Views at Dunpheys Cove

The sun was bright in my eyes as I left St Georges Channel, though it allowed me only one further stop, about 3 km (1⅞ mi) further west, at Dunpheys Cove beyond the mouth of the Black River in Dundee, before it slid behind the clouds. I have stopped here often in the past as this vantage point offers fine views of West Bay at the southwestern end of the Bras d’Or Lakes system, though it is too close to the water for long vistas. The photos on this page were taken during this stop.

Photo #1, together with photos #2, #3, and #4, form a connected panorama from left to right; they all have the same wide-angled focal length, so this is truly a wide panorama, well worth the stop. In this photo, MacRae Island is just to the right of the tree at the left of the photo. In the centre and at the far right can be seen the sandbars which extend across the cove without quite closing it off from the lake. Out beyond is West Bay, with West Bay (the community) in the far distance to the right of MacRae Island. In the foreground is a spit of land which extends out to the right for a short distance.

Photo #2 looks to the right of photo #1 at the main part of the sandbar leading out to a portion where trees have established themselves. Dunpheys Cove lies inside the sandbars and extends to the right of the photo outside its scope. The communities of Lime Hill and Marble Mountain lie along the darkened shore in the far distance at the centre and right of the photo, respectively. On a clear day, this is one beautiful view! And it’s not all that bad this day either, in the setting sun of a fall afternoon.

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Photo #3 continues the panorama, with a better view of the area where the trees have established themselves on the sandbar. At the centre right, the sandbar connects to Dunpheys Head; the topographical map does not show a water passage through the sandbar. I have no idea why trees have not established themselves on the “bridge” between them.

Photo #4 completes the panorama, showing the cove extending inland; where it reaches the road, which can be seen at the far right. Across the “bridge” left of centre, a bit of the Marble Mountain area can be glimpsed in the far distance. When I stopped here in March of 2011, ice fishermen were trying their luck on the then ice-covered cove. Now, however, water still reigns and the beautiful fall colours on the rear side Dunpheys Head are catching the fading glow of the sun. The white dot in the centre of a photo is a gull, who was enjoying the afternoon just as much as I!

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Photo #5 is a closer view across Dunpheys Cove of the foliage on the rear side of Dunpheys Head. Much of the forest here is evergreen and a considerable amount of the rest has not changed, but the trees are definitely a-changin’. In the declining sunlight, which gilds everything it touches, it is hard to tell if there are good reds here, or only red-oranges and oranges, but colours aplenty there nevertheless are.

Photo #6, a telephoto view, confirms that there are indeed reds on this shore, though they are outnumbered by the oranges and red-oranges.

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