Kouchibouguac National Park

We drove from Linkletter PP in PEI, along as much of the remaining North Cape Route that we could, until road construction encouraged us to detour inland. 

A mild tailwind wind, nudged us back over the Confederation Bridge. 

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Along the Way to There ...

... I was able to continue my search for the ' World's Best Seafood Chowder '. This latest, tasty offering was from the Bayou Pub and Eatery in Shediac.

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FORT BEAUSAJOUR - FORT CUMBERLAND National Historic Site

Wikipedia ... " the fort was built by the French from 1751 to 1752 and surrendered to the British in 1755 after the Battle of Fort Beausajour; it was renamed Fort Cumberland. The fort played an important role in the Anglo-French rivalry of 1749-1763 and in the Battle of Fort Cumberland when sympathisers of the American Revolution were repulsed. "

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KOUCHIBOUGUAC NATIONAL PARK

' koo-she-boo-gwak ' (French pronunciation)

' River of the Long Tides ' (Mi'kmaq meaning)

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Park History

" The park was founded in 1969 in order to set aside sensitive sand dunes and bogs. The rules of the time dictated that all permanent residents had to be removed for a park to be created. These residents were mostly Acadians, whose ancestors had been deported. As a result, Parks Canada encountered great difficulty expropriating land from numerous land owners who lived in seven communities (approximately 215 families, including over 1200 individuals). These seven communities were Claire-Fontaine, Fontaine, Rivière au Portage, Kouchibouguac, Guimond Village, Cap St-Louis, and Saint-Olivier. The residents were generally seen as so poor that government officials believed they would benefit from having to start their lives again elsewhere. The government patronizingly created courses so that people might lead more productive lives. Government officials believed that they were rehabilitating the people by forcing them to move. But the residents resisted this move shutting down the park on several occasions. The most notable of these was Jackie Vautour, whose home was bulldozed in 1976, but who returned to squat there two years later, where he still remains. Vautour's decades-long struggle has turned him into a folk hero. " ... Read more

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Camping

We stayed for 9 nights and most of it was spent here ... at Site 285; wooded and fairly private, all RV services available, clean bath-house, adequate laundry facilities, nearby WiFi hotspot with fair connectivity, several hiking and cycling trail-heads out of the campground. The firewood supplied in NB National Parks parks is kiln-dried hardwood and it comes with a small block of fire-starter.

The resident Chef prepared many fine plates !   

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LOGGIECROFT

Loggiecroft Wharf is located at the mouth of the Kouchibouguac River, within the boundaries of the National Park. 

The local lobster fishing fleet departs at daybreak and begins returning as early as noon hour. Some boats will go out as far as 10 miles. Lobster are offloaded, packed in ice and moved to waiting tractor trailers by forklift. From there shipment could be local or by air, domestic or international. Fishermen resupply their boats with bait-fish; either Mackeral and/or Redfish and boxes of crushed ice that are stacked nearby and head back out for another catch.

 

 

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Cycling

The focus is on cycling in this park! 

" ... Kouchibouguac's 60 kilometres of bicycle paths are ideal for gentle exploration or alternately, a 6 kilometre mountain bike trail that winds through forest and creek. Pedal along well-maintained gravel-topped trails that lead past fields of wildflowers, multi-faceted peat bogs, saltwater lagoons and grand Acadian woodlands. "

Trails: We rode parts of the Perimeter Bike Path that encircles the central portion of the park and the ride over to Loggiecroft that follows both banks of the Kouchibouguac River.

Photos ... along the path

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Hiking 

There are 9 hiking trails in the park; all but 1 are rated easy and 7 of those trails are less than 2 kms in length. The Kouchibouguac River Trail is rated difficult because of its 11.3 km length; it can be walked in segments. We walked 8 of the 9. An older trail, Tweedie, has been closed due to invasive poison ivy growth.

Several interesting ecosystems and landscapes are represented on these short walks. Hikers are able to easily explore ... light gravel and dark sand beaches, sedge covered sandy dunes, healthy marshes, vibrant wetland bogs, saltwater lagoons, tidal zones, brackish river mouths and estuaries, carnivorous plants, wildflower meadows, old growth pine forest, ancient Acadian forest ... and, as a bonus ... infrequent displays of fresh, steamy Black Bear scat!

Trails: Kelly's Beach, Claire Fontaine, The Bog, Salt Marsh, Beaver le Castor, Migmag Cedars, Osprey Balbuzard, The Pines

Photos ... a compilation, along all the trails

 

 

 

 

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Birds

... a friendly, young Ruffed Grouse, Piping Plovers walk the beach, 100's of Cormorants and Grey Gulls rest along a dune, a small gathering of Blue Heron, Sandpipers feed in a salty tide-pool, a Striped Sparrow hides in marsh grasses, five more Sandpipers, three rows of Cormorants

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In St. Louis de Kent

Nearby, St. Louis de Kent, considered the 'Cradle of Acadian Culture' in New Brunswick proudly flies one of the largest flags we had ever seen.

I started this post with a nod to my search for ' The WORLD's Best Seafood Chowder '. 

It's appropriate then, that I end the post, with my discovery of ' The WORLD's Best Seafood Pizza ' ... at least, that's what Chef and Owner Jean-Yves of Chez 5 Etoiles claims ... and yaknow, he may just be right! 

I had never had a seafood pizza, I'm not particularly fond of lobster, but this pizza was truly exceptional!! We passed our recommendation along to a group of neighbouring campers, they sampled the pizza and the next morning reported back with ' many kudos and accolades'.

--- the freshly made crust was crispy and brushed with garden fresh herbs. Ingredients included, an assembly of local cheeses, fresh, locally caught lobster, scallops, shrimp and bay clams. Check out the wine cellar ... all bottles, red or white are $35. Not a huge selection, but we found a good offering from BC's Okanagon Valley.

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KOUCHIBOUGUAC is one of the nicest National Parks we have ever spent time in ... We Will Return!

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We're LOAFin Around 

... follow along, if you like.

For our latest route, click TRAVELMAP 2017: Trip 142.   

For all posts from this latest adventure, 
click Trip 142

All photography is by LOAFin Around, unless noted. 

Most of the, italicized content is provided by Wikipedia or other sources. 

TEAM: LOAF, Crumby,Wry and Crusty ... 

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