Saint-Alexandre-de-Kamouraska to Granby, Québec

We left Camping le Rayon de Soliel this morning at 9:15. We continued on TC-20 still following the St. Lawrence River.

One of the road signs we saw along the way was this one warning of a rough road ahead and they were right.

From Quebec

After about 150 miles we stopped at a rest area at the Villeroy Halte    Routière (Villeroy Rest Area) at 12:30 p.m. for a 30 minute lunch break.

From Quebec

Then back on TC-20 until we reach Exit 141 were we take Rte 116 north of Sainte-Rosalie for about 4 miles. We then took Rte 224 at Sainte-Rosalie for about 2 miles to Rte 137 south of Sainte-Hyacinthe,

From Quebec

then Rte 137 for 18 miles to Rte 112 west of Granby and another 1½ miles to Camping Tropicana. We arrived here around 3 p.m.

Camping Tropicana is a Passport America campground. We're paying $19 for our 1 night stay here. We are in site #714. Yes, you read that correctly - site #714 - this place is HUGE! There are 880 RV sites here. There are a lot (I mean a LOT) of permanent RVs here. There is a lake with a nice beach, paddle boats for rent, mini golf and much more. This is definitely a destination campground for families with a lot of activities and planned events.

Site #714 is one of 25 pull-through sites. We have full hook-ups (30 amp); the electric voltage and water pressure is low. We were guided to our campsite and didn't plan on disconnecting the Vue since we're only staying for tonight. When we pulled into the site, we ended up with the Vue sticking out in the roadway. When we tried to disconnect the car, we couldn't because the hitch was at such an angle that it was impossible to get the pins out. Mike wanted to pull forward so we could straighten the hitch out, but our guide was hesitant for us to do that.

Fortunately the owner, Gilles Savoie, came by on his bicycle. He had Mike pull the RV forward so we could disconnect the car. Then Mike backed the RV into the site so it was in there at a better angle. We then hitched the car back up and it wasn't sticking out in the road. Gilles was extremely helpful and knowledgeable about straightening out (no pun intended) our situation. He was also about the only person we've met here that speaks English. Maybe I should have taken French in high school instead of Spanish!

We found out why Gilles knew so much about RVs and spoke such good English - he is a motorhome owner. Mike asked him about the amount of snow that Granby has during the winter (the campground is closed then) and Gilles said he didn't know! He said he takes his motorhome and travels south to the US during the Canadian winter. He said he not only doesn't know how much snow is there in Granby, he doesn't care since he's enjoying the warmer weather in the south. He keeps his motorhome at the north end of Lake Champlain when he's not out traveling during the winter.

Woodstock, New Brunswick to Saint-Alexandre-de-Kamouraska, Quebec

We departed Cosy Cabins Campground at 10 a.m. still driving north on Trans Canada Hwy-2. We stopped at an Ultramar gas station at Perth-Andover to get gas for the RV. We got 210.523 liters for $1.406 a liter (55.631 gallons for $5.321 a gallon US).

From Quebec

TC-2 became Trans Canada Hwy-185 when we entered Québec and we entered the Eastern Time Zone.

From Quebec

We stopped at a rest area near Dégelis, Québec for lunch. After about a 30 minute lunch break, we continued west to the St. Lawrence River and drove south on Trans Canada Hwy-20.

From Quebec

After about 8 miles we took exit 488 to Camping le Rayon de Soliel. We drove a total of 193 miles today.

Camping le Rayon de Soliel gives a 10% discount for Good Sam. We are in site #27 with full hook-ups (30 amp). The water pressure is low and the electric voltage is low also. Site 27 is a grassy pull-through site with lots of trees and the roads in the campground are narrow. We do have wifi, but no satellite TV reception. We are able to pick up local TV stations on the antenna, but they are all in French - of course! Looks like another DVD movie night.

Amherst, Nova Scotia to Woodstock, New Brunswick

We left Gateway Parklands Campground about 10:15 this morning. Just down the road from the campground we saw this firewood stacked near a house.

From Leaving the Maritimes

We crossed the border into New Brunswick less than a mile after leaving the campground. Hwy-104 becomes Trans Canada Hwy-2 in New Brunswick. We drove back through Moncton and on to Woodstock, New Brunswick on Trans Canada Hwy-2. TC-2 followed the course of the St. John River through New Brunswick. We had some great views of the St. John River at various places along the highway.

From Leaving the Maritimes

We exited TC-2 at Exit 191 and drove east to Hwy-165 and there was Cosy Cabins Campground. Cosy Cabins is a Passport America campground. We are on site #3. It is a pull-through and we have full hook-ups with 50 amp service and wifi. These are gravel sites with some grass and are pretty level. The regular fee is $30 a night and with tax we're paying $16.39 with Passport America.

From Leaving the Maritimes

But the view alone is worth staying here! We are facing the St. John River with nothing to obstruct our view. This afternoon while I was walking Tinker we startled a beaver that had come up near the campground.

From Leaving the Maritimes

Now we wish that we had allowed more time to stay here at Cosy Cabins. We've learned that Woodstock is New Brunswick's first town and was incorporated in 1856 and has many Victorian properties on a local historic register. We won't have time to see them before we leave tomorrow - another reason to come back this way another time.

