Jim Cabot, a widower and retired engineer, endeavors to turn his life around by throwing himself into a four-year boat-building project that memorializes his late, beloved wife.
William (Bill) Gallant, his neighbor and close friend, carries the daily burden of his own wife's dementia together with an illustrious but soul-searching career as an inspector with the Royal Canadian Mounted Police. Down East in Bluenose Country follows the intersecting lives of four Maritime Canadian families, each of whom have confronted disappointing and tragic life experiences. As they meet the challenges of mental disability, physical abuse, homicide, and same-sex marriage, they learn to balance their lives with their traditional upbringings. In the face of close-mindedness, career-changing decisions, and the unrelenting march of time, they come to terms with family values and learn that compassion and love can eventually conquer all.
