Our Canadian Maritimes Caravan officially starts in St. John, NB Canada. Saint John is a seaport city located on the Bay of Fundy. It was originally populated by British loyalists driven from the American colonies after the American Revolution. It is Canada's oldest incorporated city, established in 1785.
 |
| Provincial flag of New Brunswick |
Notable native artists, actors and musicians include Walter Pidgeon, Donald Sutherland, Louis B. Mayer, and Miller Brittain.
 |
| On the first night we had a trip orientation meeting |
A very interesting geological feature at St. John is the Reversing Falls. The Reversing Falls are a series of rapids on the St. John River, where the river runs through a narrow gorge before emptying into the Bay of Fundy. The tidal range in the Bay of Fundy can be as high as 52 feet, while the average tidal range worldwide is only 3.3 ft. Consequently the tides raise the water to the point that they flow upstream and create an upstream-flowing rapids.
K. C. Irving was a young entrepreneur who had a big influence on the development of St. John and New Brunswick in the 1900s. Irving was born in 1899 and first worked for the family sawmill. He later sold automobiles, then worked for a a petroleum service station. He eventually founded his own petroleum company that ultimately became Irving Oil. Irving Oil generated revenue to fund dozens of other companies including Irving Pulp and Paper. Click HERE to see a list of The Irving Group of Companies, an informal name given to those companies owned and controlled by the Irving family of New Brunswick. Irving companies employ about 25% of all workers in St. John and 16% of all workers in New Brunswick. The the Irving companies represents one of the largest privately held conglomerates in North America. The Irvings have donated a number of parks and other public works to the Province. Rockwood Park, the location of our camp in St. John, was donated to the city by the Irving family.
 |
| Tide's out! |
 |
| We took a bus tour of the city |
 |
| Wolastoq Park was donated by the Irving family |
 |
| Dandelion season in the Maritimes |
Fort Howe was a British fort built in Saint John during the American Revolution. It was erected shortly after the American siege in 1777 to protect the city from further American raids. The 18th and 19th century British Army fortification stood at the mouth of the Saint John River where it empties into the Bay of Fundy.
 |
| Clam chowder at Grannan's |
 |
| "Lazy Lobster" at Grannan's |
Container Village is a shopping complex on the waterfront created using metal shipping containers. It's a bit eclectic. We tried to visit, but it was closed on that day. Click HERE to see a virtual tour.
We tried to do a Moosehead Brewery tour, but were not able to due a scheduling conflict with another event. DANG!
St. John High School is one of the oldest public high schools in Canada.
 |
| St. John is an important shipping port |
The Three Sisters Lamp is in direct line with the steeple of Trinity Church, so that sea captains were able to navigate their way safely into Saint John Harbour at night. Three red gas lamps, visible from three miles seaward, were stationed at the end of Prince William Street. If the three red lamps appeared individually, sailors would know they were heading straight into the harbour, however if only one or two could be seen, sailors knew they needed to alter their course.
 |
| The Three Sisters |
Tomorrow we move to Shediac NB.
