Friday 7/08/2022 - Day 27 of 31 on our 2022 Canadian Maritime #2 Caravan with Yankee RV Tour

Did I walk this morning? That is a silly question. As long as I wake up and it is not raining, I am walking! This campground offered some paved roadways, so it was a pleasure to walk on them!

We departed our overnight stop at Scotia Pines. The sole purpose of our stop here was to see the tidal bore … boy oh boy, was it worth it! The campground provided us all pull thru sites and a restful night.

We traveled on Route 104, again but this time heading west. We also crossed from Nova Scotia back into New Brunswick. Route 104 takes you past the Cobequid Interpretive Center and part of the road is called the Cobequid Pass. The name Cobequid was derived from the Mi'kmaq word "Wagobagitk" meaning "the bay runs far up", in reference to the area surrounding the easternmost inlet of the Minas Basin, a body of water called Cobequid Bay. Cobequid was granted in 1689 to Mathieu Martin. He was said to be the first Acadian born in Acadia. In 1705, the Acadians first settled in this area near Cobequid Bay. The Acadian culture consisted primarily of farming. Their advanced farming systems of dykes, permitted them to recuperate valuable farmland from the marshlands that cover the entire coast of the community. The community, which is now called Masstown, is located 10 minutes west of Truro. In 1714 many inhabitants of Minas, signed to a resolution, dated 9 September 1714, to go to Cape Breton. 

The Cobequid Acadians were close to an Indian mission located where the Stewiacke meets the Shubenacadie; and which had been run, for many years, by Le Loutre. In January 1750, Le Loutre made an ever closer alliance with his native friends (the sworn allies of the French crown). This meant that the Acadians of Cobequid did not want to get too friendly with the English. On the second day of September, 1755, the French inhabitants of Cobequid Village, lying on the north side of the bay, were working in their fields because it was harvest time. Three British vessels came into the Bay. Two of them anchored, one opposite the Village, and the other at Lower Cobequid; while the third went further up the shore. On September 4, they placed a notice on the church, that read that all their belonging now belong to His Majesty. However, this order had been given by William Shirley, Governor of Massachusetts and commander-in-chief of North American forces, and not by the British government in London. This was William Shirley's revenge for the death of his son during Edward Braddock campaign against the Canadians in the Ohio Valley. This was the beginning of the Acadian deportation.

The Cliffs of Fundy Geopark span over 100 miles of scenic shoreline from the Portaupique River to Apple River, an area known as the Parrsboro Shore. It boasts over 40 Geosites – stunning examples of earth’s history like Wasson Bluff fossils and minerals, Cape d’Or basalt, the Five Islands fault, and more. The area is an aspiring UNESCO Global Geopark, a designation awarded to an area of international geological significance. Interspersed with impressive geology shaped by the Bay of Fundy tides are historical sites and cultural sites.

We passed Joggins Fossil Center and Cliffs, which is another UNESCO World Heritage Site. This sight has been preserved in nature, uncovered by force. It is here that the highest tides in the world reveal the most complete fossil record of the “Coal Age,” 100 million years before the dinosaurs. Every rock holds the possibility of discovery, and our guided tours may lead you to finding a missing piece of time’s puzzle. The Joggins Fossil Centre is situated on the reclaimed site of the Old Joggins No. 7 Coal Mine overlooking the Joggins Fossil Cliffs. The Centre provides an exceptional learning experience, featuring an extensive fossil specimen collection, exhibits, and displays depicting

We traveled east on Route 116, also known as Acadian Coastal Drive. This area is as renowned for its spirited Acadian culture as it is for its beautiful destinations. The Acadian coastal Drive is a total of 466 miles. Port Elgin is conveniently located at the intersections of Highway 15 and 16, and Provincial Route 970, just minutes from the Confederation Bridge to Prince Edward Island and the border of Nova Scotia. The historic, picturesque village of Port Elgin, New Brunswick, is on the Northumblerland Strait near Fort Gaspereaux National Historic Site. From the summer encampment of the Mi’kmaq on the banks of the Gaspereau River to the arrival of the Acadians and the building of Fort Gaspareaux, and from the building of the Intercolonial Railroad and the construction of the Trans Canada, Port Elgin has been at the crossroads of commerce.

We saw more “Watch for Moose Signs” on our way to the Confederation Bridge. They have "moose" whistles on the edge of the bridge, to keep the moose off the bridge.

We crossed the Confederation Bridge. The Confederation Bridge joins the eastern Canadian provinces of Prince Edward Island and New Brunswick, making travel throughout the Maritimes easy and convenient. The curved, 8 mile long bridge is the longest in the world crossing ice-covered water, and continues to endure as one of Canada’s top engineering achievements of the 20th century. The decision to replace the existing ferry service with a fixed link followed a heated debate throughout the 1980’s. Farmers, fishermen, tourism operators, and residents of Prince Edward Island had sharply contrasting opinions about how year-round access to the mainland would affect their way of life and livelihood. Eventually, it was decided that the debate would be settled at the polls. The federal department of Public Works and Government Services selected its favorite bridge design out of several proposals from the private sector, and on January 18, 1988, Premier Joseph Ghiz asked Prince Edward Islanders to make the final decision in a vote. At the polls, 59.4% of Islanders voted “Yes” to a fixed link. After four years of construction using crews of more than five thousand local workers, the Confederation Bridge opened to traffic on May 31, 1997.

There is a live bridge cam on the eastbound side of the bridge, into Prince Edward Island. We prepared our friends and family to watch us cross the bridge on their phones, computers or tablets by giving them advance notice. 

I think many of them were ready! We wanted to be sure that they could see us … we put a sign in the passenger side of the front window. 

The New Brunswick and Prince Edward Island border is the Northumberland Strait.

As we drove further into PEI, we learned the fact that there are no rivers in PEI, only estuaries. The sea water flows in and out.

PEI also has many farms, most of them are potato farms. There were also fields of what we thought was mustard, but learned it was canola. Still a beautiful yellow color!

We arrived at Cornwall KOA, our home for the next few nights. We had time to relax and tend to personal matters. Before our entertainment and dinner!

We were treated to music by the Vagabond Minstrel, Gordon Belsher. He has been a friend of Rod’s for more than 30 years! He is based in Prince Edward Island on Canada's east coast. 

Gordon Belsher has been entertaining audiences in Canada and around the world for more than 40 years performing at concerts, ceilidhs, conventions, and pubs. He played classic PEI tunes, some John Denver and introduced us to his unique style. 

After our private ceilidh with Gordon, we enjoyed a lasagna dinner provided by Yankee RV Tours, prepared by our Yankee Staff and a couple special caravanners! 

Yankee encourages people to sit with different couples at each meal, ride with different people to events. You mark off the people on the back of your name badge, to be sure you cover everyone. Well, with this smaller group, we had the opportunity to cover all the caravanners multiple times. We only had one couple left to check off the list... so on day 27 of our 31-day caravan, we eat with the wagonmasters!

This KOA is beautiful with so many amenities!