and eBooks for your eReader from Amazon, the webs largest book store. The books you find in my book store are all about Nova Scotia and the Maritimes.

For the people who like to cook I have a few pages with Maritime recipes for you to try. Try mine or share your favourite recipes on these pages. If you like looking at pictures of our area I have pages of photo albums full of pictures I have taken of the area. For a more up-to-date view of our area you may want to check out the Valley Webcams. Here you can watch live webcams from different spots across the Annapolis Valley and Bay of Fundy shore.

Meant just for fun my trivia pages are sure to offer you little bits of interesting, (but sometimes not very useful) information about the Annapolis Valley area. Things like "In 1780 an ice bridge across the river resisted the action of the tide, so that persons could cross and re-cross the river to and from Granville to Annapolis Royal for three days." or "In the year 1920 it was said there were 5000 spectators for the one day event known as the Bear River Cherry Carnival."

The last part of this section is completely for you. This is where you may add your stories to my site, things you like about the Annapolis Valley or something that happened on your vacation here. This site does not need to be all about me, I want to hear from you to.

KEEP IN TOUCH

This is the "business" part of my web site. Here you can learn about my story, what lead up to my building of this web site and how I did it. Then if you have any reason to contact me you find out where to do that here on my Contact Page.

Want to learn more about my site and me? Then subscribe to my Annapolis Valley Updates (AVU). If you want to get your business advertised on this site you can do that here also. Or just see all my pages on my site by looking through my Site Map or do a Site Search.



Now I hope you will take some time to explore my web site and find out what all is available in the Annapolis Valley and area. Please bookmark my sight and come back often as this is a work in progress and I will be adding pages constantly.