Lunenburg 44:22N 64:19W
Millybrown
Mark Hillmann
Mon 22 Sep 2008 21:33
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The morning after the yacht race, I slipped
out of Halifax at crack of dawn.
This far south, sunrise is at a sensible 7am, so
slipping out at 7:10 felt early enough, the sun still behind the hills
and the water calm, until the boat disturbed it. We motored gently
down the harbour. With low wooded hills and smart buildings reminding me
of Kiel in Germany.
It was 10 o'clock before the wind got up and the
engine stopped. A south wind, a good close reach all afternoon and then
threading up through islands and rocks into Lunenburg. I tied up at a
slightly derelict quay, but it was the Maritime Museum.
I asked if I could stay and went for a pint in the bar over the
museum, where the night watchman found me and said there was no
problem.
In the morning I wandered round the little town,
topping up bread, biscuit and marmalade supplies. Some things are
essential.
 The timber houses were as colourful as ever.
I was told that some of these were prefabricated in the US and shipped up by
loyalists when the US got independence. They were not going to leave the
British Empire.
 Fishing on the Grand Banks was a major part
of the economy until the trawlers emptied them. It was done
from schooners with these little dories, that were put over the side
and the fishing done in the same way that we saw in the Faroes, with long
lines and many, many hooks. The seats and equipment could be
removed from the dories so they could be nested inside each other on
the schooner deck. The lifting loops at bow and stern are still
there.
 This is the museum with a lovely little
double ended, centreboard schooner.
A proper local fishing boat. Very different
to anything seen in England.
 Then you get a famous
schooner, the Bluenose 11. But what colour is her nose?
 Black of course.
Perhaps it was only her crew got
blue noses, and sailing round here in winter they would be likely
to.
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