Boat Rotting on Dock
Wednesday, - August 8, 2007
Today was beautiful, sunny and warm. We drove back to St. Barbe, which was only a bit over 100 km and got set up at the St. Barbe RV Park, which is like a Wal Mart parking lot. We were told all the electric sites were taken (but as of 9:30 this evening there are at least two left) so we are parked in the front corner with out service. Fortunately, with the solar panels etc this is no problem for us. We had to fill up with water here as we only had a little bit on board, unfortunately there is a boil water order here so we will only use the water for washing.
After getting set up we drove back to Flower Cove and took a walk over Marjorie bridge and then a gravel walk to Lawless Cove to view the thrombolites. The thrombolites are bun-shaped boulders, but are actually fossil-like remains of algae and bacteria growth. The only other place these thrombolites have been found is in Australia. John also drove out to the dock, an extremely bumpy drive, which had a lot of rotting ships on it, very depressing!! Coming back from seeing the thrombolites we walked along the shore for a while and it reminded us of Lions Head, all flat rocks and very pretty.
We came back from Flower Cove and drove to Foster’s Cove, then on to Black Duck Cove, which was very pretty. At Black Duck Cove there is an overlook area looking out over the straight so we could look over to Labrador and also see a number of fishing boats out in Belle Straight. There was a small park there and it was really cute, there were quite a few miniature buildings, plus a playground, and we were surprised by the people there, with kids, who had come to the playground on ATV’s - certainly a different way of life! We also saw a number of black ducks so guess that is where the name comes from.
We came back to the trailer and sat outside for a bit before having dinner. Again, another beautiful day and we are hoping it will be a nice day tomorrow to go to Labrador.
After getting set up we drove back to Flower Cove and took a walk over Marjorie bridge and then a gravel walk to Lawless Cove to view the thrombolites. The thrombolites are bun-shaped boulders, but are actually fossil-like remains of algae and bacteria growth. The only other place these thrombolites have been found is in Australia. John also drove out to the dock, an extremely bumpy drive, which had a lot of rotting ships on it, very depressing!! Coming back from seeing the thrombolites we walked along the shore for a while and it reminded us of Lions Head, all flat rocks and very pretty.
We came back from Flower Cove and drove to Foster’s Cove, then on to Black Duck Cove, which was very pretty. At Black Duck Cove there is an overlook area looking out over the straight so we could look over to Labrador and also see a number of fishing boats out in Belle Straight. There was a small park there and it was really cute, there were quite a few miniature buildings, plus a playground, and we were surprised by the people there, with kids, who had come to the playground on ATV’s - certainly a different way of life! We also saw a number of black ducks so guess that is where the name comes from.
We came back to the trailer and sat outside for a bit before having dinner. Again, another beautiful day and we are hoping it will be a nice day tomorrow to go to Labrador.
Tuesday - August 7, 2007
We woke to sunshine this morning which unfortunately didn’t last long but it didn’t rain other than a couple of drops so we aren’t complaining. John checked the latitude here and it is the same as James Bay, no wonder the temperatures are in the mid to high 60’s.
We went into St. Anthony this morning and stopped at Tim’s for coffee and there were all kinds of people walking around and coming in, we thought there must be a bus tour in town. After Tim’s we were heading into the middle of town and all of a sudden we could see a cruise ship out in the harbour and tenders running back and forth, guess that is where all the people were coming from. We drove up to Fishing Point so we could get a good look at the ship and John got some pictures and what a busy place it was, all the locals plus all us tourists were out to see the cruise ship. I turned on my phone and was pleasantly surprised to find I had a signal so we called Kel and my mom and got a bonus when my sister answered mom’s phone so also had a good chat with her. We wanted to hear how Kel and her family’s trip to Quebec City and Presquile went and she said it was good but it was extremely hot so made it difficult for sightseeing.
We went to the Visitors Centre here which was all about Sir Wilfred Grenfell, a doctor/Justice of the Peace/Preacher who came from England to Labrador and Newfoundland in about 1892 to care for all the people in the fishing outposts. He used schooners as his mode of transportation as all the fishing posts were inaccessible by land, It was a really good display about his life and the hospitals, schools, medical outposts etc. for which he got funding to set them up and keep them running. The people in the fishing outposts were very poor and TB was rampant, so there were a lot of orphans because a lot of parents died of TB so he also set up an orphanage for all these children. After that we went and toured his home, which was also very interesting.
We stopped at the municipal offices/library and were able to get on the internet so I got caught up with my e-mail and posted my blog. Thanks John for being so patient while I did that!!
After that we drove out to Goose Cove, then stopped at the grocery store on the way back through St. Anthony then on the way back to the park we drove out to St. Anthony Bight - both of them were pretty little fishing villages.
