Where We Be
This is the lovely view from the furthest point west. As you can see, the chocolate water is
already lapping up the beach. Soon the beach will be submerged for another twelve hours.
Break out the lobster rolls!
Magnificent Pangburn Beach spreads out below us in a straight line. The sound of the
waves crashing against the beach was memorable: we could hear thousands of stones
grinding against each other as each wave receded. No wonder the stones are so round!
At the Parkway Interpretive Center we hiked over the pedestrian suspension bridge crossing the Big Salmon River
The end of the road -- for now -- but eventually it will continue all the way to Fundy National Park some 40 miles
away. Following along the Bay of Fundy, the parkway will offer a scenic alternative to the TransCanada Highway.
Fundy Trail Parkway packs a lot of overlooks and hiking trails into a relatively small area. From what we understand, this is the most scenic
portion of the parkway. The drive through Fundy National Park itself is a bit of a letdown by comparison (unless you get out and hike).
Earlier in the day we explored the Fundy Trail Parkway. At present this relatively short drive is only 7 miles
(12 km) long one-way, but the winding route packs in plenty of fine overlooks and pleasant hiking trails.
Fundy Trail Parkway -- New Brunswick
Alma & Cape Enrage
Hopewell Rocks was far enough from our base near St. John that I missed reading about it ahead of time. But I have to admit, it added to the fun.
We got to the entry gate with literally no idea what was in store, and by sheer luck our timing was good and we could walk among the rocks.
But for now we can walk along on the floor of the Bay of Fundy, marveling
at these strangely shaped formations (with trees growing on top no less)
Low tide was very much in evidence as we passed through Alma, a gateway town to Fundy National Park
We've never seen bay water this brown -- a testament to how much mud and silt
gets churned up during the daily tidal changes on the Bay of Fundy
Just beyond Alma we detoured to the irresistibly named Cape Enrage Lightstation. Even on a
sunny day the winds were strong, so we can only imagine what it would be like in a howling storm.
A cow welcoming party greets us at this covered bridge
Hopewell Rocks -- New Brunswick
Thank goodness Robin talked with our B&B
hostess about our travel plans to Nova Scotia,
because we hadn’t even heard of Hopewell
Rocks. It turns out this is one of the biggest
attractions in all of New Brunswick. (My bad --
the downside of doing less trip planning than
usual.) These strangely shaped “flower pot
rocks” rise straight up from the muddy floor of
the Bay of Fundy. During low tide you can walk
among them, right on the floor of the bay. By
sheer luck our timing was close to perfect. The
tide was moving from low to high, so if we
hurried, we could just catch the show.

We quickly walked down a wooded path to the
bay, then hiked as fast as we could west, where
the water was rising fast. Already, we had been
told, a few of the outlier rocks were off-limits,
but we got pretty darned close to the end
before a guard told us thus far and no farther.
At that point we turned around and started
walking back, with the light behind us now and
the pressure off. Now we could just wander and
enjoy. We had a terrific time, made all the more
so for having discovered it on the fly. We loved
watching the waters rise right before our eyes
as we stood on the rapidly diminishing bay floor.
In about half an hour the bases of these rocks will be submerged by the rapidly rising bay
Another fun stop was Fuller Falls, where we went for a short hike down a “cable stairway” to a scenic falls