Kyle's Photography

Coastal Charlotte County

New River Beach, low tide
By Kyle Purves

(Published online: June 1st, 2008)

With the high price of gas this year more and more people will be taking their vacations closer to home. Lucky for us New Brunswick offers a HUGE variety of places to visit within a few hours journey. Coastal Charlotte County is just one of them.

One great little spot to visit in Lepreau Falls, just off highway 1 going from west Saint John to St. Stephen. You take exit 86 off Route 1 then take the Lepreau Fall Road in and watch for the falls sign. This is one of the few parks developed around a waterfalls and is one of the most scenic ones in the province. The park is showing signs of neglect but its still worth a stop and see, there are several viewing platforms available to see the falls and some picnic tables further in. If your more adventureous you can scramble down the hill next to one of the platforms and see a great view of the falls looking upriver, be careful though, its slippery!

This falls is around 50 feet in height and consisting of one major drop and a smaller upper series of drops. An interesting sidenote is that it is one on the few falls located so close to the open ocean, you can watch the tide come in and recede just below the falls making the river look hue and impressive at times at at low tide look small. The tide can com in between 32 and 46 feet in high along some parts of the Bay of Fundy. There are also several other waterfalls located along the Lepreau River further upstream. One is called Keyhole Falls and is around 15-20 feet in height. These ones though are harder to get too and find and involve going through the deer/moose fence along the highway and hiking along an old overgrown logging road on the other side of the highway for around 3-4 km's. Harder to find and not recommended for those without a GPS unit or a good detailed topo map.

Another great spot to visit along Route 1 is the New River Beach Provincial Park. Its best known for its beach that is several kilometre's long and can go out for 1/4 mile at low tide and is picture perfect to photograph. The water though is very cold, even in mid-summer! Its not uncommon for swimmers to wear wet or dry suits to keep warm while out on the water. The nearby trail though to Barnaby's Head is the real hidden gem. The 5 kilometre long trail is a farilt easy hike offering some really spectacular views of Maces Bays and the islands it contains. New River Island is the main island you see out in the bay.

To get to the trail you need to go straight once you take the New River Beach exit in from Route 1(and not go right to the main Park entrance). Follow the hiking sign in to the parking area, the trail is on the left of the parking lot, next to the beach area at Tommys Cove. This trail is mainly dry and for a good part of it it consists of a boardwalk thats very easy to follow. Along the trail

you will see a wide variety of wildlife here from Eider ducks, to seagulls, sparrows, hawks, eagles and more! The coast here has a variety of scenery to take in, from sandy to rocky beaches, headlands, different coloured rocks, to scenic little coves. Deadman's Cove is one of them and it did get its name from a sailor who died and washed up here after a shipwreck in the bay in the 1869 Great Saxby Gale that did a lot of damage up and down the Bay of Fundy. Lighthouses were destroyed, ships were washed ashore and many people died in the region. This storm is regarded as the most destructive storm to have ever hit this region, even moreso that Hurricane Juan or any other recent storm!

Chittick's Beach is located next to the trail and got its name from an early Irish pioneer family that farmed here back in the late 1800's. There are also picnic tables here at this pictureque little cove. At the end of the trail is Barnaby Head offering some great views of the bay and the islands. In the distance you can see the Salkeld Islands in front of the Point Lepreau Nuclear Plant. At the very tip of that point, to the right of the plant is the Point Lepreau Lighthouse.

New River Beach trail

From Barnaby Head you have the option to hike back the trail you came in on or take the bog trail which is a little overgrown that goes to the left.

From New River Beach go left towards St. Stephen, there are some great ocean views at Pocologan and its well worth a stop to take them in. One great little side trip is down the Blacks Harbour, the home of Conners brothers and their famous sardines. The little harbour here is worth a look at with its big fish hawling boats tied up. The big Conners Brothers plant is located right next to this. If you have the time continue up Route 179 to Wallace Cove and watch the departure of the Grand Manan ferry. It was just in the last few years the government built a new wharf here for the ferry plus a new waiting area for cars and welcome centre. Nearby is the Pea Point Lighthouse, accessible only at low tide. Access via the red gate(left) just before you go right down to the ferry landing. Its about a 1/2 kilometre hike out to this scenic lighthouse. This area of the coast has a number of lighthouses: Beaver Harbour Lighthouse in the nearby village of the same name accessible via the lighthouse road, Bliss Island Lighthouses(can be seen from the Greens Point lighthouse), Leonardsville Lighthouse on deer Island, Greens Point light, and the Southern Wolf Lighthouse. This area of the maritimes has perhaps the greatest number of lighthouses in such a small area due to all the islands and its tricky shoals, not to mention the world's highest tides. Being a mariner in this part of the world requires a lot of skill and expertise.

Blacks Harbour

Heading west on Route 1 take exit 56 at St. George and follow Route 172 towards Back Bay and Letete, the terminal for the Deer Island ferry. The Letete island passage area is very scenic offering panoramic views of the bay and its many islands. Head out the Greens Point road to the old lighthouse for some more spectacular views. Here you will see some salmon farms and get the best shots of the 2 ferries going back and forth from Deer Island. The old Lighthouse was decommissioned back in the late 1980's and is now run by the Greens Point Lighthouse Association. They have a small museum in the old keepers house and a cottage they rent out in the summer. From this point you can see the ferry run from Grand Manan island out to that big island you see in the distance, Grand Manan. The Bliss Island lighthouse can be seen to the left as you drive out the causeway road to the lighthouse. Deer island is a little harder to see because of the numerous small islands between it and the point here. Campobello Island can also be seen, see the tip of land just to the right of Grand Manan, the Head Harbour Lightstation may be visible, moreso in the evening when its light is on.

Greens Point Light

From Greens Point head back to St. George and go right into town to the dam/gorge/falls. Its right off the main street just down from the mall on the left. This scenic little area is quite nice and if your there on the right day the gate is open next to the dam and you can walk down and see the fish coming up the fish ladder! There are several viewing areas where you can look through the glass to see the fish coming up. The dam was built in the 1950's but the falls here can be still quite impressive especially in the spring. There is another nice view of the falls, see the bridge over the river just below the falls down to the old harbour area. Its hard to believe now but at one time St. George was a major shipbuilding and port in the Bay of Fundy back in the 1800's. there is parking and a viewing platfoem overlooking the old harbour. The bridge offers a good view upriver of the old dam and powerhouse that is no longer in use. There is a "safe" platform off the bridge for those wanting to get a good shot of the falls in this small gorge.

St. George Gorge/Falls/Dam

Addtional spots to see along the coast include the resort town of St. Andrews that offers some great hiking as well (and Kingsbrae Gardens), see Chamcook mountain and the new hiking trails out at Joe Orr's Pond. The St. Stephen area also offers some nice hiking along its waterfront trail in addition to the old Ganong estate out at the end of the Ledge road. There are some great views here on the St. Croix river!

Coming in a future travel story is Campobello Island, Deer Island and Grand Manan Island. All of these places warrant a story all their own! There is just so much to see and do in New Brunswick you can only do a small section at a time. And what makes it even better is that its not far away from many New Brunswicker's and they're not overcrowded attractions.