Badddeck to Amherst, Nova Scotia

We left Adventures East Campground this morning around 10:15. We retraced our route along Hwy-105 to Hwy-104. We paid another $5.25 toll at the Cobequid Pass Toll Plaza. We stopped at an Irving gas station in Antigonish to fill the RV tank. We bought 208.1 liters for $1.431 a liter (54.99 gallons at $5.416 a gallon). While we were there we found a place to park the RV and fix lunch.

We continued north on Hwy-104 to Amherst. We stopped at a Sobey's grocery store there to stock up on groceries before going on to Gateway Parklands Campground which is just 5 miles north of there. The distance from Adventures East Campground to Gateway Parklands Campground was 219 miles.

We arrived here at Gateway Parklands Campground a little after 4 p.m. Gateway Parklands is a Passport America campground, but the discount is good for a minimum and maximum of a 2 night stay and we're only staying tonight. The manager gave us a discount for paying in cash which came to $25 - the discount price for Passport America would have been $14 (cash) a night. If we hadn't already made reservations up the road in New Brunswick and Quebec, we could have stayed for 2 nights.

We are on site #W5, a pull-through, with full hook-ups (30 amp). We have good electric voltage, but the water pressure is low. Some of the sites have concrete pads, but we are on a grass site and it is fairly level. We have satellite TV reception finally.

June 26

We drove into Baddeck this morning to make our last trip to the library. We exchanged US currency into Canadian at the Royal Bank of Canada while we were in town.

We stopped to buy a few groceries at the Victoria Farmers Co-Op that we need for today and tomorrow.

Tomorrow we are leaving Baddeck and will be heading into Quebec. There is a lot to see on Cape Breton Island and we really should have allowed 2 weeks for our stay here. We'll have to save the eastern portion of Cape Breton and sites like the Fortress of Louisbourg National Historic Site for another trip.

Alexander Graham Bell National Historic Site of Canada

We visited the Alexander Graham Bell National Historic Site at the east end of Baddeck. The entrance fee for seniors was $6.55 each.

The museum is divided into several exhibit areas. The first one we saw was "Sound & Silence" which tells of his life from birth in Scotland in 1847 up to his arrival in Baddeck in 1885. Bell's mother was deaf and his father taught the deaf to speak. Mabel Hubbard Bell developed scarlet fever at the age of five and spread to her inner ears and she became totally deaf. We learned of Alexander Graham Bell's work teaching deaf people and saw photos of him with Helen Keller and Annie Sullivan.

From Alexander Graham Bell Museum

Our next stop was to the Mr. Bell theater where we watched an 18 minute showing films, photographs and artifacts to see the ideas that led Bell to create man-carrying kites, airplanes and a marine record-setting hydrofoil boat.

We then went into the "Water" exhibit which tells the story of Bell's and Casey Baldwin's experiments with hydrofoil craft. There we saw the remains of the successful HD-4 hydrofoil. There was also a full-size recreation of the hydrofoil. On September 9, 1919 his hydrofoil boat HD-4 (his fourth hydrofoil boat) set a world's marine speed record of 70.86 mph - the record stood for 10 years.

From Alexander Graham Bell Museum

Our next stop was at the "Air" exhibit told of Bell's work with man-carrying kites and airplanes. We saw some original parts from his "Silver Dart" airplane. On February 23, 1909 his "Silver Dart" made the first controlled, powered flight in Canada and the British Empire. It's engine was supplied by Glenn Curtiss. The "Silver Dart' crashed on its fifth flight and never flew again.

In the "Ideas" exhibit we saw the wide range of experiments and interest of Bell and his associates. Bell was fascinated with tetrahedral shapes and used them as the basis for his kites. He used the design for his beach cabana which was on the grounds of the museum.

From Alexander Graham Bell Museum

In the "Home" exhibit we learned the story of Bell's estate, Beinn Bhreagh; it means "beautiful mountain" in Scottish Gaelic. We saw photos of Bell and his family. We learned of their family life while living in Baddeck. The Bell home is still in possession of the Bell family and is maintained as a private residence. Alexander Graham Bell died August 2, 1922 at his home in Baddeck. Mabel Hubbard Bell was born November 25, 1857 (10 years younger than Bell) and died at home in Baddeck on January 3, 1923. They are both buried at Beinn Bhreagh.

From Alexander Graham Bell Museum

June 23

Today we went into Baddeck to the library to wifi. We caught up on our e-mails, did some online banking and researched some areas we'll be visiting.

In addition to the great view out the library's picture window, the Baddeck library also has some antique items on display in the reading room.

From Baddeck, NS

After returning to the RV I loaded up our laundry and drove up the hill to the laundromat. They have 4 washers - 3 washers that cost $2 (hot water) & 1 for $1.75 (cold water). The 4 dryers cost 75¢ for 20 minute cycles. It took 3-4 cycles to get our bath towels dry. The laundry was clean and all the machines did work. The laundry is housed in the same building as the showers and baths and they were also clean.

In the photo below you can see the building housing the laundry and showers in the background with the playground next to it.

From Baddeck, NS

The Cabot Trail

We were up early this morning and treated ourselves to breakfast at the Red Barn Restaurant  which is owned by Adventures East Campground and is only about 1 minute down Hwy-105 from the campground entrance. We practically had the restaurant to ourselves except for another couple having an early Sunday breakfast.

Before heading out on the Cabot Trail drive, we went back to the RV to pack a picnic lunch and pick up Tinker. The Cabot Trail is named after the explorer John Cabot who landed at Aspy Bay in 1497.

