Getting There - From Port Aux Basques to Fundy National Park

When we left Newfoundland by ferry from Port Aux Basques we paid the extra money for a cabin with two beds.  The fare for adults is $33.85 CAD each, and we paid $322.90 CAD to get the truck and fifth wheel on board.  What's another $142.95 at that point?  With taxes and fuel surcharge out total bill was $599.15 CAD for that one way trip.  The trip from North Sydney to Argentia was a little higher.  I'll go over all this again down the road when I break down the cost of this trip.

All kidding aside, the cabin really is a necessity for us at this point, I can't sleep in a chair due to my tailbone issues and Wayne can't due to his back issues.  Things to think about if you're planning the trip.

Petitcodiac River, Moncton

It was a long day driving from North Sydney, Nova Scotia to Fundy National Park in New Brunswick.  It got even more fun when the fuel injectors on the truck started giving us trouble again like they did last year in Tennessee.  We spent a day in Moncton at a car dealership where they told us it was probably just bad fuel and replaced the fuel filter.  Of course days later we found out they were wrong and had to start all over again in Maine.

The Petitcodiac River that flows through Moncton is also known as the Chocolate River.

Now that's the way to ride!

A causeway was built in 1968 that deposited so much silt in the river that salmon catch was reduced by 82%.  The river is considered Canada's most endangered and the causeway was opened and efforts are underway to restore its habitat.  There are also concerns about pollution due to industrialization and agriculture, including pesticides that enter the river through groundwater.

As if that wasn't bad enough, I found this on Widipedia: Shortly after the building of the causeway, a 35 ha (86-acre) landfill was built near the river. Various materials were disposed of in the area, including petroleum waste oil, pipe and foam insulation, sewage sludge, and medical waste. While the landfill was shut down in 1992, samples by the Environmental Bureau of Investigation and the Petitcodiac Riverkeeper showed that ammonium levels around the leachate exceeded Canadian quality guidelines by as much as 15 times, and contained heavy metals, petroleum hydrocarbons, and PCBs. A mortality rate of 100 percent was found for test trout and daphnia when exposed to water samples.

Even the burgers are maple flavored in Canada

You would think a town with a Chocolate River would have a chocolatier in town but all we could find was a Laura Secord store in the mall.  It was a bit disappointing, and in addition to missing quality chocolate while out of the country I found myself missing chewy bread and Chex Mix of all things.  The only time I buy it is when we're having a driving day and Canada doesn't carry anything like it in any store or gas station, and the only bagged popcorn to be found is white cheddar which I can't eat due to lactose intolerance.  It's amazing how these little things can affect you and make you miss home!

Another thing we did while visiting Moncton was stop at an RV dealership.  Wayne fell in love with a Class A Newmar Ventana.  I fell in love with a little red and white Shasta trailer.  If we win the lottery we'll go back and get them both.

We discovered that Canada's National Parks are not as well signed, the maps are next to useless, and the visitor center in Fundy was alarmingly small though it did have free wifi that I was happy to use.  Wifi and a usable cell signal were things we also missed while traveling in Canada.

site 99, Chignecto campground - most sites were more level than ours

Fundy's Chignecto campground was nice with large well spaced sites that had water and electric, though the wifi signal at the guard hut was completely useless, we couldn't even get past the password page.  They have a few laundry facilities scattered about but each one has only one washer and dryer but I will admit the price was great and the dryer worked well.  After doing two loads at one we took the rest of our laundry in to Alma where we paid $24 to wash and dry 4 very small loads and a few things still weren't dry.  What are you gonna do?