With our base in Sydney, we take some day trips in the area.  We visit Baddeck, a very picturesque village with lots of sailboats heeling over in a good breeze on Bras d’Or Lake.  Here we visit the Alexander Graham Bell National Historic Site.  We are impressed by his genius.  This amateur inventor developed the telephone, and as well as refined methods for teaching the deaf to speak.  He experimented with the gramophone, aircraft, tetrahedral kites, and hovercraft and numerous other things here from his summer home in Canada.

We then head out for a sunset bird watching tour to Bird Island. This was a ‘photographers tour’ so fewer people and evening light made for some great photos.  We see guillemot, gulls, great blue heron, cormorant, and northern gannet.  We also see lots of bald eagles and hundreds of adorable Atlantic puffins.

Another side trip took us to Glace Bay to the Marconi National Historic Site.  It was here that Gugliemo Marconi sent the first wireless Morse code message to England.  All that remains are the foundations of the four towers used to connect 400 copper wires in an inverted pyramid shape to the transmission center.

A visit to downtown Sydney takes us to the waterfront to see the giant fiddle.  It is Sydney Day so there is lots of activity with dragon boating, music, and street vendors.

Up early this morning for the ferry ride to Newfoundland.