There are 2 different theories on the best way to drive the Cabot Trail. Some say to go north through Baddeck and drive around the island (counterclockwise) with the coast on the passenger side where you have a good view of the change in the landscape. Others say to start at the Red Barn Restaurant (which is at southern entrance) and travel around the island (clockwise) with the coast on the driver's side with a view of the changing coastline. We opted  to drive the Cabot Trail in the clockwise direction.

We drove inland to Margaree Forks and then followed the Margaree River to Margaree Harbour and crossed the bridge to Belle Côte. We followed the coast up to Cap Le Moine.

From The Cabot Trail

We drove through the scenic villages of Grand Étang, Chéticamp, and Petit Étang where we entered Cape Breton Highlands National Park.

From The Cabot Trail

From The Cabot Trail

We drove inland through the Highlands to the eastern coast and stopped for a picnic lunch at Black Brook Beach.

From The Cabot Trail

After lunch we continued south going through the villages of Ingonish, Ingonish Beach, Wreck Cove, St. Ann's Bay and back into Baddeck. This is truly a beautiful drive and the weather couldn't have been better for our drive. The total distance around the Cabot Trail was 289 kilometers, or 179 miles.

June 21

We drove into Baddeck today to go to the Baddeck Library to wifi. Baddeck is a picturesque village on Bras d'Or Lake. We stopped at the Baddeck Visitor Center to get brochures on the area.

Baddeck was home to Alexander Graham Bell for many years and The Cabot Trail, a scenic drive, which follows the coast around the northern part of Cape Breton Island. The Alexander Graham Bell National Historic Site of Canada and The Cabot Trail are on our list of sites to see while we're here.

After stopping to shop at a couple of gift shops, we went on to the Baddeck Library. The view from the library's windows have to be the best we've seen to date.

From Baddeck, NS

After leaving the library we stopped at the Victoria Farmers Co-op for groceries. On the way back to the campground we stopped at an Ultramar gas station to fill the tank in the Vue. We bought 19.3 liters of gas for $1.466 a liter. After converting into U.S. figures it works out to 5.1 gallons for $5.549 a gallon - Ouch!

When we got back to the RV we found out we had some new neighbors next to us in a Dutch Star. After dinner we got together and build a campfire and swapped travel stories.

From Baddeck, NS

One subject was the border crossing into Canada. We told them that after answering the standard questions, we were on our way into Canada. It was a different story when they crossed the border. There were 2 new Canadian Customs Officers who wanted to practice searching a RV and they were the lucky couple!

After about 2-3 hours of emptying the compartments and cabinets and searching everywhere and putting everything back, they were on their way into Canada. They did say that the Customs Officers were very polite and had explained that the only reason they were being searched was for training and practice. I guess it's all in your timing when you cross the border - that is one reason we were up early the morning and crossed into New Brunswick so early. We wanted to allow extra time just in case we were searched.

Glen Margaret to Baddeck, Nova Scotia

We left Wayside RV Park this morning around 9:00 to go up to Cape Breton Island. We drove back up to Hwy-102 to Hwy-104 and took it east. We found a place to pull off the highway near Westville to fix lunch. We crossed the Strait of Canso on to Cape Breton Island where Hwy-104 changed to Hwy-105. We arrived here at Adventures East Campground in mid-afternoon - it was 236 miles from Glen Margaret to the campground here.

We're staying here at Adventures East Campground which is a Coast to Coast campground. We are on site #25 which is a back-in site. We have full hookups (30 amp), but no satellite TV reception. We've tried placing our portable satellite dish in several spots - still no reception. We'll be here for a week, so we can watch some of the movie DVDs we have. We usually buy the movies and then wait to watch them when we're in an area where we have no sat reception.

From Baddeck, NS

Maritime Museum of the Atlantic and Halifax Citadel

We left early this morning to drive into Halifax to visit the Maritime Museum and the Halifax Citadel. We took Hwy 333 south to Peggy’s Cove and continued on Hwy 333 as it wound around the different bays and coves before it turned inland and took us into the city of Halifax.
We found a place to park just off of Sackville Street. We stopped at a Visitor Center a couple of blocks away to get information on the Maritime Museum and the Citadel. We walked on down Sackville St. to the Maritime Museum of the Atlantic.

From Halifax

At the Maritime Museum we paid for our senior tickets ($7.75 each) and started looking at the exhibits. On the first floor we saw the Small Craft Gallery, Model Ship builders, Navy Gallery, Convoy Gallery, Lifesaving Exhibit and the Halifax Explosion.

We entered a small theater and watched a slide presentation of the Halifax Explosion. On December 6, 1917 the French ship Mont-Blanc (loaded with 2,300 tons of wet and dry picric acid, 200 tons of TNT, 10 tons of gun cotton and 35 tons of benzol) was struck by the Norwegian vessel Imo and a fire broke out on the Mont-Blanc. Fearing an immediate explosion, the crew abandoned ship and the ship eventually drifted to the north end of Halifax where it exploded. Over 1600 homes were destroyed, 12,000 homes damaged and 6,000 people were left homeless. Over 1900 people died and over 4,000 people were injured. This was the largest man-made explosion before the atomic age.

We then went up to the second floor to see the Age of Steam, Shipwreck Treasures, Days of Sail and the Titanic exhibits. In the Titanic exhibit we saw pieces of carved panels, shoes of an unknown child, and the only intact deck chair.

