Picture Perfect – Peggy’s Cove, NS

Peggy’s Cove is a perfect example of a quintessential Atlantic Coast fishing village. It has a small harbor with a stunning lighthouse. Fishermen have called this place “home” since the early 19^th century. In 1811, six families secured 800 acres of land and founded the village.

Legend has it that the village was named for a shipwreck survivor, Peggy. After being rescued, she stayed in the town and married a local fisherman. Originally, it was called “Peggy of the Cove” but later it was shortened to “Peggy’s Cove.” The village and its cove is very picturesque.

Peggy’s Point Lighthouse is another favorite. This is the most photographed lighthouse in Nova Scotia. Perched atop a granite outcropping the 49 ft. tall lighthouse with its red and white design is sure to impress. The original lighthouse, built in 1868, was octagonal and was wooden. In 1914 it was replaced with the current concrete structure.

When we were there, we were greeted by the sound of bagpipes. A musician serenaded everyone as they arrived. Later, another musician with his Alphorn came and provided more music. He had placed some plastic cows near his instrument. David asked him about that and he said that the horn is used in Switzerland to call the cows to come back home for milking. He did not have real dairy cows so he used the plastic ones.

You can walk out to see the lighthouse up close or you can view it from a large viewing platform. On the viewing platform are some more of the famous “Red Chairs.” It’s a good place to snap a photo of the lighthouse and a great place to sit and enjoy the view.

You can walk beyond the lighthouse out onto the rock outcropping where you can watch the strong waves crashing below.

There are signs posted everywhere that warn you not to get too close to the action because you can be swept off the rocks. We did go out on the rock outcropping but did not venture too far.

Peggy’s Point Lighthouse, that marks the entrance to St. Margaret’s Bay, is lovely and it is visible from many different vantage points in the area.

The beauty of Peggy’s Cove has attracted and inspired many artists. There are several art galleries and shops in this small village. We liked many of the watercolors that we saw in Neil Depew’s Gallery. The William Edward deGarthe Gallery was closed but we still were able to see his most famous sculpture called the Fishermen’s Monument. He chiseled this sculpture in the granite behind his house, which now serves as his gallery. Mr. deGarthe, who was born in Finland, lived in Peggy’s Cove for many years and he wanted to create a monument that honored the hard-working fishermen and their community. The monument depicts 32 fishermen, their wives, and children who are being protected by the wings of the guardian angel St. Elmo. If you look closely, you will see the shipwreck survivor, Peggy, and also the sculptor’s own portrait. He worked on this project for five years prior to his death. When he died in 1983, it was 80% completed. It is an impressive work of art and a fitting tribute to the town of Peggy’s Cove.

A couple of miles from town is another monument that remembers those who lost their lives near St. Margaret’s Bay. On September 2, 1998, Swiss Air 111 crashed into the Atlantic five miles off the shore of Nova Scotia. Many of the first responders from Peggy’s Cove and Bayswater came to the crash site in their boats to try to rescue the survivors. Tragically all of the passengers and crew perished in what was the 2^nd most deadly airplane accident in Canada’s history. Near both Peggy’s Cove and Bayswater are monuments that pay tribute to those who died. We visited only one but it was a solemn place. The short walk to and from the parking area gives you some time to reflect and remember. When we were there, it was foggy adding to the weightiness of the memorial monument.

On a much lighter note, there is a meat called “donair” that is served all over the Maritimes. It is a spicy beef or sometimes lamb that is spicy and after it’s cooked, it is sliced very thin. We seen it on pita bread sandwiches, salads, and pizza. It is served with donair sauce which is a creamy sweet garlicky sauce. We stopped for lunch at a restaurant called Rhubarb and David ordered a donair pizza. In this case the donair sauce was drizzled over the pizza. He said that it was delicious!

If you decide to go to Peggy’s Cove, here a few things to know:

(1) Peggy’s Cove has a population of 40 people but the small town is a tourist attraction so there can be large numbers of visitors. Many of the cruise ships that stop in Halifax offer tours to Peggy’s Cove so plan accordingly.

(2) The weather along the coast is constantly changing. When we first arrived, it was overcast and we could not see across the bay. In a few minutes, the sun came out for a little while and we had beautiful views. Later the fog rolled in and it was hard to see the lighthouse.

Although there were plenty of tourists in Peggy’s Cove, we were glad that we went. It is a lovely town with a renowned lighthouse. Now we are going to visit Halifax, the largest city in Nova Scotia.