Author: wellsmarsha

A few sights from around Newfoundland

We are heading to O’Brian’s Whale and Puffin Boat Tour into the Witless Bay Ecological Reserve an area preserved to protect seabird nesting habitat. We get on and up to the very front of the upper deck for a good viewing and photographing spot. Our tour guide, Con, does a good job of describing the life of various seabirds found nesting on four islands in Witless Bay. We pass by a pair of nesting eagles along the shore. It appears that many of the people on the boat have never seen a Bald Eagle up close. As we cross to the islands we see Atlantic Puffs, Common Murres, Kittiwakes, Razor Bill Auks, Thick Bill Auks, Guillemonts, and Great Black Backed Gulls. As we approach the island the air is filled with birds and the island is covered with more. It was great observing them at a close distance. Next we are on the lookout for whales. Up until last week the area was covered with Humpback Whales and Fin Whales but not now since the caplin are no longer near the shore the whales are leaving. We do spot a female Humpback with her calf and spend a half hour near them. Off in the distance a Fin Whale is spotted but it’s way off in the distance. Time to head back to port and off to the north we spot two Humpbacks breaching multiple times. They are not close yet we all have spectacular views of the breaching.

Back in port we decide it’s time to look for the elusive dildo. Wait, that needs to be capitalized, Dildo. That’s better. Dildo is the name of a Newfoundland village and home to The Dildo Brewery. We figure it’s the middle of the week so there will not be crowded. We are so wrong! To have food at the brewery it is an hour wait for a table and another hour more before food. This is 3 in the afternoon. There’s a music festival in town and it’s jammed at the brewery as well as any other place to eat along the waterfront. We resolve to leave. About two miles away there is a dive we decide to stop at and see if it’s even open. It is and we enjoy the best seafood chowder we’ve had so far in Newfoundland. It’s a treat.

Time to head back to our campground where we meet a couple from Maryland in an Aliner next door. Soon it’s time to eat and get ready of the night.

We wake to another mostly sunny day. Today our goal is to book a boat trip to the Witless Ecological Reserve for either today or tomorrow. With no cell service at the campground we head north towards one of the four tour boat sites. One tour is on a Zodiac where they bundle you up in storm gear since you often get wet. Wells rejects that choicee since salt water spray is not good for camera gear. Next we consider the tour that does the southern part of the reserve. We give them a call and their boat engine is being repaired but with no idea what day parts will be in. That leaves two tours to pick from. One a single hull and the second a double. The double hull makes a more stable platform for photographing but they are the ones that advertise they are the choice of the large tour companies so we decide on the single hull. The double hull says, “Guaranteed to see puffins,” while the single hull advertises, “No guarantee to see whales or icebergs.” With a puffin colony on an island one is assured to view puffins so that claim is lame while stating no guarantee to see whales or icebergs is the truth. There are no icebergs around here now so we don’t expect to see them. As for whales we have seen hundreds but at this time of the summer the caplin are no longer spawning so the whales are moving off shore. The time to see large numbers of whales is July. We sign up for the 11:30 am single hull cruise tomorrow.

We start exploring the southeastern portion of the Avalon Peninsular otherwise known as the Irish Loop. This part of Newfoundland was settled by the Irish. Views of the coastline are like so many parts of Newfoundland, spectacular. We decide on the destination of St. Vincent where the whales feed next to shore. We arrive with no whales in sight. A couple where there and told us last week there were scores of whales in close to the beach but now large numbers of caplin are no longer here the whales have left. We do see many Northern Gannets. If you have never seen a Northern Gannet you are missing a thrill. They are a large white seabird with black tips on the wings. They fly maybe 300 feet over the water looking for fish below. Once food is spotted it rolls over on it’s back and starts a vertical dive directly down head first into the water with a splash. It’s a great sight to observe, but just too far away to photograph. On Wells’ bucket list is photographing a Northern Gannet in full dive just before plunging into the sea.

The treeless landscape along the southern part of the peninsular reminds us of the arctic tundra we encountered last summer. We stop to stretch at a pull off and Marsha kicks into her interpretive sign reading mode. This tundra like area has a herd of caribou 3,000 strong that often can be viewed right here. We continue to look but without luck.

