Aug 4, 2011 - Day 24: Day 2 of the Village

Since we planned to go back to the Acadian Village and then have an early supper, we slept late and had a very leisurely morning. Arriving at the village about noon, we found that all the electric scooters had been rented. I made it yesterday but we knew that today meant going to the very end of the village – and then back! The nice lady at the admissions desk told us that the wagon (which we had seen yesterday but didn’t realize was available) made the loop every 30 minutes and we were welcome to flag the driver and ride. If that failed,...

Aug 3, 2011 - Day 23: Acadian Historical Village

Wednesday, August 03, 2011 Day 23 Since our campground is midway between the Historical Acadian Village and the road up the Acadian Isles, we decided to head to the Village this morning, come back to the campground for lunch, and then drive up the road to the Isles. The rain has been intermittent all day but that didn’t deter us from walking about 2 miles through the Village! And we only saw half of it! It’s really a fascinating place to visit. The interpreters are all in period dress and will tell you about their house or location as well...

Jun 20, 2011 - Caraquet NB to Quebec City

I had originally planned to stop in Edmundston NB for 2 nights but since it was still cloudy and raining when we got there, we decided to conitnue on to Quebec City. We had crossed over to the USA at Van Buren ME to fill up because doing so I was saving $1.00 a gallon taking into consideration the Canadian fuel price at $1.29/liter and the value of the Canadian dollar. Apparently we are not the only ones doing that... at the gas station they told me that 60% of their business was from people doing like we did: crossing from Canada. I had...

Jun 19, 2011 - Caraquet NB

Unfortunately the weather is not cooperating and all we have is clouds and heavy rain since we got here. The first day we drove around town for most of the afternoon. This is a very small town, two small shopping centers, one large coop, a few restaurants and what seems to be a lovely scenery when sunny. Today rain...rain...rain. So we decide to drive a little further... Shippagan, Lameque, Evelyne and Bas Caraquet. Once again the scenery would be beautiful is the sun was shining but we do not have that chance. We had dinner at a local...

Jul 4, 2010 - Acadian Village

On the 4th, we left Dalhousie to drive to Shippagan, with rain falling most of the morning. I was never fast enough to get good pictures of the road signage, because the signs are different and there were some good ones. En route, we stopped at the Acadian Village, because it had been recommended that we see it and plan for at least four hours – not nearly enough time. We found a wonderful place, where authentic buildings had been moved in from all over New Brunswick to reconstruct an Acadian village. People, in costume, were in each...

Jun 22, 2010 - Acadian Village and Val Cameau, New Brunswick

ACADIAN VILLAGE: The Acadian Village in Caraquet, New Brunswick is a “must stop” for us and proves VERY worthwhile. This village features actual heritage homes, shops and workshops (many moved from other locations near the concentration of Acadians that were along the St. John river) with bilingual people in full period costume and working in the small farms, including chopping wood, cooking, baking, or doing things like spinning flax and making yarn. We learn about the deportation (approximately 10,000 Acadians who would not swear...

Aug 30, 2009 - Bertrand, NB

August 30 – Sunday It was a wet, drizzly morning at 11 degrees Celsius as we left the storm tossed St. Lawrence River. Travelling east on highway 132 we passed thru rolling hills with its dairy farms and grain fields stretching up the hills, - quite a climb for the machinery. Along the Matapedia River the terrain changed to bush country with a mix of conifers and deciduous trees as we travelled thru the Appalachian Mountains. Some color change in the trees but for the most part remain brilliant green. Crossing the Patapedia River at...

Aug 24, 2009 - Caraquet, New Brunswick

CARAQUET, NEW BRUNSWICK CANADA August 24, 2009 The rain and winds from Hurricane Bill had finally stopped and it was a lovely day when we set out to visit the Arcadian Village in Caraquet which is in the heart of the Arcadian Peninsula. The Arcadians were French settlers. When the British beat the French and all of Canada became the property of Brittan, the French Arcadians who lived in this area (and really all over New Brunswick and parts of Nova Scotia) were told to become British citizens and swear allegiance or be deported. Most of...

Jun 30, 2009 - Shippagan and Caraquet New Brunswick

We woke up to pouring rain this morning so we decided to drive up to Shippagan it is a little fishing village at the tip of New Brunswick. It was about a two hour drive with a number of villages along the way. Once we arrived in Shippagan we went to the Aquarium it’s just a small one but we had a excellent man who worked there tell us all about how they catch crab and shrimp. It ends up he was a captain of a shrimp boat for about 12 years and I have to say he was very interesting to talk with. He continued walking with us around the...

Aug 15, 2008 - Village Historique Acadien

We experienced an authentic visit to the past of the Acadian people today, when we visited their village of history. This authentic historical site shows the lives of the Acadians between 1770 and 1939. Dozens of complexes are staffed by interpreters in period costumes, who bring ancestral customs and traditional trades back to life. It was a most interesting visit into the past, and as it turned out, we visited on the annual celebration of the Acadian National Holiday. The date is not a national holiday for Canada, but for the Acadians,...

Jul 8, 2008 - Tuesday, Caraquet, NB (90 miles)

Tuesday, July 8: Today's drive took us along the Chaleur Bay which is the bay of water off the Gulf of St. Lawrence, and to the north of New Brunswick, in the area referred to as the Acadian Peninsula. After arriving at our campground in Caraquet we drove into the town to look around. We found a seafood restaurant right on the waterfront overlooking a marina where 30 or so pleasure boats, mostly sailboats, were docked. As we had dinner outside on the deck, we watched as several boat owners came down to take their boats out for an evening...

Aug 15, 2007 - Caraquet, New Brunswick

How can 2 people be as lucky as we? We came into New Brunswick 2 days ago to find that the 10 day long annual Festival of the Acadians is ending today in Caraquet with their big deal, a Tintamarre which is an hour long parade of sorts with any and all kinds of noise making - a huge, big deal here, attracting about 25,000 participants. A little Mardi Gras-like - Louisiana Cajuns were from this area. All the campgrounds are full so we have been welcomed to boondock at the Tourist Info Center for free with a beautiful view of a wharf with...