After dinner we went for a walk around the park, but there was no sign of a moose tonight. The mosquitoes were out in full force so we walked around the park once and called it a day.
We went into St. Anthony this morning and stopped at Tim’s for coffee and there were all kinds of people walking around and coming in, we thought there must be a bus tour in town. After Tim’s we were heading into the middle of town and all of a sudden we could see a cruise ship out in the harbour and tenders running back and forth, guess that is where all the people were coming from. We drove up to Fishing Point so we could get a good look at the ship and John got some pictures and what a busy place it was, all the locals plus all us tourists were out to see the cruise ship. I turned on my phone and was pleasantly surprised to find I had a signal so we called Kel and my mom and got a bonus when my sister answered mom’s phone so also had a good chat with her. We wanted to hear how Kel and her family’s trip to Quebec City and Presquile went and she said it was good but it was extremely hot so made it difficult for sightseeing.
We went to the Visitors Centre here which was all about Sir Wilfred Grenfell, a doctor/Justice of the Peace/Preacher who came from England to Labrador and Newfoundland in about 1892 to care for all the people in the fishing outposts. He used schooners as his mode of transportation as all the fishing posts were inaccessible by land, It was a really good display about his life and the hospitals, schools, medical outposts etc. for which he got funding to set them up and keep them running. The people in the fishing outposts were very poor and TB was rampant, so there were a lot of orphans because a lot of parents died of TB so he also set up an orphanage for all these children. After that we went and toured his home, which was also very interesting.
We stopped at the municipal offices/library and were able to get on the internet so I got caught up with my e-mail and posted my blog. Thanks John for being so patient while I did that!!
After that we drove out to Goose Cove, then stopped at the grocery store on the way back through St. Anthony then on the way back to the park we drove out to St. Anthony Bight - both of them were pretty little fishing villages.
After dinner we went for a walk around the park, but there was no sign of a moose tonight. The mosquitoes were out in full force so we walked around the park once and called it a day.
Monday - August 6, 2007
Wow, we woke up to sunshine this morning and it was a gorgeous day all day – bonus.
This morning we headed to L’anse aux Meadows where the Vikings landed over 1000 years ago, there are remains of a Norse village and replicas of three Norse buildings showing us how they lived 1000 years ago. The Visitor’s Centre was very interesting - there was a 30 minute video on the discovery of L’anse aux Meadows and then a very good display depicting life there.
I must say I am glad that I didn’t live there back then, what a hard way of life. The main house had four rooms – the main room had a central fire and that is where the day-to-day activities took place and about 30 people slept in this room on benches around the walls. One small room at the end is where the head honcho would have slept, then, there was a room they used as a workshop and then a room where the women did spinning etc. All in all a very close community and you would certainly get to know one another very well! There was also a replica of the blacksmith shop and a cold storage room.
From there we drove around the peninsula and visited all the little coves – very pretty! Most of the houses don’t cut grass, in fact at one place we saw a man out with his scythe cutting the front yard, but we did see some places that do cut their lawns and even have a bit of a flower garden. Another thing that has surprised us is that all the roads are paved even to the smallest community and basically they are in pretty good shape.
We saw one moose in a pond when we were driving but after we got home there was a moose roaming around the park – he didn’t seemed at all fazed by the people, he was just enjoying eating whatever it is they eat!! Moose are not native to Newfoundland, but in 1904 someone brought over 4 moose (who or why we haven’t heard) and now there are literally 1000’s of moose on the island, there are far more moose than caribou, and the caribou are native to Newfoundland.
Another observation – the RV parks here are really nice, the only one we haven’t cared for was the one at Stephenville and mainly because we were in the middle of the family camping and the kids seemed to congregate right behind our trailer to play, plus the sites were poorly laid out and we hardly had room to park the truck.
This morning we headed to L’anse aux Meadows where the Vikings landed over 1000 years ago, there are remains of a Norse village and replicas of three Norse buildings showing us how they lived 1000 years ago. The Visitor’s Centre was very interesting - there was a 30 minute video on the discovery of L’anse aux Meadows and then a very good display depicting life there.
I must say I am glad that I didn’t live there back then, what a hard way of life. The main house had four rooms – the main room had a central fire and that is where the day-to-day activities took place and about 30 people slept in this room on benches around the walls. One small room at the end is where the head honcho would have slept, then, there was a room they used as a workshop and then a room where the women did spinning etc. All in all a very close community and you would certainly get to know one another very well! There was also a replica of the blacksmith shop and a cold storage room.
