Tim & Jan
Well-known member
- Joined
- Mar 3, 2005
- Posts
- 175
This the first log of our 2005 Martimes trip.
5/31/05, high of 71? and sunny. We are staying at Sunset Point Campground, a small park in a natural setting where we are just a few short steps from Pleasant Bay. A great place to relax and enjoy the view. After hooking up we decided to go over to Jonesport for lunch at Tall Barneys Cafe. Russ Mahoney recommended the marvelous meatloaf, but of course, that was yesterdays special ;-(. Today the special was crab cake burgers, they were the best crab cakes we have ever eaten. If you go there you might question the looks of this small place, we suggest you go inside and enjoy the ambiance and good food. Our first impression of this area is weathered homes and fishing boats and special people enjoying this life. Next day we started with a day trip from Lubec, Maine to visit Roosevelt Campobello International Park on Campobello Island, New Brunswick. Lubec, Maine is directly opposite Camponello Island, a drive over a short bridge, a border inspection and you?re there. The visitor center provided an excellent history of FDR and we enjoyed the tour of his ?cottage? of 20+ rooms for the family, guests and servants. A short drive takes you to the East Quoddy Lighthouse, when the tide is out you can walk to the lighthouse. Crossing back to Maine we then visited West Quoddy Head Light Station and the small town of Lubec.
--------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------
6/2/05, high of 73? and sunny. We entered the New Brunswick mainland at St Stephen NB and traveled about 25 miles to St. Andrews NB to stay at the Kiwanis Ocean Front Campground. Our border crossing with the motorhome was without incident and ended with the guard telling us to enjoy our visit. We had a DirecTv signal. Verizon shows a flashing black triangle, roaming we think, so for 69? a minute we made no calls and didn?t try an analog data connection.
After a trip to the visitor center in town we have planned outings for the next few days. We drove along the coast to visit the small fishing villages of St. George, where we watched fish leaping up the fish ladder, and Blacks Harbour. Many types of nets and traps can be seen in the bays, in addition we saw large floating black circles of plastic with nets attached where salmon can be farm raised. Black Harbour is the sardine capitol of North America with a huge processing plant there.
One day we took a trip to Saint John to see the Reversing Falls. We watched the water at low tide and then again at high tide when the ocean rises pushing upstream whirling into the St. John River. Many kinds of birds gather at this time to feed on the fish that are being tossed about in the swirling waters. A driving tour around town takes you past Fort Howe Lookout for a panoramic view of St. John and the Carleton Martello Tower, both served as defense posts of Saint John and its harbor. We also made a stop at the Saint John City Market established in 1876,it is a wonderful place to do some serious shopping for fresh produce and meats. They also offer many unusual foods and arts and crafts.
Just a short ride from the campground in St. Andrews is Ministers Island. This is now a protected historic site. We joined other cars waiting in line for low tide and followed a Canadian pilot car across the ocean floor to the island. This was a most interesting adventure and history of Sir William Van Horne. A visionary railway builder, and with his many connections and financial gains, he was able to build this for his summer residence. He was the driving force in establishing the Canada railway from sea to sea. Still standing on the island today are his home containing 50 rooms, a gigantic livestock barn with creamery, a heated greenhouse containing peach trees and grape vines, fruits and vegetables. A windmill provided running water from an underground storage tank. This was an amazing island and the year was 1890. The tour lasts about two hours and we would recommend the trip. Minimial cost of $ 5.00 each.
The weather has been wonderful, sunny, yet cool enough for a sweater. Knowing that it is early in the growing season we decided to tour Kingsbrae, one of Canada?s Top Ten Public Gardens here in St. Andrews. The walk was nice and the landscaping architect has a great design over the 27 acres. There were some flowering trees and gardens however it will be more colorful later in the season.
Saint Croix Island interpretive center was our next stop. French explorers settled on the island, but an unusually severe winter brought hardship, death and scurvy. They eventually moved on to Annapolis Royal, Nova Scotia. Just up the road we visited the St. Andrews Blockhouse, oldest blockhouse in New Brunswick. It served as border defense during the War of 1812 and today is a National Historic Site. Personnel on duty there gave us lots of history and had time to talk about the Maritimes and suggest other ?must sees? on our trip.
