Sunny outlook for 2024 tourism season on South Shore

Stephanie Miller Vincent is the co-ordinator of the South Shore Tourism Co-operative. The organization held its annual general meeting Tuesday at the Quarterdeck Resort in Summerville Centre. (Rick Conrad)

Tourism operators on Nova Scotia’s South Shore are looking forward to a good season, optimistic that visitors will return to the area after a disappointing 2023.

Stephanie Miller Vincent is the co-ordinator of the South Shore Tourism Co-operative, which counts almost 120 members from Peggys Cove to Barrington. 

“We’re a resilient group. We’re also a really optimistic group. And weather will play a factor, the economy will play factor, but we know we’ve got first-class product, we’ve got things to offer that nobody else has in other regions of Nova Scotia or Canada, so we’re looking forward to a really great year.”

The co-operative held its annual general meeting on Tuesday at the Quarterdeck Resort on picturesque Summerville Beach. About 40 members from hotels, restaurants, municipalities and chambers of commerce around the South Shore got an update on the group’s efforts to boost tourism and to extend the season beyond the summer and early fall.

Wildfires, floods and rain contributed to a challenging 2023 tourist season for the area’s businesses. The South Shore, the Yarmouth and Acadian Shores and Cape Breton saw declines in room nights sold compared with 2022, while accommodation numbers in the rest of the province were higher than the year before.

Hotel stays, or room nights sold, on the South Shore for the May to October 2023 period were down about five per cent over 2022.

Those at the meeting on Tuesday said early indications are that this year’s bookings are up over last year.

Jill Forrest, the general manager of the Quarterdeck, said early bookings look good.

“It’s promising for this upcoming year for sure. We are in a last-minute trend, it seems. Even last year, people tend to wait and see what the weather’s going to do and pull that final trigger on booking and knowing where they’re headed. But things are looking very good for the year.”

Susan Corkum-Greek, MLA for Lunenburg and Nova Scotia’s minister of economic development, told the co-operative’s members that she checked with the province’s tourism officials before the meeting to get an idea of what the season might bring. 

“And we have early indicators of early bookings. We know for instance that the Yarmouth ferry has a higher percentage of advance bookings, The hotel association is saying that. Room nights are not the only indicator but it shows buy-in intention and says something of length of stay.”

The co-operative’s annual lobster crawl in February always attracts a lot of attention. This year, the group says its marketing efforts resulted in more than 100 media headlines, reaching about 270 million people, with an advertising value of just under $7 million.

About 100 of the co-operative’s members held 128 events around the South Shore connected with the lobster crawl. And just under 80 per cent of those who attended a lobster crawl event were from Nova Scotia, according to a survey conducted by the co-operative.

Miller Vincent says it’s always difficult to predict what the season will be like. But she expects staycations to be big again this year.

“You’re always trying to look at the data,” she says. “We always look at the price of gas, but we’ve got more flights coming into Halifax so that’s important. The economy will probably keep people closer to home and looking to see not only what’s in their own neighborhood but what’s next door. Staycations have become more important than before Covid because we recognize what we’ve got here.”

Email: rickconradqccr@gmail.com

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Queens County residents get tips on protecting homes from wildfire risk

Barb Hill-Taylor of East Port L’Hebert was at a community wildfire preparedness day on Tuesday, organized by Parks Canada. (Rick Conrad)

When last spring’s wildfires were consuming thousands of hectares around Barrington in southwestern Nova Scotia, Barb Hill-Taylor was about 90 kilometres away at her home in East Port L’Hebert.

“We have only one exit from our peninsula,” she said Tuesday, “and I was concerned about that and also the closeness of the Barrington fire, you could see the plume.”

The fires didn’t get close enough to threaten Hill-Taylor’s house, but they still left a lasting impression. Even though her house is made of concrete with a metal roof, she was still concerned enough that after it was all over, she and her neighbours asked the province’s wildfire prevention officer to visit their area. The officer gave her and her neighbours tips on how to make their properties more wildfire resilient.

“It was great. I learned a lot. We spent about two hours driving around the peninsulas and she would point out things that were issues for people to look at. It was a really worthwhile exercise. The snag is that people have to act on the recommendations now and cut trees. It’s difficult because you spend a lot of time doing your landscaping.”

