30 August 2013 - St. John, NB

This morning we awoke to a velvet curtain of fog outside the window, blurring the view.  As we got ready for a morning walk, the sun rapidly warmed the air and the fog drifted up and away, followed by a brilliant blue sky, free of clouds and as crystalline as you could wish.  We did a brisk walk and the air was like a sweet rush of strength and renewal.  I don't think we have felt such wonderful freshness in a long time.  The Province of New Brunswick has to be one of my favorite spots.  It touches all the right buttons for me and lifts my soul.  We again headed for the coast, but traveled through the most gorgeous forested country I have ever seen.

A brief detour to a side road allowed us to close in on the dense forest, a blend of greens from evergreens and deciduous trees.  I am sure that in a few weeks, as the fall colors flare into glorious brilliance, that this will be an eye-popping spectacle of beauty.  As we traveled along, we were among rolling hills, covered with this forest and then opened with serpentine fields of emerald color winding down and across the hills.  The forests marched right to the edges of the fields and embraced them in the darker greens.

This is a country resting on thick beds of shale and richly blessed with flowing streams and smooth, blue lakes.  As we drove along, we would pass over streams and rivers, clear and fresh, rushing over the stones and carving twisting, blue ribbons in cliffs of shining shale.  The forest trees crowded the banks on either side. The streams seemed so clean and unsullied that I could imagine them filled with trout and just begging for an intrepid angler to float a fly down the brilliant riffles. They looked like a fisherman's dream out of the most inviting tourist brochure you could imagine.  As we were on the limited access highway, I could not stop for a picture, but I hope my description gives a little flavor of the area.  The country is just what I would wish for a cabin location.  To add to the allure, the routes were speckled with roadside warnings to be careful of moose, not deer or rabbits.  Any country with that type of population is exciting for me.

As we proceeded further, we began to pass fields of potatoes and corn nestled between the trees.  And then we happened on the sign telling us of the Potato Museum, the town which brags as being the "French Fry Capital of the World".  Of course our interest was piqued and we had to investigate.  We pulled off the road and had a nice visit in a hitherto unknown location for potatoes.  It seems that the McCain Potato Company, founded in New Brunswick, supplies over 1/3 of all the french fries in the world   They had a nice museum of potato farming and a restaurant, in which, naturally, we had an order of fresh fries, and  they were delicious.

Mom became the potato flower for the trip.  Who would have known that New Brunswick is a potato center.  It was interesting to note that when we talked to the young ladies manning the desk and told them that Ronda was from Idaho, and I from Utah, they had no idea were those states were and had not heard of the renowned Idaho Spud. 

We drove a  long way today on a scenic byway and were delighted to have found it and enjoyed the scenery so very much. 

There were deep lakes, azure blue and smooth, floating in a sea of forest green.  You can see the well kept fields and gorgeous scenery. As we got closer to St. John, they merged into a wide and flowing river, lined with cabins and farms and floating sailboats, white sails brilliant in the sun and against the blue water.

Then we ran across a true "Your IQ demands it" opportunity.  On the winding, narrow road we saw a sign inviting people to stop and pick blueberries.  We had to do it and drove to a little home with about half an acre of lovely blueberry bushes.  We had a pleasant chat with the owner and learned more about the wonderful berries and then hand-picked a couple of pints which we will treasure as a luscious treat tonight and tomorrow.

Ronda got the knack of being picky very fast.  It was such a pleasant interlude to stop in the wonderful sun and comfortable temperature and find this delicious treat.

As you can see, they look so tasty and indeed they are.  Tonight I will get some brown sugar and sour cream and treat my tongue to a titillating experience.

After we arrived in St. John we went to Billy's Seafood Restaurant, the recommendation from the berry lady and I finally had my long-awaited, delicious lobster roll. They take a rich pile of the wonderful lobster meat, mix it with mayo and layer it thick on a toasted bun.  You cannot get your mouth around it in one bite and it is wonderful. I will probably have another while we are on the coast.  We have now traveled all the way to the tip of Maine, my goal for this trip. We plan to be here a couple of days before going to Bar Harbor.  We are having a great trip.  Love to all.