--------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------
6/6/05, high of 60? and cloudy. We moved to the Pine Cone Campground in Sussex NB. We had a DirecTv signal. Turns out that the flashing black triangle on our phone doesn?t mean roaming, but rather indicates that we are connected to a Verizon partner. We discovered that after trying to make a call and being asked for credit card info. We used a public phone to call Verizon and they explained that if we were roaming the phone would show no service. It took Verizon two days to get our phone to work, but now it?s fine and even ?Quick to Net? works in Sussex. Sussex is a fair size town, we have a local map and find most any kind of basic needs are available.
With regional maps and tide charts in hand we are ready to see the sites. Having lived in Chicago with Lake Michigan in our back yard we are fascinated with the extreme tides here. Fundy National Park was less than an hour away, we visited there and a few short side roads to see the coast and the oldest lighthouse in New Brunswick at Cape Enrage. Lunch at the Tides Restaurant in Alma was very good. We drove on to Hopewell Rocks to see high tide and take some pictures. The weather as been good, cool and partly cloudy/sunny. On the following day we returned to Hopewell Rocks for low tide which, on that day, was about 9:15 AM. Now we can walk to the beach below and get close to the Flower Pot Rocks that were carved from the ocean tides. This was one of our main destinations, we are enjoying the views and taking many pictures.
We left Sussex one morning for a trip to St. Martins and arrived there to find low tide and a fairly heavy fog, this made for a few interesting pictures. The fog soon lifted and with the tide out we were able to walk across the rocky beach to the sea caves. Shipbuilders built and launched 500 ships from St. Martins inthe 1800?s. Only a museum remains telling the history of that era. Today artists and photographers are drawn to St. Martins to capture the beauty there.
We took a day trip to Fredericton and a self guided walking tour of downtown. While walking the trail along the St. John River we discovered many canoes preparing for a race. The local rowing club was sponsoring their version of ?The Amazing Race?. During our visit we came upon many contestants running around the town searching for the next stop and the next clue to continue the adventure. The walk took us past government buildings, museums, the Guard House and soldiers barracks and churches, many were built in the 1800?s. We had a great lunch at the Snooty Fox Pub in the downtown area.
--------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------
6/13/05, high of 60? and cloudy. To get to Prince Edward Island we drove across the nine mile Conferderation Bridge, and checked in at the Crystal Beach Campground near Summerside PEI. We had a DirecTv signal, as long as it didn,t rain heavily. The weather has been partly cloudy with little rain, we are still able to get in our sightseeing without a hitch. We had a strong cell phone signal and could use ?Quick to Net?.
While at Crystal Beach, we toured the West side of PEI starting with the North Cape Coastal Drive. The far West is rather flat with a combination of thick woods and green clearings with many farms. Miles and miles of coastline where homes are small to large and most all are fresh and colorful. Folks here seem to enjoy the space and don?t put homes on top of each other. Whether in town or country it?s apparent there is a sense of pride, evident in the tidiness of businesses and homes
We visited the Shipbuilding Museum near Tyne Vallely and the estate of James Yeo a successful shipbuilder, merchant, landowner and politician. Driving on to the tip of the coast we visited the North Cape Lighthouse site. This is also the Atlantic Wind Test Site, Canada?s research center devoted to studying how wind can be harnessed as a power supply. There are towering windmills and turbines to generate energy. Moving back south we had to stop at the town of O?Leary, home of the PEI Potato Museum. A photo of the 14 ft potato sculpture outside was all we needed. Returned to Summerside and dinner at Spinnakers Landing Restaurant overlooking Bedeque Bay.
Towards the central area of PEI, South of Cavendish, the terrain is more hilly and really beautiful at this time of year with lush green farm fields and newly tilled red dirt for spring planting. We went to Cavendish to see ?Anne?s house? at Green Gables, though we knew little about the book other than it is a classic. There were several tour buses and many fans of the books written by L.M. Montgomery. In New Glasgow, a nearby town, we stopped at The Prince Edward Island Preserve Company to sample the preserves and watch them cooking the batch of the day. We sampled many varieties but purchased only one jar for the road.
