In 2019, ever exploring, I drove up to Point au Mal then onto the end of the road to Fox Island River. It was a nice drive, shorter than I'd thought it would be - only about 18 km from the main road, which continued on to Port au Port. And so, I'd parked and admired the few old crumbling cabins across the very wide river, which appeared as if a cove. There I'd talked with a feller, who'd told me at low tide I could get over to the other side at 5pm. Then I'd mentioned that to a young gal who'd said, you'd need some tall boots to do that and it would be a long walk through water and mud. Then it began raining, so I put that idea to rest. Besides, I didn't have boots with me. Four years later, the thought remained - on my bucket list. Driving up from Port-aux-Basques, I headed for Lourdes, but Fox Island River beckoned, so I turned right by the gas bar on to Hynes Rd. Despite the purported bad road condition, I had no problems at all. Low tide would be in the late afternoon. At the end of the road, I parked by the river, stepped out of the car, and walked over to two guys, who were getting ready to take off on their boat. "Just wondering, if maybe, uh, you could drop me off at the other side?" I asked. The other side, a long spit, was only about 30 feet away, where once there was a very long wharf. "No problem," said one of them. Nice! So, I quickly walked back to my car, put on my rubber boots, and grabbed the camera. How lucky indeed! One of the fellers said that low tide was still going to be about three feet deep, but still walkable. Then two other guys arrived and I helped them load their big trays on to the boat. They also had two very heavy trays full of bait fish. And so, we took off and they quickly found a nice spot, even moved the boat slightly on to the sand for me. Off I stepped, thanking them. "If you're still there in two or three hours, we can take you back," said the skipper. And off I hiked over to the old pilings, taking photos here and there. Finally, past the long line of pilings, I walked up to an old cabin and an old truck wreck. Further inwards, I spotted a two-floor house that was caving in. And so, I walked around it and gazed inside. Eventually, an hour or so later, I walked back over the rocky spit towards the harbour, and didn't see the two trucks the guys had parked. Also, I'd seen a boat heading towards the dock. So I hesitated, thinking maybe they'd already come back for some reason. So, I turned around and opted for the long way around and across the very wide river. Lots of areas were free of water. Low tide it was. I looked for a good spot to begin the crossing. At first, it was only a foot deep or so and plenty of rocks to walk on, then I got down about 3 feet and soaked. Then up again on to one of the exposed land areas, then into the water again, always carefully looking for a narrow crossing. One of the crossings had a very strong current, so I had to go very slowly against the current and trying my damndest not to fall. Hell, I had my camera! Then on and on I continued, through the water, then on the land, then back in the water, etc. Somehow, I actually made it without falling on my arse into the water. Wow.That was great! What a joy to have finally done Fox Island River! Two young guys suddenly arrived in an ATV. "You want a Dew?" asked one of them. "Sure, thanks," I said. And he handed me a can of Mountain Dew soda. Nice! We talked for a moment. I asked if I could take their photo cause I wanted to write an article for Downhome mag. Well, they said, they'd never heard of the mag. And off they went. Nice fellers indeed! Then I spotted an interesting boat wreck on the marsh, so I trudged over to it and - fell on my arse. The mud had grabbed my left foot. Well, finally I was muddy and dirty. All the way across the river and I hadn't fallen. Sitting in the mud, I laughed out loud. I took some photos of the ship, then walked cautiously across the mud marsh to the car, stripped naked and put on dry clothing. Whew. That was an adventure, at least for me. Off I drove to Lourdes, then on to the dirt road to Blue Beach, which was now nicely graded, much better than the last time I'd driven on it. It was about 10 km long. I was able to drive about 30 km/hr. Finally there I parked and what the hell, I decided to hike to the point with the new metal lighthouse. It was about 4 km to the point and back. At 9, finally in the car, I opened a can of beer. Labatt Blue. KO at 9:30. G. Tod Slone Barnstable, MA   Submitted By: NULL