7/20
The Tide chart for Hopewell Rocks showed low tide would be at 9 AM. Three hours before and up to three hours after 9AM would be safe to walk on the ocean floor. We put on our old shoes and made the short drive to Hopewell Provincial Park. it was foggy outside, but, we thought the fog would burn off, eventually.
Hopewell Rocks is one of the Marine Wonders of the World, and is the site of some of the World’s Highest Tides. The Hopewell Rocks are also called the Flowerpot Rocks and Sea Stacks. The formations are caused by tidal erosion and some of them are 40-70 feet tall.
At the entrance gate we purchased our tickets which can used for 2 consecutive days. We stopped briefly at the interpretive center to take a quick look at the exhibits. Outside the center, we followed the well-marked, gravel, path down to the observation deck. The walk took us about 10-15 minutes. At the end of the path, we reached the observation deck/entrance point and stairs. We then walked down 101 steps to get down to the beach/ocean floor.
After descending the 101 steps, we arrived at the beach/ocean floor, It was a mixture of rock, seaweed, and mud. It wasn’t hard to stay out of the mud but there were people playing in the mud. I saw kids that had painted their faces with mud! We walked around looking at all of the rock fromations trying to imagine what they look like during high tide. Unfortunately for our time on the ocean floor,, the fog did not burn off.
(slideshow) Low Tide
We climbed the 101 steps back to the top of the stairs. I spotted an outdoor cafe and we puchased some water and rested for a bit. I decided to take the shuttle back to the top instead of enduring the 15 min uphill walk. Ken walked and I rode! Of course, I arrived first and had time to shop in the gift shop before Ken finished the climb.
HIgh tide was posted for 2:49, so, we had time to go back to the RV and have lunch.
At 2 PM we went back to the park, walked the path down hill to the observation level. From the top level of the stairs, we could see the water covering the bases of the formations and the beach where we had walked in the morning. Ken walked down the stairs to where they were closed off and took some photos.
(slideshow) High Tide
It was absolutely an amazing experience to walk on the ocean floor, explore coves, and see the sandstone formations topped with trees. Then, see the same formations barely peeking above the surface,
After leaving Hopewell Rocks, we decided to see what was on the roadway beyond our campground. We dorve a winding, rolling, road through the countryside but weren’t really getting anywhere. Ken pulled down a road to turn around and I spotted a covered bridge. The bridge is not in service so we parked along the road and walked across the bridge. Even though it is not in use, it seemed very stable. I love looking for covered bridges and this was an awesome surprise!
After the covered bridge discovery, we decided to drive even further on the road. We drove to Cape Enrage. Cape Enrage is a beautiful spot on the Bay of Fundy coastline, complete with a nice little lighthouse, some scenic viewpoints, a zipline attraction, a restaurant, and gift shop. We paid a small admission fee to enter the area. The first thing I saw was the zip-line and I knew we weren’t going to do that activity! The star attraction at Cape Enrage is the lighthouse, which is located on a bluff above the Bay of Fundy. We climbed the stairs to the Lighthouse and the views were incredible! The lighthouse was not open, but It has been a light station and fog alarm since 1838.
Climbing down from the lighthouse, we discovered that there was a staircase to the beach. I passed on the stairs, but, of course Ken went down to the beach. While he was looking at the awesome views at the beach level, I had a great view of the brave folks that were zip-lining.
We had a great day in New Brunswick!
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