Our last day at Crystal Beach we drove southwest of Summerside to see the ?Bottle House? in Cap-Egmont and the Acadian Museum in Miscouche. Both were very interesting in their own way. The Acadian culture is continuing here because theAcadians in this area are determined not to forget their history. Cap-Egmont near Miscouche is home to the Bottle Houses. After retiring, Edouard Arsenault decided on this amazing recycling project. He washed bottles all winter long and then set out on the job. 25,000 bottles later he had built three buildings and surrounded them with flower gardens. Quite an unusual site to walk around and then through to see the inside of the chapel and other buildings. This was the first day we dodged raindrops while sightseeing. No raincoats needed yet.
--------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------
6/17/05, high of 60? and cloudy. We moved to the Holiday Haven Campground near Charlottetown PEI. We had a DirecTv signal. We had a strong cell phone signal and could use ?Quick to Net?.
After setting up at the campground we drove into nearby Charlottetown visitor center for some local information and to pick up our tickets for Anne of Green Gables-The Musical. The coastal drives on PEI are so beautiful. We have been to the North Cape on the west side and The East Point on the other side. Quaint towns, lighthouses, working harbours, and the locals working their fishing boats to bring home the fish and lobster. While enjoying a harbour view we were surprised when a bald eagle skimmed the water for a fish right in front of us. Having missed his target he perched on top of a nearby tree to watch and wait.
On another day we did a walking tour of Charlottetown and stopped for lunch and an Irish Coffee at the Old Dublin Pub. After lunch we walked across the street to vist St.Dunstan?s Basilica. Peakes Wharf is a nice place to stroll and there are neat shops with handmade crafts, soaps etc. and of course tee shirts, fudge and ice cream. Confederation Landing Park and a cruise ship wharf are near there also. No ships in town and the local whale watch boat was not busy since the weather was rather cool.
Our last night in town happened to be preview night for Anne of Green Gables, The Musical at the Confederation Center of the Arts. This is a first class, lively musical from start to finish. It was a nice way to end our stay on PEI. This has been a most enjoyable visit, we have found locals very helpful in answering our needs. We have seen wonderful landscapes around every bend in the road and a very relaxing pace.
--------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------
Photos can be seen at ?lynchmobile.com?, click on June 2005
5/31/05, high of 71? and sunny. We are staying at Sunset Point Campground, a small park in a natural setting where we are just a few short steps from Pleasant Bay. A great place to relax and enjoy the view. After hooking up we decided to go over to Jonesport for lunch at Tall Barneys Cafe. Russ Mahoney recommended the marvelous meatloaf, but of course, that was yesterdays special ;-(. Today the special was crab cake burgers, they were the best crab cakes we have ever eaten. If you go there you might question the looks of this small place, we suggest you go inside and enjoy the ambiance and good food. Our first impression of this area is weathered homes and fishing boats and special people enjoying this life. Next day we started with a day trip from Lubec, Maine to visit Roosevelt Campobello International Park on Campobello Island, New Brunswick. Lubec, Maine is directly opposite Camponello Island, a drive over a short bridge, a border inspection and you?re there. The visitor center provided an excellent history of FDR and we enjoyed the tour of his ?cottage? of 20+ rooms for the family, guests and servants. A short drive takes you to the East Quoddy Lighthouse, when the tide is out you can walk to the lighthouse. Crossing back to Maine we then visited West Quoddy Head Light Station and the small town of Lubec.
--------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------
6/2/05, high of 73? and sunny. We entered the New Brunswick mainland at St Stephen NB and traveled about 25 miles to St. Andrews NB to stay at the Kiwanis Ocean Front Campground. Our border crossing with the motorhome was without incident and ended with the guard telling us to enjoy our visit. We had a DirecTv signal. Verizon shows a flashing black triangle, roaming we think, so for 69? a minute we made no calls and didn?t try an analog data connection.
After a trip to the visitor center in town we have planned outings for the next few days. We drove along the coast to visit the small fishing villages of St. George, where we watched fish leaping up the fish ladder, and Blacks Harbour. Many types of nets and traps can be seen in the bays, in addition we saw large floating black circles of plastic with nets attached where salmon can be farm raised. Black Harbour is the sardine capitol of North America with a huge processing plant there.