From there we drove around the peninsula and visited all the little coves – very pretty! Most of the houses don’t cut grass, in fact at one place we saw a man out with his scythe cutting the front yard, but we did see some places that do cut their lawns and even have a bit of a flower garden. Another thing that has surprised us is that all the roads are paved even to the smallest community and basically they are in pretty good shape.
We saw one moose in a pond when we were driving but after we got home there was a moose roaming around the park – he didn’t seemed at all fazed by the people, he was just enjoying eating whatever it is they eat!! Moose are not native to Newfoundland, but in 1904 someone brought over 4 moose (who or why we haven’t heard) and now there are literally 1000’s of moose on the island, there are far more moose than caribou, and the caribou are native to Newfoundland.
Another observation – the RV parks here are really nice, the only one we haven’t cared for was the one at Stephenville and mainly because we were in the middle of the family camping and the kids seemed to congregate right behind our trailer to play, plus the sites were poorly laid out and we hardly had room to park the truck.
Sunday - August 5, 2007
Today we woke up to sunshine after a night of heavy rain and thunderstorms so we were glad to see the sun. We headed up to St. Anthony’s and it was a beautiful drive – the ocean on one side and the Long Range Mountains on the other for a long way. The road ran along the coast most of the trip and the scenery was lovely. The farther north we came the sparser the vegetation, and a lot of people have their gardens along the roadside where there is some soil. It is quite funny to be driving along and see all these little garden plots out in the middle of nowhere. We also saw a tremendous amount of cut wood piled up, as well as wood set up tepee style drying, every house has a huge woodpile so guess they need to stay ahead of the game as it would appear that woodstoves are the main source of heat. The little towns look like they can barely eke out a living along the rugged shoreline – I suspect it is a very hard life here, especially the winters! The road wasn’t as bad as we had thought it would be, it was quite dippy in spots but really good in others, at least you could see where the dips were and slow down for them as there were some beauts.
On Sunday mornings for years we have listened to Elvis’s gospel songs so this morning I tried the Elvis channel on Sirius and they were playing his gospel songs so we enjoyed them for the first part of the drive, now we know we won’t have to miss them even if we are on the road. We can’t imagine listening to the Elvis channel all day but are glad they do the Sunday morning gospel songs.
We got set up at the Triple Falls RV Park just outside of St. Anthony’s, it is a really nice park, then took a tour through the town. We were quite surprised at how large it is – there is even a Timmy’s here!!
We got home just before the rain started again, so John got the awning out so he wouldn’t get wet barbecuing – what a wussy!! When we were registering the owner checked the weather for us, and tonight there are showers but tomorrow is supposed to be warm and sunny so here’s hoping they are right. Even though we have had a fair bit of crappy weather it hasn’t been cold, there has only been one day that it felt cold and damp all day so we really can’t complain.
Surprise, our Sirius radio is still working so that is good and the owner at the park here told us of a couple of places where we should be able to get internet, so that is hopeful. We aren’t even going to try the Bell ExpressVu because of the trees and our phone is definitely not getting a signal so guess we are batting even so far!! I will try the internet tomorrow and see what happens.
Dinner is finished and it stopped raining before John started the barbecue so he was lucky, it was dry. We had bought some salmon burgers at the fishery in Rocky Harbour and had them tonight – they were delicious, we will have to try to find some more. After dinner we were going to go for a walk and again it started to rain – looking one way the sky was blue and pretty, looking the other it was very black but there was a nice rainbow. We didn’t go far before it started to really rain so we headed back. Wow, now it is raining but looking to the west there is a beautiful sunset – go figure!!!
On Sunday mornings for years we have listened to Elvis’s gospel songs so this morning I tried the Elvis channel on Sirius and they were playing his gospel songs so we enjoyed them for the first part of the drive, now we know we won’t have to miss them even if we are on the road. We can’t imagine listening to the Elvis channel all day but are glad they do the Sunday morning gospel songs.
We got set up at the Triple Falls RV Park just outside of St. Anthony’s, it is a really nice park, then took a tour through the town. We were quite surprised at how large it is – there is even a Timmy’s here!!
We got home just before the rain started again, so John got the awning out so he wouldn’t get wet barbecuing – what a wussy!! When we were registering the owner checked the weather for us, and tonight there are showers but tomorrow is supposed to be warm and sunny so here’s hoping they are right. Even though we have had a fair bit of crappy weather it hasn’t been cold, there has only been one day that it felt cold and damp all day so we really can’t complain.
Surprise, our Sirius radio is still working so that is good and the owner at the park here told us of a couple of places where we should be able to get internet, so that is hopeful. We aren’t even going to try the Bell ExpressVu because of the trees and our phone is definitely not getting a signal so guess we are batting even so far!! I will try the internet tomorrow and see what happens.
