Another day of touring is planned with a 6.5 hr. bus tour. Whew! We are learning the only way to view a port of any size is a bus tour with narrative guides. This does required
Hoping on and off many times during the tour. However, if the guide is good, the journey is much more pleasant. Today with have the top 10 locations in Saint John. Our day began
at 8 am. to board the BIG YELLOW BUS.
Now I must say the bus is modern and equipted with restroom, air conditioning and all sorts of people from around the world. My French
i.e. Redneck was not spoken on this bus. However, we did meet a couple from Kentucky who live and have boated on Kentucky Lake. Small world.
Our guide, Kelley is Irish by decent and moved to Saint John from L.A. She was the highlight of the tour being ever present and full of whit. One of the more interesting features of
Saint John is the reversing water falls or rapids. We managed to view the rapids on the outgoing tide but returned near the end of the tour to witness the incoming time. Alas, we were too early
for the change. The tide changes in the Bay of Fundy up to 50 ft. each tide. We did view several fishing boats laying in the mud waiting for the incoming tide. Handling lines
here is an art. The Bay of Fundy is between Nova Scotia and New Brunswick and has been a major ship building area since the 1700's. We did not meet any of the first sea captains
but most are in "retirement" and now work on the Royal Caribbean cruise lines. We are now cruising at 44 Deg. North latitude, being the furthers north of our experience. Fog has followed us most of the
cruise but seas are pleasant with a little roll.
One of our stops was an Irish Pub for a free pint of Moose Head beer along with some "Irish" songs, i.e. John Denver and such. Great little pub and would have enjoyed additional pints
except for the moving of the BIG YELLOW BUS. After several short stops to view architectural features of the community we proceeded to St. Martin beach area for some of the world
famous sea food chowder. Seems this restaurant makes over 5,000 gallons of chowder annually feeding thousands. The location is adjacent to the tidal caves on Bay of Fundy. You can see
the force of the tides by the large size of the caves. You do not want to be inside a cave when the tide is in coming for the force of the water will not permit your exist and they
may find your body on the out going tide. We walked the rocky beach enjoying a new awareness of the changes in the world we do not see from Kentucky. Now, BACK ON THE BUS.
The views are stunning. The fog lifted after our tour start and permitted good views of the harbor, our ship and the working area of the Bay. Lobster fishing is predominant here along with
shad, clams and some mussels. Lobster fishing has 2 seasons, one of which is December to March with very cold and windy conditions. The median high during the winter is 25 Deg. Fahrenheit.
Colder than a well digger's rear. Seems the local think this is comfortable along with the 6 ft. of snow annually. Water Temp is near 45 deg. near constant during the year, so no swimming
along the beach. Some do use jet skis but wet suits are mandatory.
We would recommend Saint John for a cruise or just fly in to enjoy this part of Canada. We will continue our cruise further North to Halifax and later to Corner Brook. Corner Brook is the
town located further north than any other in North America. I do not have the latitude as yet but will post upon our arrival. No icebergs as yet but we will be visiting the Titanic Museum in
Halifax.
HAPPY SAILING,
Aboard Explorer of the Seas
Adm. Denise and Capt. Barry
"no deckhands" currently serving a sentence in a kennel.
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