We stop for a late lunch at the Edge of Avalon Inn and Restaurant for delicious seafood chowder. Playing on the sound system is a collection of songs about the Maritime Provinces. Stan Rogers is in the mix. In all our travels throughout Canada over several years this is the first time we’ve heard him being played over a sound system. If you have not heard of Stan Rogers take a minute to Google him and listen to a song or two of his. You are in for a treat. Back in the early 80’s we were lucky enough to see him live. He died at the age of 33 in an Air Canada plane fire in June 1983 at the Cincinnati airport. He was returning from Texas where he had won top honors at the Kerrville Folk Festival.

Time to head back to the campground. We enjoy a few beverages with our Australian neighbors then a great meal of chili and salad created by Marsha.

We have only 50 miles to travel today to LaManche Provincial Park south of St. John’s. We putter around the campground at Pippy Park before we get underway close to noon. Shortly after rolling it starts raining and the fog thickens. The campground is near the Witless Bay Ecological Reserve consisting off islands off the coast. We hope to take a boat tour of the area so we at looking into it.

We arrive at the campground and with the rain Wells does laundry. Our campsite is directly across from the bathrooms which include a laundry room. With that done and the rain becoming intermittent we walk to a waterfall. Of course Wells has the wrong lens since it’s a long view to the falls but he still takes photos.

Next door to us is an Australian couple so we invite them over for wine and hors d’oeuvres . One thing leads to another and the next thing we know it’s 9:30. So much for supper. We part ways and read before slipping off to bed.

The Kirk clan comes to the park to see us and check out our Bambi Airstream. They are off to Quidi Vidi Brewery and we head to Cape Spear with plans to meet up later in the day. Let’s talk about Cape Spear, the eastern most point of Canada and North America. It’s the furthest east one can drive in North America. Last summer we made it to Anchor Point, Alaska, the western most point one can drive to in North America, and to Deadhorse the northern most point one can drive. Deadhorse is the working town for the Prudhoe Bay Oil Fields and the town’s name overstates the loveliness of the town. Now there are towns more north and more west but they are not reached by connected roads. Wells is a lister so he needed to get to Cape Spear. He is still pondering how do we get the Airstream to the southern most point of North America!

After exploring Cape Spear we head back to downtown wanting to hit Mussels on the Corner for a late lunch/early supper. Later we plan to go to O’Brian’s Pub to enjoy another jam session where both John and Trish will play. We find a parking spot up the hill and head towards our destination. This section of St. John’s is full of Jelly Bean Houses. These row houses line the steep streets leading up from the harbor. They all look similar in design except they are all different colors looking like jelly beans.

Just before we arrive at the restaurant we receive a message from John saying go to Mussels on the Corner and go upstairs to the back. They are up there. We head in and up the stairs. Turns out the lower part is Mussels on the Corner and the upper part is O’Brian’s Pub with the main entrance to the pub on the street above. There are Trish and John jamming with several local musicians. We don’t see anywhere to sit so we head back down to the restaurant part. Once the jam is over they join us downstairs for a feed. Sadly it’s soon time to say goodbye with us heading south tomorrow morning with them to Gros Morin National Park on Newfoundland’s West Coast.

Today we are out of the campground leaving the trailer there and head to downtown Saint John’s. Later today we will meet up with our friends John Kirk and Trish Miller along with John’s sister, her husband, and their daughter. First we head to downtown Saint John’s, one of the oldest towns in North America, for some urban exploring. There’s a music shop with tons of CDs, several small bookstores, a music instrument shop, and more. At one point Marsha says maybe we can find a bakery and four doors down one appears. We stop in and have a mid-morning coffee and croissant, delicious! It’s a sunny warm day in Saint John’s which is uncommon. This beautiful Saturday morning the city is coming alive with activity. We get a call from our friends and we can meet them at Signal Hill, a prominent high point at the harbor mouth. The deep water harbor, or as the Canadians spell it, harbour, is very well protected with only a narrow opening to the ocean at one of the most eastern points in North America. It is one of the most protected harbors from weather in the world. The most eastern point, Cape Spear, is just a few miles away and can be seen clearly from Signal Hill. We connect with the gang and hike around with lots of ups and downs along the harbor (harbour).

