A heavy rainfall at 5:30am and wind tugging at the extended awning was cause to get up. After securing the awning, it was time to head inside the trailer for a hot cup of tea.
We were leaving Pointe Verte, and heading to Val-Comeau. After reviewing google maps, we decided to take the slow route following the coast line, stopping at Miscou Lighthouse, before heading down the coast to our next campsite.
The drive was well worth it, meandering along beautiful coastline with steep rock bluffs, and old houses, left abandoned after their owners passed away.
According to the locals – the youth don’t follow in their parents occupations, instead they head to college and take up careers in the cities. The parents retire from fishing or farming, and live out their remaining years at home.
The houses, now worthless in a declining industry, are abandoned, while the elements gradually degrade the structure until they fall down.
Along the coastline, columns of hard rock left standing against the elements, while the soft sandstone is constantly eroded by waves. Hundreds of Cormorants nesting on the rock like it’s their castle. The muddy currents carrying the eroded sand to form beaches or sandbars.
We continue down the scenic drive. More and more Acadian flags fluttering in the ever present breeze, as National Acadian Day (Aug 15) approaches.
Houses, light poles, lobster traps, and any surface you can imagine…all painted in Acadian colours.
The Acadians are the descendants of the French settlers, and sometimes the Indigenous peoples, of parts of Acadia in the northeastern region of North America comprising what is now the Canadian Maritime Provinces of New Brunswick, Nova Scotia, and Prince Edward Island, a Gaspé, in Quebec, and to the Kennebec River in southern Maine.
We continued our drive through coastal Acadian villages, making our way to Lamèque Island, then Miscou Island.
The Miscou Island area was one of the first areas explored by Jacques Cartier in 1534 and was a fishing base for Basque fishermen in the same period. A Jesuit mission was established at Miscou Harbour in 1634. It was an important, although seasonal, port of commerce in its early years of European exploration of Canada.
The first permanent settler was John Campbell who emigrated from Scotland and moved there around 1817. Soon after came Robert Harper, John Marks, Thomas Cowan and Andrew Wilson, the first 3 of which married Campbell’s daughters. They were followed by fishermen from the Isle of Jersey and then Acadians who settled on arable lands.
The Miscou Lighthouse is an 11-metre (36 ft)-tall landfall lighthouse located on the North-Eastern tip of Miscou Island, at the entrance of the Chaleur Bay. It was built in 1856 and currently in use by the Canadian Coast Guard who owns the lighthouse, the land it is on, and also maintains it. It was built due to the shipwrecks that happened each year that could be prevented by a lighthouse.
The light’s characteristic is a single green flash that occurs every five seconds, emitted at a focal plane height of 14 metres (46 ft). It has a third-order Fresnel lens. The original lens was shipped from England and arrived on October 10, 1856, and the person in charge of the only other lighthouse on the northern coast of New Brunswick, William Hay, was sent to oversee the installation.
Smoke conductors were installed in 1860 due to the fact that the calm weather could not sufficiently clear the smoke from the lantern room. In 1874 a building was built which contained a steam fog whistle that had blasts of 5 seconds that were separated by 25 seconds of silence.
In 1946 the lighthouse was moved 200 feet inland due to coastal erosion.
Fishing is the primary industry, and the boats are painted a range of colours to differentiate themselves from each other.
We picked up a few supplies before leaving the islands, stopping for a few photo opportunities before we hit the road again.
We arrived at Camping Place Val Comeau and checked in. Our site was protected behind sand dunes and stunted coniferous trees.
We couldn’t resist an evening walk on the beach. Chloe had a blast, sniffing everything, getting wet and covered in sand, chasing thrown pebbles and birds. She was free and in her element.
At low tide, the sheets of sandstone are exposed. Over time, wave action grinds them down to form a sand beach.
The rising tide was reason to get the fishing gear out and cast a line for Stripped Bass. I tried various lures, and eventually had a strong hit. Standing high above the water on a rocky pier, gives one a good view down into the water. I hooked into a stripped bass measuring between 18 and 20 inches.
I brought the fish in close to the rocks and tried climbing down, unfortunately, my tackle was on the light side, and I straightened a clasp when the fish fought back. I watched my supper swim away, the victor of our encounter, my lure as its trophy. Fortunately, I have a few Bass Pro gift cards to replenish my tackle and lures.
We spent two nights at Val Comeau, relaxing, enjoying the beach, and admiring the stunning sunsets over the lagoon…despite being eaten alive by the evening onslaught of mosquitos.