Side Trips in Fundy National Park

Cape Enrage is a blustery and bold cape that juts out into Chignecto Bay. It's home to a wonderful adventure center that could be a model for centers worldwide. It costs C$9 for adults, C$7 seniors, and C$7 children 5 to 17 to enter the grounds and cluster of buildings at the end. Children 4 and under admitted free. There you’ll find very friendly staff and volunteers, lots of places to explore and walk (including the sea bottom next to Fossil Beach when the 15m/50-ft. tides are out), great views from platforms, a gift shop, and a top-notch restaurant. The Cape Enrage Interpretive Centre is open from mid-May to the end of September.

Cape Enrage Adventures (tel. 833/796-2273 or 506/887-2273) traces its roots to 1993, when a group of high school students from Moncton decided to arrest the decay of the cape's historic lighthouse, which had been abandoned a few years earlier. They put together a plan to restore the light and keeper's quarters and establish an adventure center. And it worked. Today, with the help of experts in rock climbing, rappelling, and local history, a few dozen high-school students staff and run this program throughout the summer months. (The program closes in late August, when the student-managers have to head back to high school.)

Part of what makes the program so notable is its flexibility. You can pick and choose from day adventures, which are scheduled throughout the summer, as though from a menu. Prices vary, but it’s C$99.95 per person for a 2-hour rock-climbing or rappelling workshop, and ziplining for C$59.90 for three runs. Ask about packages and group discounts. 

Driving safety: The road in and out to Cape Enrage—which is actually a rocky island soaring up from marshes and tidal flats—is steep and narrow in places. RVs towing a car would be best advised to take the car in, or drop it in the upper parking area. The RV-designated area is tight for turning, and the road down steep.

Road Trip to the Hopewell Rocks

There’s no better place in Canada to witness the extraordinary power of ocean tides than at the Hopewell Rocks (tel. 877/734-3429), located about 40km (25 miles) northeast of Fundy National Park on Route 114. Think of it as a natural sculpture garden. At low tide (the best time to visit), a couple dozen eroded columns as high as 15m (50 ft.) stand on the ocean floor like Easter Island statues, and you can walk right out among them. (They’re sometimes called the “flowerpots,” on account of the trees and plants that still flourish on the narrowing summits.) If you return only a few hours later you could go sea kayaking in 50 feet of water in the same place you just walked.

There’s a tide change in the Bay of Fundy every six hours and 13 minutes on average. The amount of water that comes into the bay for one tide change is enough to fill the Grand Canyon twice – or, equal to the amount that flows over Niagara Falls – Canada and U.S. side combined – in one year and nine months.

The drive from Alma to Hopewell is one of the most scenic in New Brunswick, with low mountains, pastures, marshes, lovely little villages, covered bridges, and the Bay of Fundy. On the way to Hopewell Rocks, off the loop road is this winsome coastal nature preserve known as Mary's Point. It’s a stopover for migrating sea birds whose flight displays can be spectacular. At 255 Mary’s Point Rd., the widow of Lars Larsen, one of Canada’s premier wildlife artists, continues to operate Studio on the Marsh ( tel. 506/882-2917). Larsen’s work and that of other fine artists is available at this lovely little gallery, about a 50 minute drive from Moncton.

When you arrive, park at the visitor center and restaurant. While there, you can sign up for a tour . . . or just walk down to the shore. It’s a beautiful, picturesque spot that can be enjoyed without commentary if you so desire. (There’s also a shuttle service that runs from the interpretive center to the rocks for C$2.) Look out for the sign boards explaining the natural history of the rocks. If you’ve come at low tide, you can descend the steel staircase to the sea floor and admire these wondrous free-standing rock sculptures, chiseled by waves and tides.

Even the visitor center is a pleasant place to spend some time. It not only has intriguing exhibits (look for the satellite photos of the area, and a time-lapse video of the tides) but the cafeteria-style restaurant has terrific views from its floor-to-ceiling windows and serves simple but tasty food.

The park charges an entry fee of C$15.85 adults, C$13.59 students and seniors, C$9.06 children ages 5 to 18, and C$34.45 families (2 adults, all children 18 and under). Admission is valid for two consecutive days. The park is open daily mid-May to mid-June, 9am to 5pm, then 8am to 8pm from mid-June until mid-August (mid-Aug to early Sept 8am to 6pm), and from 9am to 5pm from September until it closes in mid-October. Note that the site can get crowded at peak times.

If you arrive at the top half of the tide, consider a sea-kayak tour around the islands and caves.