Month: August 2016

After yesterday’s early start to make the boat tours, we enjoyed sleeping in this morning (the time change hasn’t been bad, but being 1.5 hrs ahead makes it a little bit harder to wake up in the morning).  We planned to hit the northern reaches of the park today.  First stop was Shallow Bay, just past Cow’s Head.  We walked for several kilometers along the beach and enjoyed picking up sea glass along the way.

On the return, since we were walking into the wind, we decided to take the old mine path and Autumn enjoyed brushing her hands against the junipers as we walked through the forest.

Next stop was Broom Point fishing village, which Parks Canada has restored to look like what it did back in the 1960’s when a family lived there during the summer.  The park ranger explained how the lobster traps and cod nets worked, then we checked out their little cabin that housed 10 people back in the day.  Fishing was/is a hard living!  Now a-days cod is no longer king in the area (post moratorium) – lobster and crab fetch a better price at market and less labor intensive.

Autumn was looking like she needed a nap, so we figured a little bit of driving would do her some good; we headed back down to Norris Point to check out the Bonne Bay Marine Station Aquarium.  Autumn woke up just as we were pulling into the parking lot.  She enjoyed checking out Kraken the green lobster, Bruce the sea cucumber, Apollo the Lion’s Mane jellyfish and some of their other more touch-friendly friends in the petting tank (she mostly enjoyed splashing the water).

Next up was The Cat Stop for some cod nuggets and a hot dog.  We noticed a trail that looked pretty gentle leading out to a point in Bonne Bay and took the leisurely stroll to get some awesome views of Neddy’s Harbour and Norris Point.  On the return trip, there was live music and we had to stop and take in the awesome views and savor the moment.

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=6NNxumkgvjc

We returned to the B&B pleased with such a relaxing and rewarding day.  After freshening up, we made our way out to Lobster Head Cove lighthouse for our third spectacular sunset in the Rocky Harbour area.  Gros Morne was beautiful throughout our stay and we cannot recommend it enough!

Today was a day of boat tours and pleasant weather surprises.  We woke up to gray skies and a forecast for thunderstorms.  I called to confirm if our 10am Western Brook Pond tour was still on this morning and was told “of course!” (I guess one can’t be easily deterred by the weather in Newfoundland).  We drove north in the park and could barely make out the Long Range Mountains in the clouds/fog.  The hike up to the Western Brook Pond (it’s a 3km hike across boardwalks through the bogs) was gray and rainy and I had my doubts about the point in going on the boat tour in such weather.

After boarding the boat and making our way further into the glacially carved fjord, the sun came out and created the picture perfect scenes that had been promised in the tourism brochures.

https://gfycat.com/ViciousSpeedyIndigowingedparrot

 

I’m not sure if we just got lucky or if it’s common for the valley to be protected from the weather by the 1,000 ft. plus high cliffs, but either way, we were grateful for the unexpectedly pleasant change in the weather.  There was a senior tour group aboard the boat and it was as if Autumn had 40 adopted grandparents aboard the boat.

After the amazing Western Brook Pond tour we had to hustle back to the car for the 2pm Bonne Bay tour.  The focus of this tour was more on the wildlife, geology and history of the area.  The guides we very knowledgeable and humorous.  We spotted several bald eagles, a multi million dollar yacht and some historical fishing cottages.

The more relaxed pace was much needed and Autumn napped the entire tour (poor tired baby!)  Afterwards, we grabbed a bite to eat (seafood chowder) and an iceberg beer at the little café at the dock then made our way back to the B&B.

After freshening up, I headed out to the local grocer to pick up a few breakfast provisions and the little gift shop for some Bakeapple jam (local speciality – like a mild orangish raspberry).  We decided to go checkout the Coastal Trail and watch the sun set while the waves came crashing in on the rocks on the Gulf of St. Lawrence.  Watching the sun drop steadily behind the horizon was so wonderful.  The fresh, crisp air has us longing for autumn back home.

Tomorrow we’ll go check out the Northern portions of the park.

Today the weather was picture perfect in Twillingate (just in time for us to leave…oh well.)  We had a long drive (5 hours) ahead of us to make our way out the western portion of the island.  The drive was easy, but we noticed that things got steadily more remote and sparsely populated the further west we drove.

Upon entering Gros Morne NP, we immediately went to the park discovery center and hiked up Lookout Trail (we’ve learned to take advantage of any and all sunshine!)  It felt good to stretch our legs (or in JD’s case carrying the Osprey pack/child carrier, feel the burn!).  The trail climbed very steadily, but the panoramas of the Tablelands, Gros Morne Mtn./Long Range Mtns., and Bonne Bay were absolutely worth it!

