SEPT 24,5,6,7,8

23 September

We met a nice couple, Sheila and Scott from Atlanta, Georgia, who were camped behind us. We seemed to have a lot in common and they mentioned they were going to a kitchen party that evening. So we decided to go together. The kitchen party (really a concert) was in Stanley Bridge, where we went when we were in PEI in August. The group was Leon Gallant and friends.

There is a link here to a short YouTube clip of the group:

https://youtu.be/24rSviH0fTE

They were quite entertaining and we really enjoyed them. Leon is from Stanley Bridge and the others are also local folk, although, Billy, the fiddler has moved to Ontario. Scott and Sheila sent us an email saying they ran into Leon when they went to the North Cape and had a chat with him.

Interesting PEI residence

24 September

Packed and moved to NB. By the way, some more interesting trivia: The bridge to PEI is the world's longest over water that ices.

25 September

We are currently in Fundy National Park and have decided to stay three, then booked four then five nights. The 4th night is a "Molly Kool Kitchen Party". Molly Kool was from Alma, the town we can walk to and was North America's first female sea captain (and second in the world)...there's some info for you!

Molly Kool's original home re-located and refurbished.

We walked to Alma today when the tide was still up. Later, we took some shots of low tide…see pics. They let the fishing boats rest on the bay bed.

Alma is a neat tourist town with some interesting shops … bakery … coffee roaster - yum. We bought two sticky buns and took them to the Bubba Bear Coffee Roastery to eat with a coffee and tea. The fellow working in the coffee shop lived in Guelph for a number of years … in fact, his wife worked at OMAFRA, where Elizabeth worked. They retired to near Alma and he now works during the tourist season in the “Holy Whale” brewery and coffee shop.

Walking back through town, we were looking for a store called “Say Cheese Please” thinking we could get some local cheese. We were spoiled on the Iles de la Madeleine being so close to the fromagerie. The store was nowhere to be found. Across the road there is a gift shop so we asked them where the cheese store was. Well, they didn’t have a clue, as far as they knew there had never been a cheese store in Alma. Elizabeth showed them the 2019 Fundy Park guide that listed Say Cheese Please as being in Alma. It took a bit but then the lady started to smile. She went over to a rack of pamphlets and pulled one out – it is a photography studio! We laughed and she said she’d completely forgotten about the place. No cheese for us, too bad.

Walking back to the campground, we saw low tide and the fishing boats sitting in the mud. There is a short cut to the campground but it is a flight of 118 stairs – we managed.

27 September

Our first stop today was at Kelley’s Bakery in Alma for sticky buns…the best…the woman who served us has worked there for 40 years. I told her about the cinnamon bun trail in the Yukon and how Kelly’s Bakery sticky buns were the best!

4392 sucky buns in one day!

Elizabeth asked for four today and the lady said it was cheaper to by six – guess how many we left with, along with a fresh baked loaf of still warm brown bread.

With our goodies in the back seat, we travelled to Hopewell Rocks, a natural phenomenon operated by the provincial government, about forty-five minutes from here on the Bay of Fundy. Here the tides are some of the highest in the world (46 feet) and we were able to arrive at high tide, see it leave, and have a guided tour on the ocean floor at low tide. Today’s tide was one of the highest at 42 feet. The changing tides and winds have left interesting rock formations through thousands of years. We spent the whole day there and really enjoyed it.

Before 42 foot high tide

After 42 foot low tide

No tide

The most photographed spot in New Brunswick

Our guide

The rock at his foot is the most important rock. When the tide reaches this point, you have 5 minutes to leave the bay.

If you loose track of time, your only hope is to climb up this platform, which goes nowhere and wait three hours for the tide to go out.

On the way to the parking lot I spotted these beauties!

On the way home, we took the “scenic” road along the coast. The minor roads (and some major roads in NB) are not the “smoothest” to travel on. They are a patchwork of fix ups and rarely have a shoulder. Glad we were not pulling the trailer.

The scenic route

28 September

After a shared meal of fried clams, haddock, shrimp, scallops and a lobster tail, we went to a Molly Kool kitchen party, which is a interactive play presented by park staff in Molly Kool’s refurbished/relocated home. Two staff and two young folk have been performing this play written by park staff for six years. Molly Kool was the first female captain in North America – the regulations had to be changed to include “she/her.” Staff included a good story about Molly and recruited several young people from the audience to act out the story. They also portrayed various people from the Alma community at the end of WWII telling their stories and giving us a glimpse into what life was like for them in a rapidly changing world including the proposed establishment of a national park on the Bay of Fundy.

What is really incredible is the two musicians, local brother and sister, are only 11 and 13 and have been performing fiddle/guitar/piano/singing and jigging at this Saturday night show for six years! The two youngsters perform and compete all over the Maritimes and in Ontario events. They and the two staff (who played several roles) are very talented. We also learned a dance.