Canadian Maritimes August 17-18, 2019

Day 68 Saturday August 17, 2019 Several in our group departed the campground at 8:40 for a visit to Ministers Island about 4 miles down the road. It is a 490 acre island. There is not a bridge to the island and technically there is not a road either. So how did we get there you may ask. Well the tide was out and there is a natural sandbar of rock and sand, etc. that is built up across the water so that when the tide is out vehicles can driver across the sandbar to the island. We got there at 9AM paid our entry fee to visit the summer home and of Sir William Van Horne and got a numbered island pass that we had to turn in when we returned at 11AM. That way the ticket booth staff knows if everyone has got off the island before the tide comes in. People in the past has waited too long to return and got caught in the rising water and drowned. This happen to a girl just last year. You can drive across the sandbar but don't have to pay the entry fee if you don't go beyond the ticket booth to visit the house so you are on your own to return before the tide comes in.

Sir William was the President of the Canadian Pacific Railroad among other things and was from Illinois originally. He also had a home in Montreal Canada. The summer home was named Covenhoven and after it was expanded it had 50 rooms, 26 of which was the family's main living quarters, plus servants quarters, kitchen, store rooms, etc. It was modern for its time, with running water and bathrooms. He had a windmill that pumped the water and the water was stored in a 10,000 gallon railroad car that was buried underground. He loved to paint and only slept about 4 hours a night so he had a downstairs bedroom on the front of the house so he could get up and leave the house without disturbing anyone and go out to a building overlooking the water and paint.

One of a kind billiard score board

Mrs Horne's bedroom

Ice box in center with food storage on sides

1931 GE Refrigerator - Still works

Kitchen 3,000 pound coal stove

Living room fireplace

After our guide took us through the house we were allowed to browse through on our own before driving over to the barn.  It is one of the largest barns in New Brunswick and cost $20,000 to build in 1898 and over $2,000,000 to restore a few years ago. It took and estimated 50 trail car loads of rough lumber to build it. He raised Clydesdale horses and Dutch Belted Cattle, in addition to pigs, chickens, geese and turkeys plus a large vegetable garden. The estate was basically self-sufficient and shipped food on the overnight train to his Winter home in Montreal. The milk from the barn was piped underground to the Creamery next door.

This was an interesting place but we had only 2 hours to visit before getting off the island before the tide came in. There were orginally 22 building in the estate but only about 10 remain.

Driving off the island across the sandbar

We returned to the campground and relaxed until time for our group to meet at the Algonquin Hotel for our Farewell Dinner. It is a massive building spanning across one of the town streets. The rates start at $312 and go up. We both were disappointed in the meal as was others in the group. It was the second worst meal we have had. We were originally supposed to eat somewhere else but there was a conflict in scheduling so we were scheduled here. For this to be an upscale hotel the food was way below average. But the dessert was good.

After the Wagonmasters and Tailgunners spoke the microphone was passed around to anyone that wanted to talk about what they enjoyed about the trip. Almost everyone stated the people in the group made the trip a very pleasant journey. Everyone in the group got along good and everyone socialized together rather than forming separate little clicks. Many nights a good majority of the group would gather up around someone's campsite with a glass of wine, a beer or coke and just talk and have a good time. Anytime anyone needed help or needed to borrow something, someone was always ready to lend a hand.

Day 69 Sunday August 18, 2019 We got the most rain this morning until it stopped about 10:30AM than we have had in the entire trip. The Wagonmasters and Tailgunners prepared a farewell breakfast for us at 8AM. People hugged, passed out calling cards and said goodbye before packing up and heading out to various places all over the USA.

Tim Hortons Coffee Shop on edge of town

We departed at 10:30AM and headed across the border into the USA for a two night stop in Bar Harbor Maine and the Hadley Point Campground where we arrived at 1PM and setup in site C23 and just chilled for the rest of the day.

This wraps up our Maritimes Adventure so now we work our way back home.