This morning we packed up all our gear and left the Atlantic coast destined for our second Airbnb on the Bay of Fundy coast. Along the way we paused briefly at the Shubenacadie Wildlife Park where we enjoyed many encounters with the residents, a small sampling of which is shown here.

By midday, we reached South Maitland where we had reservations for a tidal bore rafting adventure. The greatest tides in the world occur in the Bay of Fundy with an average spring range of 47.5 feet (vertical) and an extreme range of 53.5 feet. The tide rises so rapidly that it creates a wave, called a tidal bore, which travels against the current up the rivers which feed the bay. The bore is only a foot or two high but the interaction of the river current and the competing tidal current set up enormous standing waves which make for insane white water rafting. Our guide was a 16-year veteran of the river and maneuvered us expertly into the biggest water on the river. The boat was filled with water more often than not. I took more videos than photos but none do justice to the intensity of the waves.

Thoroughly exhausted after our two hour adventure, we drove to Wolfville where we had reservations at the Troy Restaurant, owned by a relative of Maya’s friend Maddie. There we celebrated Kyle’s 23rd birthday in style enjoying some of the best Mediterranean food I have ever sampled.

Everyone slept in this morning (we all stayed up late last night to complete a jigsaw puzzle) before setting out for the Halifax Seaport Farmer’s Market. It was nothing to write home about but did get us into the city where we walked along the waterfront and eventually jumped on to a Harbor Hopper tour (Halifax equivalent of a Boston Duck Boat). It was an equally informative and enjoyable tour which offered great views of the city from both land and sea. After lunch, the kids commandered the car so they could play a round of golf while Jeanine and I took a vigorous walk to nearby Gammon Lake.

After two full days on the move, the family opted for a “relaxing” day at the beach combined with lots of exercise. Jeanine started the day with a bike ride while Nico and Maya took the kayaks out for a spin at high tide. Kyle ran to the beach where a lot of soccer and Frisbee took place in addition to the occasional splash in the ocean. My exercise came in the form of chasing the kids around with a camera.

Our ferry docked in Yarmouth at 7am. After clearing customs we were directed by a local resident to the Grand Hotel for breakfast. With full bellies we worked our way up the southern shore with stops at Shelburne, Mahone Bay (for lunch), Lunenburg (home port of the Bluenose 2 sailing vessel), Blue Rocks (my favorite), and Peggy’s Cove. We reached Halifax in time for dinner at the Economy Shoe Box restaurant (gets an A for ambience but only a B for the food) after which we strolled down to the waterfront where we caught one good and one bad act of the Halifax International Busker Festival. Another 30 minutes of driving brought us to Lawrencetown where we are renting an Airbnb home for the next three nights. The place is right on the water and could not be more magnificent.

The Nova Star ferry operates between Portland, Maine and Yarmouth, Nova Scotia where the family is destined for a one week vacation. The 1-year old Nova Star measures 528 feet in length and has a 30,436 HP engine which propels the vessel along at 21 knots. The over-night voyage takes ll hours during which we spent most of the time sleeping in our cabin. In addition to accommodations for 711 passengers, the boat features a casino, several restaurants, a Karaoke bar, a piano bar, and an outside dance floor. While waiting to board the ferry the kids entertained themselves playing hacky sack. We set sail at about 8pm with a pilot boat escorting us out of the harbor past Fort Scammell on House Island.

To celebrate the achievement of several important milestones at work, I organized a team outing at F1 Boston, an indoor high-performance kart racing venue. After the finals, we gathered for a group photo. I raced a total of 40 laps, half of them in the final, and was totally spent by the time we finished. We retired to the billiards room where we enjoyed a light dinner, darts, and pool.

I received a complimentary copy of a thermal camera from a new company called Seek Thermal. It plugs into an iPhone and offers some extremely interesting photographic possibilities. I plan to put it through its paces over the coming weeks and share my feedback and images with the company.

I enjoyed a break from my normal responsibilities at work to do a photo shoot on location with one of our customers today. The images will be used for an online case study being prepared by our marketing folks. With no prior notice, I had to make do without any lighting equipment which I would have normally used for such an assignment. Because our customer was working in an open office, I had no opportunity to stage the environment which further limited my shooting options. I made the best of the situation and am pleased with this hero shot of our printer in which I used a slow shutter speed to get good exposure on the computer screen where our Eiger software is running and to create motion blur on the user for a sense of motion and activity. In the future I may have to carry my lighting gear with me at all times so that I am not constrained by available light should I get another last-minute request for photos.

I hesitated to publish this photo of Will earlier but have decided it is too cute to stay hidden on my computer, possibly never to be seen again. Subject to an objection from his mother, it will remain here for eternity.

What better gift to give a newlywed couple than a bicycle built for two? Such was the choice of the best man at Sarah’s wedding last weekend. My board presentation, held at the offices of Matrix Partners, one of our A-round investors, went well but the meeting consumed much of the day and once again I found myself without time for new photos.

With my first MarkForged board of directors presentation tomorrow, I had no time for photography today. This picture was taken during my weekend flight to Indianapolis in the vicinity of Newark Airport where I had a connection.

Jeanine’s niece Erica lives just outside of Louisville, Kentucky where we drove this morning to visit her, husband Nick and their kids, Lilly and Will. Jeanine stayed for another day while I flew back to Boston.

Jeanine and I flew to Indianapolis where she was born and we lived together for almost 20 years to attend the wedding of Sara Parker and John Thoe. Sara’s mother, Becky, was my administrative assistant and office manager at Truevision, the company I co-founded. I have known Sara since she was 7 years old, watching her grow from an effervescent little girl to a radiant woman.

In total there were four Truevision alumni at the wedding including Becky, Brian Thome, and Valerie.

While in town we stayed with Jeanine’s sister and brother-in-law, Lauren and Bob, and had a chance to visit with her nephews Luke and Gabriel (pictured below with his son Bradley on his back).

Because this post is being created in the future, I have the option to use a photo that has not yet been taken. This is a photo of a meal I will enjoy two days from now while visiting with Jeanine’s niece, Erica in Kentucky. I was just too busy with work for any new photos today.