The Cabot Trail is often described as the most beautiful drive in North America. Certainly it’s a do-not-miss day’s drive! The Trail was named after the famous navigator and explorer, John Cabot, who first sighted Cape Breton Island on June 23, 1497.

Try driving the Cabot Trail clockwise. Start at Baddeck on the north shore of Cape Breton's Bras d'Or Lake, which is actually a saltwater inland sea. Baddeck derives its name from the Micmac word Abadeck, which means "an island nearby", and offers accommodations, restaurants, a marina and many other facilities.

The Village of Baddeck was once Alexander Graham Bell's summer home, where much of this telephone inventor's creative genius came to play. You may want to visit the museum and 25-acre park in his honor. The museum boasts 20,000 sq. feet of exhibits exploring his many inventions.

Head west from Baddeck along Highway 105 and then northwest onto the Trail at the well-marked entrance just past the Nyanza Bay Bridge. You’ll reach Margaree Forks after about 40 kilometers.

The Margaree River and Valley is known for its beauty and for salmon fishing. You may want to stop at the Margaree Salmon Museum at Northeast Margaree, a picturesque valley town.  Continue along the Margaree River and another well-known Cape Breton trail, the Ceilidh (Kay-lee) Trail, which follows Route 19 up from Port Hastings about 107 kilometers along the west shore and intersects the Cabot Trail at Margaree Harbour. Ceilidh is Gaelic for party. You can visit a restored schooner, the Marion Elizabeth, built in 1918 by the same firm that constructed the Bluenose – it’s now a restaurant-museum – at Margaree Harbour. The excellent beaches in this area include Whale Cove, Chimney Corner and Belle Cote.

From here, proceed north alongside the Atlantic to Cheticamp, an Acadian fishing village and the western entrance to Cape Breton Highlands National Park.  There are 28 hiking trails in the park; you may want to rent a cabin and stay overnight to explore this natural wonder, home to eagles, moose and black bear. Cheticamp is two hours from Sydney or five hours from Halifax. In summer, whale-watching and lobster and crab fishing expeditions leave from here.

Just northeast at Petit Elang, you can hike the four-hour Acadian Trail over the top of the Highlands, which offers a panoramic view of ocean and countryside.

After winding through inspiring peaks and deep valleys, the Cabot Trail heads east, leaving the Atlantic coast at Pleasant Bay. The inland segment leads to Cape North, the most northerly part of the Trail, then to South Harbour, an inlet of the Atlantic's east coast. The Trail continues 19 kilometers to Neil's Harbour, a fishing village with a wharf, a beach, a general store, chowder house and craft shop.

Further south, Ingonish is a resort destination with golf and hiking along the shores of two large bays, separated by the rugged Middle Head peninsula. Several communities here include Ingonish, Ingonish Center, Ingonish Beach, south Ingonish Harbour and Ingonish Ferry. This is one of the oldest settled areas on the Atlantic seaboard, starting with Portuguese fishermen who wintered here as early as 1521. Ingonish Beach is the headquarters of Cape Breton Highlands Park, the oldest federal park in eastern Canada.  If time permits, you may want to stay at the Keltic Lodge, a beautiful resort and spa run by Nova Scotia residents, at the Ingonish end of the Cabot Trail.

Continuing south, you’ll pass many small fishing villages such as Wreck Cove, Skir Dhu, North Shore and Indian Brook.  Looking out to the Atlantic, you can see the Bird Islands, nesting sites of many seabirds.

Just south, at Barachois River Bridge, the Trail turns inland through the hills to North River Bridge and then on to St. Ann’s where a deep bay forms a rugged harbour with high cliffs, pounding shores and lovely views. A Gaelic College at South Gut St. Ann’s includes a memorial to Rev. Norman MacLeod, who led a group of Scottish settlers here in the 1820s. The Great Hall of the Clans at the Gaelic College may also interest you.

Going on about 20 kilometers southwest, you arrive at your original starting point of Baddeck.  You may now agree with Alexander Graham Bell's quote, "I have travelled around the globe. I have seen the Canadian and American Rockies, the Andes, the Alps and the Highlands of Scotland, but for simple beauty, Cape Breton outrivals them all."

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