Dinner is finished and it stopped raining before John started the barbecue so he was lucky, it was dry. We had bought some salmon burgers at the fishery in Rocky Harbour and had them tonight – they were delicious, we will have to try to find some more. After dinner we were going to go for a walk and again it started to rain – looking one way the sky was blue and pretty, looking the other it was very black but there was a nice rainbow. We didn’t go far before it started to really rain so we headed back. Wow, now it is raining but looking to the west there is a beautiful sunset – go figure!!!
Saturday - August 4, 2007
Well, this morning we woke up to sun and it was much warmer than yesterday so we headed out for Woody Point and Trout River, communities that are on the south side of Bonne Bay. Of course, as soon as we got going it clouded over and we had a few sprinkle of rain but nothing much and the scenery was wonderful.
We got a really good view of the Tablelands and it was very interesting – on one side of the road were the Tablelands which are barren rock and on the other side of the road were mountains covered in trees etc. and looking very lush – such a contrast!
All the little villages along the coast are so scenic - we can certainly understand why these people are drawn to the coastal areas. We stopped at the Discovery Centre just outside of Woody Point and also stopped at a café at Woody Point for a coffee and cinnamon bun, as well as making stops for pictures.
When we came back I did some laundry so we are now ready to head to St. Anthony’s in the morning. While at St. Anthony’s we will not have a telephone connection (as a matter of fact people with Rogers don’t have a connection here but my Verizon works fine), the Sirius radio won’t work and of course Bell ExpressVu won’t work, and as far as wi-fi goes I won’t even go there!! I wonder how people can survive there without all these conveniences – probably they are much happier than most of us!!!!
We got a really good view of the Tablelands and it was very interesting – on one side of the road were the Tablelands which are barren rock and on the other side of the road were mountains covered in trees etc. and looking very lush – such a contrast!
All the little villages along the coast are so scenic - we can certainly understand why these people are drawn to the coastal areas. We stopped at the Discovery Centre just outside of Woody Point and also stopped at a café at Woody Point for a coffee and cinnamon bun, as well as making stops for pictures.
When we came back I did some laundry so we are now ready to head to St. Anthony’s in the morning. While at St. Anthony’s we will not have a telephone connection (as a matter of fact people with Rogers don’t have a connection here but my Verizon works fine), the Sirius radio won’t work and of course Bell ExpressVu won’t work, and as far as wi-fi goes I won’t even go there!! I wonder how people can survive there without all these conveniences – probably they are much happier than most of us!!!!
Friday - August 3, 2007
Well, today was a cold, dreary, damp day, the forecast was for rain but it really only drizzled off and on so we decided to have a quiet day and hope that tomorrow will be better for doing the drive to Woody Point that we want to do, as the main reason is for the scenery and it is kind of hard to enjoy nice scenery in mist and rain.
I spent a fair bit of time getting pictures uploaded to my blog, the internet is now working here in the trailer but the strength fluctuates constantly so it was challenging to say the least trying to do the pictures.
Tonight we had a reservation at the Ocean View Motel for dinner, the fellow who took our reservation had promised a table overlooking the harbour and out to the gulf, so we had a wonderful view. The sun even poked out for a few minutes to give us a tantalizing look at the bay in the sun.
Every Monday, Wednesday and Friday nights a group called Anchors Aweigh play at the Ocean View starting at 9:30 and we have been told by so many people how good they are that we decided to catch their Friday night show. They start selling tickets about 8:30 and we were told we should be in line by 8 to get tickets and a decent seat and boy were they right. They play in a room behind the bar and it was packed, as well as the bar area, but we got good seats in the main room. A couple, Mike & Cathy from St. Mary’s, sat with us and we enjoyed their company, they were celebrating their 22nd wedding anniversary.
The group was absolutely fabulous and they played from 9:30 to 1:15 with a 15 minute break and the tickets to get in were $10 each, what a deal!! The lead singer and front man was Wayne Parsons, the fellow who had done the commentary on our Bonne Bay boat yesterday, and he is really good, he had the audience laughing, clapping and joining right in. The accordion player, who also was working on the Bonne Bay boat tour, was absolutely hilarious as he had such wonderful facial expressions and did little jigs etc., all in all a really fun evening.
One of the things Wayne did was go around the room and ask where everyone was from, it was interesting how many were there from Ontario plus people from such places as Quebec, Manitoba, Powell River, B. C., Alaska, Kansas, Montana, California, England, and of course there were a lot of locals. It was a really fun evening and we were glad we had decided to go.
We got home about 1:30 and they had a gate across the park entrance so we had to leave the truck out front and walk in, no big deal.
I spent a fair bit of time getting pictures uploaded to my blog, the internet is now working here in the trailer but the strength fluctuates constantly so it was challenging to say the least trying to do the pictures.
