We said good bye to the highlands in Cape Breton and started down the coast highway on our way to Baddeck. It was a cool, late September day, and we were enjoying the bright sunshine. Our plan was to just poke along and maybe take in a hike or two. We stopped for a hike around a pretty mountain lake and enjoyed the antics of the various water fowl who were staging for their upcoming southern migration.

We stopped in Ingonish and hiked our way out on the Middle Head trail to a blustery point shrouded in incoming fog. We couldn't see a thing, but did hear the tolling of the navigation bells. A man and his dog hiked by. He told us that he hiked here every day, and, in the winter, none of the rocks and formations were visible, as they were covered in snow.

Back on the road, we were rushing to make up time when we passed the Leatherworks Studio. We knew that a treat was waiting for us, so I braked hard and turned back. As it was starting to rain, we sought refuge in John's inviting studio. John and some of his crew met with us. We got the tour and were attracted to the various bags in John's product line. The smell of leather being worked was intoxicating.

John is a Master Artisan as designated by Nova Scotia Designer Crafts Council. He learned his craft, through work in harness shops and leather factories and self-teaching. John augmented his hands-on-learning with travel, museum study, and constant reading of trade books and magazines.

He and his wife Marion opened their store, Leather Works by John C. Roberts, in 1988 to retail a wide variety of leather goods including museum reproductions and contemporary accessories. All leather items sold in the store are made in the adjoining workshop by John and skilled staff working together, fueled by coffee and chocolate.

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$90

$30