JUNE 29

This morning we toured Fredericton. The old part of town is on the south side of the river, It was the original settlement and is clearly the poor cousin, The downtown area has many vacant buildings and the street and parks are poorly kept. However there does appear to be a renaissance beginning with some building now being restored.
The north side of town is clearly the wealthy section and many of the older homes are well kept and nicely preserved. Most of the development in the last 2-3 decades have been on the north side.
We left Fredericton and followed the Saint John river south to the city of Saint John, about 100 km or 60 miles it is a vibrant, exciting place with a rich heritage.The city was settled in the 1770 with Americans who were loyal to the King of England and decided to leave the US. They build their settlement to last with many buildings being beautifully built of brick and stone. Today the outside remains as they were build and the inside are modernised and in use.We visited the reversing falls where the Saint John river empties into the Bay of Fundy were the ocean tide is the highest is the world. At that point the tide is 28 1/2 feet and the river bed is 185 feet deep, the flow of water at high tide is more that all the rest of the rivers in the world combined.
To watch the rapids flow in one direction then go slack and still as the waters levels and then reverse to rapids the other direction is truly awesome. The effect of the tide is seen over 80 miles upstream. It is a unforgettable sight.