Spoffords Travel

Day 45 September 6, 2026 spent the day in Bangor Maine 8 miles

Today is partly cloudy. Looked like rain several times but not much fell.

Big mileage day today. So far, we have rolled 10,000 miles on this trip.

Rob spent the day replacing three bald tires. Only three out of six were bad. Now we should make it home. A Model A guy received them and stored them until we got here. Sure nice of him to do that. By far most Model A folks are good people.

Connie spent the day relaxing.

Day 44 September 5, 2026 St John New Brunswick to Bangor Maine 217.1 miles

Today was cloudy and rainy all day. Sometimes the rain was a mist and other times a real downpour. Add into that a strong wind and you get an unpleasant weather day. Lots of sections of the way the clouds are down low so you can’t see much. On the other hand the scenery is much the same all day. Lots of trees both evergreen and deciduous. A few hints of the fall colors to come are beginning to show.

One section of road about 15 miles long was extremely rough asphalt surface followed by very rough dirt surface. The asphalt surface had big patched pieces. Sometimes they patched the patches. Then there were bumps and dips everywhere. The car was bounced all over. Then came the dirt section. It had holes and bumps as bad as the asphalt. The gravel is gone so grating the road wouldn’t help. Usually the dirt roads have been good. We were glad to get off that road.

We stopped for lunch just before the border crossing. In the same parking lot was a very large Cannabis store. Obviously legal and popular in New Brunswick.

This was the smallest border crossing we have seen since the one in Alaska. Only one officer. The lane to go through was narrow and had a curve. No one is going to take that very fast. The officer was so thrilled seeing the car he didn’t even ask many questions. Just how many days we had been in Canada and the year of the car. Easiest crossing ever.

Tomorrow Rob should be able to pick up the new tires and put them on. Then we won’t be stopping every hour or so to blow up one of the tires.

Day 43 September 4, 2026 Dieppe New Brunswick to St John New Brunswick 158.9 miles

The weather today is cloudy with rain showers off and on all day. Sometimes only a mist and other times more. The weather man got it right this time. Everything was wet so it rained during the night.

The hotel had a nice breakfast so we got a good start. They also have a pool which was very popular even early in the day.

The trailer tire was flat as expected. Rob pumped it up after getting everything loaded. Then the car wouldn’t start. Too wet again. Woodie has never liked rain in Canada. When we were here four years ago we had similar problems. Luckily a little wipe down and it started right up.

Our first destination is Hopewell Rocks Provincial Park. This is where the “flower pots” are located. They are what is left of some of the cliff after thousands of years of erosion. On top of some of them are trees. That is what makes them look like flower pots. The tide is low when we got there which we thought was good. You park in a large parking lot and walk to the entrance where you pay about $15 each for seniors. Add on to that $2 each to ride a shuttle down to a view area with access to the bottom.

The rain has backed off to a drizzle but the golf cart ride was sure nice. The gravel path was definitely wet. At the end of the ride a short walk took you to a viewing area where you could see several of the pots. If you wanted to you could take stairs down to the bottom and walk through the mud and the pots. Quite a few people were doing this but neither of us had on shoes made for that. We took some pictures and returned to the Visitors Center.

The Visitors Center explained a lot about how the pots were formed and the animal life both in the sea and on land. We watched the time lapse video of the area going from low tide to high tide and back to low tide. The water doesn’t come up as high as Connie expected. They say it rises about 40 feet.

We ate a light lunch in the parking lot since we were already there. Lots more vehicles have arrived. The place must get really busy on nice summer days. Time to blow up the tire again and then we are off to the Fundy National Park.

The two parks are about 27 miles apart. We came to one stretch of construction where part of the road is slipping down the mountain. Makes us somewhat worried about the part we are driving on. Also glad we aren’t doing the work.

The fee for Fundy National Park is free until September 7. The park has lots of hiking trails with wilderness camping. Most of the camping seems to be tent. Not many places for camp trailers or motor homes. We did take one other road in the park. It went past the golf course and down to a tent campsite. To get to the campsite you must cross a covered bridge. The bridge will be closed starting September 8 for repairs. Nobody said what kind of repairs were needed but it held up for the woodie. Back to the main road through the park. The climb from the Visitor’s Center is long and relatively steep. We did make it up without help. The summit has an elevation of about 1000 feet. All that is visible from this road is trees. The road is too far from the coast. To really see the coast you must hike.

The drive to St John is about 80 mile. Still hills to climb but some farmland. A couple of small towns are on the way. Near Sussex was a very large processing plant for Potash. Didn’t realize that was for fertilizer.

We stopped at a grocery store to stock up on a few things again. It’s been really good to have some food on hand for at least one meal a day. We have often eaten three meals from our food supply.

We got word that the new tires were delivered to a Model A guy in Bangor, Maine. In a few days our tire issues should be resolved for the rest of the trip. Knock on woodie.

