Camping at Gibson Falls

This Labour Day weekend, Dad, Mom, Sarah, Cole, Steve, Chelsey, Rachelle, Madeleine and I decided to go camping. Cole knew of a spot near Woodstock that he used to go to as a kid and suggested we try camping there. The campsite is at the top of Gibson Falls, a 20 m high waterfall located on the Gibson Creek near Woodstock.

To get there from Fredericton, we followed the scenic Route 105 from Mactaquac to Grafton, and then turned onto the Upper Kilmarnock Road. Next time, I would probably take the Trans Canada to Woodstock and then cross the Saint John River to save some time. The Upper Kilmarnock Road is a dead-end dirt road in fairly good condition that continues deep into the woods. There are several camps along the road near the bottom of the road, but they become sparse as the road climbs further into the woods. After about 10 minutes of driving, there is a bridge over the Gibson Creek. The access road to the falls is on the right hand side of the road immediately after the bridge. Either drive or walk the remaining 100 m, and follow the trail on the right toward the sound of the waterfall!


After we unloaded all of our gear we were ready to check out the waterfall! It wasn't a very hot day - about 20 deg. C - but we wanted to go for a swim anyway. After all, it isn't every day that you get to swim beneath a waterfall. Since we had no idea how deep the pool at the bottom is, we scaled down the steep hill toward the far end of the pool (where I am standing to take this picture) and swam over to the falls rather than jumping off the huge cliff. You can actually climb up on the rocks to the right of the falls and jump in from there.



I always love camping near water, whether it is near the ocean, a lake, a river, or a waterfall. Because of all the recent rain, this waterfall was loud! The land at the top of the waterfall (just behind and to the right of the big cliff in the top pictures) was the only logical place to set up our tents. The land was uneven so it took some time to find an ideal spot.



And of course, no campsite is complete without a kitchen for the chefs to do their thing! Here is Mom getting supper ready on the camp stoves.



Overall, this was an awesome place to visit and camp at and I would definitely return. The only downside was that it seems to be pretty well-known in the area and some visitors have left garbage behind, which is too bad. We were lucky to have the campsites to ourselves this weekend, and a good time was had by all. Here are Madeleine, Steve, Rachelle and Cole hanging out by the campfire.