Tidal Bore in Moncton (8/21/2015)

We decided to extend one day here in Shediac in order to see the tidal bore, which was supposed to be at 3:12 this afternoon, so we had a "free" morning.  I decided to get the laundry caught up again, so we didn't get a very early start.  Dixie said it seems like we do a lot of laundry, so I explained to her the factors the make that a true statement.  We don't run out of clean clothes, but we do run out of room for the dirty ones.  Our RV has a built-in hamper that holds about 1 1/2 loads, but it fills up quickly.  So that's the first issue.  The second issue is that many laundramats in the campgrounds only have 1-2 washers, or if they have 3, one is usually broken.  Same with dryers.  So in order to get it all done in one trip, we have to keep it manageable to two loads usually.  Anyhow, I got the laundry done this morning.  And then we headed out.

So made his soda stop at McDonalds and couldn't resist taking a picture of one of their menu items -- McLobster!.  We later saw an add for Subway with a lobster sandwich on their menu.  You can definitely tell what part of the country we are in.


We ended up driving out to the Prince Edward Island bridge. Yesterday we thought we might drive over to PEI for a few hours, but it costs $45 to drive that bridge round-trip, and we didn't think we had enough time to justify that expense and still get back here by 3:12.  So we drove out to it, there was a visitor center there with an observation tower, and we got to take some pictures of the bridge, with Prince Edward Island in the distance.

We made a loop drive out of it and weren't sure how long it would take us to get back, so we were trying to make some time.  Then we came upon stopped traffic.  It turned out to be a car on fire, fully engulfed.  We sat for a few minutes, then Joe worked his way around it and off we went again.

FULL RIVER - TAKEN YESTERDAY

We made it to the Bore Park about 45 minutes early, which was good because the tidal came through about 15 minutes early.  Yesterday when we stopped here to get information, the information clerk told us to get here 15-20 minutes early because it is governed by Mother Nature and she doesn't wait.  We were glad we listened to her.  Collins and Marilyn were at another visitor center upriver a few blocks, so we didn't quite meet up as planned.  It turns out there are 3 visitor centers in town.

LOW TIDE

TIDAL BORE, PROBABLY ABOUT 2 FOOT TALL WAVE

WATER FLOWING IN BEHIND TIDAL BORE

It was quite an interesting act that Mother Nature put on.  The river is way down, at low tide, when the wave comes through, followed by a huge current of water that quickly begins to fill the river.  We watched it for about 30 minutes, but they said the river would be full to its banks in 2-3 hours.  When the tidal bore comes through, it changes the direction of the flow of the river, and the river is actually running upstream.  When it reaches a point that the elevation of the river is high enough to stop it, the water begins flowing back the other way.  It's one of those things you have to see to believe.

Once we left here, we did a little Walmart shopping, then hit the casino for surf & turf buffet for $9.99.  We played a little, and Joe won enough to cover my loss, plus 40 cents to the good.  So we didn't cover our dinner, but we basically played for free.

We got back to the RV park, visited with Collins and Marilyn for a while, then had our card game before calling it a night.  We've had a very interesting time here along the Bay of Fundy -- something we will remember the rest of our lives.

Hopewell Rocks (8/20/2015)

Today we had two things going.  First, it was Collins' birthday.  He elected to "do nothing" today and catch up on some rest -- we've had two days of really bumpy roads, which is very hard on him.  So I baked him a cake and took it over first thing this morning, then we left him and Marilyn alone all day (dangerous). 

The second thing was Hopewell Rocks and the Bay of Fundy.  As I said earlier, this is a bucket list item for Joe, ever since Collins told him about it after their trip here in 2009.  And it lived up to its claims.

 We got there around 10:00 and made the 15-20 walk down the trail to the steps which take you down to the ocean floor.  Low tide was at 10:51 a.m., so we had a little time to watch it still receding, before it started coming back in.  It was quite amazing, and of course we got lots of pictures.  And I found one piece of seaglass -- a clear piece this time.

Here's some of the photos -- we took a ton, but this one rock formation you will see again as we time the tide coming back in.

There were the usual steps -- someone counted 93.  Joe went up and down these 3 times, but I only made one extra trip halfway down and back.

There were beautiful rock formations "carved by melting glaciers and then sculpted by the World's Highest Tides." 

Some of the rock formations are known as the "flowerpot rocks," which are the ones on brochures.  "The amount of water flowing into the Bay of Fundy during 1 tide cycle is eual to the outflow of all freshwater rivers in the world combined."

Flowerpot Rocks

Joe became fascinated by the seaweed, and he even talked to one of the park rangers about the different kinds.  He was told that the "jelly" in one of the seaweeds is used in cosmetics and chocolate ice cream, as well as some medicines.  It grew high on top of some of the rocks.

One of the park rangers was industrially busy building a cairn of balance rocks and sticks, which would be taken down as soon as the tide reached it.  But he showed a lot of talent in his balancing act.

This is called the chocolate river, the "effect results from the silt from the mudflats being stirred by the constant movement of waters."  Where there wasn't rock, there was mud.  We saw one lady, and one little kid get their shoes stuck in the mud.  Joe took a picture of the dad trying to retrieve the kid's shoe, but they weren't real sure where it was in the mud.

And I got to put my toes in the Bay of Fundy!

We hit low tide and walked around a bit. 

Then we took a break about 12:30 and took the shuttle back to the visitor center and restaurant, where we killed an hour eating a leisurely lunch and resting.   Then we went out to the car and got our books, took the shuttle back down to the viewing platform, and just hung out until high tide at 4:35.  We would both get up occasionally to check the changes in the water coming in across the ocean floor.  Joe started taking photos of the ocean floor and the clock to show the drastic change in just a half hour's time.  Low tide was 7.9 feet, and high tide was 37.7 feet, a 30-foot difference in just about 6 hours.  It will be even higher later this month, at 39.1 on the 26th. 

 Kayakers are now floating under the rocks we walked under just a couple of hours earlier.

 By high tide, there was just a few inches of ground left above-water.   Joe went down again before it got all the way up and took a selfie, then traded picture-taking chores with some lady.  She jumped in her photo, so when she took a picture of Joe, she told him to jump too.

JOE CATCHING SOME AIR!!!

At High Tide, a couple of the park rangers had a little "ceremony" to celebrate the moon and the sun, giving credit for both for the tides. 

After this event was over, Joe made one last trip down the stairs to absorb the full effect of this phenomonen.  This is when I walked halfway down to take his picture at the bottom of the steps, which were now underwater.

Completing the cycle, we headed back into Moncton, stopping off at the Visitors Center to get information about the bore tide, which is right next door to it.  We will probably stay over and go back in for that tomorrow.

We got back to camp just before Collins and Marilyn returned from their birthday seafood dinner.  After catching up a bit and discussing travel options for the next few days, we had a sandwich, then went over and shared birthday cake with them.  I was really tired for walking all over the ocean floor, so we called it an early night.

Joe tried out a couple of spots in the RV to hang his lobster buoy, but nothing quit fits.  I'm pretty sure hanging it in this spot will hit me on the head every time I'm at the sink.

We will have to work on this.