From Halifax

We then walked back up the hill to where we had parked the car and drove up Sackville Street to the Halifax Citadel National Historic Site. The Halifax Citadel is part of the Halifax Defense Complex and consists of the Citadel, York Redoubt, Prince of Wales Tower, Georges Island and Fort McNab that the British built in the 18th and 19th centuries. The current Citadel, completed in 1856, is the 4th fort built on the hill since 1749.

From Halifax

We paid $3.25 to park at the Citadel and $10.50 each for senior tickets to enter the fort. Since it was lunch time, we located the Coffee Shop inside the Cavalier Building where we bought a couple of sandwiches. We found an empty table and had a very good lunch. Then we started on our tour of the Citadel.

Out on the parade grounds some of the 78th Highlanders were practicing marching in formation. We saw the soldiers’ barracks, guard room, Citadels exhibit, and Army museum before walking around the upper walls.

From Halifax

From the upper walls we had a terrific view of Halifax and Halifax harbor. While we were on the upper walls a fog started moving in from the Atlantic Ocean toward Halifax.

From Halifax

We had a great time visiting this fort and learning about the history of Halifax. The photo below is one of our favorites and we just happened to be at the right place at the right time.

From Halifax

Peggy's Cove Drive

Today we drove south on Hwy-333, also known as the Lighthouse Route, to Peggy's Cove. The Lighthouse Route follows the scenic shoreline along St. Margaret's Bay. This is a rugged and barren coastline made up of large granite boulders.


About a mile north of Peggy's Cove we saw a sign for the Swissair Flight 111 Memorial. We pulled into the parking lot and took the path out to the memorial.

From Nova Scotia

Swissair Flight 111 departed JFK Airport in New York City enroute to Geneva, Switzerland on September 2, 1998 with 215 passengers, 2 pilots and 12 flight attendants. Swissair Flight 111 was known as the "U.N. shuttle" because of its popularity with U.N. officials. About 2 hours after takeoff, the crew first noticed an odor in the cockpit and eventually started seeing smoke. The pilot reported an urgent problem and was routed to Halifax airport. About 14 minutes later the pilot reported an emergency and 7 minutes after that Flight 111 crashed into the ocean. This is one of two memorials for Flight 111 - the other one is across St. Margaret's Bay at Bayswater.


After visiting the memorial we continued on into Peggy's Cove. Peggy's Cove was founded in 1811 when a land grant was issued to six families of German descent. There are several theories regarding the origin of the name for Peggy's Cove. Some say it's named after St. Margaret's Bay (Peggy being a nickname for Margaret). Some people say Peggy was an early settler and others say Peggy was a young shipwreck survivor with no memory of her earlier life and was given the name Peggy by the family who took her in.

From Nova Scotia

Peggy's Point Lighthouse is one of the most photographed lighthouses in the world. The original lighthouse was erected in 1868 to mark the point of land, not the cove. The current lighthouse dates to 1915. In 1969 the lantern was painted red and in 1990 an electric lantern was installed. It is still an active lighthouse and has a small Canada Post office in the lower lever. During the summer months it is the village post office where visitors can send postcard and letters. Each piece of mail is stamped with a special cancellation mark in the shape of the lighthouse.

From Nova Scotia

Lower Cape, NB to Glen Margaret, Nova Scotia

We left Ponderosa Pines Campground this morning at 9:15. We stopped at the Nova Scotia Welcome Center to pick up brochures. We stopped for lunch at the intersection of Hwy-104 and Hwy-4. There was a vacant building near the exit with large parking lot and we parked there to make lunch.

Part of Hwy-104 is a toll road and we paid $5.25 at Cobequid Pass Toll Plaza. North of Truro we exited Hwy-104 onto Hwy-103. We stopped at an Esso station in Elmsdale, NS to get gas in the RV. We got 193.784 liters and paid $1.423 Canadian – which translates to 51.207 gallons and $5.385 US.

We then continued west to Wayside RV Park south of Glen Margaret. Wayside RV Park’s address is listed in Halifax, but it is about 17 miles west of Halifax as the crow flies. We got in to the campground around 3 p.m.

From Nova Scotia

We’re in site #4 in a pull-in. Wayside RV Park, or Wayside-Supercity Camping Park, is a Passport America and Good Sam campground. We’re staying here under Passport America. We have full hookups (30 amp). It’s a gravel site and we’re mostly level. We have good water pressure, but here again the 30 amp service has low voltage. We do have a view of Mahone Bay out the front windshield.

From Nova Scotia

We’ll be here 3 nights while we visit Peggy’s Cove and Halifax.

Hopewell Rocks

Ponderosa Pines Campground has wifi, but the signal isn’t very strong so most people go to the office/store/game room with their laptops to access the internet. The office was closed this morning and I tried to use the campground’s wifi in the RV. The only place in the RV I could pick up the signal was back in the bedroom (which is closest to the office), but the signal is still weak. It wasn’t too much later that the owner came back and opened the office. We took the laptop over to the office to get our e-mail and get a brochure on Hopewell Rocks with the timetable for the tides.

The campground is 1 mile from Hopewell Rocks and we got to Hopewell Rocks around 3 p.m. (low tide today was at 5:50 p.m.) At the Interpretive Center we purchased 2 tickets ($6.75 each for seniors) and learned about the formation of the Hopewell Rocks. The gradual tapering and shallowness of the Bay of Fundy causes the high tides here to be 52’ instead of the worldwide average high tide of 3’. People can walk on the ocean floor at Hopewell Rocks for 3 hours before and after low tide.

