Road Trip to Gagetown
About 55km (34 miles) southeast of Fredericton is the untroubled, unassuming village of Gagetown. (The village can be visited via a scenic driving detour en route to or from Saint John.) It's been named one of the 10 prettiest villages in Canada, and has remained largely unchanged over the years -- still backed by farm fields on one side, and cozied up to Gagetown Creek, a placid inlet off the Saint John River. The peaceful surroundings and simple country architecture have attracted the attention of craftspeople and artists, who have settled here and slowly made it a quiet arts colony -- quaint and creative, but never annoyingly so. Look for a handful of low-key enterprises including art galleries, a cafe, a decoy carver, a bookstore, a cider press, a crafts cooperative, and several potters.
You can also bird-watch and explore here; the region is noted for its avian life, with a wide range of birds enjoying the mixed terrain that includes marsh grass, forest, and field. Nearly 150 species of bird have been reliably identified in and around Gagetown. Gagetown Island is just offshore (easily accessible by kayak or canoe, which inn guests may borrow). The island is 400 hectares (988 acres) in size and features a glacial deposit that rises 23m (75 ft.) high, the ruins of a stone house that dates from the early 19th century, and an osprey-viewing platform.
While in Gagetown, you might also visit the Queens County Museum (tel. 506/488-2483), birthplace of Sir Samuel Leonard Tilley, one of the fathers of Canadian Confederation. His 1786 home, located at 69 Front St., is open to the public in summer.
If you want to stay the night, check with two simple bed-and-breakfast inns in town about availability: the Doctor's Hill B&B (tel. 506/488-8989) at 16 Doctor's Hill Rd. and the Step Aside B&B (tel. 506/488-1808) at 58 Front St.