Tonight we had a reservation at the Ocean View Motel for dinner, the fellow who took our reservation had promised a table overlooking the harbour and out to the gulf, so we had a wonderful view. The sun even poked out for a few minutes to give us a tantalizing look at the bay in the sun.
Every Monday, Wednesday and Friday nights a group called Anchors Aweigh play at the Ocean View starting at 9:30 and we have been told by so many people how good they are that we decided to catch their Friday night show. They start selling tickets about 8:30 and we were told we should be in line by 8 to get tickets and a decent seat and boy were they right. They play in a room behind the bar and it was packed, as well as the bar area, but we got good seats in the main room. A couple, Mike & Cathy from St. Mary’s, sat with us and we enjoyed their company, they were celebrating their 22nd wedding anniversary.
The group was absolutely fabulous and they played from 9:30 to 1:15 with a 15 minute break and the tickets to get in were $10 each, what a deal!! The lead singer and front man was Wayne Parsons, the fellow who had done the commentary on our Bonne Bay boat yesterday, and he is really good, he had the audience laughing, clapping and joining right in. The accordion player, who also was working on the Bonne Bay boat tour, was absolutely hilarious as he had such wonderful facial expressions and did little jigs etc., all in all a really fun evening.
One of the things Wayne did was go around the room and ask where everyone was from, it was interesting how many were there from Ontario plus people from such places as Quebec, Manitoba, Powell River, B. C., Alaska, Kansas, Montana, California, England, and of course there were a lot of locals. It was a really fun evening and we were glad we had decided to go.
We got home about 1:30 and they had a gate across the park entrance so we had to leave the truck out front and walk in, no big deal.
Thursday - August 2, 2007
Today is my “much younger” brother’s birthday – Happy Birthday Bryan, hope it was a great one and you are enjoying your holiday on Manitoulin and having good weather.
I had lots of e-mails today, thanks everyone for writing it is always good to hear from you. This morning we went up to check our e-mail do my blog etc. and the e-mail was working great but it took me over ½ an hour to upload two pictures – very frustrating to say the least!! I will try it again tonight and see what happens.
Today was an absolutely gorgeous day, it was sunny and all the fog and mist had dissipated so we got to see the sights we have been missing the last few days – such awesome scenery. Today we had a clear view of Gros Morne Mountain and the Tablelands, which are totally stunning. We took a boat tour of Bonne Bay this afternoon and it was really great and the fellow doing the commentary was very good and quite funny. From the boat the views of the mountains were spectacular, we saw two bald eagles sitting on top of the mountains staking out their claims and a baby flying overhead. We saw two whales, probably both Minke’s, one on the way out of the harbour and the other one on the way in – quite lucky to see them. We were sitting with people from Waterloo who are originally from Newfoundland, lovely people and it was fun talking to them.
So far we have avoided Chantal, we are just watching the news and it sure played havoc nearer St. John’s but I think they are calling for rain here tomorrow – darn!!! It’s hard to believe that they had such terrible weather on the other side of the island when it has been so nice here. The ferry from Argentia has been cancelled because the road to it was washed out and the back up at Port au Basque and Sydney is incredible as they are rerouting people who were supposed to cross at Argentia. Thankfully we don’t have to worry about this and hopefully there will be no glitches when we are scheduled to cross back over from Argentia.
I just got some pictures from yesterday uploaded, now to work on today’s pictures.
I had lots of e-mails today, thanks everyone for writing it is always good to hear from you. This morning we went up to check our e-mail do my blog etc. and the e-mail was working great but it took me over ½ an hour to upload two pictures – very frustrating to say the least!! I will try it again tonight and see what happens.
Today was an absolutely gorgeous day, it was sunny and all the fog and mist had dissipated so we got to see the sights we have been missing the last few days – such awesome scenery. Today we had a clear view of Gros Morne Mountain and the Tablelands, which are totally stunning. We took a boat tour of Bonne Bay this afternoon and it was really great and the fellow doing the commentary was very good and quite funny. From the boat the views of the mountains were spectacular, we saw two bald eagles sitting on top of the mountains staking out their claims and a baby flying overhead. We saw two whales, probably both Minke’s, one on the way out of the harbour and the other one on the way in – quite lucky to see them. We were sitting with people from Waterloo who are originally from Newfoundland, lovely people and it was fun talking to them.
So far we have avoided Chantal, we are just watching the news and it sure played havoc nearer St. John’s but I think they are calling for rain here tomorrow – darn!!! It’s hard to believe that they had such terrible weather on the other side of the island when it has been so nice here. The ferry from Argentia has been cancelled because the road to it was washed out and the back up at Port au Basque and Sydney is incredible as they are rerouting people who were supposed to cross at Argentia. Thankfully we don’t have to worry about this and hopefully there will be no glitches when we are scheduled to cross back over from Argentia.
