20020622

June 22, 2002

Day 44

Start: Seafoam CG, River John, NS
End: Rockwood Park CG, Saint John, NB
Miles: 203

The high today was 85f in New Brunswick and the low was 70f last night in Nova Scotia. The 85f figure may be exaggerated because we were parked on hot gravel in the campground and the sensor is under the chassis of the trailer. It was sunny, but high, thin, clouds came in during the day. That made driving more comfortable, but tells us that a front is coming in overnight that will result in cooler temperatures tomorrow.

After breakfast, we continued our trip up the Sunrise Trail in Nova Scotia. It parallels the coast for a bit, then goes overland west to the Trans-Canada Highway. Along this coast is one of the Nova Scotia wine districts, the primary vineyard being “Jost”. 

We stopped at the tourist center for New Brunswick as we entered the province, mainly to get a decent map. Then we drove onward around Moncton and southeast to Saint John on the lower Bay of Fundy. The traffic on the roads is heavier here than in Nova Scotia. There were no animal sightings today.

Saint John is spelled out as I just did, in order to minimize confusion with St. John’s in Newfoundland. Saint John is the largest city in New Brunswick, and heavily industrial. It’s a busy port, and has oil storage yards and shipyards all around the harbor. There is a cruise ship terminal, and a good-sized convention center. Several key buildings are linked by underground passages. 

We put the trailer into the campground in the local park. It’s a big park, containing miles of hiking trails, several lakes and the local zoo. There is a rock wall at the entry to the campground that various groups use for climbing training; we saw two different sets of folks working at it.

We took the truck downtown and parked in an opportune place. Then we walked into a downtown mall, up a level, out the other side, and came to the local City Market. It’s a lot like the one in Lancaster, PA. The building’s lower level is brick with a wood upper structure and roof that used no iron – all wood and wooden pins or dowels. Some people say it was built like an upside-down ship, because that’s all the local 
carpenters had built.

Several years ago, the beams holding up the roof were reinforced for safety’s sake. There are all sorts of fresh food from the farm, ethnic things by local folks, meats, cheeses, and lots of other foods. There are two or three sandwich stands. There are several gift stands as well, and a couple of restaurants are just outside. The charter for the market dates back to the late 1700’s, and this building was put up in 1876. 

We bought a couple of food things at the market and then wandered around for a bit. We went to the Saint John Visitor’s center (in the building with the Convention Center and the NB Museum) first. They equipped us with several maps and answered a question on restaurants. They also told us that the downtown area would be pretty dead tomorrow – no Sunday shopping is allowed – but the museum will be open and there are walking tours.