Planning a trip to Cape Breton Island

Getting There -- Cape Breton is connected to the mainland via the Canso Causeway, a manmade stone causeway built in 1955 with 10 million tons of rock. (You can see the mountain which was sacrificed for the cause as you approach the island on the Trans-Canada Hwy.) The causeway, which is 200 ft. high and 3/4-mile long, is 262km (163 miles) from the New Brunswick border at Amherst and 272km (169 miles) from Halifax -- a little less than 3 hours' drive from either point if you take the fastest route possible and don't stop.

But you're just getting started: once you cross the causeway onto the island, it takes another 2 to 3 hours to reach the best parts, such as the national park. Baddeck, Mabou, the Margaree Valley, and Louisbourg are a little closer -- they can all be reached in 1 to 2 hours' driving, maximum.

Visitor Information -- A number of tiny local tourist information centers dot Cape Breton Island, but you're best off grabbing a pile of info at the bustling Port Hastings Info Centre (tel. 902/625-4201), which is on your right just after you cross the causeway onto the island. (One and done, that's what I say.) It’s open daily 9am to 5pm in summer. (It’s closed Nov to mid-May.)

Special Events -- Celtic Colours (tel. 877/285-2321 or 902/562-6700) is a big, island-wide annual music shindig timed to approximate the peak of the lovely highland foliage in early October. Few tourists know about it, and the concentration of local Celtic musicians getting together for good times and music beneath lovely foliage is simply breathtaking if you're into this sort of thing. It usually begins in the second week of October and lasts more than 10 days: a foot-stompin', pennywhistlin', fiddle-playin' 10 days. The musical performances, by such international stars as the Chieftains -- or, even better, the up-and-coming next Chieftains -- are the obvious highlight, though they can cost as much as C$60 per person for a real headline act. Ticket prices range from about C$20 to C$60 for a single event. The most popular performers sell out months in advance; check the website or call well ahead if you’ve got your heart set on a particular act.