From the Interpretive Center we walked down a path to the stairs to go down to the Rocks; it was a 15-20 minute walk. There is also a shuttle service that will take you from the Interpretive Center to the stairs down to the Rocks.

At the top of the stairs are a couple of signs -  one that has safety guidelines and the other with a clock and a notice when to be back up the stairs before high tide. Our favorite is the one with the safety guidelines - the last paragraph has instructions on what to do if you get caught on the ocean floor when the tide comes in.

From New Brunswick

We descended the stairs to the ocean floor. The first rock formation we saw was Lovers Arch. We waited our turn to take our photos under Lovers Arch. Mike took our tripod and both of us were in the photo.

From New Brunswick

From New Brunswick

We walked around and viewed the different rock formations until 4:45. It was cloudy and cool while we were there – definitely light jacket weather. We then walked back toward the Interpretive Center stopping to view Daniels Flats first. These are mud flats that are exposed during low tide. The mud is a milk chocolate color.

From New Brunswick

We had decided to not take Tinker to Hopewell Rocks and we’re glad we didn’t. Pets are allowed there and can go down on the ocean floor. They have to be on leashes and the “stoop and scoop” rule is to be observed and they can’t go in the buildings. But if we had taken Tinker we would have come back with a “chocolate” Bichon.

Hopewell Rocks is definitely on the list of one of the high points on our visit to the Maritimes. We missed visiting them at high tide, maybe on another trip.

Fundy Coastal Drive

It was rather cool this morning when we got up and we tried to run our electric heat. We kept getting low voltage readings and couldn't run the electric heat. . We have 30 amp service here, but it’s not “strong” enough to run the heat pump. We used the gas heat just long enough to take the chill off the RV.

Today is Father’s Day and we are celebrating it by going on the scenic drive along the Fundy Coast.

From New Brunswick

We took Hwy 114 and then Hwy 915 down to the Cape Enrage lighthouse. According to the travel brochures Cape Enrage has been designated the “Best view in Canada” and we weren’t disappointed. The light station was established in 1848. It is the oldest lighthouse on mainland New Brunswick and is still active atop the 150’ cliffs overlooking Chignecto Bay.

A group of students were in the process of scraping the old paint off and repainting the lighthouse as a school project.

From New Brunswick

We took Hwy 915 up to Hwy 114 to Alma. We entered the Fundy National Park south of Alma. There are 3 campgrounds inside the park, but we had decided not to stay there since Ponderosa Pines Campground  is closer to Hopewell Rocks.

After leaving Fundy National Park we stayed on Hwy 114 to Hwy 1 to go back to Moncton. We stopped in Riverview, across the Petitcodiac River from Moncton, to buy groceries at Atlantic Superstore (similar to Wal-Mart Supercenters) and get gas at the Corner Store. We paid $1.369 Canadian for 9.74 liters, which is $5.182 a gallon and 8.686 gallons US.

We use RVer's Notebook software to record campground information and vehicle expenses and service. The software will convert Canadian $$ and liters into US $$ and gallons. When I enter the gas purchase, I select the Canada button and enter the Canadian liters and dollars into RVer’s Notebook software. Then I select the US button and the program converts the Canadian $$ and liters into US $$ and gallons.

Our round trip from the campground and back again was about 130 miles.

Robbinston, ME to Lower Cape, New Brunswick

We got up early this morning and left Hilltop Campground around 7:30. We stopped for gas at an Irving station in Calais to get gas $4.259 gal) in the RV before going into Canada.

We then drove to the border crossing and got in line. There was only 1 lane open going into Canada and only a few cars ahead of us. We presented our passports and answered the customs official’s questions. We also showed Tinker’s rabies certificate and shot record. We were asked our purpose for entering Canada (sightseeing), how long we were going to be there (about a month or so), did we have any firearms (no), what did we have in the RV (food, clothing, household items), & did we have any liquor (a couple bottles of wine, a bottle of rum).

The total time going through Customs was about 5 minutes. Our having come across the border the day before had helped reduce our time this morning because our passport info was already in their computer. We left Customs at 8:09 – actually 9:09 since we entered the Atlantic time zone when we crossed into New Brunswick.

US-1 now is Hwy-1 in Canada and is a 4-lane highway that is comparable to our interstates. We crossed St. John Bay on the St. John Harbor Bridge, a toll bridge, and paid a $2.25 toll. We stayed on Hwy-1 until it connected with Trans Canada Hwy 2 west of Moncton.

We decided that instead of driving through Moncton and then getting on Hwy-114 to the campground, we would take Hwy-112 west of Moncton to Hwy-114 -- Big Mistake! Hwy-112 might not be too bad in a car, but it was so rough we bounced and rattled until we got into Riverview.

We arrived at Ponderosa Pines Campground around 12:30. It was 205 miles from Robbinston, ME to here. We’re in site #16, a pull-through, with full hookups (30 amp). It’s a gravel site and fairly level. We’ll be here for 3 days while we visit the Fundy Coast. We’re not getting a discount here, so we’re paying the full price of $27 a day.

From New Brunswick

We’ve been planning to visit the Canadian Maritimes for quite a while and are really looking forward to our time here.

