# Cape Breton Island, Canada



## Hazel Blumberg - McKee (Sep 9, 2011)

I hope I've put this in the correct category!

My husband and I are thinking about a trip to Cape Breton Island in Canada. Does anyone have any suggestions about knitting shops, fiber mills, fiber-animal farms, and all that good stuff that we (I probably should say "I"!) should visit? And also, anyone have suggestions on must-sees, even if they have absolutely nothing to do with fiber?

Many thanks!

Hazel


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## Doriseve (Jul 7, 2014)

I haven't been to Cape Breton since 1971. The scenery is fantastic. Women would have home made quilts for sale as the end of their driveway. I can't remember what was in the towns as to wool shops. In 1971 there were only 3 towns of any size. Bedeck being the largest. No towns on the north end. I suggest you google for tourist info. to see what has changed. Try looking for Alpaca farms, if there are any they will probably have yarn for sale. You will have a fantastic time. Let me know how your trip was.


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## JanetH (Nov 12, 2012)

DH and I went there, several years ago, on a cruise up the St. Lawrence River. The ship docked at a fantastic museum, where we learned about the history of the island. I remember a huge 'fiddle' statue outside of the museum. I would highly recommend going there. I did buy some lupine seeds at the gift shop, because I had never heard of or seen a lupine. Beautiful plants, which grew all over the island. I planted these seeds when I got home and now I have lupines everywhere in my garden. I never knew one could grow lupines in Michigan! (I do notice them now in people's yards and gardens, now that I know what they are; duh.) As for yarn shops, I don't know about that; they GOTTA have, hopefully, at least ONE LYS!


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## CdnKnittingNan (Nov 17, 2011)

You absolutely have to go to the Yarn Shop in Baddeck NS. It is also the home of the Alexander Graham Bell museum, a great place to see but especially to send your husband if you're taking too long in the yarn shop!


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## Margot in FL (Apr 11, 2017)

We were there in 2000 and rented a house at Grande Greve near St. Peter's. We went to Baddeck and there was a yarn store there which was delightful. I bought a kit in heather colours for a wrap.
We also enjoyed just driving around the whole area - Isle Madame was lovely and also Louisburg and its fortress. Most of all it was the friendliness of the people and the local restaurants that we found, plus the Scots and French cultures.
I'd go back in a heartbeat!


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## Granny41 (Feb 24, 2015)

Attached are links to two wool shops in Sydney:
https://www.facebook.com/thebobbintree/
https://www.facebook.com/Moraffs-Yarns-and-Crafts-170659686281232/
I have not been to Cape Breton in over 30 years so I cannot vouch for either of them. Ex-husband is a Cape Bretoner.


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## Granny41 (Feb 24, 2015)

I neglected to mention--if you are driving please take a side trip to Prince Edward Island. It is a little bit of heaven and has the most hospitable inhabitants in the world. You can easily drive the whole length of the island in a day but allow yourselves at least two, if not more. You can cross on The Confederation Bridge reaching approximately the middle of the island, turn left and drive to the western tip. Then do the reverse and drive to the eastern end and take the ferry to Nova Scotia. You will then be on your way to C.B.
http://www.confederationbridge.com/about/confederation-bridge.html
https://www.ferries.ca/ns-pei-ferry/
https://www.macauslandswoollenmills.com/


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## willi66 (Aug 30, 2012)

JanetH said:


> DH and I went there, several years ago, on a cruise up the St. Lawrence River. The ship docked at a fantastic museum, where we learned about the history of the island. I remember a huge 'fiddle' statue outside of the museum. I would highly recommend going there. I did buy some lupine seeds at the gift shop, because I had never heard of or seen a lupine. Beautiful plants, which grew all over the island. I planted these seeds when I got home and now I have lupines everywhere in my garden. I never knew one could grow lupines in Michigan! (I do notice them now in people's yards and gardens, now that I know what they are; duh.) As for yarn shops, I don't know about that; they GOTTA have, hopefully, at least ONE LYS!


