uphill and down
While doing a search for a particular plant we know grows in the area, my husband and I took a side road through rural Victoria County in New Brunswick. We drove from Route 109 (near the top of the map), south through Upper Kintore and Lower Kintore, to Muniac, a distance of about 23 kilometres.
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(Map Source: New Brunswick Atlas, First Edition)
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Kintore was settled in 1873 and named for the town of Kintore near Aberdeen, Scotland. In 1898, Kintore was a railway station and had a post office and a population of 75. (Source: New Brunswick Archives)
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church and school house in Upper Kintore 2016
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Interesting to me was the very well-cared-for one room Upper Kintore School, built in 1877.
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Upper Kintore School built 1877
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Our drive took us uphill through Upper Kintore, along Big Flat Brook (a tributary of the Tobique River). The road peaked at Lawson Hill and then ran down, through Lower Kintore. Again, the road followed a watercourse, the Muniac Steam (a tributary of the Saint John River). As we drove we talked about the road — the earliest roads took the easy way, along the brooks. The southern part of the road was banked by steep rocky roadcuts.
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the Muniac Stream near Lower Kintore
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Since I am interested in the plants children might encounter on their way to school, I was happy that this is the time in New Brunswick when most of our roadside wild flowers are in bloom. We saw Black-eyed Susan (Rudbeckia serotina Nutt.), Red Clover (Trifolium pratense L.), Bedstraw (Galium sp.), Daisy (Chrysanthemum Leucanthemum L.), Bladder-Campion (Silene Cucubalus Wibel) and Meadow Rue (Thalictrum polygamum Muhl.). Quite a bouquet! I have to remain aware that some of these plants have become very weedy and invasive since the early 1900s and may have been hard to find in the 1800s. For example, in the photo below, just above the Black-eyed Susan, you will notice a plant of Wild Parsnip (Pastinaca sativa L.). In New Brunswick, Wild Parsnip is a invasive species, probably introduced by Europeans in the 18th century as a food source.
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Black-eyed Susan along the road
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Do you have any favorite rural drives through communities with interesting histories?
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Copyright Jane Tims 2016
nichepoetryandprose 
I love going with you on your drives, Jane.
Every fall when the leaf colors are peaking, we take a drive up Route 169 here in Connecticut. It’s a National Scenic Byway in the “Quiet Corner” of Connecticut. A website describes it perfectly:
“Traverse one of the last unspoiled areas in the northeastern United States. This byway winds through history, passing colonial homesteads, churches, stone walls, meeting houses, and private schools as it connects classic New England towns. Views include maple and pine stands and glacially deposited rocks and boulders that lie strewn throughout fields.”
Besides the autumn colors, we especially enjoy the endless varieties of stone walls… Hmmm – maybe I should take some pictures when we go this year!
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Barbara Rodgers
August 7, 2016 at 10:24 am
Stone walls are beautiful. The best part of our drives is just being together. We don’t always see the same things but exploring is in our blood. We are lucky to have such interesting and beautiful roads to explore in New Brunswick and all along the east coast.
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jane tims
August 7, 2016 at 9:31 pm
What a delightful area! The pictures are so relaxing and beautiful. I love to take drives through the rural area in Pennsylvania where I grew up.
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Sheryl
July 23, 2016 at 6:36 pm
Hi. My mom was born in Pennsylvania, so we have driven there and marvelled at how big the trees are! I love the rural roads! Jane
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jane tims
July 24, 2016 at 8:36 pm
A great journey, Jane, around our little province. I too am following with delight.
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rogermoorepoet
July 22, 2016 at 9:16 am
Miles to go …
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jane tims
July 22, 2016 at 9:35 am
Your quests and their chronicling are good for New Brunswickers and the world. Thanks Jane. I am glad to read along.
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acalvern
July 22, 2016 at 7:24 am
Hi Allison. Your quests will take you so much farther … Hope you will tell us all about it!
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jane tims
July 22, 2016 at 8:47 am