E. Orland, ME to Robbinston, ME

We left Balsam Cove Campground this morning at 9:15. It was only 120 miles up to Hilltop Campground, but we wanted to have time after getting there to go into Canada to find somewhere to exchange US money into Canadian and visit the New Brunswick Visitor Center.

We took US-1 from Balsam Cove up to Robbinston, ME. We found a place about 2 miles north of Whiting where we could stop for lunch before going on to Hilltop Campground. We got into the Hilltop Campground a little before 1 p.m.

Hilltop Campground is a Passport America campground. The Passport America discount is good for 3 nights, but we’ll only be for 1 night. We’re in site #11, a pull-through, with full hookups (30 amp).

From Maine

After getting settled in, we got our passports and drove to the border crossing at Calais, ME. The campground is about 16 miles from the Canadian border. There weren’t too many cars crossing the border then. We were directed by a Canadian customs officer to park our car and go inside the Customs building at St. Stephen. After waiting only about 10 minutes we were interviewed by a customs official as to our purpose for visiting Canada and how long we expected to be in Canada. The customs official entered our passport information in their computer and we were on our way.

We stopped down the street to exchange our US currency into Canadian – almost $1 for $1. Then we drove to the New Brunswick Visitor Center to pick up maps and brochures. The staff there was very helpful and informative and knowledgeable about the places to visit.

Then it was back across the border and the RV. This time there was quite a long line crossing the border into the US (it looked like workers going to their homes in the US after working on the Canadian side). The US customs officer checked our passports and we explained that we had crossed the border to exchange currency and get travel brochures. Then we were on our way back to the RV.

Our first border crossing experience went without any problems and all of the officials were friendly and helpful.

Changed Cell Phone Service

Today we drove into Ellsworth to the Verizon dealer and switched our cell phone service from AT&T to Verizon and got new cell phones. We also bought a broadband modem for our laptop. We had to wait until our AT&T contract ended on June 10 - it would have cost us $175 to cancel our contract early (they don't pro-rate the cancellation fee). When we were traveling out west last year we spent several weeks without cell phone service. We would see other people using their cell phones when we couldn't use ours & most people had Verizon service.

Verizon was giving rebates on the phones we got ($50 each phone) and a $50 rebate for the broadband modem. The rebates will help lower the cost of having to get new phones. The staff there transferred our contacts from the old phones to the new ones and set up our voice mail for us. We also added a Canadian calling plan to our Nationwide plan because we'll be entering Canada on Saturday.

We also added OnStar as a third phone - we have OnStar on the Vue & OnStar uses Verizon (which is another reason we switched to Verizon). We had let our OnStar subscription expire because the cost of their minutes was so expensive and we called today to restart our service with them.

We were told to not use the broadband modem while we're in Canada because we would be charged roaming fees and that it would expensive. So we only have today and tomorrow to use it.

We stopped by the computer shop and picked up our laptop. There was a setting that was interfering with our getting on the internet and they fixed it. We tried it out before we left the shop and it works fine. They didn't charge us for fixing it (which is good, since that wasn't the reason we took it in there to be repaired).

It was really nice to get back to the campground and have cell phone service!!! And, the broadband service is great - it is an extra monthly expense ($60), but we've sometimes had to drive 40 miles to find some place that has wifi & if it's a coffee shop/restaurant we always buy something. The savings of not having to drive somewhere to wifi may not offset all of the $60 monthly fee, but the convenience is worth it.

Acadia National Park

Today we visited Acadia National Park which is about 25 miles SE of the campground. We took Tinker with us since we would be gone most of the day.

We entered the Acadia National Park just north of Bar Harbor at the Hulls Cove Entrance and stopped at the Hulls Cove Visitor Center to pick up a brochure and map of the park. Before starting out on our drive through the Park, we watched a 15 minute audiovisual program about the history of the park.

Acadia National Park was established in 1916 by Woodrow Wilson and encompassed 6,000 acres. Today the park covers more than 40,000 acres because of philanthropists such as John D. Rockefeller, Jr., Charles W. Eliot, and George B. Dorr.

When we left the Visitor Center we took the Park Loop Road down to SR-233 west to SR- 102 and then south toward Southwest Harbor. We stopped at the Seawall Campground to check it out. According to the information on the campgrounds in Acadia National Park our motorhome is too large for them. The size restrictions for Seawall Campground states no RVs longer than 35' and taller than 11'8" and slides have to fit within the site pads. The roads inside Seawall Campground are narrow and the campsites are short and narrow, also.

We then went back north through Southwest Harbor where we stopped at a sandwich shop for lunch. The electricity was out in town because a traffic accident had taken out an electric pole north of town, so the only food available was cold since the restaurant used electricity to cook with. We sat outside at a table next to the restaurant to eat our lunch.

From Maine

We got back on SR-233 and went south on SR-3 until we reached Sargeant Drive and took it south. We took Sargeant Drive instead of SR-3 because it is a beautiful drive along side of Somes Sound. Somes Sound is the only fjord in the contiguous 48 states. It is a narrow, 168' deep gorge of salt water that was carved by glaciers.

From Maine

We took Sargeant Drive down to Northeast Harbor then east to Seal Harbor.

From Maine

From Seal Harbor we drove north through the inland portion of Acadia National Park passing by Bubble Rock, Cadillac Mountain and Beaver Dam Pond. Then we drove south along the Park Loop Road stopping at Thunder Hole. We parked the car and walked down to see Thunder Hole. As the tides come in through the granite channel, air gets trapped and escapes through Thunder Hole putting on quite a show. We got there while it was low tide, so we weren't treated to the show. We continued on to Otter Cliffs which are 100 foot pink granite cliffs rising straight out of the water.

