Bouctouche or Irvingville

Bouctouche or Irvingville

Although this town on the Northumberland Straits is not called Irvingville, it probably should be.  It is the birth place of KC Irving of Irving Oil fame.  We were not in the know about KC even with our oil industry history, however, after a stop in Bouctouche we have a lot of respect for the man and his family.  While KC died back in 1992 at 93, his family roots in this town have been kept alive by his children.  

They have built a memorial chapel that sits next to the graves of KC and his wife.  

There is a 20 acre Elizabethan garden and almost 100 acres of manicured forest paths. 

We got our exercise fix with a bike ride out to the Irving Eco-Center which is dedicated to preserving the 12 kilometer sand dune protecting the shore. The trail wound through forests and fields, mostly shaded, to emerge in the parking lot for the Eco-Center.  A walk on the boardwalk revived us for the return trip. 

As a treat for lunch we continued into the town for a stop at the Pirate de la Mer seafood restaurant.  Our lobster and crab rolls disappeared along with the home cut fries – our 20+ klick excursion left us with a calorie deficit.  We saw no write ups on this local hang out, but it was recommended by travelers we met on the wharf up the Miramichi – they had learned about it from locals here.  The no frills restaurant was doing booming business since it offered great value, speedy service and exceptional taste. 

The marina building is also Irving property and is beautifully restored for the use of boaters using the boat basin here.  This small but well-appointed and friendly marina is worth braving the shallow channel entrance – at low tide we had less than a foot under the boat – but thankfully we floated through the skinny spot to enjoy a few days here – with gratitude to the Irving Family.

Lobster Heaven

Lobster Heaven

Cruising down river on the Miramichi was quick and our exit smoother than our entrance thanks to favorable tides and wind.  We made a fast trip into the secure harbor at Escuminac.  These harbors (there are two) were again mostly empty of fishing boats but thankfully the pond was full of lobster caught legally during the season.  We feasted on lobster and snow crab caught at the dockside shop along with the bean and corn salad made from our street stall finds.  Such suffering makes up for the overcast and lumpy days.

In addition we were lucky to catch the fueling master on his day off. After we docked, Steve wandered over to check on fuel since we had heard from another boater ahead of us that the service was closed on Mondays.    The attendant had just arrived to sell a buddy diesel and was willing to stay long enough to top off our tanks.  He might not have realized that the 350 gallons or so that we bought was only a top up, but we were pleased that we did not have to wait until he arrived the next morning.  Filling our tanks even halfway is a time consuming process.   Furthermore, since the fueling station was really closed, they offered to let us spend the night there instead of moving once again.

                                  

The sun even came out for a beautiful and mild afternoon which gave us a chance to stretch our legs on shore.  The harbor included a beautiful memorial to the 35 fishermen lost in a hurricane back in 1959 when such storms could sneak up with little warning.  Almost half the fleet was lost on this one night in June and 79 children left fatherless.  The monument attests to the powerful and enduring impact this storm had on the small community here.

Although tiny and remote, (we could not get our trusty FIDO or Verizon cells to work) the Escuminac Harbor master generously shared his WIFI with us so we could update our blog and check e-mail.