We enjoyed a mid-week visit to Annapolis Royal. We stopped briefly at the Library.
I wondered if they had a copy of Raynor Winn, ‘The Salt Path‘.
Given the controversy in England about the book, I was intrigued. Fortunately, they are able to bring it in via Interlibrary loan.
Next step, the Elm Tree Cafe at the Historic Gardens for a morning coffee. Sitting under the huge elm tree, we wondered about the history.
Afterwards, we walked the gardens, stopped at the shop, and picked up a copy of ‘Story of a Garden’.
On the back cover ‘E Terra Vita’ by Tom Forrestall.
“The hand holds within its grasp flowers representing the native Mi’kmaq (mayflower), Acadian (iris) and British (rose) heritage of Annapolis Royal. It reaches outward to pass this heritage on to succeeding generations.“
At the Red Onion, I looked for British food, e.g. Weetabix., Branston pickle.
Last stop was JoAnn’s Chocolate Shop and Gallery. Besides the chocolate, I found in the second hand books, Barry Lopez ‘Field Notes’.
Heather stopped in, opposite, at the Bonnett House Art Gallery and found Sally O’Grady. Sally worked with us in the Parks Canada days. She has designed an excellent brochure/map, Annapolis Royal Art Map 2026 Fine Arts and Crafts.
A couple of footnotes from earlier in the week at the Inside Story — The Summer issue of Atlantic Books is now available. It includes ‘Inside the Funding Crisis threatening Nova Scotia Book Publishing’.
I picked up the latest book ‘Music in the Annapolis Valley’ by Dave Whitman.
He was our neighbour when we lived on Highway 201, Paradise; so many familiar faces and places from the Valley. Thank you, Dave for your excellent, continued contribution to our understanding of the local Geography.
References
Raynor Winn, 2018, The Salt Path, Penguin Books.
Annapolis Royal Historic Gardens. ‘Story of a Garden‘.
Barry Lopez, 1994, Field Notes, Random House Canada.
Atlantic Books Today, No. 103, Spring/Summer 2026. (online edition HERE)
Annapolis Royal 2026, Art Map: Fine Arts and Crafts, Designed by Sally O’Grady.
Dave Whitman, 2026, Music in the Annapolis Valley, Bailey Chase Books.
Acknowledgements
Thanks to both, Edward Wedler and Heather Stewart.
Ernest Blair Experiment 