We stayed on the Park Loop Road to go back to Seal Harbor and get on SR-3 to Blackwoods Campground. The limits on the RVs are no longer than 35' and no taller than 11'8", which lets us out. We already knew that our RV wouldn't' fit in the campgrounds at Acadia National Park and that there are 4 low-clearance bridges that would keep us from driving our motorhome there.

After leaving Blackwoods Campground we drove to Bar Harbor and looked at the sights there. Then it was time to head back to the RV. We got gas ($4.099 gal) in Ellsworth before heading back to the campground.

I've created a map showing our route through the Park.

June 10

Today we went into Ellsworth to pick up our mail at the Post Office and check on our HP laptop at the repair shop.

Our laptop was ready to go - the fan was apparently clogged and the computer was overheating - which was causing it to shut down. We went across the street to the coffee shop to use their wifi and couldn't get on! After several unsuccessful attempts to get on the internet, we took the laptop back to the computer shop & left it there again. I'm not very happy - one problem was fixed and now there is another one!

Ellsworth, ME

We drove into Ellsworth this morning to make some cell phone calls, do some errands and find someplace to have our HP laptop worked on. Our HP has started to shut down after being on for only a short time. Fortunately our old Dell laptop is working and we can wifi with it.

We stopped in at the Ellsworth Public Library to use their wifi and our HP laptop is now shutting down almost as soon as I turn it on. I asked one of the ladies at the library who worked on their computers and she gave me his name and phone number. I called him and got his voice mail and left a message. He called me back in a few minutes and I explained my problem to him. He said he was working out of town and gave me the name of a computer repair service in Ellsworth to take the laptop to.

The computer repair shop, Computers Plus, was only a few blocks away from the library. On the way there we saw the Ellsworth City Hall - a unique large brick building.

From Maine

We took the laptop to Computers Plus and explained the problem to them and left it there for them to work on. There is a coffee shop, Maine Grind, across the street from Computers Plus that has wifi and we went over there to have coffee and finish our internet browsing.

Afterwords we drove over to the LL Bean Outlet store where we bought a pair of LL Bean Rubber Moc boots for each of us and a small backpack for me.

Before heading back to the campground, we had lunch at Wendy's, stopped at Shaw's grocery and bought a few items and then filled the gas tank on the Vue at the Exxon station in Ellsworth ($4.099 gal)

Pownal, ME to East Orland, ME

We left Blueberry Pond Campground this morning about 10:45. We took I-295 north and got off at Exit 28 to get on to US-1. We took that route instead of driving into Freeport to get on US-1 - that way we avoided driving through tourist traffic in town. We stayed on US-1 for the 118 mile drive up here to Balsam Cove Campground. The campground is about 1 1/2 miles off US-1 down a dirt road.

We arrived at Balsam Cove Campground around 1:30 and was assigned site #1 - gravel pull-through site that was extremely unlevel. Mike took a ruler and took photos to show how high off the ground our front wheels would be if we stayed at that site. Mike showed the owner the photos and he took Mike around the campground in a golf cart to find another site.

From Maine

We're now on site #29 (we were set up here by 3 p.m.) which is pretty level. It's a back-in site with full hookups (30 amp) and wifi. Balsam Cove is a Passport America campground.



The only negative we have about our location is we have no cell phone service out here. We'll have to go into Ellsworth which is about 12 miles from here.

LL Bean and Delorme

This morning we drove into Freeport to pick up our mail at the post office. We stopped at the Freeport Library to check e-mail. Then LL Bean was our next stop. We've had their catalogs for years and have often bought from them. Mike and I each bought new rain jackets there.

We stopped at Bill's Pizza in Yarmouth for lunch, before going to the Delorme store there.

We've used their mapping software, Street Atlas, in the past. We're using Microsoft Streets & Trips, but use Delorme's gps for the laptop. At the Delorme store they had computers set up where you could "test drive" their mapping software. After checking out their current Street Atlas, we decided to stick with Streets & Trips. Street Atlas has a few things that I like that Streets & Trips doesn't have, but I think we'll wait until their 2009 version is released and maybe get it then.

We enjoyed our stop at LL Bean - we'd always wanted to go to their store and had been looking forward to it.

On our way back to the RV, we stopped at The Brown Dog Inn north of Freeport and made an appointment for Tinker in the morning for a bath.

Concord, NH to Pownal, ME

We left Concord this morning a little after 10:00. We took US-4 east to I-95 and then north on I-95 until York Center, ME where we got on to US-1. We passed LL Bean in Freeport, ME and then turned northwest to Pownal to Blueberry Pond Campground.

We got in here at Blueberry Pond at 2:30 - it was 114 miles from Concord to Pownal. This is a Passport America campground. We're in site #8 - a dirt/gravel back-in that is mostly flat. We put up our portable satellite dish and it's pointing through the trees, but we are getting a signal. We have full hookups (30 amp service); the wifi service hasn't been installed yet. The library in Freeport has wifi. The last 1 1/2 miles of the road to the campground is gravel.

Hanscom AFB to Chichester & Concord, NH

We left Hanscom Famcamp this morning around 8:30 - it's only 71 miles up to Chichester, NH. We had an appointment this morning at Camping World to have our new awning installed.  We took I-95 north to I-93 to the Camping World in Chichester, NH. We arrived at Camping World at 10:30.