The seven of us head back downtown for a bit of browsing and a late lunch. Later we gather at a local watering hole, The Newfoundland Embassy, where John gets into a jam session with a couple of local musicians. It is a great day.

We pack up and leave the beautiful Bonavista Peninsular and head for the big city of Saint John’s where half of population of the entire province calls home. The four hour drive passes quickly as we make our way south to the Trans Canada Highway once more. The eastern end of the highway that crosses the entire country is Saint John’s. We’re in Pippy Park, a city park only 15 minutes from downtown. At a visitor center along the Trans Canada we are told of a Kitchen Party at 5 pm at Quidi Vidi Brewery just outside of downtown Saint John’s on the water. We make our way there and find it noisy and crowded. We enjoy an Iceberg Amber made with 20,000 year old ice from, you guessed it, an iceberg.

There is no way we are finding seats at a table for the show starting in two and a half hours so after the brew we find ourselves at a fish and chips truck and enjoy an early dinner. It’s back to the campground getting ready for the city fun tomorrow.

It’s a new month! Time does move along quickly while on the road. Over the last few days the front wheel has been making noise. Maybe it’s a wheel bearing or brake pads. Either way it needs repair. The owner of our campground suggests a place in Port Union, but said get there early since they are often busy. We skip breakfast and head the five miles to Port Union. Yes, they can look at it. We need new break pads. Parts can be here at noon and they can begin work right after lunch. With several hours to wait we locate a place for breakfast and do a bit of walking. Next it’s back to the auto shop for more waiting. By 2:30 we are back in the truck and heading back to camp for a quick lunch then on to Elliston. This is our third trip there. To our amazement there are up to 20 puffins on our side just hanging around. Wells using his big lens is having a field day with fantastic shots. His lens can only focus as close as 13 feet. Several puffins wandered closer than that! As long as people are quiet and calm the puffins are more curious than afraid. It’s finally time to say goodbye to the puffins and we drive up to the Bonavista Point and lighthouse.

In town we pick up a few items for supper and enjoy a barbecue back at camp.

With temperatures around 50 and rain late yesterday we are not sure what to plan for the daytime. Tonight we head to Trinity for a dinner theater. We wake to cloudy skies and cool temperatures but there is a promise of clearing. After breakfast we head to Elliston to view the puffins. Wells is more sensible today bringing only one camera and one lens. We are in luck with a few puffins on our side about 20 feet away. After a couple of hours we pack it in head south a bit to hike another trail that follows the coastline. This one is longer more than ten miles one way. We decide to hike out for an hour and back for an hour. Yesterday we saw many people doing the Skerwink Trail but this one today we see nobody. It follows along the rocky coast and just about any time we look out we see whales. There are not close to us but nevertheless easy to see.

Along the trail we see many bake apple berries (cloud berry) but they are not quite ripe. They make a great jam.

Once back at the campground we need to complete a bit of truck repair. We glue our truck bed cover gasket back on since it’s just about flapped away. We don’t need to make supper tonight since we are heading to a dinner theater in Trinity about 30 miles south. Trinity is a small quaint village with interesting buildings on a protected harbor. A couple of days ago Marsha secured two of the last available tickets for the theater at the Rising Tide Theater. One sits at long tables with all the others there. Across from us sat a young couple from Switzerland visiting Eastern Canada for a month. Next to Wells sat a Newfoundlander with is daughter and son-in-law and family friends from Alberta. Wells and him talked about where they had lived in the past. Both had worked in the Fort MacMurray, Alberta area where he helped build the Syncrude Oil Sands Plant while Wells collected baseline environmental data. Asking him what he does not thinking he is retired, he says he owns 18 different companies engaged in a wide variety of activities from construction to day care. He owns a helicopter so fly your helicopter? Nope, he has a pilot that flies him around. It was an interesting encounter.

The meal was so so, Cod Casserole or Roast Beef. We each had one then shared so we taste both. The production was a performance of music and short skits with about 14 people. It was a fun time. Time to drive back to the camp. Being dusk it is prime time to see moose or worse run into one. Newfoundland has more moose than just about anyplace in the world. The roadways have a cleared of bushes and trees near the road so that one can see moose before they are directly in front of your car. Car/Moose accidents are often deadly with a thousand pound body mass at windshield height. We have yet to see a moose on the trip and now is not the time to do so.