Coastal Views, Stellar Hikes and Starry Nights on New Brunswick’s Most Scenic Drive

Canada has no shortage of scenic drives. But even many Canadians may be surprised to learn that one of the best coastal drives in the country can be found in New Brunswick. Better still, this particular route takes you to locations where by day you can enjoy pretty hikes with green grottoes and surprising viewpoints, and by night gaze at the heavens in the middle of the world’s first 180-km long Dark Sky Corridor. With all of this to offer road trippers, it’s easy to see why following the southern coast from St. Martin’s to Hopewell Cape may be the best scenic drive in New Brunswick.

Start Your Drive at St. Martin’s

The first glimpse of this tiny fishing village less than an hour east of Saint John is a charming one: colourful fishing boats moored in the small harbour, with not one but two covered bridges spanning the Irish River that empties here into the Bay of Fundy.

There are stately Victorian houses and colourful shacks along the highway, too, but a stop at the beach here is a must to view St. Martin’s Sea Caves.

Come at low tide and the caves are actually accessible by foot, but if you time your visit when the Bay of Fundy tide is at its highest point, those same caves will be surrounded by the waters of the Bay. Either way, the caves mark the start of your scenic drive along the New Brunswick coast, and your access point to the Fundy Trail Parkway, a few minutes farther east.

The Fundy Trail Parkway: A Route 25 years and $100 Million in the Making

The Fundy Parkway is the culmination of a 25-year vision belonging to Saint John entrepreneur Mitchell Franklin. Franklin may not have been born a New Brunswicker, but he loved the province and was a huge advocate for changing the perception of New Brunswick as a ‘drive-through’ province to a premier destination in its own right. A hotelier and movie theatre mogul, Franklin could see the tourism potential in the stretch of coastline on the Bay of Fundy between St. Martin’s in the west and Little Salmon River Road in the east. With its towering trees, rugged coastline, long beaches, spectacular tides and endless views, Franklin often remarked that “the coastline is the gold mine” just waiting to be developed into a world-class scenic drive.

That dream was eventually embraced by former New Brunswick premier Fred McKenna, who, after touring the area with Franklin, became the political champion of developing this coastal driving route along the Bay of Fundy. Like most dreams, however, it took almost 3 decades of approvals, planning, and construction to see the Fundy Parkway completed. Sadly, Franklin Mitchell only lived to see the opening of the first phase of the Parkway in 1998. But his family, including his daughter Beverly, now in her late 70s, saw her father’s dream brought to fruition when the Parkway fully opened in 2021.

More Than Just a Driving Route

Mitchell certainly had the right idea with his vision for this ‘Gold Coast’ of New Brunswick. With its winding curves and spectacular headland views from high above the Bay of Fundy, the Fundy Parkway is a joy for both drivers and cyclists to navigate.

But the Parkway also includes a 35-km network of hiking trails that zig-zag along these cliffs and take advantage of the area’s natural beauty and proximity to the ocean.

Short Hikes to do on the Fundy Trail Parkway

There are several short and easy hikes that you definitely won’t want to miss along the Parkway, including the Fuller Falls Trail. Here a steep wooden stairway takes you to the base of a pretty waterfall nestled between the trees and flowing over rocky ledges.

About 20 minutes farther along the Parkway is the Walton Glen Reception Centre, close to the eastern end of the Provincial Park entrance. It’s both a rest stop and a great base for accessing more easy, scenic trails. One of these is the McLeod Brook Falls Trail, which starts with a short walk along a gravelled road that used to be an ATV trail. If you don’t want to do the entire loop you can take a ‘shortcut’ hike down a piece of the trail via a well-marked natural footpath to the peaceful stream at the base of the descent.

TIP: Although neither of these trails are particularly difficult, they do involve steep stairways and/or hiking over tree roots on a slope, so judge your hiking ability accordingly.

The Walton Glen Gorge Trail on the Fundy Trail Parkway

Another trail accessed from the Walton Glen Reception Centre, and an absolute must-do hike on the Fundy Parkway is the 1.2 km trail to the Walton Glen Gorge overlook. The trail is an easy, accessible one that takes you to a large wooden overlook where visitors are rewarded with a completely unexpected surprise: a forested canyon that cuts deep through the landscape with steep drops and a 145-foot tall waterfall threading its way from the tops of the exposed cliffs down to the river at the bottom.

Considered the ‘Grand Canyon of New Brunswick’ this rugged tree-lined gorge came as a delightful surprise since we would not have expected to find a canyon along a coastal driving route. And a spectacular one at that.

