T`Railway and Tamarack
A Bicycle adventure from St John's Newfoundland to Fredericton New Brunswick via the Eastern Divide Trai (EDT).
Newfoundland - T`Railway
Segment 1 of my trip crossed Newfoundland, mostly on the T`Railway, an old rail bed that is primarily an ATV trail now. I was running short of time (and under estimated just how slow going this would be) so ended up taking the bus from around Gambo to Corner Brook. The trail is typically ridden West -> East to account for prevailing winds, but I actually had a tailwind on several days, which helped make up for the huge amounts of rain. Don't let the photos fool you; In addition to Instagram FOMO rules, Nobody takes pictures in gale-force storms. Trail quality varied dramatically. In rural areas it's often a heap of railway ballast down the middle, with drainage channels on each side and alders crowding in. Near cities and towns it is much better. I was late in the bike season but still surprised to encounter no riders on the route, and only two road touring cyclists when I detoured onto the highway. There was some (but not excessive) ATV traffic, which increased as I neared the Port aux Basques ferry terminal.
Newfoundland Route
Day 00
I flew the red-eye from Calgary, arriving in St John's at 6:30am. After retrieving my gear and a much-needed coffee I headed to the (sunny but crisp) parking lot to assemble my bike. Bye-bye box; burn the ships!
From the airport I headed mostly downhill towards the city harbour.
Next up was a trip out (and back) to Cape Spear, to (metaphorically) dip my toe in the Atlantic at North America's farthest eastern point. I quickly realized that for a place with no real mountains there is a lot of elevation; i.e. what goes up, must come down.
From Cape Spear it was back - up and over - to St. John's and then an overnight stay in Mount Pearl before starting up the Avalon Peninsula.
Days 1 - 3
I headed along the coast and then inland before turning North. A rainy and very windy afternoon had me looking for some shelter for my tent in the late afternoon. You can camp pretty much anywhere along the rail trail, but there are limited dry, flat clearings; Newfoundland is pretty swampy (related: I did find some wild blueberries!). The cooler temperatures did mean few bugs - but lots of slugs in the morning!
The sun came out for the next evening and I detoured to a potential campsite at a Pond (Newfoundlanders love their ponds - sometimes you'll see a HWY sign that's just ponds 😀) about 10km off-route. I was about to get cleaned up (sans clothes) when I heard a motor. I few minutes later an ATV pulled up at the dead-end where I was camping, with a couple in their Polaris RZR, smoking like chimneys and the Stompin' Tom blasting on the stereo. I don't speak Newfie very well, but gathered he was checking to see if he could get his boat into the water the next day to go duck hunting. Sure enough they arrived at 7am the next day as I was packing up (this time in camo) towing their boat.
At this point I realized I was not going to stay on schedule, and had booked passage on the ferry to Nova Scotia five days out. I decided to catch the bus to Corner Brook, which turned out to be a very good (very lucky) idea.
Days 4 & 5
My route followed the TransCanada Hwy for the most part, and a bus runs each direction once a day. You can get on at numerous stops, and bring your bike if there is room. I got to Corner Brook, booked an AirBnB while enroute and enjoyed a soft bed, warm shower and hot meal.
Days 6 - 8
The trail out of Corner Brook was pleasant riding, but the weather forecast not great. Two days before my planned sailing to Nova Scotia the weather in the Cabot Strait had winds over 45 knots and waves greater than five meters. After a very wet night I detoured to the Midway (I assume, murder) Motel which was clean and cheap - no complaints here - before finishing with some fun ocean-side riding into Port aux Basques for my overnight ferry. They had cancelled all sailings for the previous two days (with people waiting to travel) but I arrived to clear skies, mild temperatures and a reserved seat. It was funny to ride onto the ferry on myh bike, in a procession of motorcycles and ATVs.
Nova Scotia and New Brunswick - Tamarack
Segment two is named after the Tamarack, or Eastern Larch, found in the area. It started at the North Sydney ferry terminal before heading up the Cabot Trail but quickly leaving the scenic paved road and climbing into the Highlands on logging roads. Again, I over-estimated my pace and was worried about having to skip most of New Brunswick, so took the bus through central Nova Scotia before riding through Moncton, along the Bay of Fundy and finishing with a big push into Fredericton. The route was a great mix of good gravel/logging roads, single track, decommissioned railway, snowmobile trails and a little pavement to tie it all together (and numerous short ferry trips).
