Busy Weekend

After Wendy’s bloodletting Saturday morning, (in preparation for a Doctor’s appointment on Monday) we went off to the Kingston Farmers’ Markets with Lynn and Dale. It was a perfect, sunny fall day and Lynn brought her camera to capture landscape views. We eyed the goods at the market, purchasing some really good sausages, carrots, onions and apples.

Instead of heading straight home we went to Brent Rourke’s “Barn” in Bloomfield. Brent is a meticulous woodworker who produces wonderful Shaker boxes, among a variety of wonderful and beautiful items. Dale, an amateur woodworker who has inherited his father’s tools, was inspired by the professional set up in the Barn.

They had some food at the Barn, but no place to sit and enjoy a meal. Wendy, still reveling in having an appetite, suggested we proceed to the Inn at Evandale where we’d had a good meal on another trip. Despite frequent stops in dangerous places to facilitate Lynn’s landscape collection we made it to the Evandale Ferry and across the St. John River for lunch. The day was gorgeous and the trees displaying perfect fall colours with whole hillsides a riot of reds, yellows and greens.

Sunday was a gloomy, wet day and, of course, the day we had booked a boat tour along with a bunch of Museum folks. Inappropriately, it was a three hour tour (no the boat wasn’t named “Minnow”) and Wendy kept breaking into the theme from Gilligan’s Island. The view of Saint John and surrounding area from the Kennebecasis and St. John Rivers gives a totally new perspective on our city. The size of Grand Bay, the body of water that flows out through “Reversing Falls”, is quite astonishing at water level. It is much larger than it appears from the shoreline. Development along the shores is increasing at a very rapid pace and many of these new homes seem to be large for the sake of being big. I suppose if you pay a lot for a lot, the house you build has to reflect that cost.

Randy Miller, the Museum’s Curator of Geology, gave us interesting information about the visible geology along the shoreline. Gary Hughes, Curator of History and Technology, provided us with some fascinating history of the river, settlements, mills and the steamboat era. Interestingly, Dale’s father’s first job was Freight Agent for the last two riverboats on the St. John River.

Eagles, loons, cormorants, mergansers and a great blue heron cooperated by letting us spot them. The Captain added some of his own anecdotes from fifty years on the River and brought us safely back to the marina. A comfortable indoor seating area protected us from the elements and passengers were inquiring when the Museum would arrange a next trip – a spring outing seems likely.

It was a great weekend, topped off by Wendy beating me by only one point in UpWords.

Harvey