Day 42 August 3, 2026 Summerside Prince Edward Island to Dieppe New Brunswick 202.7 miles

The day is very cloudy with rain predicted by afternoon. Tomorrow is predicted more and longer so we have decided to tour a little more today and then head to New Brunswick. We found a hotel that has laundry and breakfast so we booked a room in case we get in late.

When Rob tried to start the car it wouldn’t start. Even with lots of tries it still refused. Then the starter stuck which means we have to rock the vehicle forward and back to loosen the starter. This is the first time since he put on the new starter switch. Well the first try at rocking didn’t work. He thought it acted like the engine was wet. He dried things off and applied wire dryer. We rocked it a little again and it started right up.

We headed to the east side of the island trying to stay on the roads less traveled. These roads don’t have towns. Just farms scattered all along. These are all smaller farms and most raise potatoes. If you are not a farmer you are most likely a fisherman.

A few notes about things on the island. Most houses have vinyl siding. Many have yards about an acre in size. Very few fences exist except where there are livestock. Lots of farms sell eggs and or fresh veggies. Many of them have stands out by the road. Single wide manufactured homes are quite common. Most houses have a porch or some kind of deck. Many have mosquito proof enclosures on the deck. At least 25% of the homes have solar panels on the roof or in the yard. Hydrangeas are a popular bush and they are incredible. The blossom are huge and numerous.

We came to an area where many of the houses were decorated with red, white and blue flags with one gold star. They might also have lawn decorations in those colors. Some had buntings strung from the house to the ground or around their deck. After some research we learned that these people are French Acadians. A large number of them live in this area of the island. We also learned that they are having a festival for the next 4 days. The British threw them out in 1755 so many of them went to Louisiana and developed into the Cajuns.

The road construction on Highway 2 held us up for a little it. They seem to be trying to add more lanes in one area. It was occurring right where we needed to turn. Luckily the road wasn’t closed. We hit it again on the way back.

We are headed for yet one more lighthouse located at West Point. We got to what the GPS thought was West Point but all that was there was a craft shop, fish processing and a closed restaurant. We stopped in the parking lot and ate a sandwich for lunch. An RV park is at the top of the hill. Most likely they can see the lighthouse. We just started for Dieppe.

The wind has really picked up and the clouds are looking much more ominous. One large cloud is very dark and threatening. Others are huge and white. We seem to be headed away from the really black cloud.

On the way we stopped at an ice cream shop. The island has lots of ice cream shops. This one happens to be bright yellow with a red top that is somewhat like a witches hat. The ice cream was really good. Connie had black cherry and sea salted caramel. Rob had black cherry and mint chocolate. The place was really busy.

We opted to take the bridge off the island rather than the ferry. As they told us on the ferry you don’t pay to get on the island but you do pay to get off. Sure enough the fee was $20 Canadian. The bridge is 8 miles long with only one lane in each direction. The semis do slow down because the wind is so strong. That backs up lots of cars.

The tire currently on the trailer has a slow leak so we must stop every hour or so to put in more air. Thank goodness for the plug in pump.

After checking in to the hotel we did laundry. The hotel had a pair of washers and dryers. They only charged $1.25 each. What a bargain. It is nice to have clean clothes for another week.

Day 41 September 2, 2026 St Peters Bay Prince Edward Island to Summerside Prince Edward Island 128 miles

We had Eggs Benedict for breakfast along with fresh fruit and muffins. Wow what a feast. Two cousins were also there. They are riding e-bikes on the island. Great way to start the day.

Our first destination for today is Cavendish which is part of the Prince Edward Island National Park. On the way we saw a sign for a lighthouse and made the turn. Again the lighthouse is not well visited. We drove in and out of the Stanhope portion of the Prince Edward Island National Park. The park has nice wide bike and walking paths along the cliff. Lots of people are out enjoying the day. No charge for this park either. Lots of lodging accommodations here too.

The cliffs along the shoreline are very red. All the soil in the area is also very red. Must be what the potatoes really like.

The area around Cavendish has lots of things to do with Anne of Green Gables. The house has quite a few cars but we don’t stop. Neither did we stop at the museum. This is an obvious tourist area based on the number of souvenir shops. We also saw a big tour bus.

After filling with gas but before we left the gas station, the owner of the local newspaper came up and wanted to talk. He wanted to know all about the car and to take pictures. We went back to the pumps so he could get a picture of the gas station owner putting in gas. We agreed to email him some information. It must be a slow day at the paper and he was looking for something to print.

A most interesting sign came up. A hearse was up on a pole. On the side of the hearse was printed “Used Body Parts”. Not sure if that was for cars or for people.

It was getting late for lunch so Connie Googled seafood. She found one about 25 miles away if we turned very soon. Turns out if we had just turned around it would have been much closer. Oh well saw some pretty country and some roads less traveled.

We found the restaurant and a pull through parking spot. Rob got seafood chowder and Connie got a lobster roll. The lobster roll was really good.

