New Brunswick

If someone told you to go somewhere to watch the tide come in, you might think they were crazy – it's the same as watching paint dry and grass grow, isn't it? Well, it's not! The tidal waters of the Bay of Fundy are truly a spectacle to see: the sea tides – the highest in the world – rise to the height of a four-story building, then disappear, leaving the bay a sandy stretch of beach dotted with lonely columns of tree-topped rock. Twice daily, 200 billion tons of water – equal to all the rivers on the planet – enter and leave the Bay of Fundy. And if this fact isn't interesting enough, there are less than 400 Right whales left in the world and some of them can be seen every year in the Bay of Fundy.

Have we got you hooked on New Brunswick yet? A ruggedly beautiful place, New Brunswick is the largest of Canada's Maritime Provinces. The province is made up of forests, river valleys, sand dunes, and rocky coasts and includes the tail end of the Appalachian Mountains (which stretch north from the tip of Alabama) amongst which is Mount Carleton, Atlantic Canada's highest peak. The shoreline along the Northumberland Strait, which separates New Brunswick from PEI and is now spanned by the Confederation Bridge, has the warmest salt water north of Virginia, and contains some of North America's most distinctive dunes, including the Irving Eco-Centre and La Dune de Bouctouche. This white sand dune stretches 12 kilometers (seven miles) across Bouctouche Bay. The coast is also dotted with lighthouses such as the oldest on Partridge Island, which dates back to 1791 and one at Swallowtail, on Grand Manan Island, where the lighthouse keeper's residence is now a perfect bed and breakfast for weekend getaways. But it's not only the coast that has lighthouses – New Brunswick is famous for the lighthouse system on its rivers! And during a drive to the countryside, you will no doubt pass under some of the 64 picturesque covered bridges, which have been around since the 19th century.

A 4-season province, New Brunswick tends to stay cooler in the summer than other provinces, in fact, its summers are similar to Maine's with temperatures averaging 54 to 70F/12 to 21C along the coast, and 66 to 79F/19 to 26C inland. New Brunswickers experience the change of the leaves in the autumn and will usually be spared snow until late November.

Perhaps your beachcombing, hiking, and other outdoor pursuits have left you hungry? Will that be lobster, oysters, salmon, or clam chowder? Or a little bit of everything? Or perhaps some delicious Acadian cuisine at a café, bistro, or upscale restaurant? Sample poutine râpé (pork wrapped in grated raw and mashed potatoes) or chicken fricot (chicken and potato stew), while watching a performance of traditional music and dance that dates back some 400 years to when New Brunswick was part of Acadie, the first French colony in North America. The Acadian heritage is also reflected in the fact that the province is bilingual, with approximately one-third of its roughly 729,498 inhabitants (mostly located in the northern area) having French as their first language.

Looking for something less outdoorsy? The province has a large number of festivals and celebrations to keep residents and visitors entertained year-round. For example, you can experience Acadian heritage first-hand at Village Historique Acadien in Caraquet in the northeast while visiting the Festival Acadien de Caraquet, which has been ranked nine times among the major tourist events in North America. Or visit the New Brunswick Highland Games and Scottish Festival, (Fredericton) or Canada's Irish Festival on the Miramichi (Miramichi). Or if you want to go further back in time, pay a visit to Metepenagiag (Red Bank), a 2,400-year-old Mi'kmaq Native fishing village, located on the mid-east coast of the province where the Little Southwest and Northwest Miramichi Rivers meet. The community hosts a three-day annual powwow, celebrating with song, dance, and ceremony. There are music festivals in many communities including the August Festival By the Sea (Saint John); the New Brunswick Summer Music Festival (Fredericton); Miramichi Folksong Festival (Miramichi); the Harvest Jazz and Blues Festival (Fredericton), and the Festival Jazz & Blues d'Edmundston (Edmundston).

And since all this reading will have left you hungry (again), don't pass up the Shediac Lobster Festival (Shediac); the Salmon Festival (Campbellton); the Fisheries and Aquaculture Festival (Shippagan); and the Atlantic Seafood Festival (Moncton).

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