Day 33 Friday May 31/13 Saint John, New Brunswick 10775 kms

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lan very sick with Newfie chest cold this morning. Decided to stay an extra day in Saint John. it is an interesting place to see, but not a city we are drawn back to as a destination now that we've taken in the highlights, such as the 32' tide changes on the Bay of Fundy and how they impact the flow of the Saint John River. Turbulent fast flowing rapids at low tide are becalmed at high tide and the river resembles a pristine lake. Jet boat tours are available over the "Reversing Rapids".

Later in the day, we embarked on an impulsive ride with no preset agenda or destination. Every time we came to an intersection and asked which way, the other would say Yes! We discovered 2 free small ferries crossing the river at various points and took each of them, one of them another cable ferry. I've never seen such efficiency on loading and unloaded these things - straight onto the shore, ramp down before we even stop moving, cars off right away. Cars on right away, and off it goes again. For a ride to anywhere, we covered 200 kms, in 27 degree sunny weather. That's more like it! We crossed over our first covered wooden-decked bridge - slippery and slidy, but very cool!

We learned that Saint John was the first incorporated town in Canada. While the heart of Saint John was dense, with a small mostly brick building downtown core and brick residential properties along its perimeter (some new condos overlooking the cruise ship terminal), the outskirts along the Saint John river quickly become rural and we definitely got the impression that this area is a summer playground, lots and lots of white and pastel-coloured clapboard two story cottages with large water frontages, speed boats and water toys lined up in their yards. We saw many RV and tent campgrounds along the river on its sandy beaches. At the end of the day, we walked from town up to the lake a mile away and passed many beautiful old estates with massive houses that would give Uplands a run for its money. I'm left wanting to learn about the history of this area and who would have lived here in the early days and what their story was.

We're sorry the last two days' blogs have been short and uninteresting - give us snow, rain and cold and we are forced to be inside with nothing to do but write blogs! Give us heat and sunshine and we're outside, DOING!

When we rode through New Brunswick on our east-bound leg, the abundance of poplar trees struck us and that really didn't change as we rode through this part of the province. Such views soften everything and made for calm, pleasurable riding. Today is our last day in Canada before we head south across the border into Maine, and down to Boston and New York before turning left to proceed westward. Upon reflection, we are incredibly fortunate to be able to call Canada home, and to live in such a diverse, peaceful country that has so much to offer. And we have only seen a small part of it. It reigns true that the best really can be found in your own back yard if you look for it. CANADA, EH!

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Comments

[Jen]

I'm loving your travelogue, especially the days in Newfoundland. I've always wanted to go! Any plans for the route home yet? Our spare bed is free as of June 12, if you're coming through Sacramento!