Hill-Taylor was one of the local residents at Kejimkujik National Park Seaside in Port Joli on Tuesday for a wildfire community preparedness day.

Organized by Parks Canada, Tuesday’s event also included officials from Nova Scotia’s Department of Natural Resources and Renewables and the Liverpool Fire Department.

They were there to educate people on how to make their property a little safer from fires. Parks Canada officials also laid out many of the measures they have taken at the park to help mitigate the spread of wildfires, which mirrored the things people can do on their own properties.

The fires that started in the Barrington Lake area last May eventually burned more than 23,000 hectares. So far this year, Nova Scotia crews have responded to 27 wildfires around the province.

Cory Isenor, a forestry resource technician with the Department of Natural Resources and Renewables, says it’s a lot about common sense.

“It’s looking at the stuff around your home and trying to eliminate anything that could catch fire.”

Isenor advises homeowners to keep grass trimmed and short around your foundations, clean up any brush or leaves from around your home, make sure your decks, patios, gutters and roof are free of leaf and yard waste, and cut back any trees, especially if they’re evergreens, from around your home. He said it’s also important to make sure stacks of firewood are stored as far away from your house as possible.

Officials discussed which building materials are more prone to igniting in case of an outdoor fire. Metal roofing and concrete structures are best. But using non-combustible and fire-rated products can also help.

“The big thing is the distances from the combustible materials around your home,” Isenor said in an interview. “And the biggest thing is what we call the intermediate zone which is touching your house, a couple of metres right around your home, that you may have flower beds or dried wood, fences, anything that could catch and then transfer that over to your home. 

“You want to try to remove any combustible material in that immediate zone: birch bark mulch, firewood piles. Decks are always an area of concern.”

And Isenor said it’s also important, in the event of a wildfire, for people to be ready to shelter in place for 72 hours or to evacuate immediately.

Local resident Nancy Perry said she and her husband already cut back many of the trees on their property after last year’s fires. But she said she came to the event to be better prepared, just in case. 

“I was just interested to find out how we could make some changes at our property to be a little safer if we ever get another fire.”

The wildfire preparedness day was part of FireSmart Canada’s National Wildfire Community Preparedness Day, which was observed on Saturday. Parks Canada officials recommended on Tuesday that people check out the FireSmart Canada website for more tips and a self-assessment of how to protect your home.

Email: rickconradqccr@gmail.com

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Lucy the Lobster sees shadow, predicts six more weeks of winter

Lucy the Lobster saw her shadow in Barrington on Friday morning. (Nova Scotia Lobster Crawl photo)

By Rick Conrad

Lucy the Lobster didn’t crack a sweat when she saw her shelly shadow on the wharf in Barrington on Friday morning.

That means six more weeks of winter, at least for the South Shore of Nova Scotia.

Lucy made her prediction as the Nova Scotia Lobster Crawl Festival kicked into high gear. It’s a whole month of shellabrations along the South Shore involving the scrumptious crustacean.

Nova Scotia’s official winter prognosticator had a different prediction. Shubenacadie Sam did not see his shadow, which means spring is around the corner.

Stephanie Miller Vincent, co-ordinator of the lobster crawl, said it was prime shadow-seeing conditions in Barrington. 

“We had sunshine, I’m sorry that they didn’t in Shubenacadie. We were there. We believe what Lucy saw.”

Now, Lucy gets to hang out in a tank at Capt. Kat’s Lobster Shack in Barrington Passage for the rest of the lobster crawl.

“Lucy is spending some time at the spa. You can pop in and take a shellfie with her while she relaxes for the rest of the month of February.”

Email: rickconradqccr@gmail.com

Organizers lift lid on Nova Scotia Lobster Crawl Festival

The Nova Scotia Lobster Crawl Festival kicks off Thursday. (Nova Scotia Lobster Crawl Facebook page)

By Rick Conrad

Get your shell cracker ready, sharpen your lobster pick and loosen your belt. Thursday marks the beginning of the Nova Scotia Lobster Crawl Festival.

The month-long celebration of the succulent shellfish includes businesses all along the South Shore, from Barrington, the lobster capital of Canada, to Peggys Cove, and as far inland as Kejimkujik and New Ross.

