As we ate breakfast at Maison Vienneau we could hear the wind blowing outside. We discussed some of the interesting history of the town of Shediac with the owner and his wife, then we were on our way. After driving around town looking for trails that criss-crossed the back streets of Shediac we began our drive south along the coast. After a short drive we came to L’Aboiteau Beach in the Village of Cap-Pelé.

After parking near the beach we climbed a lookout tower to get a look at the beach. We decided that since we were both leaning at a 45 degree angle to not get blown over that we didn’t need to go out on the beach. We started across the boardwalk that crossed the lagoon to the L’Aboiteau Chalets. There were many birds in the bushes of the lagoon but they were all hiding from the wind, or us, so we didn’t get many pictures. Once we got to the Chalets we decided to stop into the office and ask about other trails in the area. Good thing we did because they directed us to the Parc Plein Air that we had actually passed on the way to the beach.

When we arrived at Parc Plein Air it was starting to rain a bit but it was warm so we thought that it would balance out. We decided that it would take us about an hour to map all the trails. After a short time we realized that taking pictures wasn’t going to slow us down because it started to pour. It rained hard for our whole walk but we got all the trails mapped.

When leaving Cap-Pelé we decided to drive along the coast to the east. After a short distance we came across a lagoon and a small boardwalk along the lagoon. We stopped and walked to the end of the short NB Trails Boardwalk. The lookout at the end of the boardwalk provided a surrounding view of the grasses and water that made up the tidal salt marsh. There were also a few strange dead trees on the edge of the Boardwalk, which made good photography subjects.

After leaving the NB Trails Boardwalk we drove to Port Elgin in our wet clothes. We stopped and changed our clothes at the Victorian Veranda Bed & Breakfast, where we would be staying for the night. After getting a tour of the beautiful old house where we would be sleeping we continued on our adventures.

Not far from Port Elgin at Baie-Verte we found the Red-winged Blackbird Trail. We read in the Hiking Guide to New Brunswick that it was a 2 km loop trail but it seemed to keep going and going straight back in the woods. It followed along a lagoon and had many lookouts where you could look out at the lagoon. We had several views of ducks including widgeons and Buffleheads. We came to a lookout tower that overlooked a meandering stream going through a wetland. After the lookout tower the trail meets a T junction with the old Coburg Road. We turned left to what we hoped would take us back towards the car. The road came out to the same road as the park but 650 meters away.

After eating supper in Port Elgin we went on our last adventure for the night on the Gunnings Trail at Cape Jourimain National Wildlife Area. It was getting close to dark but we figured we could easily finish the trail before we had to get the flashlights out. There was a beautiful sunset that accompanied us on our walk. The trail was quite wet but with our hiking boots on we didn’t have much of a problem. We couldn’t figure out why the coastal side of the trail was closed so we looped around the woods section first. We looped around and eventually came out at a lookout on the strait. Part of the lookout structures were washed out and there was heavy erosion in the area. The trail was in tact so we continued around the loop. We came through the trees just in time to see the Confederation Bridge lit up by the sunset. We were provided with many different views of the bridge on the return trip.

That was our adventures for the day. We covered a lot of the southeastern coast of the province. I am planning on returning to Cape Jourimain early in the morning for sunrise photography but I will see if I can pull myself out of bed.