| Gagetown Morning at Steamer's Stop Inn | |
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Roger Kenner
Montreal, Qc,
Canada 2002
We were out of bed at 07:00. While Sheryl was getting ready to come downstairs, I went down and retrieved my bike from under the back balcony, packed everything up and loaded my bike. The internal frame for my panier was broken and I made a note that it was something I would have to fix later.
We had breakfast on the back terrace at 08:00, overlooking the calm morning water of the boat channel. We were served the most wonderful blueberry and banana pancakes. After eating, I hiked out onto the pier to look back and get a vantage point for a photo of the Inn. Then I was set to be on my way.
| Gagetown Morning at Steamer's Stop Inn | |
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| Gagetown: River in Early Morning |
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| Gagetown to Oak Point |
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| (Map Removed from this lite-version.) |
It was 08:45 when I headed out. The first task was to climb back up the steep ridge, from the waterfront to Highway 102. I was at the top and ready to head on down the highway by 09:00. The day was sunny, with a hint of clouds on the western horizon. The air was so quiet and still that the sound of the birds was loud.
Not too far along the main road, I came to a mileage sign indicating that St. John was 89 km away. Near there, the waitress from the pub who had spoken with us the night before came cycling up in the opposite direction, from her farm outside of town. She greeted me with an 'hello' and a 'good luck" as she passed.
By 09:35, I had reached the town of Pleasant Villa, where I encountered a long climb followed by a steep descent, back into the valley of the St. John's River. The sky had become overcast, but all remained dead quiet. There was almost no traffic out on the road.
| Route 102: On my way in the Early Morning |
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| Route 102: View of Distant St. John River | Route 102: Closer to the River |
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| Route 102: Big Climb at Pleasant Villa | |
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At 09:50 I stopped at a roadside rest area located on the Queenston town line. The stop was high on the hillside and I had a great vantage point out over the valley for photos.
| Route 102: Overlooking the River at Queenston | |
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| Route 102: Church at Queenston |
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| Route 102: Church at Central Hampstead |
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10:00 found me at the Central Hampstead line. I had passed 'Queenston Wharf Road' and 'Hampstead Siding Road', respective signs of earlier steamboat and railroad days. There was a big bend in the river at Hampstead and I saw a floating barge far down the hill and out on the water. Looking past the barge, I could see where the valley narrowed into a tight gorge. I came upon an historic well
| Route 102: Valley views at Central Hampstead | |
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| Route 102: Historic Well near Hamstead |
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As I rounded the sharp inside bend of the river, coming along the foot of a high ridge, I looked out across the marshland towards the distant water and noted the old abandoned railway trestles at each creek crossing, more signs of earlier days.
| Route 102: River view at big bend in River Near Hamstead |
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| Route 102: Old Railway Trestle along Abandoned Line |
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At 10:45, when I came to the Hampstead town line, I took a detour off the main road to drop down to the water's edge so I could get a look back at the barge. I was on the wharf of the Hampstead-Wickham ferry from 10:50 to 11:00.
| Route 102: The River's Edge at Hampstead Wharf |
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At 11:10 I crossed the line into King's County.
At 11:20 I had reached the Evandale ferry, where Highway 124 crossed the river. Both the river and valley had narrowed to the extreme at that point and the roadway was running along the side of the ridge, with a tall cliff to my right.
| Route 102: Evandale Ferry |
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| Route 102: Evandale Ferry |
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A little past Evandale, at 11:32, I underwent a dog attack. Typically, dogs pose little problem, for by the time they notice me I have ridden past. In this case, the two German shepherds who were without a leash saw me coming and came out ahead of me, running at full speed towards me as they growled and barked. I rode down on them, seriously considering whether I should aim to hit one directly, so as to put it out of action, and then take on the other one. I was that scared, and the play seemed cast as we approached. At the last minute, I did not hit the dog. The two had so misjudged my speed that they ran right past me. By the time they could turn around, I was out of their range and they could not catch up. I was quite spooked, nevertheless. Had I hit the dog, I’m sure to have killed it and would have faced legal charges, fines and a lot of other grief. The owner should have had his dogs on a leash.
The river, which had turned west from its southerly path near Gagetown, only to turn south again at Hampstead, now made a definite curve to the west once again. I was entering a section called ‘The Long Reach'. The road led along the base of the cliff rising to my right, just above the water level. Just above the roadway, on a slightly higher ledge, was the old railway right-of-way, which I guess will eventually become part of The New Brunswick Trail.
| Route 102: Turning into the 'Long Reach' at Evansdale |
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| Route 102: Right Along the Water: The 'Long Reach' |
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| Route 102: Right Along the Water: From the Old Rail Line |
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I stopped between 12:00 and 12:15 at the dock of 'Oak Point Pier', to have a look up and down ‘The Reach'. I could see along the shoreline the clear effect of the distant ocean tides. They seemed to affect about 3 feet of the beach.
