New Brunswick : Onward to Newfoundland

Heading for New Brunswick today, we plan to move quickly thru both New Brunswick and Nova Scotia on our way to Newfoundland, then take our time on the way back. On our way to the Parks Canada site for the Battle of the Restigouche, we spot a train hauling just windmill blades, so we sped ahead till we found a railway crossing and set up to get some pics, but they must have known we were waiting for them as half an hour later they still had not shown up. 

The Battle of the Restigouche was an interesting stop with salvaged parts from the ship Machault commemorating the last naval battle between the British and French over New France in 1760. Lots of artifacts on display and a good explanation of the hard life the sailors had on the journey from Frances over 6 weeks. That's it for Quebec and onward to New Brunswick.

Our first day in New Brunswick is a travel day with no stops planned. We follow the Acadian Coast Drive, which takes us thru numerous small towns and along the coast - at times a nice enough drive, but pretty time consuming and really not all that picturesque.

On our second day in New Brunswick, we head to Kouchbouguac National Park where we walk the Bog Loop and learn how bogs take over the forest as the trees cannot survive the wet peat moss. The bog continues to grow and is 6m deep in a dome shape. On our walk-thru, we see carnivorous pitcher plants, as well as many animal footprints (probably moose prints), but no animals are seen anywhere. Before leaving we help ourselves to a piece of cake on our way to check out the beach as it is New Brunswick Day!

On to Moncton, where we watch the tidal bore come in. A strange sight as twice daily the Bay of Fundy causes a wave to race up the river bed. This wave can range from an inch to 1 meter. The one we watched was about 8-9 inches high. It was amazing to watch the wave rush up the river churning the banks as it approached then speed out of sight around a bend in the river. 

Our last day we spend sightseeing around Sackville,  We visit Fort Beausejour-Fort Cumberland on the Bay of Fundy where the French and British fought. |Only foundations and underground storage areas remain at this historic site.  

We stop at the Campbell Carriage Factory in Sackville and have a super tour of how carriages were made from scratch.  This factory shut down in 1951 as cars, mechanical farm equipment, and snow plows replaced the need for wooden wagons and sleighs.  The factory simply closed its doors leaving behind some sleighs and carriages, as well as all the tools and equipment used to build them.  It was interesting to learn how the spokes, wheels, and rims were made.  Even the leather or cloth seats were made here and installed.  The factory also made coffins, did embalming, and made any wooden item requested.  Two old hearses were on display, one on wheels and the other on sleigh blades.

In the afternoon we crossed into Nova Scotia and headed for Joggins Fossil Cliff.  This Unesco site protects plant and insect fossils from 100 million years before the dinosaur age.  We have a tour while the tide is out and see numerous fossils in the cliff walls.  We also find some on the beach of giant horsetails, seashells, and other plants.