I believe you are speaking about Sydney. My favourite yarn shop is in Baddeck. It's called Baadeck Yarns. Pat, the owner, has plenty of sample size made. I love it. The Alexander Graham Bell Museum is there as well (inventor of the telephone). The Cabot Trail is beautiful.


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## mubby (Jul 13, 2016)

If you do take a trip to Cape Breton, and then the sidetrip to PEI, be sure to check out Belfast Mills. They have fabulous yarns, knitting, one-day course in felting and various fibres. Absolutely worth it!


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## Granny41 (Feb 24, 2015)

mubby said:


> If you do take a trip to Cape Breton, and then the sidetrip to PEI, be sure to check out Belfast Mills. They have fabulous yarns, knitting, one-day course in felting and various fibres. Absolutely worth it!


HI Mubby, could you please provide some more information on Belfast Mills. I have Googled them and not found anything. I am flying to the East Coast tomorrow morning and would like to check them out if possible. Any info would be much appreciated. I will be going to the Briggs & Little Mill in Harvey Stn. Not far from where my brother and his wife live. :sm02:


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## Pinkpaisley (Mar 11, 2015)

Hazel Blumberg - McKee said:


> I hope I've put this in the correct category!
> 
> My husband and I are thinking about a trip to Cape Breton Island in Canada. Does anyone have any suggestions about knitting shops, fiber mills, fiber-animal farms, and all that good stuff that we (I probably should say "I"!) should visit? And also, anyone have suggestions on must-sees, even if they have absolutely nothing to do with fiber?
> 
> ...


I lived in Cheticamp for nine months in 1966. It is a beautiful island ......lovely lobsters....hand hooked rugs were the big thing then. Baddeck is a great town and the Alexander Graham Bell museum is fascinating. Have fun. I'm sure there are yarn shops still there.


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## mabougirl (Jan 16, 2017)

I live on Cape Breton Island. Try the Llama farm outside of Inverness called Windswept Farm, 132 MacEachern Road, (902) 258 3581, they are also on facebook.
Also , try Mamie's Alpacas farm in Glendale, also on facebook or [email protected]
Both of these are working farms , sell their fibres and products and are willing to give you a little tour if you call them first.
Baadeck Yarns in Baddeck that others were talking about is THE yarn shop to go to if that's all you want. She only stocks knitting related items. If you are looking for fibres, the other two are the places to go.


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## Hazel Blumberg - McKee (Sep 9, 2011)

mabougirl said:


> I live on Cape Breton Island. Try the Llama farm outside of Inverness called Windswept Farm, 132 MacEachern Road, (902) 258 3581, they are also on facebook.
> Also , try Mamie's Alpacas farm in Glendale, also on facebook or [email protected]
> Both of these are working farms , sell their fibres and products and are willing to give you a little tour if you call them first.
> Baadeck Yarns in Baddeck that others were talking about is THE yarn shop to go to if that's all you want. She only stocks knitting related items. If you are looking for fibres, the other two are the places to go.


Thank you SO much for the information! Oooo, I love going to working farms! There's one not far from me that actually has Icelandic sheep, who do amazingly well here. (We're in far northern Florida, where we have four seasons and where it's not as hot as it is farther down the peninsula.) They just get sheared more often. ;-) I will save all the wonderful info I've been receiving in case we do come to Cape Breton Island. All the pictures I've seen of it look breathtakingly beautiful.

Hazel


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## mabougirl (Jan 16, 2017)

Breathtaking it is. I am actually from Scotland and find the scenery and people here exactly the same.
If you are making the trip, let me know and you can stop in for a cup of tea or coffee.
I am 15 minutes from the llama farm and 30 minutes from the alpacas.quote=Hazel Blumberg - McKee]Thank you SO much for the information! Oooo, I love going to working farms! There's one not far from me that actually has Icelandic sheep, who do amazingly well here. (We're in far northern Florida, where we have four seasons and where it's not as hot as it is farther down the peninsula.) They just get sheared more often. ;-) I will save all the wonderful info I've been receiving in case we do come to Cape Breton Island. All the pictures I've seen of it look breathtakingly beautiful.

