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New Brunswick Week—Driving the Acadian Coast

Stretching 110 miles from Shediac to Caraquet, the northeastern coast of New Brunswick boasts the warmest waters north of Virginia, the sand dunes of Kouchibouguac National Park, lonely lighthouses on Miscou Island, and the largest lobster processing facility on the continent. Yet, the real reason folks go out of their way to venture to the Acadian Coast is to experience the French Canadian culture. Stop at any of the small towns and you’ll notice a distinctive joie de vivre, with foot-stomping fiddle music, down-home French cooking accentuating the local seafood catch, and festivals that celebrate the Acadians’ 400-year-old history in the Atlantic Maritimes. One step inside the local boulangerie or patisserie and you’ll realize that this part of New Brunswick is just as French as Quebec, the reason why New Brunswick is the only province in Canada that is officially bilingual. This week, I’ll be driving the Acadian Coast, on assignment for The Boston Globe. I plan to go lobstering, biking, sea kayaking, and more. I’ll fill you in on all the details, so you’ll know exactly what to do on your next trip to the Atlantic Maritimes! 
 

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Big Island Off the Beaten Track, Part Three

Guest Post and Photo by Amy Perry Basseches
 
This is the last post about my May 2018 week in Hawaii. For this one, I’m going to focus on a few unusual and not-to-be missed sites we visited other than the ones already described in Holualoa and Hawi. So much fun!
 
One day, driving along, my daughter and I saw a small sign on the side of the road for the Paleaku Gardens Peace Sanctuary. We both love to be outdoors so we gave the botanical garden a try. We were not disappointed in the hours we spent wandering the paths through unique plant and rock arrangements, orchards, and groves, including the world’s first galaxy garden, a 100-foot diameter outdoor scale model of the Milky Way, mapped in living plants and flowers. Who knew?
 
PuÊ»uhonua o Hōnaunau National Historical Park is a US National Historic Park on the site where, up until the early 19th century, Hawaiians who broke a kapu (ancient law) could avoid certain death by fleeing to this place of refuge, or puÊ»uhonua. The offender would be absolved by a priest and freed to leave. While it has a slightly reconstructed hokey feel, I was glad to understand more about historic Hawaiian communities from long ago through an archeological site tour including: the authentic 400-year-old "Great Wall," temple platforms, thatched structures, and royal fishponds. 
 
Many people recommended "snorkeling with Manta Rays experience" which was cool but crowded (so be prepared). Due to bright lights shining from hotels on land, plankton and the manta rays which feed on them have concentrated in certain areas on the Big Island. We went out with Fair Wind Charters on their evening Manta Snorkel, leaving from Keauhou Bay, and were surrounded by other boats and lots of excited tourists. Mantas are very gentle – no teeth, stingers or barbs — and, while we were holding onto a floating frame looking down, they swam all around us in a graceful show, taking in large quantities of plankton through open mouths. This outing requires a comfort with wearing a wetsuit, being in the water for a long time, and using a snorkel, but no special "skill". Definitely something you won’t see or do ever again! 
 
In the Hawaiian language, lomi means "to knead, to rub, or soothe," and lomilomi massage practitioners use their palms, forearms, fingers, knuckles, elbows, knees, feet, and even sticks and stones. Historically, future practitioners were selected in childhood, around age 5, based on birth signs such as weather events, birthmarks (especially on the head), and kind behavior, and they required a decade or more of study. Lomilomi today, like so many ancient art forms, has been corrupted. Beware if you are trying to get a lomilomi massage; seek someone specially trained, like Teresa at Ka Lima Hana Kukui. Her massage is still a modernized version of lomilomi, but she grew up watching her grandparents performing lomilomi massage using Kukui nut oil, and her massage was wonderful. 
 
Please contact ActiveTravels if you are interested in any aspect of Hawaii and ask Amy for Big Island recommendations. We’d be glad to help. Don’t worry too much about heading to the Big Island with the unpredictability of the Kilauea volcano; it is 100+ miles away from the Kona airport!
 
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A Visit to Bardstown, the Heart of Kentucky Bourbon Country

Drive south of Louisville and within 45 minutes, you’ll pass the Jim Beam distillery, a signal that you made it to Kentucky Bourbon Country. More than 1 million visitors stopped at Kentucky bourbon distilleries in 2017, a number that has risen exponentially in the past 2 to 3 years thanks to the surging popularity of bourbon around the world. And perhaps no place is more emblematic of the current love of bourbon than my first stop, the Bardstown Bourbon Company. Friends in Louisville had recommended the recently opened restaurant, Bottle & Bond Kitchen and Bar, and they were right, the sweet potato gnocchi, shrimp and grits, and brisket sandwich were all mouth-watering delicious. But one lunch with David Mandell, CEO of Bardstown Bourbon Company, and I realized this facility is a whole lot more than a restaurant. Mandell had made his money in vodka before having a vision in 2013 to create one of the largest bourbon distilleries in the state. Opened in September 2016, he now collaborates with 22 renowned brands to craft custom bourbon and whiskey in his production facility, already filled to capacity over the next 5 years. Mandell didn’t stop there. He created a Culinary Institute of America-like environment where student from around the world can return home and become ambassadors of bourbon. Then he debuted Bottle & Bond Kitchen, the first restaurant at a distillery on the Kentucky Bourbon Trail, featuring more than 400 vintage American whiskeys at their Whiskey Library (curated by acclaimed whiskey writer Fred Minnick). Mandell’s still not finished. He’s hoping to build a first-class hotel, a luxury property needed to attract international visitors to this sleepy town. It’s wonderful to witness a dream come to fruition on such a mega-scale. 

