Saint John is the largest city in the Canadian province of New Brunswick, and the second largest in the maritime provinces. It is known as the Fundy City due to its location on the north shore of the Bay of Fundy at the mouth of the Saint John River, as well as being the only city on the bay. Saint John was the first incorporated city in Canada
On high looking at St John and the island in the distance is Canada's Ellis Island. It is now a park
Some buildings in town.
A mental hospital use to be here now a park with wooden carved statues telling a story of the area.
The St. John River itself flows into the Bay of Fundy through a narrow gorge several hundred feet wide at the centre of the city. It contains a unique phenomenon called the Reversing Falls where the diurnal tides of the bay reverse the water flow of the river for several kilometers. A series of underwater ledges at the narrowest point of this gorge also create a series of rapids.
The diurnal tides of the bay force the flow of water to reverse against the prevailing current at this location when the tide is high, although in the spring freshet, this is frequently surpassed by the downstream volume of water. The rapids, or "falls", are created by a series of underwater ledges which roil the water in either direction, causing a significant navigation hazard, despite the depth of water. As a result, vessels wishing to enter or exit from the river must wait for slack tide. In Saint John the height difference from low to high tide is approximately 28 ft due to the funneling effect of the Bay of Fundy as it narrows. The Reversing Falls in Saint John, actually an area of strong rapids, provides one example of the power of these tides; at every high tide, ocean water is pushed through a narrow gorge in the middle of the city and forces the St. John River to reverse its flow for several hours.
This is a pic of the river just at low tide.
This is the river about three hours later. The tide is really going out now. We were at a dinner and did not get back to see the reverse as the tide comes in and pushes the water up river.
Martello towers, sometimes known simply as Martellos, are small defensive forts that were built across the British Empire during the 19th century, from the time of the French Revolutionary Wars onwards.
They stand up to 40 feet high (with two floors) and typically had a garrison of one officer and 15–25 men. Their round structure and thick walls of solid masonry made them resistant to cannon fire, while their height made them an ideal platform for a single heavy artillery piece, mounted on the flat roof and able to traverse, and hence fire over, a complete 360° circle. A few towers had moats or other batteries and works attached for extra defense.
The Martello towers were used during the first half of the 19th century, but became obsolete with the introduction of powerful rifled artillery. Many have survived to the present day, often preserved as historic monuments.
In the later half of the 19th century, there was another spate of tower and fort building, during the premiership of Lord Palmerson. These fortifications are therefore correctly called the Palmerson Forts, although, because they are circular in design, some confuse them with Martello towers.
beautiful flower
This is our last full day with the caravan and so we had our farewell dinner at Lily's Cafe and it was very good. We are getting up in the morning and have breakfast and then head to the USA! It will be great to be in the States again. Our next stop is Montpelier, Vt. and I know I will not have internet there.
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