Descending the trail was 5x faster than the ascent – thank goodness – clouds and rain were moving in!  We checked out the Discovery Center and Autumn enjoyed honing her walking prowess (she can now go clear across a room!)  We grabbed a pizza on the way into Rocky Harbour and checked into our lovely B&B (we have a view of the harbor from our room!).  We’re looking forward to exploring more of the park tomorrow!

We woke up to a gigantic breakfast at the B&B and rolled out of Gander, NL thoroughly stuffed.  We stopped by the shore of Gander Lake for a photo op.  At 27 miles long and nearly 1,000 feet deep, it’s hard not to miss when entering town! https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Gander_Lake

Fun fact: Gander played a big role in helping out on September 11, providing a safe haven for nearly 6,000 passengers that were stranded after the terrorist attack when the FAA grounded all inbound commercial aviation traffic.  Our hats off to our friendly neighbors to the North! https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Operation_Yellow_Ribbon

The drive up to Twillingate was scenic – the sun was shining, the water was a beautiful shade of blue, we passed over several bridges, traveling island to island.  Unfortunately, there were no pull-offs to snap a picture.

Our first stop was the Long Point Lighthouse to hike the Lower Head Trail.  Just as we arrived, we noticed rain in the distance and decided it best not to start the hike knowing we’d get wet.  We did meet some friendly Bernese Mountain Dogs in the parking lot that just wanted to be petted.  Too cute!

We decided that a visit to the Auk Island Winery would be a good way to pass the rainstorm.  We sampled several of their fruit wines, (they make them with locally sourced berries), but had to take turns since Autumn wanted to walk all over the gift shop and pull every stuffed animal out of its bin.

The rain looked like it was letting up, so we headed over to the B&B (waterfront!) to drop some bags off then made our way back up to the lighthouse at Crow’s Head to restart our hike.  The skies were still gray, but we did see some glimmers of sunshine as we hiked the trail.  Our eyes have been spoiled lately – this hike was beautiful, but didn’t have quite as much of the wow factor that the Skerwink Trail had.  We did have the place to ourselves, which is always nice in contributing to the feeling that we are literally at the edge of the world and “getting away from it all”.

We finished up around 6pm and were considering going to the Split Peas concert (http://www.twillingate.com/events/split-peas/) , but noticing we were the only ones under age 85 in the waiting area and sensing that Autumn had had enough for the day, we figured we’d share the crowd Autumn’s version of “singing” (aka velociraptor screeching at the top of her lungs. We grabbed some fresh fish n chips and headed back to the B&B.

Onwards tomorrow to Gros Morne Nat’l Park.  Fingers crossed for safe travels and some good weather!

Today we made our way over to Tera Nova National Park.  The Trans Canada Highway actually cuts right through the park.  First stop was the visitors center.  The rangers had good suggestions of baby-backpack friendly trails.  (One even played peek-a-boo with her from behind the counter!)  We first did the portion of the Coastal Trail (the second potion was closed for trail work).  We enjoyed views of the Newman Sound as we strolled through the forest.  Autumn enjoyed a lovely backpack nap (this is becoming a thing for her).  We then enjoyed a nice picnic lunch behind the visitors center on the waterfront.  There were several whale skeletons to check out and really gives you an appreciation for how large the whales we saw in days past actually are. We walked around on the dock and saw tons of Lions Mane Jellyfish in the water.

https://gfycat.com/CluelessOpenIguanodon

Back in the visitors center we checked out the “petting tank” that had starfish, crabs, urchins, cucumbers, etc.  Autumn enjoyed watching the critters move around in the pool.  The water was piped in from the sound outside and was FRIGID!

We also learned about the Moose population being out of control on the island. (http://www.pc.gc.ca/eng/progs/np-pn/sf-fh/terranova/lgde-sm.aspx).  (Side note: coyotes came over via ice from Labrador…also wreaking havoc: http://www.env.gov.nl.ca/env/wildlife/all_species/coyotes.html).  Interesting ecosystems develop on islands.  Before leaving, the park warden approached us and asked for our address, so he could send Autumn some Parks Canada goodies.  How cool!