Fundy Trail Parkway Overlooks

If stopping at every pullout along a scenic drive is your style, (like it is ours), allow time to hit all of the Parkway’s overlooks. You will be rewarded with views of rugged coastlines stretching out towards the horizon, and long unspoiled beaches visible between the headlands.

Many of these beaches are strewn with multi-coloured pebbles and small boulders, what the locals like to call ‘Discovery Beaches’, since what you might find on the beach changes with every tide. Long Beach is an excellent one for beach combing and the Visitor and Interpretation Centre here has restrooms, exhibits and picnic tables if you want to stop for a picnic lunch ocean-side.

TIP: The Bay of Fundy tides are the highest in the world, reaching 16 metres at their peak, so the beaches along the coast change dramatically between low and high tides. You never know what may turn up, including fossils, but everything here is protected and visitors are reminded not to take anything from the shore.

Continue the Drive into Fundy National Park

Technically the Fundy Trail Parkway ends at Little Salmon River Road, where you will exit the Provincial Park that it runs through. But this is no reason to end your scenic New Brunswick drive: a short section of highway (Shepody Road) connects you to Fundy National Park which offers more places to discover, some of them downright amazing…

An Official ‘Amazing Place’: Dickson Falls in Fundy National Park

Fundy National Park is riddled with beautiful hiking trails, both along the coast and farther inland. You could easily spend days here exploring all of the natural attractions in the Park. But when one of these, Dickson Falls, is officially named as one of New Brunswick’s ‘Amazing Places’, it’s definitely worth checking out. Fortunately, this secluded little valley lived up to the hype.

Visitors descend into a pretty grotto-like gorge where all you’ll hear is the sound of birds and the babbling brook that runs through here, making its way around moss-covered boulders and gnarly tree roots. Bridges and suspended boardwalks lead you through the valley where there are waterfalls large and small and quiet reflective pools of crystal clear water collecting in every nook and cranny.

The entire place feels like something out of the Hobbit’s shire, and I half expected to spot a fairy or gnome sitting on top of one of the mossy boulders.

Dickson Falls would be a magical hike in any season but visiting in the autumn felt even more intimate, and we had the place almost entirely to ourselves. Amazing? Definitely.

TIP: “Amazing Places” are locations of natural history and beautiful scenery in the Fundy Biosphere Region, a UNESCO-designated area of New Brunswick around the Bay of Fundy.

Back on the road to Alma

Exiting Fundy National Park to the east you’ll immediately encounter the tiny seaside town of Alma. Henk and I first discovered Alma years ago on our first visit to New Brunswick, and we were charmed by this town’s characteristic fishing wharf, local cafes and artisan shops. If you are a lobster fan, this is also a great place to indulge in a roll or other seafood favourites. Henk and I were most impressed by how the fishermen here deal with the extremes of the Bay of Fundy tides: wharves are built very tall to accommodate the highest tide, and at low tide the fishermen place supports under their boats to prevent them from literally tipping over onto the muddy ocean floor.

For landlubbers like ourselves, this was something we had never seen before, but for New Brunswickers, it’s all just a day-in-the-life on the Bay of Fundy.

TIP: A must-do in Alma is to stop into Kelly’s Bake Shop for their famous sticky buns. In 2020, they actually sold more than 10,000 of them over the course of one weekend!

East to New Brunswick’s Most Famous Coastal Attraction

One of the natural features that makes this route the best scenic drive in New Brunswick is the most famous coastal attraction in the province: Hopewell Rocks, located at the eastern end of the province in Hopewell Provincial Park.

It is at Hopewell Cape that the true power of the Bay of Fundy tides can be best seen and experienced. Twice daily, the ocean roars into the Bay, raising the water level quickly and almost violently, and in the process chiselling the coastline into abstract red rock sculptures.

Hopewell Rocks is one of the few places on earth where at low tide you can ‘walk on the ocean floor’ not just for a few yards, but for 2 kilometres out into the Bay! Just pay close attention to the tide schedule, as you definitely want to be close to shore when the water starts to return.

It’s dramatic, it’s unique and not surprisingly, Hopewell Rocks is another designated Amazing Place in the Fundy Biosphere.

A Scenic Drive With a World’s First: the Dark Sky Corridor

The 135-km route between St. Martin’s and Hopewell Rocks is more than just the best scenic drive in New Brunswick; it can be a days-long trip in itself. But when the days are over and the sun sets, this southern coast also offers one of the best opportunities in the world to see the stars, thanks to the low levels of light pollution here, and the vast expanse of dark sky visible over the ocean. For this reason, New Brunswick is in the process of establishing a world first: a Dark Sky Corridor that encompasses the highest concentration of dark sky locations on the planet.