I called Sheryl for my 12:00 check in. She was still back at the inn, relaxing on the terrace and preparing her oils, as well as talking up the innkeeper and her daughter. She had been waiting for my call and now would leave to begin her day's exploration.
| Route 102: The Pier at Oak Point - Looking Downriver | Route 102: Looking Upriver from Oak Point |
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Returning to the highway, I passed an old cemetery, whose information plaque indicated that Oak Point must have once been a thriving community:
| Route 102: Oak Point Baptist Church | |
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Oak Point Baptist Cemetery Former Site of the Oak Point Baptist Church 1833-1987 Only what is done for Christ will last This memorial was erected in 1989 by the Congretation of the Oak Point Baptist Church |
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| The Long Reach |
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| (Map Removed from this lite-version.) |
| Route 102: 63 Year-Old Maple Tree |
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Leaving Oak Point, I faced the long, hard climb up to the top of a high ridge that blocked the landward descent of ‘The Reach’. The river made a wide detour to pass around the point at the end of the ridge. At the top of a big ridge was the town of Brown’s Point. The hard-won climb was followed immediately by a steep descent and then yet another long climb, before the road finally descended once again to the river's edge.
| Route 102: Reflection in the Glass | |
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| Route 102: Oak Point from the Heights |
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| Route 102: Three Flags | Route 102: At the Top of the Climb at Brown's Landing |
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Between 13:35 and 13:50, and once again onto the flat alongside the river, I stopped to have lunch at the town pier of a place whose name was 'Public Landing' I talked up two young girls who were Mormon missionaries, one from Utah and the other from England. The girls did not look the part of the typical Mormon missionary, as they sunned themselves in their bikinis. After chatting with them for a short while, I retired to the far side of the pier to escape the crowd of young gentlemen who were clustered around fawning over the girls.
| Route 102: Looking back on Hills from Public Landing |
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| Route 102: River View from Public Landing |
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Going on down the road, I stopped to catch a photo of St. Peter's Anglican Church, built in 1796.
| Public Landing: St. Peter's Anglican - 1796 | |
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I was at Morrisdale by 14:05
At 14:20 I was at Westfield, at the junction of Highway 177 and where ‘The Long Reach’ ends as the river makes yet another abrupt turn to the south. The junction had been preceded by a long downhill run during which I had missed a great photo of the bay and bridge for not wanting to interrupt my descent. The bay was a in truth a vast tidal marsh and the bridge formed only part of the causeway across its mouth.
| Route 102: The Cove at Westfield |
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| Route 102: The Cove at Westfield |
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Along Highway 177 ran the active tracks of the CP main line. It must have been along these very tracks that I had ridden in 1993, when I awoke just as we were passing over the Reversing Falls Bridge at St. John.
| Meeting Route 177 at Grand Bay/Westfield | |
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| On into Saint John | |
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| (Map removed from this lite-version.) |
| Along Route 177 |
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| Westfield: Looking back up the 'Long Reach' |
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| Westfield: St. James Anglican |
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I stopped to get a photo of St. James Anglican Church in Westfield.
From 14:40 to 14:45, I stopped and made a short detour to watch the Harding Point ferry come in.
| Route 177: Ferry at Harding Point | |
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| Westfield/Grand Bay |
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| (Map removed from this lite-version.) |
At 15:00 I tried to reach Sheryl on the cell phone, but could not. I left my phone on after that, so she would be able to reach me.
Grand Bay/Westfield is a riverside bedroom community for St. John. As I rode along Highway 177, the surroundings became more and more suburban in nature.. The road itself was getting busier and wider, with more and more roadside businesses and parking lots. I came at last to the town's tourist information kiosk, in an old railway caboose, where I stopped for five minutes. I was, thankfully, able to secure a more detailed local map.
| Route 177: A View of the Bay |
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| Route 177: The St. John Line! |
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I knew from the map that Highway 177, already a wide, four-laned urban boulevard, would soon join the freeway in a vast cloverleaf interchange up ahead. I was climbing a steep hill approaching the interchange at 15:15, when I passed a sign indicating I was now at the city limits of St. John. It was an illusion, for I was still a long way from the city.
