Road Trip to Gagetown

I find autumn depressing. I can't help it; the temperature begins to drop and all I can think of is freezing for six months. Given that I'm biologically-opposed to winter (I have Seasonal Affective Disorder), this feeling of impending doom is something that's a bit hard for me to shake.

With all of this in mind, I decided last Friday that I was going to make peace with autumn. Camera in hand, I hopped in my car, and headed for the highway. I went first to Fredericton, to Chapters, in search of an elusive magazine that's sold out, and then decided to take the river road home. And, given that I spent ten years in tourism telling everyone that they ought to visit Gagetown because it was a pretty little village, I decided it was time I actually checked it out myself.

Well, tourist season in Gagetown was pretty much over as of Labour Day. Almost everything was closed, but Grieg Pottery was open. I pulled up in front and was greeted by a curious tortoiseshell cat (whose name, I later learned, was Tilley, named after the Father of Confederation who had his summer home in Gagetown).

Inside the pottery shop, I found all kinds of nifty things (including, oddly enough, a card I could have bought at the City Market here in Saint John). The lady working there was very friendly and we had a good chat. I think the friendliness of the people is one of the things I love best about living in the Maritimes. She also recommended that I attend Christmas in the Village in a few weeks.

After leaving Grieg's, I headed a little further down the main street. There was, of course, the inevitable Irving convenience store, and an Anglican church with a cemetery that just begged for me to come take pictures of it.

I was very conscious of lots of people looking at me, driving by in their various vehicles and shaking their heads ("Crazy tourists"). That was half the fun! The crunching leaves was a sound I'd somehow forgotten over the years, and suddenly I felt about five again. That's a pretty neat trick!

Here are a few more pictures I took on my mini road trip, including the old inn at the ferry landing in Evandale. I tell you, if I ever win the lottery, it would make a lovely writers' retreat!
























You can see the rest of the pictures I took in the set on Flickr. Enjoy!