New Brunswick
The nearly 1,000km journey through New Brunswick (Nouveau-Brunswick in French parlance) is full of large swaths of forest, fetching coastal views, and the opportunity to experience rural life at its best.
The ratio of paved to gravel riding is a little more skewed towards the former in New Brunswick, but for the most part the paved riding takes place on quite country roads with minimal to moderate traffic.
The route also takes some of the same direction as the Eastern Divide Trail through the province.
The route is best tackled between June and October. June to mid-August can be peak bug season, while September raises the risk for tropical storms.
Because of the mixed terrain, an adventure style bike is best meaning fatter tires and generous gearing.
Some of the roads may be within active logging operations. It's your responsibility to yield to all logging traffic.
In some areas cell service can be spotty.
It's also worth knowing about hunting areas and the season for this activity. If riding in areas with active hunting be sure to be highly visible.
The route file provides a fairly detailed listing of camping and food locations as well as viewpoints, but other may exist along the trail.
If you would like more information about this segment of the Great Northern Bikepacking Route or have information about the route you would like share please be in contact.
Highlights include:
- A sample of the trails at Sugarloaf Provincial Park, the granddaddy of mountain bike areas in the province.
- Trail riding along the scenic St. John River. The people of Wolastoqiyik First Nation call the Saint John River Wolastoq, which is Maliseet for "beautiful river”.
- A handful of lovely waterfalls if you know where to venture
- New Brunswick has more covered bridges than any other province, and you’ll pass through some of the most charming ones.
- Riding on an abundance of quite forestry roads
- A visit to St. Martins, a lovely seaside community with a photogenic harbour whose daily rhythms are guided by the rising and falling of the world's highest tides.
- A journey on the Fundy Trail, a trail that snakes along the clifftops awarding many stunning Bay of Fundy views.
- Riding the Fundy Parkway, 30km journey hugging the Bay of Fundy coast with stunning views in every direction. Located in a 2,559-hectare park that weaves together the UNESCO fundy biosphere reserve, Stonehammer Geopark and the Trans Canada Trail in one. It was born out of the idea to help preserve one of the last coastal wildernesses between Labrador and Florida.
- A sampling of the fun trails in Fundy National Park with some great backcountry camping options.
- Soak up that Canadian Maritime culture and hospitality
