Mactaquac Provincial Park: A Picturesque Park With Fun For All Ages
Directions:If you are driving south on highway #2, take exit 258 and follow the signage for Route 102. From there you will need to take the Mactaquac/ French Village exit. This exit will lead you across the Mactaquac Hydro-Electric Dam. Continue going straight until you reach the park. The park entrance is on the left.If you are driving west on highway #2 you will need to take highway #7 just past Oromocto and before Fredericton. From highway #7 take exit 6B-A and loop around to Route 8 west. You won’t be on route 8 very long and you will need to take exit #3 onto Route 102 north. From there you will need to take the Mactaquac/ French Village exit. This exit will lead you across the Mactaquac Hydro-electric Dam. Continue going straight until you reach the park.
Facilities:There are 300 campsites that are somewhat wooded. When we stayed there the washrooms were fairly clean but not as modern as I expected and somewhat scarce. Three-way service is available, along with semi-serviced and un-serviced sites.
Are you interested in New Brunswick Golf? The Championship Golf Course at Mactaquac Provincial Park can be seen as you drive along the road to the park entrance. This is a scenic 18 hole, par 72 with all kinds of wildlife including some waterfowl in the water hazards. It comes complete with a full service pro shop, a restaurant, canteen, locker rooms and a practice fairway.
As I entered the park to join the rest of my family who were camping, there was a deer just a few feet from the road grazing on the golf course very unconcerned with the vehicles so close to him.
The tent cabins at Mactaquac Provincial Park have a view of part of the obstacle course of Tree Go.
Winter Activities:Skating, snow shoeing, sliding, cross-country skiing, and snow mobiling are some of the winter activities that make this park a year around facility. Our kids love the sliding at Mactaquac because the hill is groomed and they can go very fast. They actually have two sliding hills…one is a fairly steep hill mostly for older kids and one has a more gradual slope for small kids. Recent government cuts were made to the budget that would have seen this park close in the winter season to save money. I am very happy to say that pressure from the public has forced them to remain open at least for the weekends.
Travel Tips:Mactaquac Provincial Park makes a great central location to explore the many attractions in the area. The city of Fredericton is a 10-minute drive away and has many attractions of its own. The Mactaquac generating station does tours of its facility for those interested and Kings Landing Historical Village is 15-minutes away.
Then there is Tree Go, whose entrance is just past Mactaquac Provincial Park at the York Centennial Park entrance. This is an obstacle course in the trees. Ever dream of being Tarzan or Jane? Well here’s your chance! The picture above has a red arrow showing someone on the tree go zip line over the water. This is the final hurdle in the obstacle course. What a view!!!
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Mactaquac Provincial Park has some beautiful recreation facilities that include a playground, mini golf, and a recreation center. There is free swimming at the supervised beach, with a paid entrance to the park and many hiking trails to explore. Fishing, canoeing, and windsurfing are also popular activities at this park since it borders with the Saint John River.
Mactaquac Provincial Park has four tent cabins at a very reasonable price for those people who want the tenting experience without actually sleeping on the ground or getting wet if it rains. The tent cabins are just a shell of a cabin that occupy one of the tent sites that contain no washroom facilities (You use the facilities just like the other campers in the park.) but they do have power and there are wooden bed frames inside to put your air mattress and sleeping bag on. It is a great idea if you have friends or family who would like to tent with you but they don’t have a camper. They can rent a tent cabin and you can get a site near them in the same park.