Hazel[/quote]


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## Hazel Blumberg - McKee (Sep 9, 2011)

mabougirl said:


> Breathtaking it is. I am actually from Scotland and find the scenery and people here exactly the same.
> If you are making the trip, let me know and you can stop in for a cup of tea or coffee.
> I am 15 minutes from the llama farm and 30 minutes from the alpacas.


Thank you SO much, Mabougirl! Yes, if we do make the trip, I will definitely be in touch! I've met a number of KPers, and they've all been terrific folks, so it'd be great to meet you, too!

I have been to Scotland--it was a loooong time ago--and I just loved what I saw of the country and the people.

Hazel


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## mubby (Jul 13, 2016)

Belfast Mini Mills is located in PEI in Belfast. If you google them by that name, you should find all the info. If you are going to Briggs and Little, then head to Sussex to Legacy Lane, near the hospital and the High School. Both have beautiful yarns.


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## sutclifd (Feb 26, 2013)

Nanny's Knits said:


> HI Mubby, could you please provide some more information on Belfast Mills. I have Googled them and not found anything. I am flying to the East Coast tomorrow morning and would like to check them out if possible. Any info would be much appreciated. I will be going to the Briggs & Little Mill in Harvey Stn. Not far from where my brother and his wife live. :sm02:


Briggs and Little is definitely my favorite. I have been going there long enough that I remember the OLD mill and the yarns that were not so heavily processed as they are today. You could knit the old stuff and have the softest hands from all of the lanolin left in the yarn. I still have and use several hooked rugs, made from their rug yarn (no longer made). As I child, I spent hours and hours cutting the yarn for my parents to hook with. Fond memories.

We went to Harvey Station a few years ago and the new shop is certainly a far cry from the old one!


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## Granny41 (Feb 24, 2015)

mubby said:


> Belfast Mini Mills is located in PEI in Belfast. If you google them by that name, you should find all the info. If you are going to Briggs and Little, then head to Sussex to Legacy Lane, near the hospital and the High School. Both have beautiful yarns.


I will be going past Sussex on the way from Moncton to my brother's in St.Stephens. Is Legacy Lane the name of a wool shop or an address? My computer is acting up so at the moment I cannot Google it.


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## dancewithmarg (Oct 2, 2012)

If you have time when you get off the ferry from PEI, at Caribou, NS, take a run over to River John (about 25 minutes) to Lismore Sheep Farm. If it's a Sunday there's also a farmers market from 9-2 in the summer months.
https://www.lismoresheepfarmwoolshop.com/


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## dancewithmarg (Oct 2, 2012)

Nanny's Knits said:


> I will be going past Sussex on the way from Moncton to my brother's in St.Stephens. Is Legacy Lane the name of a wool shop or an address? My computer is acting up so at the moment I cannot Google it.


http://www.legacylanefibermill.ca/ (didn't know about this until I saw this thread - we go through Sussex every year on the way to St. Andrews - will have to pay a visit!)

Marg


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## Granny41 (Feb 24, 2015)

dancewithmarg said:


> http://www.legacylanefibermill.ca/ (didn't know about this until I saw this thread - we go through Sussex every year on the way to St. Andrews - will have to pay a visit!)
> 
> Marg


You are probably familiar with Crickets Cove. They are in several locations. I have only shopped at the one in Black's Harbour. Not very friendly but they have a lovely store. There is also a nice wool shop in St. Stephens on the main street. If I remember correctly the name is The Wool Emporium. The owner is a lovely personable soul. I really like her shop (and her).
http://www.cricketcove.com/Contact-Us.html


