Visit Caves at St. Martin and Reversing Falls by rental car from Saint John port

[TOCruisers]

We (2) are considering renting a car and visit the caves in St. Martins  then Reversing Falls (Rapids) or vise versa.  The tide schedule for Sept 10 is as follows and we will be there 7:30 am -6:30 pm. 

 

1.  Since it takes 40+ mins  each way, is it correct to understand we will not be able to visit the bed of river and caves that day?  Also if the lowest tide is 1.9 m,  can you actually walk around the river bed/caves at the lowest tide?  I prefer not to take two pairs of long rain boots if possible.

 

2.  What will be the best route to maximize the tide schedule on Sept 10. 

 

3. Is there enough parking space near the caves area in St Martins and Reversing Falls viewing area in Saint John? 

 

Any advice or tips are appreciated. 

 

9/10/19  (Tuesday)
Saint John
Time	Height
ADT	(m)	(ft)
3:59	1.5	4.9
10:12	7	23
16:23	1.7	5.6
22:33	7.4	24.3

 

 

9/10/19  (Tuesday)
St Martins
Time	Height
ADT	(m)	(ft)
3:59	1.9	6.2
10:18	8.3	27.2
16:23	2.2	7.2
22:39	8.6	28.2

 

 

 

Edited August 7, 2019 by TOCruisers
typo

[kmerlin14]

There is parking at both places. I suggest you go onto google maps and try and do a street view of where you are going if you can. The parking for the Reversing falls is a left hand turn just after you go over the bridge over the falls. That will take you into a large parking lot which also serves the restaurant. 

 

The Fundy trail near st. Martins has parking and lookoffs along the trail. (There is a fee to go onto that parkway). I can't remember if the caves are before or after the entrance to the parkway, but there was a big parking lot near there as well and I like the fish and chips in the restaurant.

 

If you are driving yourself , keep in mind that Saint John has a lot of one-way streets, so it will really help to have a navigator in the car with you. I usually get lost several times when I visit. Allow extra time to get places and especially to get back to the ship.

[TOCruisers]

22 hours ago, kmerlin14 said:

There is parking at both places. I suggest you go onto google maps and try and do a street view of where you are going if you can. The parking for the Reversing falls is a left hand turn just after you go over the bridge over the falls. That will take you into a large parking lot which also serves the restaurant. 

 

The Fundy trail near st. Martins has parking and lookoffs along the trail. (There is a fee to go onto that parkway). I can't remember if the caves are before or after the entrance to the parkway, but there was a big parking lot near there as well and I like the fish and chips in the restaurant.

 

If you are driving yourself , keep in mind that Saint John has a lot of one-way streets, so it will really help to have a navigator in the car with you. I usually get lost several times when I visit. Allow extra time to get places and especially to get back to the ship.

 

Thank you for the detailed info and tips.  I will be the navigator.   Do you have any idea/guess when is the best timing to see the cave with the above tide schedule?l 

[kmerlin14]

I go to Hopewell Rocks quite often, so I think I only wandered out on the beach at St. Martin's once, and I'm not sure how long before and after the lowest tide you can access the caves. You'd probably want some type of footwear that can handle the mud even at low tide. Usually I do some hikes along the Fundy trail when I go to that area. The scenery can be quite spectacular. 

Here's the link to the Fundy Trail website.

http://fundytrailparkway.com/

[shadowmeboy]

We rented a car through enterprise in Saint John and went out to St. Martins. It was awesome having the car.

 

here is my vlog from Saint John and it has a bunch of what you are considering in it.

 

[TOCruisers]

On 8/12/2019 at 10:15 PM, kmerlin14 said:

I go to Hopewell Rocks quite often, so I think I only wandered out on the beach at St. Martin's once, and I'm not sure how long before and after the lowest tide you can access the caves. You'd probably want some type of footwear that can handle the mud even at low tide. Usually I do some hikes along the Fundy trail when I go to that area. The scenery can be quite spectacular. 

Here's the link to the Fundy Trail website.

http://fundytrailparkway.com/

 

Thank you for the link.  It certainly looks spectacular.  If the low tide at St Martins does not work out for us, this maybe a very nice drive part way.

[TOCruisers]

12 hours ago, shadowmeboy said:

We rented a car through enterprise in Saint John and went out to St. Martins. It was awesome having the car.

 

here is my vlog from Saint John and it has a bunch of what you are considering in it.

 

 

Thank you for the great video.  I am very surprised by the empty road!    What did you wear on the bed at St Martins?  I am still not sure our timing works out or not at St. Martins, but we will try.  Since it did not look too crowded, you did not have problems parking?  kmerlin14 above mentioned where I can go to park.  

[jewel_beth]

We are actually planning on doing the same thing the following week!  Our tide schedule will be slightly different, but not too much.  TOCruiser, I would love to see what you come up with for your drive itinerary when you figure it out... 

[shadowmeboy]

22 hours ago, TOCruisers said:

 

Thank you for the great video.  I am very surprised by the empty road!    What did you wear on the bed at St Martins?  I am still not sure our timing works out or not at St. Martins, but we will try.  Since it did not look too crowded, you did not have problems parking?  kmerlin14 above mentioned where I can go to park.  

 

We wore normal shoes as the tide was working its way in when we were there. So it had dried out a lot in the time it was out.

[TOCruisers]

11 hours ago, shadowmeboy said:

 

We wore normal shoes as the tide was working its way in when we were there. So it had dried out a lot in the time it was out.

 

Good to hear.  I have no room for pairs of boots in my luggage.  We stopped taking one each of luggage long time ago to save a few bucks.

[TOCruisers]

22 hours ago, jewel_beth said:

We are actually planning on doing the same thing the following week!  Our tide schedule will be slightly different, but not too much.  TOCruiser, I would love to see what you come up with for your drive itinerary when you figure it out... 

 

Well, as it stands now, we have to play (or drive?) by ear although we continue further researching.  We are in Saint John on Sept 10th, how about you?

[jewel_beth]

We are there on 9/20.

[mrp4352]

Depending on where you're renting from, you may consider spending the little bit of money for a cab to pick up your car.  For my family (admittedly out of shape), the hill/mountain that we had to go up and down to get to Enterprise was a rough start to our day.  The car rental was absolutely worth it though.  We went the other direction out to St. Andrews.  No caves, but we could walk on the sea floor and got some stunning views of difference in the Bay with the tide going out.