I would like to acknowledge that Edmundston is situated along the Madawaska and Saint John rivers, the traditional territory of the Wolastoqiyik First Nation (sometimes called the Maliseet First Nation by settlers).
My partner has regaled me with his trips as a kid on the mountain on the edge of Edmundston, New Brunswick, Canada searching for Bob LeBoeuf’s gold mine. So when we had a chance to go see “La mine d’or” (the gold mine) I felt I had to say “oui” to the hike.
We grabbed a tourist map and he sighed “it looks like they’ve tamed the mountain.”
Later he made a more accurate map:
It was a beautiful day but the first part of the trail “des cascades” was a steep climb right up the mountain. That’s where “Nat questions life choices.”
We then toodled along to the branch for the gold mine path.
That section was rated difficult and I ended up doing a crab walk/scuttle down the shale and a few bum scoots on the descent.
Bob’s gold mine was a scam, he had to give investors’ money back, the scamp. It is a story retold many times since my father-in-law was a young lad.
Bob never struck gold but he did get a beer named after him. It’s a tasty treat from Les Brasseurs du Petit Sault.
The mine is really a fissure where a spring weeps out of the shale. At one point there was a hole but it is long gone. 
The view of the Madawaska Valley was worth it.
The climb back up to the main path was a scramble and I was on all fours a few times and often pulled myself up with trees.
Apparently other people stop and take breaks on the benches.
It was a great trail and we had the mountain to ourselves on a glorious Saturday in August.
The path is clear yet wild and just perfect. Thank you Michel for taking me through part of your personal mythology.