We got a motel room a short distance down the road. Connie caught up on some story telling and Rob swapped tires all around. Soon it will be time to figure out our targets for tomorrow. Heavy rain is coming on Friday so it may be time to leave the island.

Day 40 September 1, 2026 Rodd Brudenell Prince Edward Island to St Peters Bay Prince Edward Island 89 miles

We open the curtains to reveal mostly cloudy skies, small marina and a lawn game area. We ate a couple of oat bars for breakfast and then headed out.

The resort is one of those all inclusive places. We could also see tennis courts and a golf course. The parking lot is big so we assume they have lots of rooms.

Connie’s first choice was to visit Maritime Madness. They make lots of different hot sauces. You can sample them as well. They also make peanut brittle with hot peppers included. We had a fun time talking with the lady in the store. We also bought some of the sauces. So you could say we got sauced on Connie’s birthday.

We decided to head to the lighthouse on the eastern point next. On the way we stopped in Souris for fish and chips from a food truck. They use haddock for the fish. Then just down the street was the shop selling PEI potato fudge. We bought some of that too. We are helping the Canadian economy in a small tasty way.

PEI potatoes are Prince Edward Island potatoes. They are a big crop here. We passed lots of fields planted with them. Harvest season hasn’t started just yet. Signs are out at some farms selling new potatoes. We also saw large storage and/or processing plants for the potatoes.

We were almost to the first lighthouse when one of the tires on the trailer went flat. At least 10 people stopped to see if we needed help.

Then on to the lighthouse. Several cars are there but no place to turn around. Rob got to practice backing again until we could get in a driveway. We will need to be more careful. The lighthouse is small by some standards. It’s painted white with red trim. You can climb to the top for $7 but we declined.

On the way to the next lighthouse. We passed more potato fields and a few with corn and grain. This lighthouse was smaller and didn’t have any other visitors.

We ended up staying in a Bed and Breakfast in St Peter Bay. The house was built in 1870 for a farmer/merchant. It was also used by the next door church for a time. These folks have slowly been fixing it up.

Day 39 August 31, 2026 Margaree Nova Scotia to Rodd Brudenell Resort Prince Edward Island 210 miles

It rained pretty hard off and on all night. The ground somehow didn’t look all that wet. The water gets absorbed quickly. The skies this morning are very cloudy. A few rain drops fell as we prepared to leave.

We spent part of the morning finding the name and number of someone in Maine who might be willing to have some tires shipped to them for us. Turns out three of the tires are getting well worn. Thanks to Facebook we found a Model A owner in New Hampshire who knew a Model A owner in Bangor Maine. We left a message for the guy in Maine hoping he will call back.

Since there was no place to turn around, Rob had to take the trailer off and turn it and and the car separately. This was made more difficult because the trailer tongue is now bent due to the bad roads so the tongue wheel no longer rotates very well. With the help of another guest the car and trailer got lined up. We are on the road again.

A sign along the road advertised wood products made from larch wood. So after looking them up they are plentiful in the area. The wood is often used in ship building. The Vikings probably used it on their ships.

We crossed a one lane wood floor bridge. Wonder if that is made of larch.

The wind is really strong today causing the car to drift toward the other lane. That keeps Rob busy with the steering. Just in case you aren’t aware the steering on a Model A has lots more wiggle space. You can turn the steering wheel several inches with no result. Rob claims that the steering is relatively pretty good on this car.

We came to a section of road that crossed a body of water. On our right were white caps while on our left the water was calm.

We had to drive awhile on Highway 1 which is a major highway in Canada. The stretch here is currently one lane each way. Major construction is going on to make a divided highway with two lanes each way. It won’t be done anytime soon.

Shortly after we turned off Highway 1 the guy in Maine called back. He is willing to receive and hold the tires for us. Oh what great news! Rob then called and ordered three more tires. Expected delivery in 3-5 business days. A little later Rob got an email saying they had shipped.

We are on our way to the ferry to Prince Edward Island. On the way we passed through the town of New Glasgow. They have a NAPA store so we stopped to see if they had a starter switch. No but they could have one tomorrow. Rob has a workaround if we can’t find one along the way.

By the time we got to the ferry terminal there was only one more to go but we will be on it. You don’t pay when going to the island. You only pay when going off. The wait was about 45 minutes and the ride was about 75.

We found the name of a motel about 15 miles from the ferry terminal. It’s late enough to be getting dark. When we found the motel it was very small. No office just check Expedia. Well the place was booked full. A resort with rooms was available another 15 miles or so away. Rob booked that. Then there was no turn around location where we were. That meant slowly backing up until we could turn. Now its very dark. Remember that Model A headlights are not very bright. The roads are barely two lanes wide with no shoulders. The lines on the road if there are any are extremely faint or covered by asphalt patches. Sure was glad to see the resort entrance.

Somehow we were upgraded to a suite. Such a nice room with a short stay.