 
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Driving from Clarksdale to Natchez, Mississippi

Since I already wrote about Asheville and Charleston this week, let’s continue south to Mississippi and a memorable drive my brother Jim and I once took. In the small Delta town of Clarksdale, learn about the birthplace of the Blues at the Delta Blues Museum, and then spend the night at one of the most intriguing properties in America, the Shack Up Inn. Set on the Hopson Plantation, where the mechanical cotton picker made its debut in 1941, owner Bill Talbot has converted six former sharecropper shacks into his own version of a B&B (bed and beer). The next morning head south on Highway 61 through the rolling green farmland that makes up the heart of the Delta. Eventually you’ll reach the trenches Union and Confederate troops dug during the Civil War’s bloody Siege of Vicksburg, now a National Military Park. Another hour of driving and you’ll find that gem of a town on the Mississippi River, Natchez. During its heyday prior to the Civil War, when cotton was king, Natchez had more millionaires per capita than any other city in the country. They built palatial estates, like Monmouth Plantation, your final stop. Monmouth’s meticulously landscaped grounds, shaded by centuries-old oaks and their thick dress of Spanish moss, is bursting with colorful azaleas come spring. 

 
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3 Great Things to Do On Vermont’s Lake Champlain in Winter

Fish It
If you think ice fishing means dangling a line on some remote pond while extremities turn numb and lips go blue, you’re in for a big surprise. These days, winter anglers can sit in a heated shanty and watch Super Bowl while checking their lines for any nibbles. February and the March are the two best months for hooking landlocked salmon, northern pike, lake trout and bass on Lake Champlain. Rent a shanty from Captain Gill Gagner for $90 a day or he’ll guide you all day for $200, including all fishing gear.

Kite It
Head to Cape Cod in summer and you’ll no doubt find kitesurfers catching air and zipping across the ocean. Now with the help of a good wind, you can glide on iced-over lakes and snow-covered meadows. Called snowkiting, the sport has its annual powwow, Kitestorm, on February 26th and 27th on Lake Champlain. Come with skis or snowboard, boots, and a helmet, and instructors will attach you to a kite and get you started. If you can’t make it to Burlington over those dates, contact Rachael Miller, owner of Stormboarding, for lessons and equipment.

Coast It
Take cross-country skiing and merge it with ice skating and you get the new phenomenon sweeping across the wild rivers and lakes of New England, nordic skating. Equipped with boots that are more comfortable than typical figure or hockey skates, and blades that glide atop the ice much like a speed skater, this Scandinavian craze lets skaters travel great distances at a much faster speed than cross-country skiing. Try the sport in the town of North Hero on Lake Champlain February 6th or at the Lake Morey Resort in Fairlee, Vermont, on Sunday mornings in February.
 

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Salt Lake City’s Urban Renewal

Not unlike many cities in North America, the wide streets of downtown Salt Lake City were practically deserted once the business day ended. Workers might stay late to catch a performance of the Mormon Tabernacle Choir or have a business dinner at Christopher’s Prime Steakhouse, but there were relatively few options to lure you to the downtown corridor. 
 
Fast forward two decades later and Salt Lake City has become one of the most desirable cities to live in the country, a low-key version of Denver surrounded by similar majestic peaks. With its proximity to Alta, Snowbird, and Park City and the promise of a healthy lifestyle, Salt Lake City has seen a population explosion spurred on by folks yearning for a better quality of life. No longer is the city, home to the headquarters of the Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints, lacking in diversity. In fact, the latest figures show that almost half of the population of 170,000 is not Mormon. An ethnic population hovering around 35 percent has led to an explosion of indigenous fare and a growing reputation as a foodie destination. Even a thriving bar scene has started to emerge downtown.
 
The full story on Salt Lake City’s urban renewal can be found in the November issue of Global Traveler magazine. 
 
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Raft the Snake River and Receive a $200 Discount

ROW Adventures, recently crowned the world’s #1 Tour Operator by Travel & Leisure magazine, just announced that they are offering a $200 discount to adults and $300 discount to kids 16 and under on their 5 and 6-day jaunts on the Snake River in 2013. So on a 5-day trip, you would now pay $1430 for adult, $1185 per child, including all food, beer, wine, and soda, guides, rafts, and full-service camping. Space is very limited, first come, first serve, and they must receive your deposit by Monday March 4th. What do you get in return? The chance to cruise through Hells Canyon on Class III and IV rapids on a rip-roaring ride through the deepest river gorge in North America. This is not the Colorado River, where you freeze your butt off in the water. Temps on the Snake average a perfect 70 degrees in summer. If interested, contact ActiveTravels at 617-614-9877. 
 

4 Comments

  1. Hi Steve,
    Definitely stop in for cafe au lait and a crossant at Grain de Folies in Caraquet – you’ll think you were in Paris. And the Village Historique Acadien is a must!
    Bon voyage.
    Meredith

  4. Your great grandfather’s house is quite picturesque, Steve! Thanks for the lobster fishing offer. I’ll take you up on it next time I’m in New Brunswick! Having a great trip, but jam packed.

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