In my first article about touring New Brunswick, we were about to reach the Bathurst area, more precisely the Atlantic Host Hotel which is located directly on trail #19. We rode the last 30 kilometers of that second day under heavy snow and windy conditions not to mention the very few trail markers on the trail. I would like to say that without the experience of our colleague and friend Yves Thérien who was leading the group, it would have been really hard for us to reach our destination. But, as we arrived early enough, we were given the opportunity to park our snowmobiles indoors and were greeted by the owner himself of the Atlantic Host, Mr. Keith DeGrace.
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After a good night sleep and a delicious breakfast, we were ready for our third day of riding towards the famous Moose Valley Lodge. We refuelled as we left Bathurst and we headed north and west on trail #19, riding in front of the clubhouse of the Chaleur Snowmobile Club in Sormany. The trail was fast, with plenty of snow and properly marked today. We turned north at the intersection of trail #22 with a quick stop at the Island Lake Club. If you are a snowmobiler who likes to ride towards the end of the season, you don’t want to miss the large gathering which is held each year in Island Lake on the first week-end of March. It is very much like the Jambon-Creton event in the Monts Valin area.
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If your schedule allows, you can also make a short detour further west on trail #19 to visit the Caribou Wind Park which was built a few years ago. I discovered this site during my last visit to New Brunswick in March 2010. As we had already planned for 300 km on our third day, we could not make it this time. That same trail will also bring you to Mont-Carleton Provincial Park where a network of trails is being developed for the 2015-2016 season. The intent is to have trails available from early December to the end of April. Snow conditions in this area of the province can be favourably compared with those found in the Chic-Chocs Mountains.
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As can be seen on the above pictures, New Brunswick trails differ a lot. The first pictures was taken on trail #250 just south of Campbellton and the second one, on trail #17 that goes through Kedgwick where we stopped for lunch and gas. The last 80 km of this same trail #17 will take us to the Moose Valley Lodge and are just extraordinary. The Moose Valley Lodge, which will be our place for tonight is already famous among residents from Bas-Saint-Laurent; it is like an oasis that offers all amenities (restaurants, lodging, fuel, garages and even internet) in magnificent surroundings. Off-trail riding is also very popular there. The Lodge is accessible by road year round should you wish to use your trailer to start your season early or finish it late.
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On the last day of our tour, we will not be able to stop too many times in order to reach Rivière-du-Loup early enough to be able to trailer back to Montreal before the end of the day. For this last 200 km of riding in New Brunswick, we will be using trails #17 W and #12 N that have both been groomed overnight all the way up to Edmundston. We will then leave New Brunswick on this same trail #12 that becomes FCMQ trail #85 up to Rivière-du-Loup. After one last fuel stop just north of the border, we finally reach our destination around 12:30 and are reminded to set our watches back to Eastern Time, or if you prefer, one hour less than Atlantic Time.
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Our visit in New Brunswick has been very interesting. Snow levels went from minimal in the north-western part of the province to optimal in the north-eastern part. Québec snowmobilers must experience the people’s warm welcome, the quality lodging and the diversity of trails available in New Brunswick. I hope I will be able to return myself next winter and ride all the new trails I mentioned earlier. I would also like to discover some of the trail network further south. Finally, I want to thank my colleague and friend Daniel Sasseville for letting me use some of his pictures in these articles, he did quite a good job. Thanks for following me on this journey through the Northern New Brunswick Odyssey. Hope to see you in the trails this winter !
