New Brunswick's Kouchibouguac National Park
/Crossing the border into New Brunswick seemed almost a letdown. Not because New Brunswick isn’t an interesting province, but because it was our last of the Canadian Maritime provinces to explore… and then it would be time to turn west and head for home.
The heat and humidity continued and using yet more reward points, we found an air-conditioned hotel room for the night. In the morning we headed to Shediac, home of the world’s largest lobster. According to Wikipedia, “The World’s Largest Lobster... is a concrete and reinforced steel sculpture… sculpted by Canadian artist Winston Bronnum.” Despite its name claim, it is not actually the largest lobster sculpture. A bit disappointing, but still a worthwhile roadside attraction.
Shediac is a cute beach town, but crowded with lots of traffic. We checked out the lobster and the Visitor Center, then headed out of town.
Shediac’s self-proclaimed World’s Largest Lobster
Heading north along the coast, we stopped at Le Dune de Bouctouche, a 7.5-mile (12km) sand dune stretching across Bouctouche Bay with a half-mile long (800m) boardwalk over marshland and sand. With free parking and admission, this was a wonderful break and a lovely walk with outstanding scenery.
A habitat for great blue herons and the breeding grounds for piping plovers, we expected to see a few, but we saw nary a bird except the heron on their weathervane.
We walked to the very end of the serpentine boardwalk for a hazy view of the Bouctouche Bar Lighthouse far in the distance. The ocean breeze was a welcome change from the heat and humidity on shore.
We had made last-minute reservations for a national park campsite at Kouchibouguac and spent a very pleasant evening reading, playing Yahtzee and cooking our dinner until the bugs started biting. The campground offers an amazing 312 sites; ours was quiet, spacious and private, secluded in a copse of trees. It was so pleasant, we thought we’d spend another night, but unfortunately, not a single site was available for a one-night extension.
In the morning, we stopped at the Visitor Center for recommendations on the best spots for birdwatching and headed to the Kelly’s Beach Boardwalk Trail. Considered one of the Top 10 beaches in Canada, Kelly’s Beach was a pleasant stretch of white sand, but we’re not beach people. We preferred the walk. It’s a short (1.2 miles – 2km RT), but pretty path that meanders through woods, marsh grass and onto the beach.
We spotted several terns, a greater yellowlegs and a female red-breasted merganser along our trek.
With no plans for the evening, we headed back south to Moncton where a free night in the parking lot of Casino New Brunswick sufficed for an easy overnight stay.
Below, find our route through New Brunswick so far. Next time, we’re off to Fundy National Park. Join us.
Route to Kouchibouguac National Park