Saint John, Part Two

Saint John Part One
Saint John Part Two

Sunday:  A Spectacular Day Along the Fundy Coast

Sunday was my favorite day of the trip and featured the best weather of the trip.  We had breakfast again at the hotel and then headed out of town, east and a little north, to the Fundy Trail.

The drive along the trail is spectacular, with sheer cliffs tumbling down into the bay below.  The sky was cloudless, so the water looked even bluer.  In the distance one could see Nova Scotia across the bay.  The air was crisp and even chilly when the breeze stiffened.  There were not many people on the trail, so most stops were dead quiet.

First view of the Bay of Fundy

Bay of Fundy

Bay of Fundy

Bay of Fundy

Bay of Fundy

Bay of Fundy

Bay of Fundy

Bay of Fundy

Waterfall

These are the stairs we went up/down to get to the falls.  What one does not see here is that these stairs are really wooden blocks on suspension cables.  It was an interesting climb!

Bay of Fundy

Bay of Fundy

Bay of Fundy

Part of the Fundy Trail, cut through the mountain

Canadian squirrel having lunch

Bay of Fundy

Bay of Fundy

Bay of Fundy

Covered bridge, one of two we drove through that day

I hope that the government of New Brunswick is able to get a bulk discount on these:  one sees them often and everywhere.  Actual moose, well, not a one

Covered bridge from the 1800s

Bay of Fundy, with the tide out

Stunning countryside.  New Brunswick has the greenest grass I have ever seen.  It is almost like Technicolor

Looking across the Bay of Fundy, at Nova Scotia

After the trail we stopped at a seafood stand we had passed on the way in.  We chose it pretty much because there were no other options.  It was quite tasty, though, with a spectacular view out across the bay.

Although there is a national park about an hour further from Saint John, we decided not to go, since it would certainly put us back after dark.  We were still moose-shy and happy to not have so much driving ahead of us.

Back in town, stopped first by a shopping mall, where we strolled until it closed at five o’clock.  Then we swung past the Reversing Rapids again.  This time they were flowing downstream, so we were able to see the river flowing both upstream and, later, downstream.  For dinner on our last night, we returned again to Grannan’s Seafood.

The roiling waters of the Saint John River, as the tide goes out

Saint John River, as the tide goes out

Monday:  Wrapping Up in Saint John and Getting Home

Monday morning we slept in again, since we had requested and gotten a late check out and did not need to leave for the airport until after three o’clock.  We got ready and headed down for breakfast.  During breakfast I mentioned making a visit to the New Brunswick Museum, which was across the street from the hotel.  Mother had no interest, so she stayed in the room and read while I went over to the museum.

From out hotel room

View from our hotel lobby

From the front of our hotel

Downtown Saint John

Downtown Saint John

The museum

After the museum it was time for lunch.  (This posting reads like we did nothing but eat the entire time!)  For our final meal in Saint John we decided to go with Bill’s Seafood, which is apparently one of the best and most famous places in town.  Less than thrilled with the two other lobster rolls I had had, I was wary of a third strike; but, I ordered it anyway and was very pleased with it.  Finally, a good lobster roll!  I still like the ones in Maine better, but I was happy with Billy’s.

After lunch we stopped back past the hotel to get our things and to check out.  We loaded up and headed out to the airport, stopping along the way to get some snacks in case we needed them on the plane.

The Saint John airport is tiny, with just a couple of check-in stands.  There is but one baggage carrousel.  There is an all-in-one snack bar, bar, and convenience shop.  To get to the one gate area, passengers pass through the airport’s sole security line, which we did without issue. 

We were not in the gate area for very long before it became apparent that there was an issue with the plane.  I mentioned it to my mother and she made a comment about we should have stayed outside of security, at the bar.  Just then the gate agent announced a mechanical issue and shortly thereafter that the flight was delayed indefinitely and that trans-border passengers should go back outside security and get tickets reissued.  As soon as I heard that I was up and out.

As luck would have it, the flight to Montréal was very light, as was the connection into National.  So, we were rebooked and at the bar to wait out the half hour or so before it would be time to clear security again.  The flights worked out well and likely better than the Toronto connection would have.  And, we even made it home about an hour earlier than we otherwise would have.

Final Thoughts

Saint John seems/d like a strange destination to most:  when I told people I was going there everyone either had no clue about it or thought I was going to the Carribbean, and when we were actually in Saint John, the locals could not figure out why we were there.  And, I understand that:  there really is not much to see in Saint John.  But, the physical landscape around the city makes it worthy of consideration.  For those seeing the stereotypical Bay-of-Fundy experience, I think I would recommend flying into Moncton, as it is closer to the area of the bay with the greatest tidal variances.

That said, our trip was very nice and the long weekend was just about the perfect amount of time for the trip.  It was a good trip and I’m glad we went.  