I just got some pictures from yesterday uploaded, now to work on today’s pictures.
Wednesday, - August 1, 2007
Wow, the summer is half over – hope everyone is enjoying it. I talked to Mike last night and he said it is very hot in Kitchener, so I guess we won’t complain as it is just pleasant temperature wise here. I woke up this morning to see sun shining – we were really excited.
We left about 10 and went and picked up our tickets for the Western Brook Pond Tour and headed up. Western Brook is a land locked fjord surrounded by mountains and has an average depth of 155 meters and the water is very clear and pristine - definitely one of Western Newfoundland’s treasures. There are 2 tour boats and the smaller one was brought in by snowmobile on a flatbed over the frozen bog in the winter, the other was flown in by helicopter in four separate pieces then put together at their boathouse.
It is a 3 km walk into get the boat (so it is 3 km back after the boat tour) so we gave ourselves lots of time to walk in. The trail was good, fairly easy walking and there was lots of interesting information about the bogs, the wildflowers etc. on the way. When we got to the dock we bought a hot dog and by the time we had eaten it the two tour boats had come back so it was time to line up. We were lucky and got to sit up top, only one boat had the top deck so we were glad we had gotten there early. Just as the boat was pulling away from the dock there were a number of moose crossing at the narrows and John managed to get a good picture of them. Although it was misty on the tops of the mountains basically the view was beautiful and we really enjoyed it. We couldn’t believe the number of waterfalls we saw - the names of the two of the large ones were Blue Denim and Pissing Mare. We also saw the result of a large rock slide which occurred in 1994, apparently there was a tour boat there when it happened – that would be quite exciting!! On the way back the wind had picked up and it was quite cold as the boat was heading directly into the wind, but shortly before docking the sun came out and the sky cleared.
On the way home we stopped to see what was left of the S. S. Ethie, a coastal steamer that ran aground during a vicious storm in December 1919. All 92 passengers and crew were saved and one baby was sent ashore in a mailbag. There is still a lot of debris laying on the beach and part of the boiler is in the water, it is very rocky and rough there, it would have been a terrifying experience!!
We also stopped at Lobster Cove Lighthouse on the way back and toured through there. You need a National Park pass to go in the lighthouse and seeing how we had to buy a pass to do the boat tour we thought we might as well use it for something else.
The couple next door have just invited us over for a drink so I will close this off real fast.
We left about 10 and went and picked up our tickets for the Western Brook Pond Tour and headed up. Western Brook is a land locked fjord surrounded by mountains and has an average depth of 155 meters and the water is very clear and pristine - definitely one of Western Newfoundland’s treasures. There are 2 tour boats and the smaller one was brought in by snowmobile on a flatbed over the frozen bog in the winter, the other was flown in by helicopter in four separate pieces then put together at their boathouse.
It is a 3 km walk into get the boat (so it is 3 km back after the boat tour) so we gave ourselves lots of time to walk in. The trail was good, fairly easy walking and there was lots of interesting information about the bogs, the wildflowers etc. on the way. When we got to the dock we bought a hot dog and by the time we had eaten it the two tour boats had come back so it was time to line up. We were lucky and got to sit up top, only one boat had the top deck so we were glad we had gotten there early. Just as the boat was pulling away from the dock there were a number of moose crossing at the narrows and John managed to get a good picture of them. Although it was misty on the tops of the mountains basically the view was beautiful and we really enjoyed it. We couldn’t believe the number of waterfalls we saw - the names of the two of the large ones were Blue Denim and Pissing Mare. We also saw the result of a large rock slide which occurred in 1994, apparently there was a tour boat there when it happened – that would be quite exciting!! On the way back the wind had picked up and it was quite cold as the boat was heading directly into the wind, but shortly before docking the sun came out and the sky cleared.
On the way home we stopped to see what was left of the S. S. Ethie, a coastal steamer that ran aground during a vicious storm in December 1919. All 92 passengers and crew were saved and one baby was sent ashore in a mailbag. There is still a lot of debris laying on the beach and part of the boiler is in the water, it is very rocky and rough there, it would have been a terrifying experience!!
We also stopped at Lobster Cove Lighthouse on the way back and toured through there. You need a National Park pass to go in the lighthouse and seeing how we had to buy a pass to do the boat tour we thought we might as well use it for something else.
The couple next door have just invited us over for a drink so I will close this off real fast.
