New Brunswick
After about 3 weeks on Prince Edward Island (PEI), we boarded the ferry for New Brunswick. A long causeway will replace the ferry next year. Some say that driving the causeway is not as romantic as riding the ferry so that the causeway may actually reduce the attraction of a trip to PEI. In winter, the ferry sometimes must break the ice to complete the trip which increases the feeling of adventure when riding the ferry. But, generally, it is thought that the causeway will be a boon to tourism and other parts of the economy. Stayed a couple of nights in Kouchibouguac (Micmac Indian name) National Park on the shores of Northumberland Strait. It has about 20 miles of paved, biking trails that lead to the beach, bogs, forest, bay, and salt marsh. We were forced to boondock there because they have no water, electric or sewage hookups. Added a couple of plovers to our bird list. Then on to Fredericton, the capital of New Brunswick where free music is played on the lawn downtown. We identified a singer as one we had previously seen performing in an "I love Canada" show in Charlettown, the capital of Prince Edward Island. Chauvinism is running high in Canada partly because of the Olympics and that their own Donovan Bailey, who won the 100M became the fastest man in the world. Editorial comments on the Canadian Broadcasting Corporation during the Olympics ridiculed US claims to have the fastest man in the world, based on "what's his name" who won the 200 and 400. Their claim that the USA is trying to change the definition of "the world's fastest man" is not without merit because historically that title goes to the winner of the 100.
Nationalism is also an emotional issue because it is feared that French-speaking citizens of Quebec will ultimately vote to separate Quebec from the remainder of Canada. Some of this feeling extends into the maritime provinces because they all have fairly large Acadian populations. Thus, there is a certain tension between English-speaking and French-speaking citizens. New Brunswick is officially bilingual (French-English) so that all road signs, ads, etc. are presented in both languages. It is very reminiscent of the tension between Spanish and English-speaking communities along our border with Mexico. After running a 10K race in Summerside, PEI, I kidded a fellow Canadian runner about how the maritime province would be joining the USA after Quebec seceded from the Canadian union. His face turned red and that was the end of our conversation.
Fredericton has one of the best arboretums we have seen. It is located near downtown and contains all the trees of Canada with identifying signs and extensive trails. We could begin to see the differences between white, grey and yellow birches although they still confuse us. Camped overlooking the Saint John River where, out of our window, we could watch the ospreys and bald eagles hunting fish.
Converted our Canadian loonies (dollar) and toonies (2 dollar) coins into US dollars at the Tim Horton restaurant at the border entering Maine. Horton restaurants are even more common than McDonald's and are ubiquitous throughout the towns and cities of the maritime provinces. They provide freshly baked products - including bagels - so we have been known to frequent their establishments. Found our way to Millinocket, Maine where the front end of our motorhome nearly hangs over the east branch of the Penobscot River. This is a small, private park whose owners made us feel at home by rearranging their reservations so that we could keep this exceptional RV site over the weekend. Weekend campers tend to reserve the best sites and often fill campgrounds so that finding a site on a weekend may be difficult. Therefore, we tend to travel less on weekends. Often we check into a campground on Thursday or early Friday and - without reservations - usually find a site for the weekend. We seldom make reservations at any campground because reservations tend to regiment our itinerary. Our preference it to have no, or at least a minimal, itinerary so that we are free to change our minds concerning our travel plans at any time.
The Penobscot River flows fast enough so that paddling a canoe upriver a half-mile or so was a challenge for us but through our front window it appears almost mirrorlike, reflecting the forest and birds across the river.
Yesterday we hiked part way up Katahdin Mountain in Baxter State Park. This is one of the favorite hikes for folks in these parts. It is so popular that parking lots for some trails fill before 8 am and the roads to these trails are closed until space is made by someone leaving. The philosophy behind park management is that maintaining pristine nature takes precedence over visitor comfort. Thus, trails are mostly unimproved so that trails are very rough. It is necessary to climb over lots of rocks on the trail. The steeper the trail, the larger the rocks. We hiked about 8 miles but it required 7 hours and seemed like 12 miles by the time we arrived back at the parking lot. However, it was a beautiful hike and was very enjoyable. We now have a better understanding of what it means to enter the north Maine woods.
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