New Brunswick
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New Brunswick is a province of Canada. Its capital is Fredericton. There are large and active CS communties in Fredericton, Saint John and Moncton, with some of the smaller towns having a smaller but still strong presence
Couchsurfing Events in New Brunswick
As can be expected by the presence of CS members in the larger three cities, any events will generally be found there. The meetings happen with no great regularity, rather at member preference.
Couchsurfing Tips and Transportation Tips
One of the major problems of couchsurfing and traveling in New Brunswick is the overall lack of public transportation. Intercity buses are infrequent, and only Fredericton, Saint John, Moncton and Sackville have city buses. This leaves many of the main sites inaccessible to a budget traveler without their own transportation. These include the national parks, Saint Martin, and Grand Manan Island. Though there are ways around these travel limitations, be prepared to be stuck in a place waiting for a place where the bus might not be coming back until the next day.
If you have your own transport it opens up many more options for you. There are actually many interesting couchsurfing experiences in New Brunswick, from staying in a Mongolian yurt to staying on a dairy farm, however, these sites are often off the beaten path.
Sites to See in New Brunswick
New Brunswick is often seen a waypoint and not an actual destination. Many make plans to stop for only a short time while they head on to Prince Edward Island, Halifax, or Newfoundland. This doesn't have to be the case. There are in fact many hidden gems in the province, which are not as hard to find. Here are a few suggestions:
-People entering the province often look to the Trans-Canada highway out of Quebec straight down from Riviere de Loup. This makes sense for hitchhiking or for intercity bus, but by car, a much more scenic and relaxed route is through Baker Lake (the turnoff in Quebec is about 20 km before RDL). The amount of time lost by this route is about 15 minutes, but it means skipping the Trans Canada south of RDL which seems to be always under construction and with many trucks looking to make their runs on time it is a pretty hectic highway.
-People heading to the south will often bypass one of the best visual sites in the provinces, that being the waterfalls at Grand Falls. Only about 10 km off the highway the falls make a much better stop than Edmunston. Again though if arriving by bus or hitchiking this is not a viable option.
-If your itinerary only allows you to get as close to the Bay of Fundy as Saint John, then at least take a cab or walk out of the city to the Iriving Nature Park where the tides can be better witnessed.
-Many travelers arrive from further West and expect the cities of New Brunswick to hold their attention for days. This is by no means the case. Expect one day to cover all the sites in each of the three big cities. Some suggestions for Fredericton - if you like muesums then the Beaverbrook Art Gallery is one of the better small art galleries in North America. If you are not interested in galleries, at least go in the front door and have a look. The gallery's main attraction a Dali artwork, and it can seen from the entrance without having to pay for it. The York and Sunbury museum has what is purported to be the world's largest frog and the admission to the museum is so small that if all you want to see is this stuffed oddity then it is not really a waste of money. Fredericton also has a large park inside the city (ODell Park) which is worthy of exploring and there are a few other sites around which many don't consider. For instance on the waterfront near the Princess Margaret Bridge on the south side of the river, there is a nearly forgotten Loyalist Cememtery.
-For those with their own transportation, consider visits to Saint Andrews, Saint Martin on the Fundy shoreline. Also Grand Manan Island is highly recommended, but it will take a day to visit it.
-If driving into Moncton consider entering from the southern loop through Fundy National Park. This will bring you through the town of Riverview, and allows you see the town of Moncton without the experience of driving through its large commercial area first.
-Because of the relative fame of the Bay of Fundy, the Acadian Coast is often overlooked. There are many points of interest, including Bouctouche, Shediac and Campbellton.
-If visiting Kouchibougouac consider the Cote a Fabien campground. It is more peaceful and there are sites right on the water of the Gulf. Also the more people in South Kouchibougouac campground mean more mosquitoes. There is also a colony of seals which live at the southern end of the South Kouchibougouac dune. It is a 12 km roundtrip walk from Kelly's Beach to the tip.
-If you are just heading through to Nova Scotia or the southern route to PEI out of Moncton, consider going through Memramcook and Dorchester. The detour will take only an hour but is much more scenic than the Trans Canada. Also if nothing else Fort Beausejour on the New Brusnwick border in Aulac is worth a stop of just for the view.
