Gull Cottage at Lighthouse Road
> Whirlpools & Wonders
It’s not often that one coastline can boast
of so many superlatives, such as ‘the highest tides in the world’
as well as ‘the largest tidal whirlpool in the western hemisphere’.
As well as these, where else can you find a river that runs uphill
and strange forces that move a stationary car uphill by itself!
The River that Runs Uphill
Reversing Falls, Saint John NB
The tremendous force of the Fundy tides causes this spectacular natural
phenomenen. A good point to view this is at Fallsview Park, not far
from the Reversing
Falls Information Centre.
The tide rises and falls once every twelve and a half hours, it is
recommended that it is viewed once from near low tide, and again from
near high tide. The Information Centre run an explanatory film for
which there is a small charge.
For the more daring, the Falls can be viewed from the sightseeing
Jetboat, which offers a one hour tour with commentary and refreshments.
This departs from Market Square, Saint John
(506) 634 8987 or toll free 1 888 634 8987
For out and out thrill seekers there is the ‘Thrill Ride’
which is twenty minutes of climbing and jumping the surge, or the
White Water Bubble, where you tread the wild water in a 10 foot bubble.
Visit the website: www.jetboatrides.com
The Biggest Whirlpool in the Western Hemisphere
Old Sow, Deer Island, NB
This can be seen from Deer Island Point Park, Deer Island. The sheer
power of the Fundy tides combine to create this phenomenon, the roar
of which, some say, can be heard two miles away.
Deer Island is the smallest of the Fundy Islands, and lies between
New Brunswick and the state of Maine, USA, in the Passamoquoddy Bay.
Apart from the Old Sow, it has small fishing villages where the local
crop of lobster, herring and salmon are harvested and a wealth of
bird and marine life.
Contact: http://new-brunswick.net/new-brunswick/deer/
The Highest Tides in the World
Hopewell Rocks, Hopewell Cape, Albert County, NB
The Flowerpot Rocks are created by the constant motion of the highest
tides in the world. At low tide you are actually walking on the ocean
floor, while all around you can see the strange shapes the rocks have
been worn into – bizarrely with the living trees perched on
the top
Visit the website: www.thehopewellrocks.com/
Magnet or Magic
Magnetic Hill, Moncton NB
Off Route 2, Exit 488 A & B
No one can really explain why a stationary car, in neutral gear, appears
to drift uphill. Try it for yourself. Drive to the spot indicated
at the foot of the hill, put your gear into neutral – hold on,
as you appear to be drawn uphill