Hike #2 of the day was Sandy Pond.

https://gfycat.com/MajorJollyIcterinewarbler

What a gem!  It was an easy 3 km stroll around a beautiful pond and bog.  Tons of wild blueberries all along the trail!  Autumn enjoyed backpack hike #2 of the day.  Unlike the frigid ocean waters, Sandy Pond is a really shallow inland body of water, so it was swimmable, but didn’t come prepared for swimming.  We saw some cool frogs in the bog on the walk back to the car.

https://gfycat.com/DimImperturbableAsianelephant

We drove to our B&B in Gander, had dinner at a kid-friendly place and settled in for the night at the B&B with some local beer.  On to Twillingate tomorrow!

 

Today was rainy, but we didn’t let it damped our spirits.  We were excited to explore the Bonavista Penninsula.  We set out for King’s Cove to do a little hike up to a lighthouse dating back to 1892. Once we got up to the lighthouse it started to drizzle, so we decided to take the shorter loop back to the car.  We were rewarded with wild blueberries growing trail side and helped ourselves to a nice little snack. As we were packing up our gear to get in the car and head out to Bonavista to see the lighthouse, a gentleman pulled up and asked if we needed directions or suggestions.  He suggested we take a little detour to the town of Keels (population 60) to see the cottages atop the rocky bluffs over the ocean.  We were in the mood for exploring, so we figured “why not?”

Keels isn’t exactly on the tourist map, so as we rolled into town we turned some heads.  As we were turning around at the end of a street, a Newfie man came out to greet us.  He asked if we liked Newfie music and we said we hadn’t heard much of it yet, so he invited us in to listen to some.

We entered Francis and Dorothy’s house as complete strangers and left as friends.  He told us about his music and sold us his CD.  He gave Autumn a Christmas ornament and some cookies.  We’re going to try to get his music onto Folk Alley and then he’ll really be famous.  Francis then offered to drive us to our next destination (even though we have GPS, he insisted).  Before leaving town we checked out the Devil’s footprints, which are interesting formations in the cliffs by the ocean.  He then proceeded to floor it along the coastal road and we had a hard time keeping up and nearly got pulled over by the Canadian police.  Francis waited for us as we caught up after slowing down so as not to get a ticket.  We parted ways at the Bonavista lighthouse, but upon his request, we will send a Christmas card and visit him when we return to Newfoundland.  The lighthouse was great, but the 20+ whales cruising out in the bay stole the show.  We saw several cruising in packs, feeding on the capelin, a few breaches, some nice fin slapping and tail action as they dove.  We’re not sure if they were Humpback or Minke whales.  I’m going to go to sleep tonight with the sound of them surfacing and breathing in my head.  So beautiful!

On the way home, we had planned to see puffins in Elliston and check out some of the old homes in Trinity, but the rain was getting worse and Autumn had had enough for the day, so we turned in early.  We’re looking forward to Terra Nova National Park tomorrow!

 

We awoke this morning to beautiful views of Bay Bulls.  I wish we were staying at Bread and Cheese Inn more than one night – what a beautiful place!  There was the possibility of JD going cod fishing with a friend of a friend this afternoon, so we decided to start making our way up to the Clarenville area in case that offer panned out.  Turns out we were mistaken about the fishing and had to come up with a backup plan, which ended up being way more spectacular than we imagined possible.  A quick google search of “hiking in the Trinity area” yielded a funny sounding “Skerwink Trail”.  TripAdvisor thought highly of it, so we thought “the sun is shining, why not?!”  To put it simply, the Skerwink was 5.3km of hiking bliss.  As far as hikes go, it was easy on the legs (thank goodness: carrying Autumn in the Osprey pack isn’t easy), and we were rewarded with specular views the entire way.

We found ourselves saying “is this real?” and “no way”!  By the end, we were saying “this is just ridiculous”.

https://gfycat.com/MemorableFittingAsiaticgreaterfreshwaterclam

Hiking along the cliffs (but not too close to the edge (not to worry, moms!), sparkling waters with whales and waves crashing down below, beautiful seaside towns (Trinity) off in the distance, boardwalks through the pine forests.  We saw some folks that had their dogs with them (talk about a nice place to take your evening stroll!)  Pictures really do not do this walk justice; we were so fortunate to have stumbled upon it.

https://gfycat.com/KnobbyCleverGreatdane

Upon returning to the B&B, we picked up some sandwiches and salads at the local supermarket and dined al fresco overlooking the bay and Random Island.  We’re finding it much easier to do take out than drag Autumn to a restaurant after we’ve already been dragging her around all day.  She’s a happy camper if she gets the chance to practice her new walking skills in the room before and after the days’ adventures.