One day we took a trip to Saint John to see the Reversing Falls. We watched the water at low tide and then again at high tide when the ocean rises pushing upstream whirling into the St. John River. Many kinds of birds gather at this time to feed on the fish that are being tossed about in the swirling waters. A driving tour around town takes you past Fort Howe Lookout for a panoramic view of St. John and the Carleton Martello Tower, both served as defense posts of Saint John and its harbor. We also made a stop at the Saint John City Market established in 1876,it is a wonderful place to do some serious shopping for fresh produce and meats. They also offer many unusual foods and arts and crafts.
Just a short ride from the campground in St. Andrews is Ministers Island. This is now a protected historic site. We joined other cars waiting in line for low tide and followed a Canadian pilot car across the ocean floor to the island. This was a most interesting adventure and history of Sir William Van Horne. A visionary railway builder, and with his many connections and financial gains, he was able to build this for his summer residence. He was the driving force in establishing the Canada railway from sea to sea. Still standing on the island today are his home containing 50 rooms, a gigantic livestock barn with creamery, a heated greenhouse containing peach trees and grape vines, fruits and vegetables. A windmill provided running water from an underground storage tank. This was an amazing island and the year was 1890. The tour lasts about two hours and we would recommend the trip. Minimial cost of $ 5.00 each.
The weather has been wonderful, sunny, yet cool enough for a sweater. Knowing that it is early in the growing season we decided to tour Kingsbrae, one of Canada?s Top Ten Public Gardens here in St. Andrews. The walk was nice and the landscaping architect has a great design over the 27 acres. There were some flowering trees and gardens however it will be more colorful later in the season.
Saint Croix Island interpretive center was our next stop. French explorers settled on the island, but an unusually severe winter brought hardship, death and scurvy. They eventually moved on to Annapolis Royal, Nova Scotia. Just up the road we visited the St. Andrews Blockhouse, oldest blockhouse in New Brunswick. It served as border defense during the War of 1812 and today is a National Historic Site. Personnel on duty there gave us lots of history and had time to talk about the Maritimes and suggest other ?must sees? on our trip.
--------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------
6/6/05, high of 60? and cloudy. We moved to the Pine Cone Campground in Sussex NB. We had a DirecTv signal. Turns out that the flashing black triangle on our phone doesn?t mean roaming, but rather indicates that we are connected to a Verizon partner. We discovered that after trying to make a call and being asked for credit card info. We used a public phone to call Verizon and they explained that if we were roaming the phone would show no service. It took Verizon two days to get our phone to work, but now it?s fine and even ?Quick to Net? works in Sussex. Sussex is a fair size town, we have a local map and find most any kind of basic needs are available.
With regional maps and tide charts in hand we are ready to see the sites. Having lived in Chicago with Lake Michigan in our back yard we are fascinated with the extreme tides here. Fundy National Park was less than an hour away, we visited there and a few short side roads to see the coast and the oldest lighthouse in New Brunswick at Cape Enrage. Lunch at the Tides Restaurant in Alma was very good. We drove on to Hopewell Rocks to see high tide and take some pictures. The weather as been good, cool and partly cloudy/sunny. On the following day we returned to Hopewell Rocks for low tide which, on that day, was about 9:15 AM. Now we can walk to the beach below and get close to the Flower Pot Rocks that were carved from the ocean tides. This was one of our main destinations, we are enjoying the views and taking many pictures.
We left Sussex one morning for a trip to St. Martins and arrived there to find low tide and a fairly heavy fog, this made for a few interesting pictures. The fog soon lifted and with the tide out we were able to walk across the rocky beach to the sea caves. Shipbuilders built and launched 500 ships from St. Martins inthe 1800?s. Only a museum remains telling the history of that era. Today artists and photographers are drawn to St. Martins to capture the beauty there.
We took a day trip to Fredericton and a self guided walking tour of downtown. While walking the trail along the St. John River we discovered many canoes preparing for a race. The local rowing club was sponsoring their version of ?The Amazing Race?. During our visit we came upon many contestants running around the town searching for the next stop and the next clue to continue the adventure. The walk took us past government buildings, museums, the Guard House and soldiers barracks and churches, many were built in the 1800?s. We had a great lunch at the Snooty Fox Pub in the downtown area.