Things really get going on Friday, when Lucy the Lobster marks Groundhog Day in her own special way. If you’re at the Cape Sable Island Causeway at 8 a.m., you’ll get to see if Lucy predicts a longer winter.

The South Shore Tourism Co-operative launched its first lobster crawl in 2018 to help bring visitors to the South Shore in a typically slow time of year.

Stephanie Miller Vincent, the co-ordinator of the co-operative and the festival, says that with more than 100 events at 80 different businesses around the South Shore, it’s a great excuse to get out of the house.

“February is the longest shortest month of the year and we all need a reason to get out and crawl,” she says.

“There are just always great reasons to either come and visit the South Shore or crawl around the South Shore if you already live here.”

The festival features five signature events — Lucy and her shadow on the 2nd, the Lobster Roll Off competition at the Michelin Social and Athletic Club in Bridgewater on Feb. 4, the inaugural Chowder Chowdown Showdown on Feb. 11 at the Black Loyalist Heritage Centre in Birchtown, the Tail End Party at the Old Fish Factory in Lunenburg on Feb. 23, and the Beachside Bingo Brunch Buffet at the Quarterdeck Inn in Hunts Point on Feb. 25.

The chowder showdown is already sold out and there are only a few tickets left for the lobster roll competition, Miller Vincent says.

But there are events all over the South Shore to tickle your lobster fancy. The Region of Queens is also getting in on the lobster-loving action with Light Up Queen’s, an outdoor nighttime party in Centennial Park on Feb. 24.

“The economic value of lobster crawl has increased every year,” Miller Vincent says. “It’s now an anticipated event. We have businesses that stay open because of lobster crawl or extend their hours because of lobster crawl.

“It’s a little bit of everything. It’s truly taken a month where hibernation might have been the most popular activity and really encouraged people to get out.”

If you’re really into the crawl, you can find something to do for all 29 days of February, Miller Vincent says. You can pick up a passport at participating businesses or on the website at lobstercrawl.ca, track your progress and enter to win prizes. 

As for Lucy, she gets to return to her bottom-dwelling ways a few days after she sees her shadow or not.

“Lucy is often a different Lucy. She does her duties, spends a couple of days at the spa at Capt. Kat’s (Lobster Shack in Barrington Passage) so you can pop by and get a ‘shellfie’ with her and then Lucy gets released,” Miller Vincent says.

“We do not eat Lucy, nor do we allow anyone else to eat Lucy. Lucy gets released.”

For a full schedule, visit lobstercrawl.ca or follow Nova Scotia Lobster Crawl on Facebook.

Email: rickconradqccr@gmail.com

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Shelburne County man charged in Barrington Lake wildfire

Charges have been laid in last spring’s Barrington Lake wildfire. (Communications Nova Scotia photo)

By Rick Conrad

A 22-year-old Shelburne County man has been charged in last year’s historic Barrington Lake wildfire.

Dalton Clark Stewart, of Villagedale, was charged under the Forests Act on Wednesday. He is accused of lighting a fire on private land without permission, failing to take reasonable efforts to prevent the spread of a fire and leaving a fire unattended.

Stewart is scheduled to appear in Shelburne provincial court on March 7.

These are not criminal charges. Police have said they don’t plan to pursue criminal charges in the wildfires. The Nova Scotia Department of Natural Resources and Renewables investigated and laid the charges.

In a news release Thursday, the department said it is still investigating the wildfire in Tantallon last spring. It has two years from the date of an offence to lay charges.

The maximum penalties under the Forests Act are a $50,000 fine and/or six months in jail.

The Barrington Lake wildfire began on May 26 and burned 23,379 hectares. It was declared under control on June 13. The Tantallon wildfire began May 28 and burned 969 hectares. It was declared under control June 4. Both fires were extinguished on July 26.

The Barrington Lake fire forced the evacuation of more than 6,000 people and destroyed 60 homes and cottages, as well as 150 other buildings. The Tantallon fire razed 151 homes and forced more than 16,000 residents to flee the area.

The wildfire that spread through Shelburne County was the worst in the province’s recorded history.

Email: rickconradqccr@gmail.com