End of the Road on Miscou Island

In the top east corner of New Brunswick is the Acadia Peninsula. The peninsula is sparsely populated with small villages and two islands.

The peninsula road travels along pebble, cliff and sandy shorelines only to bump into recreation beaches, lighthouses and marinas. It is not uncommon to find  bogs, wetlands and marshes on both sides of the road with cat tails and reeds swaying back and forth. The wind never seems to stop here. The wind is your friend on the peninsula.

Kite surfing, wind surfing, fishing and sailing are big activities on the peninsula. Where I am staying there are kite surfers all day playing in the wind. Some bob up and down trying to stay afloat while others cut like a knife slicing through the water. My base camp is in Shippagan which is at the doorstep of the peninsula. From here I could set out exploring without the travel pod.

Shippagan Lighthouse

In Shippagan and all up and down the coast are Acadian Flags. They are everywhere. I visited the downtown shops.  There were more flags! I visited the main attraction in town – the aquarium – more flags. I visited the port and marina… and more flags.

While I was visiting the marina there was a lighthouse. The lighthouse was one of many I viewed today. This lighthouse in Shippagan marked the trailhead to a waterfront promenade. Lucky me!

This was no ordinary promenade either.  For one,  most promenades are not so well maintained and colorful. In Shippagan the entire promenade was decorated in.. you guessed it… Acadian flags.

The flags hummed in unison as I walked pass them. It was a distorted hum created from the flutter of the flags tortured by the high winds blowing in off the bay. To say the least it was a bad hair day. From a distance the 2 kilometre promenade looked spectacular decorated in blue,white and red flags. (Main Blog Photo)

Windsurfing

From Shippagan I traveled the coastline and over a bridge onto Lameque Island. The island was a continuation of the flag party. Hail Acadian!

The big attraction on the island is the Eco Park – bridge walks and bog discoveries. Took a look but declined the offer.

What I found more entertaining however were the kite surfers and wind surfers tearing up the water in the bay opposite the park. These wind worshippers were far more experienced than the ones near my base camp. They were staying afloat and getting air and moving as fast as light.  My camera could almost not keep up with them.

Miscou Lighthouse

Next I crossed a massive arch bridge connecting Lemeque Island to Miscou Island.

Miscou Island is the last stop on the peninsula. The island is home to one of the more popular beaches in the region and a lighthouse.

The beach is long, sandy and great for walks. There is a raised boardwalk path cutting through sand dunes so to access the beach.

The lighthouse is located at the end of the road on the tip of the peninsula. It is one of the few lighthouses you can enter and climb to the top. All I could see after the lighthouse was horizon and water. Too bad , because I would of  kept going, going and…