Our plan today is to explore the area around Fundy National Park. Before setting off though, we make a quick stop at Kelly’s Bake shop in Alma. It’s a small little bakery a block from our accommodations and they are known for their sticky buns. So we pick up a few sticky buns and coffees and set off to explore the New Brunswick side of the Bay of Fundy.
While planning the night before, Mama Minion had memories of driving along the coast of the Bay of Fundy for a while. While Fundy National Park did not have a full coastal drive, I do recall reading about the Fundy Trail Parkway. This is a coastal drive that starts in Saint Martins and eventually ends on the Eastern border of Fundy National Park. So instead of exploring the park from the get go, we decide to take the long way around and work our way back to Alma.
Fundy Trail Parkway
Upon entering the Fundy Trail Parkway, there are multiple places you can stop for viewpoints, or little trails along the way. Because there is a cost to drive the parkway, at first our intention is to hit every stop. However as the day progresses, we realize this isn’t feasible and started to pick and choose our excursions.
Fox Rock & Flowerpot Rock Scenic Footpath
Our first stop is at the Fox Rock lookout and the Flowerpot Scenic Footpath. The lookout is simply an elevated vantage point that lets you look out over the Bay of Fundy. Being blessed with great weather you get a great panoramic view of the entire bay.
A little ways down the road is the entrance to the Flowerpot Rock Scenic Footpath. It’s a short half hour walk down with a few small lookouts. The lookouts give you different vantage points of Flowerpot Rock which is a small isolated rock that is supposed to look like a flowerpot. I personally didn’t see the flowerpot resemblance, but the view and walk is still pretty nice!
Sea Captains’ Burial Ground
Our next stop is the Sea Captains’ Burial Ground foot path. It’s a small walking path that takes you away from the water and into the forest a little. After about ten minutes of walking you arrive at some burial grounds with memorials for two families that built and captained ships. In all honesty, the name of the path sounds way cooler than the actual walk and attraction. I would probably give this a pass if I had to do it again.
Fuller Falls
After the burial grounds, we drive a short distance and see the turn off for Fuller Falls. There is a short path that leads to an interesting rope ladder which ends at an observation deck for the falls. While the falls itself isn’t a huge roaring falls, it does feed into the Bay of Fundy which makes for following its path pretty fun. With Mama Minion’s new found confidence in tackling new challenges, there was a bit trepidation when we got to the start of the rope ladder. However, I am happy to report she conquered this challenge like a champ too!
Black Point Lookout
After Fuller Falls, we don’t get very far and the road curves around and gives us this spectacular view of the Bay and some of the surrounding cliffs. This area is called Black Point lookout and there are a few areas you can walk to for some awesome views.
Interpretive Centre
It’s around this point we realize that if we keep stopping every five minutes we will never get through the Parkway. So we take a look at the map and head for the Interpretive Centre (which is kind of a centre point of the parkway). There are a few buildings in the area for food and what not, but a lot is closed for the season. The centre itself looks to be a visitor centre of sorts with a gift shop. We stop to use the facilities and get some tips for our drive from the guide. Behind the interpretive centre is also the end of the Big Salmon River. The Centre offers some nice looks at the river.
Big Salmon River Suspension Bridge
About a five minute walk from the interpretive centre is the Big Salmon River Suspension Bridge. We head over and make the crossing. Aside from the beautiful fall colours and the fun of crossing a suspension bridge, it’s a bridge. We get to the other side, snap a few photos and head back the way we came. Nothing against it, its nice to do and we had fun but, if you’ve been on one its not all that different than the others.
Long Beach
What would be our final stop on the parkways is Long Beach. The guide suggested we check it out and I’m glad we did. It’s a rocky beach that goes on for a while (hence the name). With most of our other stops being from elevated lookouts, being right by the water is a nice change of scenery. We spend a little time here walking up and down the beach, stopping on occasion to pick up interesting rocks we see along the way.
Fundy National Park
While there is a Gorge stop we wanted to go to, we were a little “stopped out” by this time. In addition, with all the stops on the Parkway, its well into the afternoon. So instead, we decide to make the short drive back to Fundy National park.
Point Wolfe Covered Bridge and the Shiphaven Trail
Unfortunately, with the time of the year we are travelling, a large number of stops within the National Park are closed. However, the one thing at the top of our list is still accessible and that’s the Covered Bridge at point Wolfe. I think there’s a bit of transportation geek in both Papa Minion and I, because out of all the attractions in the park, this one piqued both our interest. Upon driving to it, we were both excited to drive through it. We even stopped to get some closer shots of the bridge.
Right by the bridge is also the Shiphaven Trail, which gives you some great views of the Point Wolfe river. It’s a short one kilometre in and out trail which we all gladly did. It’s a super easy trail and a great way to see the estuary of the river.
The Holy Whale and Dinner at home
After geeking out over the bridge, we decide to head back to our accommodations. It’s late afternoon, early evening by the time we get back. With the parental minions resting, I decide to walk around Alma a little and stumble upon the Holy Whale Brewery. Seeing as our plan is to make pasta and add the leftover lobster from the night before, I decide to pick up some beverages for the evening. I got a kick out of the size of some of the cans they had on offer. They were almost like mini kegs!
After a little cooking, we settle down for a lobster pasta dinner which is hard to complain about! We start to pack a little as we will be leaving Alma tomorrow. We spend time relaxing, watching TV and eventually settle in for the night.
Originally the plan is to drive to Saint John, catch the ferry to Digby and drive to Halifax. However, we found the ferry ticket to be a bit pricey, so we decide to just drive back on our own. This means a longer drive and mainly a travel day tomorrow so we call it a night to get some rest.