Fundy National Park
Crossing the border at Calais wasn't nearly as bad as Reddit had prepared me. I didn't really need to consume all of my THC. It was a silly exercise for small amounts I had for personal use. This was legal recreational in the State of Maine I was leaving and in the entire Commonwealth of Canada, where I was requesting entry. She did ask me a million questions. For someone not necessarily a terrorist, the concern becomes: Are you going to leave? Honestly, just driving that first long stretch of wide open highway lined with pines and uncluttered by signs made me want to stay. It made the US look like a giant yard sale.
I get freedom of expression, but can we confine it to signage in cities please? An open frontier of possibilities does wonders for the soul.
So, the Bay of Fundy is all about the tides. And a lot about the fog. It has the longest tidal pull in North America, so it's kind of exhilarating to walk far out at low tide. It's a bit mucky and a little scary as the you're not sure if the muck might take you down, way down and it's not like anyone will be able to race across the rocks in a reasonable time. It takes some picking through as of course they are slippery. Too, it was probably just my frame of mind but I had the uneasy feeling the tide would just decide to come racing in like a tsunami. Probably evoked from realizing that I was legitimately walking on the ocean floor. Not the edge. The floor. I was working on my Xplorer badge, which I thought at the time was similar to the Junior Ranger badge, and looking for clam shells as one of my requirements. It was nuts that I couldn't find any, or any crabs, or any sidewinder mollusks, usually all quite common. In fact, I went to a couple different beaches and didn't find any. Th waitress at Alma's Lobster Shop couldn't even find any in the kitchen, which surprised her. There were loads just yesterday. Was it yesterday? I wasn't so sure how much of my life I wanted to invest in this task. If I'd have known the reward was not a pin for my hat, but a sickly flexible plastic bit on a terribly long chain, I would not have even bothered asking her. As it was, I thought that perhaps, living there, she knew something I didn't about the seasons mollusks are more common or maybe about some alien invasion I'd missed hearing about.
Who needs to see another clam shell? The scallops shells were plenty and beautiful. Delicate and divine. Pink!
The sediment here is a clay red. When I first saw the bay it looked kind of ucky. But when the fog lifted, the colors became more distinct and it was easy to appreciate the beauty of the red silty hues surrounding the shores of Fundy and in fact, around Nova Scotia which can be seen from the shore. A higher level view reveals the shades of the water between the land masses.
As I couldn't find the three creatures heretofore mentioned, I persuaded the ranger that I'd fulfilled my requirement with other unique finds, like a carnivorous plant in the bog. There are several trails worth taking. These were along the Medicine Trail. Just waiting.
What's mist and what's fog? It can get pretty humid in the bay, keeping the greenery piling on top of each other. So lush. Even velvety in some places.
Hiking trails lead to a couple lakes here, but you can stop and see Lac Bennett from the main park road.
My campground sat above the bay, overlooking it. It also overlooked the small town of Alma and the Salmon River which feeds into the bay. It is strongly affected by the tide as well and drains significantly twice a day so that the fishing vessels docked at the marine can only get in and out at high tide. The photos below show the Salmon River when the tide is high and when it's low. Somebody planted a couple sticks in the mud to show captains whether it's safe to return. I feel an certain affection toward the red boat as it belongs to the Alma Lobster shop where I had the best seafood chowder aI've ever had and a fine dinner of shrimp and scallops with a homemade tartar sauce to knock your socks off and rethink tartar sauce.
Graphics are evidently a high priority here. I found the signs on the Medicine Trail cool, as well as the logos of the Buddha Bear coffee house and Holy Whale Brewery, both business run by the same folks in a repurposed church. Thumbs up for the Champs APA on tap.
The steep and long stairway (around 115 steps) leading up the hill to the campground was a little rougher going with a belly full of seafood and beer. It was foggy and deliciously chilly during my stay and it even rained. But there was a laundromat, a cleaning sink and showers, so I was able to minimize the grossness of all of that. Once again I was fortunate enough to have packed my campsite away while it was still dry... and this time before yet another heavy downpour the morning of departure.
Still, it was hard to leave. It was downright lovely at my campsite in the fog and chill overlooking the bay with the foghorn blowing. It evoked a remembrance of the fado and Lisbon, a lonesomeness that runs deep through my soul.