Dark sky designations have been granted to select parks and places across the world, including some of the darkest places in Canada, but New Brunswick is in the midst of establishing a 180-km long corridor stretching from New River Beach Provincial Park west of Saint John to Hopewell Rocks in the east. It has been a proposal years in the making, with local astronomers like Stephane Picard and dark sky advocates like Elaine Shannon working with communities all along the route to demonstrate the benefits of achieving this designation.

Dark skies are rapidly disappearing on the planet, with levels of light pollution crowding out the wonders of the night sky. And star seeking is not merely a frivolous pastime for nerds; astrotourism is on the rise as many people are travelling to places where they can see what was once taken for granted – stars, planets and the visible universe that surrounds us all. To have a Dark Sky Corridor that provides this opportunity not just to the province, but to the world, is another reason to put a drive along New Brunswick’s south coast on your road trip bucket list.

Amazing Places and Awesome Skies

It takes visionaries and dreamers to see the potential where others may not. Fifty years ago, Mitchell Franklin dreamed of developing the scenic Fundy Trail Parkway along the shores of New Brunswick to show off the amazing natural beauty of what he saw as the province’s ‘Gold Coast’. And today, local astronomers and community advocates are putting into place an ambitious plan to preserve the province’s darkest skies so future generations from around the world can admire the heavens along this same coast.

Which are just two reasons why for me this is the best scenic drive in New Brunswick, by day and by night.

PRACTICAL TIPS FOR ROAD TRIPPING ALONG THE NEW BRUNSWICK COAST

1. FUN WITH “FUNDY”:
It can be confusing: so many parks and attractions in New Brunswick share the name ‘Fundy’ that it’s difficult to keep them sorted. Here’s a quick summary to help:

FUNDY TRAIL PROVINCIAL PARK: This 6000+ acre park is run by the province of New Brunswick and is just east of St. Martin’s. It is open from May to October for day use but closes nightly. Hours are extended during the warmer months and a fee is required to enter. Camping and accommodations are available outside of the park near St. Martin’s.
FUNDY TRAIL PARKWAY: This is a coastal road that runs through Fundy Trail Provincial Park from St. Martin’s in the west to Little Salmon River Road in the east. The provincial park fee allows you to drive the road during opening hours of the park, but you will need exit the Parkway (and the Park) by its closing time. For more information on the stops and attractions along the Parkway, here is a detailed map : Fundy Trail Parkway map pdf.
FUNDY NATIONAL PARK: This huge park is run by Parks Canada and includes both coastal and inland areas in the south of the province. It is located east of the Fundy Trail Parkway, butting up to the town of Alma. The Park offers day use, overnight and backcountry camping. Fees apply to enter the park.
FUNDY FOOTPATH: This challenging 64-km long hiking trail hugs the coastline of New Brunswick and runs through both Fundy Trail Provincial and Fundy National Park.You can access parts of the footpath in both Parks for day hiking, but to hike the entire length typically requires 4-5 days. More information can be found here.

2.TIME TO DRIVE THE ROUTE:
Technically, you can drive the 135km (84 miles) from St. Martin’s to Hopewell Rocks in about 2 – 2.5 hours. But with all the stops you will want to make along the way, definitely double or triple that. Better still, plan to stay overnight along the route, which will give you more opportunity to see the high and low extremes of the Bay of Fundy tides.

3.TIDES:
The Bay of Fundy has the world’s largest tides, so be aware of the timing for both high and low tides. Whether you are hiking along the coastal beaches, visiting Hopewell Rocks, want to witness the phenomenon of Reversing Falls in Saint John, or just want to see the drastic differences between high and low tides, you need to consult the tide schedule for the days and locations you are planning to visit. Our recommendation is to try to see at least one place at both high and low tides to really appreciate the extreme nature of this phenomenon.

4.HIKES:
Two great resources for New Brunswick’s trail locations, descriptions, photos and more are Alltrails and HikingNB.ca.

5.STAR GAZING:
There are six designated dark sky areas along the southern coast of New Brunswick that will make up the Dark Sky Corridor. These include (from west to east): New River Beach Provincial Park, Irving Nature Park in the city of Saint John (Canada’s first Urban Star Park), the community of Fundy-St. Martin’s, Fundy Trail Provincial Park (a transitional link between stargazing places since it closes nightly), Fundy National Park, and Hopewell Rocks Provincial Park at the east end of the corridor.
If you are looking for a guided star-gazing experience, look into Cliff Valley Astronomy tours out of Saint John.

Special thanks to Tourism New Brunswick who hosted Henk and I on our visit to the province.