Day 12 - Fundy National Park and Hopewell Rocks, New Brunswick, Canada !

---

We awoke this morning in St. Martins, New Brunswick to a cool and foggy day. It was 62 degrees at 8:00 am and little did we know that the mercury would rise no higher today. Tim and Lynn really wanted to see the sunrise here so Tim set his phone alarm to go off at 5:20 am. He actually got up three different times waiting and watching for the sun but the fog was just too dense so they didn’t get to see it. There were only two showers on each side so we girls had to rotate in and out but we all eventually had our turn. After her shower, Heidi put on a hot pot of coffee while Jason gathered all the trash, they are really getting into this camping thing ! We were just about ready to pull out of the Country Farm Family Campground and head on over to drive the Fundy Trail Parkway but we couldn’t leave just yet because Lynn and Heidi had made a new friend. This was a friend of the furry kind and his name was Winston. Winston is an Airedale Terrier dog but at first glance I thought he was a little sheep ! He was so sweet, adorable and fuzzy looking and for a minute there I thought he may be going with us to tour Fundy. He kinda took a likin’ to Jason and the next thing I know he’s on his way up the steps and into the motor home. Winston’s owner retrieved him as we began packing up and then we were on our way. A little while later we made it to the entrance of the Sentier Fundy Trail. Our first stop on the trail was a pull-out on the side of the road where we were able to get out and marvel over the incredible scenery of The Bay of Fundy from a large wooden deck. We took a few pictures and then made our way on down the trail, in the motor home, to the Pot Rock Scenic Footpath. Upon our arrival there, a lady told us that it was a really long and strenuous walk so Tim and I decided to stay behind and have some alone time while the other three made there way to the bottom. We sat at the picnic table cuddling each other and waited for Lynn, Jason and Heidi to make their way back. Woohoo, they made it back alive and we were on to see Fuller Falls Cable Stairs and Lookout. Okay, I saw the sign that said “cable stairs” but I guess it just didn’t register at that moment what exactly cable stairs really were. Oh well, I moseyed on into the woods, following the rest of the group, and I was quick to learn what cable stairs were ! They are literally stairs that are suspended by cables ! It was a very scary looking walk down to the falls but I overcame my fears and continued on. Once we arrived at the bottom we were amazed at how beautiful and serene the setting was. The water fall was just breathtaking and everything surrounding it was so green, it was truly a wonderful sight to see. Unfortunately, we had to make the trip back up the cable stairs and boy was that intimidating. As I stood at the bottom, I just looked up, held my breath and starting walking. We stopped halfway up for a picture and then I got the heck out of there as quickly as possible. We made our way back to the motor home and then on down the trail. We stopped again at an overlook area and walked around for a bit. Jason decided he would do some yoga again today so he climbed up on the railing of the deck and began his movements. Of course we were all freaking out and yelling at him to get down due to the fact that he was about 200 feet above sea level, standing on one foot on the side of a cliff ! I was thinking to myself “this child must have some kind of death wish or something”. He eventually jumped down and the next thing I know Tim is up on the railing doing the same darn thing. These guys are like two peas in a pod and boy I am telling you the apple didn’t fall far from the tree. It’s never a dull moment when these boys are together. Once they were finished giving us girls a heart attack, we headed towards the RV and drove to our next stop, The Suspension Bridge over the Big Salmon River. When we arrived there we made our way on down to the information center and gift shop where Tim read all the facts from the display boards. Next, we walked down the Fundy Footpath along side the Big Salmon River. As Lynn and I walked side by side with Tim, he proceeded to recite everything he had just learned and I must say I was quite impressed. He just loves all this kind of stuff and I could tell he was really having a good time. The trail took us down the river and over to the suspension bridge. As we approached the bridge we saw a sign that said “10 person maximum”. Well, there were five of us and I just wasn’t sure if this was a good thing or not. Unfortunately for me it was looking as if I was going to have to cross that bridge whether I liked it or not so I gathered my thoughts, held my breath and took off ! About halfway across I realized that it wasn’t soooooo bad and I convinced myself that it wasn’t really that high up and I would probably have a pretty good chance of surviving if it collapsed. Well, it all worked out okay and everyone made it back to the motor home alive and well. We were alive but we were freezing and starving so we headed on out in search of food. We left the Fundy Trail Parkway and ended up in Sussex, New Brunswick at The All Season Restaurant and Inn for dinner. Lynn and Heidi enjoyed their homemade New England Clam Chowdah while Tim, Jason and I had sandwiches. I must say that the best part of the meal was dessert. Carla, our adorable little waitress, must have overheard Heidi asking Jason to share his strawberry shortcake and Jason refusing because when she returned with it she had actually split it up into two little bowls so Heidi could have some of her own. That’ll teach him to share !! Lynn tried the butterscotch pie and I went with the coconut cream pie. They were both delicious but the pieces were way too big for either of us to finish. We had one more stop for the day so we had to get back on the road. We were trying to get to Hopewell Rocks before the tide came in so we could walk on the ocean floor and get the full effects of the experience. Tim had timed it perfect and when we arrived we had about two hours before high tide so we took full advantage of it. We took the shuttle from the interpretive center down to the rocks. Once we were there, we descended the steel staircase to the sea floor so we could admire the wondrous rock sculptures that had been chiseled by the waves and tides. It was incredible !! Some of the eroded columns stood as high as forty to fifty feet above the ocean floor. They are nicknamed the “flowerpots” because trees and plants still grow from their tops, so when the tide is out and the columns are exposed, they look like a flowerpot with plants coming out of the top of them. It was very muddy and slippery in places so we were all trying to be very careful so not to get hurt or filthy. It was pretty amazing to stand there and imagine that 100 billion tons of water comes in and out of there with the tides each day. Shoot, I was still trying to get used to the idea that I was even in New Brunswick, Canada much less try to comprehend something like that ! We stayed on the ocean floor until the very last minute and then we headed back up the steel staircase, caught the shuttle and made our way back to the RV. We were going to drive as far and long as Tim’s back could handle cause we were now on a mission to get to Prince Edward Island. At some point, in some small town, we stopped by a McDonald’s to pick up some dinner. Jason and Lynn kindly went in to get the food and when they made it back to us they were just a laughing. It seems as though the Mickie D’s here in Canada serves a McLobster sandwich in place of our McRib sandwich. These folks up here are all about some lobster. We’ve seen lobster omelets, lobster soup, lobster bread and now a McLobster. This is too funny ! We chuckled a bit, finished up our dinner and then hit the highway. We traveled down Route 114 until about 10 o’clock when Tim decided it was time to stop. We were at Camper’s City Seasonal Resort Community in Moncton, New Brunswick, Canada and this would be home for the night. We really needed to do some laundry but it was cold and late and we were really really far away from the laundromat so we decided to put it off for one more day. As Tim was hooking everything up, he made another new friend (there’s just no stopping him now !) who told him that we would have to pay to take a shower in the morning but the guy was talking in French so Tim couldn’t understand half of what he was saying. Looks like we have something to look forward to tomorrow and I can’t wait to let you know how it turns out. The five of us had been going since early this morning and we were all pretty tired so it wasn’t long before the laughing was over and the snoring began. I can’t wait to get to Prince Edward Island tomorrow and see what it’s all about. Until then, sleep tight and don’t let the bed bugs bite !

---

Comments

[Richard]

hitchhikers
i am pretty sure i saw the hitchhikers on CANADA's MOST WANTED.

[cokeking]

Hitchhikers !
You are too funny Richard ! We're having a blast and I promise I'll have your buddy back to you before you know it ! Take care and tell Kelli we said hey.