Tuesday - July 31, 2007
It rained ALL NIGHT last night and we woke up to rain and fog this morning so called and canceled the boat trip and rebooked for tomorrow in the hopes the weather will be better.
This afternoon we gave up waiting for it to clear up and went to the Visitor Centre which was very interesting, then on to Norris Point and toured the aquarium there. The aquarium is a teaching/learning centre so not a real aquarium but a young fellow gave guided tours and it was very interesting. Fortunately the weather had cleared up a bit when we came out of the Visitor Centre and we actually had sun at Norris Point! When we came out of the aquarium we walked down the dock and there was a whale out in the channel, we watched it for quite a while as it was performing beautifully.
We then drove up to Neddie’s Harbour, very quaint, then back to Rocky Harbour. By then the sun was out at Neddie’s Harbour but it was quite foggy back at Rocky Harbour – sure hope tomorrow is a nicer day.
When we got back we stopped at a couple of places to try to get on the internet, but to no avail, but the woman at the office here said it was working up at the laundry room earlier so I will take my computer up and see what is happening.
A small motorhome came in beside us while we were making dinner so talked to them for a bit after dinner – they are from Welsley and know Lee Ann – small world.
As you can see the internet works up at the picnic shelter!
This afternoon we gave up waiting for it to clear up and went to the Visitor Centre which was very interesting, then on to Norris Point and toured the aquarium there. The aquarium is a teaching/learning centre so not a real aquarium but a young fellow gave guided tours and it was very interesting. Fortunately the weather had cleared up a bit when we came out of the Visitor Centre and we actually had sun at Norris Point! When we came out of the aquarium we walked down the dock and there was a whale out in the channel, we watched it for quite a while as it was performing beautifully.
We then drove up to Neddie’s Harbour, very quaint, then back to Rocky Harbour. By then the sun was out at Neddie’s Harbour but it was quite foggy back at Rocky Harbour – sure hope tomorrow is a nicer day.
When we got back we stopped at a couple of places to try to get on the internet, but to no avail, but the woman at the office here said it was working up at the laundry room earlier so I will take my computer up and see what is happening.
A small motorhome came in beside us while we were making dinner so talked to them for a bit after dinner – they are from Welsley and know Lee Ann – small world.
As you can see the internet works up at the picnic shelter!
Monday - July 30, 2007
Another dreary, drizzly day so we decided to take a day and veg out. I walked up to check out the Laundromat this morning and decided to do a couple of loads, so got that done. The internet isn’t working here and the owner was messing around with it when I was at the Laundromat but there is still no internet tonight so guess he didn’t get it working – annoying both for him and his clients!
About mid afternoon we decided to go out for a bit and guess what – as soon as we drove out of the park it started to rain! We drove to the lighthouse but didn’t bother walking up in the rain, hopefully we will have a nice day when we can check it out. We saw a café with a wi-fi sign so thought we would get a coffee and use the computer but the wi-fi was up in the gallery so we didn’t bother, I bought a postcard and that was it. We then stopped and got stamps at the post office and on the way back found a motel that advertised wi-fi and lo and behold, I got connected. I managed to get my blog updated and check my e-mail so that will do for a couple of days.
The people beside us are from Maggie Valley, N.C., which is a very pretty place near Asheville, – we were there in the fall of 2005. They are traveling with another couple and dinner was next door tonight, outside, and when the one couple sat down on the picnic table the seat broke off at one end and they went crashing down. Fortunately they weren’t hurt and managed to laugh about it, they sure made a loud crash when they went down, but they put a bucket under the bench to prop it back up and carried on! We are hoping for sunny weather tomorrow so we can do the boat tour.
About mid afternoon we decided to go out for a bit and guess what – as soon as we drove out of the park it started to rain! We drove to the lighthouse but didn’t bother walking up in the rain, hopefully we will have a nice day when we can check it out. We saw a café with a wi-fi sign so thought we would get a coffee and use the computer but the wi-fi was up in the gallery so we didn’t bother, I bought a postcard and that was it. We then stopped and got stamps at the post office and on the way back found a motel that advertised wi-fi and lo and behold, I got connected. I managed to get my blog updated and check my e-mail so that will do for a couple of days.
The people beside us are from Maggie Valley, N.C., which is a very pretty place near Asheville, – we were there in the fall of 2005. They are traveling with another couple and dinner was next door tonight, outside, and when the one couple sat down on the picnic table the seat broke off at one end and they went crashing down. Fortunately they weren’t hurt and managed to laugh about it, they sure made a loud crash when they went down, but they put a bucket under the bench to prop it back up and carried on! We are hoping for sunny weather tomorrow so we can do the boat tour.