 

This morning we woke up to some drizzle, but it was gone by the time breakfast was over.  Our first stop of the day was Signal Hill, a large rocky overlook that affords great views of the ocean, Cape Spear and most importantly, St. John’s harbor.  Cabot tower sits atop Signal Hill, where Marconi sent the first transatlantic signal across the Atlantic Ocean.  It was quite windy, but Autumn managed to nap most of the time in the baby Bjorn.

We then made our way to the Avalon shopping mall (fun times!) to get a Canadian Sim card for our cell phones.

Witless Bay is an ocean ecological preserve that is home to hundreds of thousands of pairs of puffins as well as humpback, minke and fin whales.  We went out with Gatherall’s Whale and Puffin Watch and were not disappointed.  We saw no less than 20 whales lunge feeding, a mother and calf pair and three breaches!

By the time we were upon the puffin colony, nobody wanted to take their eyes off the whales.  The pictures don’t do the majesty of these beautiful creatures justice.  There were kaykers out there amongst the whales and I was nervous for them (imagine if a whale came up right under them!!!)

We arrived at our B&B – the Bread and Cheese Inn – and talk about location!  Right on the water with unbelievable views from all the rooms.  What a find!

We at out at a pub place that was a little lacking in ambience, but the friendliness of the staff and FRESH cod were fabulous.  We settled in for the night to watch the Olympic opening ceremonies (interesting to watch them announce Team Canada on the CBC broadcast…forgot we weren’t at home).  We are looking forward to snapping some more pictures of this little waterfront paradise tomorrow morning.

 

This is our first big trip since finding out we were having Autumn.  It’s long overdue but also overwhelming to think about taking a highly mobile child under age one on such a trip.  There was a moment of “what was I thinking” as we were headed to the airport, but we’re happy to report that Autumn did GREAT on her first flight.  We gave her a bottle on takeoff and she proceeded to fall asleep for most of the flight.  She was a doll at the crazy Canadian customs line (thank goodness, because there was no way we’d be able to tend to her needs while dealing with that line).  We nearly missed our connection in Toronto thanks to sitting on the Tarmac for 45 minutes for no apparent reason after landing.  Thankfully a nice WestJet employee escorted us to the front of the security line and we ran (as best as one can with a baby on the back) to our gate halfway across the airport.  I had all but resigned myself to spending the night in Toronto.  We arrived in St. John’s just past midnight (thanks to St. John’s being 1.5 hours ahead of east coast time), got the car and bags without any issues and made our way over to the B&B.

It’s always nice to wake up and see the city you arrived in late at night in the daylight.  We had a lovely breakfast of omelettes and fruit upstairs overlooking the harbour.  The ladies took a liking to Miss Autumn and made her scrambled eggs (which she ignored in favor of all the new and interesting friends she made at breakfast).  We didn’t make it out of the B&B until nearly 11 am (we had a hard time waking up thanks to the late flight and time change), but were rewarded with clear blue skies (we gather that’s hard to come by) out on Cape Spear, the easternmost point in all of North America.  We parked at a scenic overlook and hiked our way up to the visitor center and old and new lighthouses.  The old lighthouse was restored to its original condition from the late 1800’s and guides told of how the lightkeeper lived in such a remote place.  It was very interesting and the views were breathtaking.

[gfycat data_id="AnotherObeseBandicoot" data_autoplay=true data_controls=false]

On our way back to St. John’s we drove past Petty Harbor, which was a lovely little village.  Realizing that we’d be foolish to cram too much into one day, we decided to save Signal Hill for tomorrow and take it easy with a visit to Quidi Vidi brewery.  The tasting/tour was humorous and informative and we learned a good bit about the history of Newfoundland.  We were excited about dinner, but Miss Autumn decided a 2 hour nap was in order so we returned to the B&B and waited for her to wake up.  We ended up having Neapolitan pizza that was quite tasty (we figure there will be plenty of opportunity for seafood later) and returned home via the harbor park.

Two interesting tidbits we learned today:

Did you know that the Labrador (retriever) dog is descended from the Newfoundland dog (both of which make up the province name: Newfoundland and Labrador?)

http://www.heritage.nf.ca/articles/society/newfoundland-labrador-animals.php

Not so fun (for the people of Newfoundland) – the government issued a moratorium on cod fishing in 1992 that put nearly 30,000 people out of work.

http://www.heritage.nf.ca/articles/economy/moratorium.php