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## dancewithmarg (Oct 2, 2012)

Nanny's Knits said:


> You are probably familiar with Crickets Cove. They are in several locations. I have only shopped at the one in Black's Harbour. Not very friendly but they have a lovely store. There is also a nice wool shop in St. Stephens on the main street. If I remember correctly the name is The Wool Emporium. The owner is a lovely personable soul. I really like her shop (and her).
> http://www.cricketcove.com/Contact-Us.html


Yes, have visited both of these places. Loved the huge selection at Black's Harbour, found the gentleman there quite friendly. Only one I have never heard of is Legacy Lane, NB, so looking forward to going there in September, we'll be at St.Martin's for a few days and usually take a run up to Sussex from there.


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## Hazel Blumberg - McKee (Sep 9, 2011)

JanetH said:


> DH and I went there, several years ago, on a cruise up the St. Lawrence River. The ship docked at a fantastic museum, where we learned about the history of the island. I remember a huge 'fiddle' statue outside of the museum. I would highly recommend going there. I did buy some lupine seeds at the gift shop, because I had never heard of or seen a lupine. Beautiful plants, which grew all over the island. I planted these seeds when I got home and now I have lupines everywhere in my garden. I never knew one could grow lupines in Michigan! (I do notice them now in people's yards and gardens, now that I know what they are; duh.) As for yarn shops, I don't know about that; they GOTTA have, hopefully, at least ONE LYS!


DH and I just got back from ten days on Cape Breton Island. It is one of the most gorgeous places I have ever been! I was just re-reading your note, and now I'm kicking myself for not purchasing lupine seeds while I was there. I don't know if lupines grown in northern Florida or not, but I really should have given them a try. They are exquisite.

What I also loved seeing were myriads of tulips in everyone's yards. We can grow tulips here, and many people do. But you have to freeze the bulbs for a good long time before you plant them. Once they come up, flower, and then die, you either have to dig up the bulbs and go through the freezing process again, or you simply let the bulbs rot in the ground.

I grew up in way upstate New York (Utica), at the foot of the Adirondack Mountains, and tulips were such a joy there. When DH and I lived in Minnesota, we planted tulips, and their number just grew and grew every year--unless, of course, eager critters like squirrels devoured them. Sometimes squirrels moved the bulbs wherever they felt inclined, so tulips would spring up where you hadn't planted them.

And, as others had told me, there was indeed the most WONDERFUL yarn store in Baddeck, called Baadeck Yarns. The owner was such a delight, and she had an astonishing amount of yarn. Many types of yarn were by companies and dyers and indie dyers I'd never heard of, and they were breathtaking. And she had many yarns dyed by Fleece Artist, who lives in Halifax. I have seen pictures of Fleece Artist's yarns, but had never seen them in the flesh, as it were. Well, you haven't seen anything till you've seen them in person! Fleece Artist produced yarns to commemorate Canada's 150th birthday; each province had a special color combination of yarns, which called up the particular landscape of a particular place. I think these were one time only yarns, and people had been buying them like crazy. I scored three skeins of the fingering weight, each a different set of colors, but all of which looked lovely together.

And DH and I got to meet a KPer who lives on Cape Breton Island and with whom I've been corresponding. Gail Ryan and her daughter Kathryn are such delights! They were so helpful about suggesting places we might like to visit, and their suggestions were spot on. I hope we'll be able to get together again.

Cape Breton Island has so much to see and do. We're lazy tourists, so we rented a lovely cottage in Mabou through Airbnb, which we'd never tried before (the owners lived next door, and they were such delights), on the west coast, and then drove to places near and far. I have never seen such an exquisite and rugged and craggy coastline in my life. Around almost every corner of the twisting roads was a town or a harbor. You were either by a lake or lakes or by the sea. Breathtaking. DH and I were utterly enchanted and plan to go back again and again.

Hazel


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