Saint John, Part One

Saint John, Part One
Saint John, Part Two

Deciding Where to Go

For years I had had some leftover Air Canada Aéroplan points.  My mother wanted to do a quick weekend away and that seemed the perfect time to use them to get away to somewhere in Canada.  She wanted to go somewhere I had never been but wanted to go.  After discussing it and looking at itineraries, we settled on a long weekend in New Brunswick.

The Travel Plan

Our itinerary would take us out of National Airport on a Friday morning at an anxiety-inducing six o’clock.  Yes, six o’clock in the morning.  We would connect through Toronto, and end up in Saint John at about noon.  We would overnight Friday, Saturday, and Sunday, and fly home Monday, also via Toronto.  We decided to rent a car, since we would want to explore the Fundy Coast and just have the general freedom a car allows.  The Hilton adjacent to the old town was our lodging choice.

Getting to Saint John

Most of Friday morning was a blur, but we did make it to National, through security, and to the gate with about twenty minutes to spare.  Our DCA to YYZ leg took off with an ultra-light load of less than a third.  In Toronto, we made it through immigration and customs.  Mother claimed and rechecked her bag, we went through Canadian security, and strolled to our gate.  Since we were on a prop we were in a gate area serving several flights to different cities across Eastern Canada.

Our second flight left pretty much on-time.  Two hours later we found ourselves landing at a very foggy Saint John airport.  It was so foggy that we were almost on the ground when we broke through the cloud layer.  Deplaning was a breeze and we walked across the tarmac and into the terminal building where mother awaited her bag and I sorted out the rental car.

The drive in from the airport was down a two-lane road, though Saint John’s “suburbs.”  Within about twenty minutes we were at The Hilton, checked in, the car parked, and in our room.

Arrival Day:  The Afternoon In Saint John

By the time we got into the hotel, we had not eaten since we both got snacks at DCA, so lunch was agenda item number one.  We consulted with the front desk and ended up deciding to check out two places across the street and decide between the two.  We settled on Grannan’s Seafood Restaurant.

After lunch we struck out and set about seeing the town.  We quickly discovered that, even though Saint John does have a certain charm, it is a small place and easily seen within just a few hours.  Of note was the well-kept, old commercial buildings and the City Market Hall.

Downtown Saint John streetscape

City park

City park

Pavilion at city park

Saint John's city market

Loyalist house

Another Saint John streetscape

Another street scape, with our hotel in the background

P & O cruise ship, pushing back, with a Disney ship in the background

 By this point we had been up for a long time and we were starting to feel it.  We headed back to the room to rest a little and freshen up for dinner.  That night we ate at the other of the two restaurants we had looked at the day before, the Saint John Ale House.  After dinner, we unwound a little in the room and soon went to bed.

Saturday:  Saint John’s Reversing Rapids and Driving Up the Saint John River

Saturday was a day for sleeping in and taking it easy.  We slept late (one of us—not me!—a lot longer then the other), and had breakfast at the hotel.  After breakfast we headed for the Reversing Rapids.

The tidal variance on the Bay of Fundy is greater than any other in the world.  As a consequence of that, the water rushes out of the Saint John River when the tide goes out; when the tide comes back in, the water is forced up the river with such force that it cases rapids going up the river.

Reversing Rapids

Reversing Rapids

Reversing Rapids

Reversing Rapids

Reversing Rapids.  We could have taken the boat with all of the passengers wearing rain-gear.  No thanks

Reversing Rapids, going upstream

 Next up, we loaded up and drove up the Saint John River, which was spectacular.  The day started partly cloudy.  The interplay of the sun on the blue of the water and the green of the countryside was wonderful.  It was such an enjoyable and scenic drive.

Saint John River

Sunlight plays on the trees and water.  Gorgous

Sailboat on the Saint John River

Looking out across the Saint John River

We arrived into downtown Fredericton and its annual festival, which was a surprise to us.  The festival is such that it made the television news and the following morning’s paper.  We really wanted to explore the town a bit but, since we had gotten such a late start, we were being dogged by incoming clouds which threatened rain.  We found a restaurant that was near the parking garage that was neither very good or interesting; certainly our worst meal of the trip.

While we were eating the sky opened.  We tried to wait out the storm but finally just gave in and decided we would make do with getting a little wet.  I played gentleman and dashed across the street, got the car, and picked mother up at the restaurant’s door.  I don’t really believe in chivalry but I certainly don’t see the sense in two people getting wet.

The first half hour or so of the drive back was a little hair-raising, with torrential downpours, ponding water on the roadway, and frequent signs warning us that there were liable to be moose on the road.  We finally broke out of the storms and we made it back to the hotel just before dark, which was good because it is much easier to see a moose standing in the roadway in the daylight!

Back at the hotel we unwound a little and freshened up before dinner.  We returned to the same place we had had dinner the night before, The Saint John Ale House.  After dinner it was back to the room and, before long, off to bed.