Nova Scotia and New Brunswick Route
Days 9 - 13
The ferry arrived in Nova Scotia at about 7am, and after an OK (not great) sleep with dozens of my closest friends - many with apparent respiratory issues - I had breakfast and bought supplies for the next leg of the journey.
My campsite the first night in Nova Scotia was great, the deck of a former seasonal RV camper in the Cape Breton Highlands. There were some trailers around but no people. It kept me out of the rain and the strong winds the next day dried my tent before packing up. I also saw the only moose of the trip.
The next day I neared Inverness around 7pm, with sunset at 8pm and no good prospects for camping, so the night would have to be an outlaw camp. My satellite map suggested a dirt clearing but it was obviously out-of-date as it turned out to be the cultivated greens for the nearby championship golf course. I waited until dusk then pitched my tent on the fringe, a good approach and decent lie on manacured grass! It was conveniently shielded from the road but I could hear drunken golfers until they turned offthe lights around 11pm. I was packed and on my way as the sun came up. The trail down the coast started with challenging climbing and single track into Mabou, then fast rail trail along the coast.
I overnighted in Port Hawksbury then took the bus across a big portion of Nova Scotia. The bus line packing requirements/instructions were a confusing mess, but thanks to a nearby Dollarama I improvised successfully. I rode into Moncton, then checked out the reverse tide that flows up the river more than 20km from the Bay of Fundy. This happens twice a day, but that doesn't stop dozens of people from filming the entire thing, including the pre/post wait (the city has an electronic sign telling you when it occurs, so not sure why the build-up) and the crowd's reactions. It was kind of neat but - to quote NS Rockers, Sloan - underwhelming. I resupplied and enjoyed a riverside beer (before visiting the same brewery near Alma two days later).
Days 14 & 15
The last major riding stage took me from Moncton to the coast and along the Bay of Fundy, then back inland to Fredericton. After getting out of Moncton I rode snowmobile trails to the Fundy National Park. I ended the day with a downhill into Alma and camped in the nearby park. The morning was verry foggy, with limited visibility and wet condensation - a new experience for this BC/AB boy!
The weather was dry but threatened rain the next day, and I was about to learn about the constant up & down along the Fundy Parkway. In less than 50km I climbed more than 1,500 meters, and had no mountain summit to show for it! The Parkway is paved, free for cyclists and has relatively light traffic, but some very steep grades. It rained most of the day but cleared in the evening. The area I was riding through got more populated with limited camping options, so my site was for the last camp of the trip was a wide spot on a dirt road off the main route.
Days 16 & 17
Nearing the end of my trip, the weather was not looking good and I still had about 150km of riding. I decided to push hard and get to Fredericton, booking accommodation when I was back in cell coverage. The day started fun, with some fast gravel and two ferries (time for snack breaks), but then then rain and wind picked up in the mid morning. I continued to grind it out, getting wetter and slowly closer to Fredericton. I had gotten a cold on day two in Nova Scotia which had stayed out of my lungs but now came back with a vengeance for my last day, making the final riding... "type 2 fun". I pulled into Fredericton in heavy rain, put my bike away wet and cleaned up my gear, but first a hot shower and dry clothes. The next day it rained harder, so I had avoided a wet & miserable night and another day of rain riding. The local bike shop hooked me up with a box (I had called a few days earlier) and my last day in Fredericton was beautiful. I visited their compact downtown core (for a shave and haircut) and explored numerous riverside bike trails before packing up and flying home. Overall it was a big adventure, and the logistics worked out great. It was definitely more "civilized" than some trips but there was periods of good, challenging riding and lots of new experiences.
Summaries
September 2026 - 17 days
- 1,200km
- 10,200m
Maps and Routes
NFLD
- https://bikepacking.com/routes/newfoundland-trailway/
- https://bikepacking.com/routes/edt1/
- https://ridewithgps.com/routes/39319729
- https://www.google.com/maps/d/viewer?mid=1UieuRO3cdNkwrAmmxpmh_cMJ4ow&ll=48.99073137423689%2C-54.86919663999965&z=15