The detailed local map showed that I could turn off the main highway at Westfield Road and stay alongside the bay on a more or less quiet road through the country. I was looking for this turn-off when my cell phone began to ring. Three times it rang, and there was no one at the other end when I answered. This phenomenon would continue several times before Sheryl would finally reach me.
| St. John: Along Westfield Road I would have taken these rails in 1993! |
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| St. John: The Marina |
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Westfield road consisted of many twists and turns together with ups and downs. I was ever conscious of the companion CP tracks, which I kept encountering. At 15:45, I came to Grand Bay and the St. John Marina. This was the first open view of the water I had come across, so I left the road to descend to the end of the pier for a photo. Sheryl finally reached me as I was standing out at the end of the pier looking across the bay at what I could see of St. John. She had just reached the junction of Highway 177 and would be coming along shortly. I expected her to get to the motel where I had made reservations long before I did.
| St. John: the Bay from The Marina | St. John: View towards Narrows from Marina |
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Even after passing the St. John Marina, I was still a lot further away from the city than I thought. I would encounter lots and lots of hills as I continued around the bay, always alongside the railroad line.
| St. John: A View of the Distant City From the Marsh Lowlands of the Bay | St. John: Railway Trestle over Marsh |
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| St. John: Fancy House as I climb Ridge |
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At 16:15, I reached Manawaganish Boulevard, which ran along the top of the steep and narrow ridge separating Grand Bay from the ocean. It had been a long, long climb up the back side of that ridge. I was so happy to see the ocean stretched out far below me. It was the sign that I had reached my goal! I gave myself a few minutes to maneuver into the right position for a good panoramic photo of the ocean view. Then I set off in the direction of my motel.
| St. John: View of the Ocean From atop the Ridge at Monawagamish Rd. |
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The Balmoral Motel was only a short ways down Manawaganish Boulevard. I reached it at 16:30, thus bringing to a definitive end the bicycle portion of the trip. I had come a long way, after 11 days of cycling, and felt quite a sense of accomplishment. I checked in, and after examining a number of cabins, picked cabin #9. The Balmoral Motel was not the fanciest motel I had ever stayed in, but it was okay for our purposes.
| St. John: Balmoral Court Motel | |
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Sheryl came by fifteen minutes later, at 16:45, after I had negotiated the better of two poor cabins: Each had a distinct musty smell, but I chose the larger one, one which had a nice, covered porch upon which to sit and watch the world.
| Balmoral Court Motel |
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Sheryl’s Day: Gagetown to St. John: 64 miles on the odometer (1052-987)Sheryl spent the morning at the Steamer Stop Inn, relaxing on the terrace and preparing her oils as she talked up the innkeeper and her daughter. She made a preparation of 8 jars of St. John’s Wort in olive oil. She waited for my 12:00 call before setting off on her afternoon’s explorations. She spent most of her time exploring all the shops and galleries around Gagetown before following me down the highway. She reached the Highway 177 interchange at 15:45, as I as looking out on Grand Bay, but then she followed the road into the freeway, where she stopped at the Tourist Information Centre to gather information on St. John. It was for this reason that she did not arrive until 16:45.
We sat out on the terrace of the small cabin until 18:00, relaxing and toasting the ride with some wine. Then we showered and we were back out on the terrace for 18:45, ready for our first evening in St. John.
We drove into town along Manawaganish Boulevard, stopped for our first look at the Reversing Falls. At this point in time, the tide was going out. All the tidewater pent up in the Long Reach and Grand Bay had to exit via a narrow hundred foot gorge. It was a spectacular sight!
Vignette: Reversing Falls (St. John Tourist Brochure)
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| St. John: Reversing Falls: Tide Going Out: From Park |
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| St. John: Reversing Falls: Tide Going Out: View Upstream |
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| St. John: Reversing Falls: Tourist Centre |
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| St. John: Reversing Falls: Closer View | St. John: Reversing Falls: Whirlpools |
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| St. John: Reversing Falls: View Upstream |
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| Drive Into Town | |
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| (Map removed from this lite-version.) | |
We continued our drive and found our way into the old part of St. John, which is perched on a tiny, rocky peninsula the rises steeply from the water on all sides. We drove in along the waterfront and parked south of the main commercial area. From there we walked back down to the Atlantic Market. A big affair called The 'Festival by the Sea' (an Atlantic Music festival) was in progress,and there was a big tent set up along Water Street. As we passed, we had occasion to hear a bit of the band: Big Sea. We found a place for supper at a trendy restaurant in the Atlantic Market complex, Keystone Kelly, where we had these chicken/mushroom/cheese concoctions that were not very good. The restaurant was spread over many confusing half levels and was jam packed with clients. Outside local music acts and buskers performed on the quai. Following supper we took another leisurely walk along Water Street, catching some more of the 'Big Sea' sound. Then we hiked up the hill one block, to Prince William Street, where we had parked the car.
We drove back to the motel for 21:00, where we relaxed and read until midnight.
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