Sunday - July 29, 2007
Well, the nice weather didn’t last, it was overcast when we woke up but at least the rain held off until we got on the road so John didn’t get wet hooking up. It rained a fair bit between Stephenville and Corner Brook, but then it stopped.
We were slowed down for about 25 km by a bicycle race, there was only one lane on the Trans Canada open, the other was closed off for the cyclists. I have to give them a lot of credit, it appeared that there were over 300 of them (going by the numbers they were wearing) and the ones going our way were going uphill most of the time, and I mean UPHILL. I was exhausted just watching them!!! At the end of the turnaround point there were a lot of joggers so we don’t know if there was jogging as part of the race as we had also seen cyclists going the other way from us. Cycling seems to be quite popular here but the hills would be terrible.
We were slowed down for about 25 km by a bicycle race, there was only one lane on the Trans Canada open, the other was closed off for the cyclists. I have to give them a lot of credit, it appeared that there were over 300 of them (going by the numbers they were wearing) and the ones going our way were going uphill most of the time, and I mean UPHILL. I was exhausted just watching them!!! At the end of the turnaround point there were a lot of joggers so we don’t know if there was jogging as part of the race as we had also seen cyclists going the other way from us. Cycling seems to be quite popular here but the hills would be terrible.
Saturday - July 28, 2007
Today was another beautiful day and the temperature in the truck hit 28 for quite a while. Thankfully there was a nice breeze so it didn’t feel as hot as it was.
We had a couple come in beside us today from Fort McMurray, they are relocating to a little town here where he grew up and are building a new home. She seems to be a bit unsure of the move but he seems quite keen. She said she is still not able to think about going to a dance and dancing with other women!!
Today we drove to Corner Brook and what a marvelous view of Corner Brook there is coming into it from the west on the Trans Canada Highway - we toured both sides of Bay of Islands, which is the bay going into Corner Brook.
We did the north side first and it was lovely, we drove to the end of the road at Cox Cove, but like yesterday there were no pull overs to enjoy the view. We did manage to stop at McIver’s and see the little off-shore island with the Arctic Terns, but again getting pictures was very difficult. We also got a good view of Blow Me Down Mountains across the bay and could see the snow on the side of the mountain – yukk!
We then drove the south shore to the end at Lark Harbour (this and York Harbour which we drove through were named after Capt. James Cook’s ships) and we toured Blow Me Down Provincial Park. The sites there are quite tight, there is no way we would be able to get in there, plus there are no amenities and other than one comfort station the toilets are pit, not exactly my cup of tea anymore! We couldn’t see the snow on the side of the mountain from this side so were glad we had been able to see it from the north shore.
We stopped at Dominion (same as our Zehrs) at Corner Brook and picked up a few groceries before heading back. All in all it was a nice day with very picturesque views but we both agreed that we enjoyed Port au Port better, we think it is more folksy looking.
As you have probably guessed we are again without internet, I did manage to pick it up in Corner Brook and checked my e-mail but didn’t stay long enough to post my blog as we had meat which we wanted to get home into the freezer. We are supposed to have it at Gros Morne so here’s hoping.
We had a couple come in beside us today from Fort McMurray, they are relocating to a little town here where he grew up and are building a new home. She seems to be a bit unsure of the move but he seems quite keen. She said she is still not able to think about going to a dance and dancing with other women!!
Today we drove to Corner Brook and what a marvelous view of Corner Brook there is coming into it from the west on the Trans Canada Highway - we toured both sides of Bay of Islands, which is the bay going into Corner Brook.
We did the north side first and it was lovely, we drove to the end of the road at Cox Cove, but like yesterday there were no pull overs to enjoy the view. We did manage to stop at McIver’s and see the little off-shore island with the Arctic Terns, but again getting pictures was very difficult. We also got a good view of Blow Me Down Mountains across the bay and could see the snow on the side of the mountain – yukk!
We then drove the south shore to the end at Lark Harbour (this and York Harbour which we drove through were named after Capt. James Cook’s ships) and we toured Blow Me Down Provincial Park. The sites there are quite tight, there is no way we would be able to get in there, plus there are no amenities and other than one comfort station the toilets are pit, not exactly my cup of tea anymore! We couldn’t see the snow on the side of the mountain from this side so were glad we had been able to see it from the north shore.
We stopped at Dominion (same as our Zehrs) at Corner Brook and picked up a few groceries before heading back. All in all it was a nice day with very picturesque views but we both agreed that we enjoyed Port au Port better, we think it is more folksy looking.
As you have probably guessed we are again without internet, I did manage to pick it up in Corner Brook and checked my e-mail but didn’t stay long enough to post my blog as we had meat which we wanted to get home into the freezer. We are supposed to have it at Gros Morne so here’s hoping.
Subscribe to:
Posts (Atom)