--------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------
6/13/05, high of 60? and cloudy. To get to Prince Edward Island we drove across the nine mile Conferderation Bridge, and checked in at the Crystal Beach Campground near Summerside PEI. We had a DirecTv signal, as long as it didn,t rain heavily. The weather has been partly cloudy with little rain, we are still able to get in our sightseeing without a hitch. We had a strong cell phone signal and could use ?Quick to Net?.
While at Crystal Beach, we toured the West side of PEI starting with the North Cape Coastal Drive. The far West is rather flat with a combination of thick woods and green clearings with many farms. Miles and miles of coastline where homes are small to large and most all are fresh and colorful. Folks here seem to enjoy the space and don?t put homes on top of each other. Whether in town or country it?s apparent there is a sense of pride, evident in the tidiness of businesses and homes
We visited the Shipbuilding Museum near Tyne Vallely and the estate of James Yeo a successful shipbuilder, merchant, landowner and politician. Driving on to the tip of the coast we visited the North Cape Lighthouse site. This is also the Atlantic Wind Test Site, Canada?s research center devoted to studying how wind can be harnessed as a power supply. There are towering windmills and turbines to generate energy. Moving back south we had to stop at the town of O?Leary, home of the PEI Potato Museum. A photo of the 14 ft potato sculpture outside was all we needed. Returned to Summerside and dinner at Spinnakers Landing Restaurant overlooking Bedeque Bay.
Towards the central area of PEI, South of Cavendish, the terrain is more hilly and really beautiful at this time of year with lush green farm fields and newly tilled red dirt for spring planting. We went to Cavendish to see ?Anne?s house? at Green Gables, though we knew little about the book other than it is a classic. There were several tour buses and many fans of the books written by L.M. Montgomery. In New Glasgow, a nearby town, we stopped at The Prince Edward Island Preserve Company to sample the preserves and watch them cooking the batch of the day. We sampled many varieties but purchased only one jar for the road.
Our last day at Crystal Beach we drove southwest of Summerside to see the ?Bottle House? in Cap-Egmont and the Acadian Museum in Miscouche. Both were very interesting in their own way. The Acadian culture is continuing here because theAcadians in this area are determined not to forget their history. Cap-Egmont near Miscouche is home to the Bottle Houses. After retiring, Edouard Arsenault decided on this amazing recycling project. He washed bottles all winter long and then set out on the job. 25,000 bottles later he had built three buildings and surrounded them with flower gardens. Quite an unusual site to walk around and then through to see the inside of the chapel and other buildings. This was the first day we dodged raindrops while sightseeing. No raincoats needed yet.
--------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------
6/17/05, high of 60? and cloudy. We moved to the Holiday Haven Campground near Charlottetown PEI. We had a DirecTv signal. We had a strong cell phone signal and could use ?Quick to Net?.
After setting up at the campground we drove into nearby Charlottetown visitor center for some local information and to pick up our tickets for Anne of Green Gables-The Musical. The coastal drives on PEI are so beautiful. We have been to the North Cape on the west side and The East Point on the other side. Quaint towns, lighthouses, working harbours, and the locals working their fishing boats to bring home the fish and lobster. While enjoying a harbour view we were surprised when a bald eagle skimmed the water for a fish right in front of us. Having missed his target he perched on top of a nearby tree to watch and wait.
On another day we did a walking tour of Charlottetown and stopped for lunch and an Irish Coffee at the Old Dublin Pub. After lunch we walked across the street to vist St.Dunstan?s Basilica. Peakes Wharf is a nice place to stroll and there are neat shops with handmade crafts, soaps etc. and of course tee shirts, fudge and ice cream. Confederation Landing Park and a cruise ship wharf are near there also. No ships in town and the local whale watch boat was not busy since the weather was rather cool.
Our last night in town happened to be preview night for Anne of Green Gables, The Musical at the Confederation Center of the Arts. This is a first class, lively musical from start to finish. It was a nice way to end our stay on PEI. This has been a most enjoyable visit, we have found locals very helpful in answering our needs. We have seen wonderful landscapes around every bend in the road and a very relaxing pace.
--------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------
Photos can be seen at ?lynchmobile.com?, click on June 2005
