Dartmouth-area summer events offer affordable family fun
Another school year has ended, and now your family doesn’t know what to do? Fear not, South Dartmouth (and surrounds) offers plenty of budget-conscious things to do this July and August, with local attractions now open with their regular summer programming.
The Quaker House on Ochterloney Street – part of the Dartmouth Heritage Museum – is not only Dartmouth’s oldest standing building but also offers exciting tales of whale hunting (and connections to Moby Dick). Come learn how early settler families lived in Dartmouth around 240 years ago. Quacker House is open Wednesdays to Sundays from 10 a.m. to 5 p.m.
Also part of the Dartmouth Heritage Museum, Evergreen House on Newcastle Street continues the history tour of Dartmouth with tales from a grander era approximately 100 years later, and moving into more recent times. This house was also at one point the home of storyteller and folklorist Helen Creighton. This museum is open Tuesdays to Sundays from 10 a.m. to 5 p.m.
Admission to both museum locations is free.
Closer to King’s Wharf, the Back to the Sea Centre is now also open for the summer. With their touchtanks and displays of local sea life, a visit here is always fun and interactive. Their opening hours are Wednesdays 1 p.m. to 6 p.m. and Thursdays to Sundays 9 a.m. to 4 p.m.; entry is free for children under three, with those older paying between $5 and $6 (or $20 for any group of four).
Easily reachable by Halifax Transit Bus Route 5 (Portland Street), as well as by car, the Cole Harbour Heritage Farm Museum has always been a hit with families. The farm displays traditional farm buildings and gardens and has several live farm animals to see. There is also a traditional tea room, where almost everything is made from scratch (including the ice cream). Museum hours are 10 a.m. to 4 p.m., and the tea room is open between 11 a.m. and 3 p.m. Museum entry is free; the tea room offers affordable options like scones and home-baked cookies, or more complete lunches.
A short distance from South Dartmouth along Bus Route 6 (Pleasant Street) is the Shearwater Aviation Museum, open in summer Monday to Friday from 10 a.m. 5 p.m. and Saturdays and Sundays from 12 p.m. 4 p.m. This museum showcases Canada’s military aviation history, and a large number of aircraft are available for the public to see. There is also an aviation-themed art gallery on site. There is no admission fee.
As usual in summer, all local lifeguarded swimming spots are now open, with lifeguarding hours typically from late morning and throughout the afternoon. Water sampling is also done daily on all beaches where a lifeguard is stationed, with test results available at halifax.ca/beaches. Closest to South Dartmouth are Penhorn Lake Beach and Birch Cove Beach.
Regularly on Saturdays at lunchtime, the Dartmouth Common Pizza Oven will be fired up. Bring your own pizza ingredients, and volunteers at the oven will guide you through the process of cooking in a wood-fired stone oven. There are some picnic tables available, but bringing your own blanket or chairs is a good idea on busy Saturdays.
Finally, the three weekly markets at Alderney Landing are worth visiting any week. The Saturday Farmers Market is packed with fresh local produce from 8 a.m. to 1 p.m., while the quieter Artisan Market on Sundays (11 a.m. to 3 p.m.) and Wednesdays at the Waterfront Market (12 a.m. to 6 p.m.) invite you to browse works from local artists and makers, as well as offering fresh produce.