Hopewell Rocks
Lighthouse
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Back with "Mom"
Travelling with Pets
Chewy's Amazing Adventure
Hopewell Rocks and the Bay of Fundy.
My older daughter and Eddie the Golden Retriever, Knave the dog, Chewy, my husband and myself with luggage for both humans and dogs crowded into Gwyneth’s purple Chevy Cavalier for a trip to the Hopewell Rocks and the Bay of Fundy.
Chewy stayed away from Eddie by traveling up front in the passenger seat.
We traveled beside the Petitcodiac River nicknamed the Chocolate River. The name of the river comes from its muddy brown colour. Due to the highest tides in the world at the Bay of Fundy, the river disappears then reappears with the water running up the river. The same tide makes the Miramichi River run first one way, then reverse and run another.
The Hopewell Rocks are a series of flower pot islands on the shore of the Bay of Fundy. When the tide is high, the rocks are islands, then the tide falls by up to 12 metres or 30 feet and visitors can walk on the sand, among the rocks.
It is possible to walk on the ocean floor at the Hopewell Rocks for three hours before until three hours after low tide during the park's hours of operation. For those of us from the center of the continent, it’s important to pay attention to the times of high and low tides. This is especially true for people like me who live close to the Great Lakes which have hardly any tide at all.
We had a picnic lunch at the Rocks and a look around the souvenir shop. During lunch, Eddie lay under the picnic table. Little Chewy kept growling and attacking him. Finally Eddie had enough. He growled under his breath and push Chewy down to the ground with his big paw. He held the pup who squirmed over on his back and let out a caterwauling that sounded like he was being murdered.
We all laughed at Chewy’s comeuppance but two elderly ladies nearby looked horrified. Gwyneth told Eddie to let the pup go and he did. That was the end of Chewy annoying Eddie. We explained it was a dominance thing but the ladies didn’t understand.
Chewy came over to me for some comfort and I noticed that the mosquitoes had bitten him all over, even his little belly and private parts. Perhaps because he is black with short soft curly hair. The other two dogs, especially Knave, have thick fur. Even burrs will fall off Knave's fur.
Fortunately the souvenir store had some dog insect repellent. We covered him with it and also put bacterial cream on his sores. He would flip on his back each time you asked, “How’s your ouchees?” to show you his problem.
Dogs are allowed on the beach at Hopewell Rocks but must be on a lead. It’s important for dogs to be on a lead not only so they aren’t a nuisance to the public but also because there are steep cliffs and the tide comes in quickly. Knave spent his time barking at the waves, he had never seen such a thing before.
At the top of the cliffs is a foot washing apparatus where people can clean the sand off their feet. It has a grate and a hose spray which the dogs did not appreciate.
After Hopewell Rocks, we headed for Fundy National Park and the town of Alma. Three dogs in a hotel room looking out the window. Chewy got so excited, he fell off the bed. That evening we went for a walk on the beach in front of our cottage.
The park opened at 10 a.m. We travelled to a trail that leads to an overlook of the bay and a path to a waterfall. Everyone, including the dogs, was pretty tired after the walk. We returned to our hotel and the humans went out for sea food.
Back to Miramichi
The next day we headed back to Moncton. We went on a studio tour and visited the art studio of nature artist, Lars Larson. Our several nature prints were very reasonable. Further along the route we stopped at a tea room that our daughter had passed several times. The dogs had to stay in the car but the day wasn’t too warm and the windows were open. We had a wonderful traditional tea of scones, jam and tea. The dogs took a walk along the flowers on the property.
We then drove home, the farms changing to woods then forest as we neared Miramichi.
The Headless Nun
In Miramichi, my daughter and I visited French Fort Cove and took the Headless Nun tour. I was thrilled when our guide gave us a headless nun mug. The amateur actors told us many tales of Miramichi, some of interest to the Indians along for the tour. I screamed when lepers jumped out of us from the woods and we all laughed. The headless nun appeared down the trail, floating above her sneakers. She murdered our guide who had found the treasure. He didn’t move and the tour was over. We debated poking him with a stick but then decided to go home instead.
Unfortunately the Town of Miramichi recently cut the funding for the tour, so it may be no more.
Chewy arrived at our cottage in Ontario with a T-shirt for his owner. It showed a picture of a tiny Chewy and a big Hopewell Rock flowerpot. The shirt said:
My dog went to Hopewell Rocks and all I got was this lousy T-shirt.