We did some shopping in Camping World and then drove into Concord to locate the Wal-Mart Supercenter where we're going to spend the night. We did some shopping at Home Depot and Petsmart before going back to Camping World.

At 2:30 we left Camping World with our new awning installed. We stopped at a Hess station in Concord and filled the tanks in the RV and Vue - $3.819 a gallon. Then it was on to Wal-Mart Supercenter for the night. Once we were parked at Wal-Mart, I went inside and bought a few more groceries.

When we had driven around Concord earlier today, we saw an Olive Garden and decided that we needed to treat ourselves for dinner tonight. We hitched the Vue up to the RV after we got back from Olive Garden.

Tomorrow we head for Maine.

Last Day at Hanscom AFB

This morning we took Tinker to a vet near here to have him tested for Lyme Disease. He's been on antibiotics since May 10 and he needed to be tested before we can start with the Lyme vaccine. His tests showed an elevated PH in his urine and the vet said we needed to take care of that before starting with the Lyme vaccine. We're to give him vitamin C every day to see if it will correct his PH level. She didn't seem to think that Tinker has a serious problem with the elevated PH since he's not showing any symptoms.

We spent the rest of the day preparing for our departure tomorrow.

Minute Man National Historical Park and Concord, MA

This morning we drove to the Minute Man National Historical Park. Our first stop was at the Minute Man Visitor Center. There we saw the multimedia presentation, “The Road to Revolution”, which tells of the historic events of April 19, 1775. It shows Paul Revere's ride, the battles at Lexington Green, North Bridge and along the Battle Road. There were actually 3 Midnight Riders - Paul Revere, Dr. Samuel Prescott and William Dawes. We told one of the Rangers that this was the best multimedia program that we had seen.


We stopped next at Paul Revere’s capture site. On Apr 19, 1775 at 1:30 a.m. Paul Revere was captured. William Dawes fled to Lexington and Dr. Samuel Prescott escaped and continued to Concord and beyond.


We visited the Hartwell Tavern, a 1733 historic home and tavern on the Battle Road. Ephraim and Elizabeth Hartwell owned the prosperous farm and tavern where travelers to and from Boston stopped and shared the latest news of the day.

From Concord, MA and Minute Man National Historical Park

Further on down the road we stopped to ask directions of a gentleman working in his yard and found out that the National Park Service had purchased many of the homes in the park - including his home. The National Park Service had renovated the homes and then rented them out. This gentleman was renting his old home from the Park Service. He told us that there were several vacant homes that had been renovated, but hadn't been rented.

From Concord, MA and Minute Man National Historical Park

We then went on to Concord to the North Bridge where the colonial militia was first ordered to fire on British regulars - "the shot heard 'round the world".  The first monument we saw was for the Grave of the British Soldiers. There are 2 soldiers buried there (British military records say there are 3 soldiers buried there); the third soldier is buried in Concord center.

From Concord, MA and Minute Man National Historical Park

The Minute Man statue is across the Concord River on the other side of the North Bridge. The original bridge, the "battle bridge", was torn down in 1788. The current bridge is a restoration of the last bridge built in 1956. The 1956 bridge is the fifth bridge built here since the battle.

From Concord, MA and Minute Man National Historical Park

The Minute Man statue represents a farmer who leaves his plow and picks up his musket to defend his land and liberty. The statue is the logo for the National Guard.

From Concord, MA and Minute Man National Historical Park

We then followed the path to the North Bridge Visitor Center. It is housed in the Buttrick Mansion which was built by descendants of Major John Buttrick, the colonial officer who gave the command to fire at the North Bridge. We saw a short video about the fight at the North Bridge. On April 19, 1775 3500 colonial militia men and 1700 British soldiers engaged in battle which continued all the way back to Boston along the "Battle Road". The British came to Concord to confiscate the arms supply that was hidden there.

Inside the Visitor Center we saw a cannon called "The Hancock", a rare Revolutionary War brass cannon. This was cannon was among the munitions that the British Army wanted when it came to Concord. In September 1774 some Boston Patriots stole four brass cannons that were under British Guard and smuggled the cannons out of Boston. The brass cannons and 10 iron cannons were reported to be hidden in Concord - the reason the British came to Concord. In 1843 when the Bunker Hill monument opened the "Hancock" and the "Adams" (two of the brass cannons hidden at Concord) were mounted in the upper chamber of the monument. "The Hancock" is on loan to the Minute Man National Historical park from the Bunker Hill Monument Association (the "Adams" is still at the Bunker Hill Monument).

From Concord, MA and Minute Man National Historical Park

The inscription on "The Hancock" reads:

The Hancock ~ Sacred to Liberty. ~ This is one of four cannon, which constituted the whole train of Field Artillery, possessed by the British Colonies of North America, at the commencement of the war, on the 19th of April, 1775. ~ This cannon and its fellow belonging to a number of citizens of Boston, were used in many engagements during the war. The other two, the property of the Government of Massachusetts were taken by the enemy. ~ By order of the United States in Congress assembled ~ May 19th, 1788.

We had perfect weather today and we even saw people canoing on the Concord River at the North Bridge.

Before going back to the RV we stopped at the Hanscom AFB PX and had a late lunch at the Burger King there. Then we stocked up on groceries at the Commissary since we're leaving here on Tuesday.