Newfoundland – Icebergs and Vikings

Lulu has had a week’s rest whilst she enjoyed a secure site in Shubie Campground, near Halifax.  Meanwhile an hour’s flight saw us arriving in St John’s, Newfoundland, where we met up with Peter’s sister, Wendy, who had arrived direct from Heathrow to join us for the ‘Newfie Week’.

 

St John’s greeted us with thick fog and drizzle.  It equated to arriving in the dark – we had little idea what was around us.  Thankfully, the fog lifted a little as we made our way to the Alt Hotel in the centre of town.  A brand new modern hotel (and NOT cheap)  – very comfortable, and by far the most ‘sound insulated’ that we have ever stayed in.  However, we could not comprehend why they provided paper cups in the room with the coffee machine, and plastic cutlery with the buffet breakfast!  Feedback duly given . . . .

Despite the weather, we ventured out to visit the most easterly point of North America at Cape Spear.  This was our introduction to what was to be a truly cold week – several layers of clothing, winter coats, woolly hats, scarves and gloves kept the cold north winds at bay throughout our stay.  The locals assured us that June is normally warmer in Newfoundland  – we even had snow flurries!  But we were lucky to have quite a lot of sunshine too – which just brought the sensational scenery alive.

A fabulous boat tour out to Gull Island and Green Island from a little harbour called Bay Bull’s, took us across Witless Bay where we were rewarded with 1000’s (literally!) of birds – Puffins were the star attraction, but there were also guillemots, several sorts of gulls, fulmars, and bald eagles to name but a few.  The icing on the cake was seeing several Minke whales enjoying the abundant fish in the bay.   The fantastic commentary from a very knowledgeable crew made for a memorable trip.

Driving further south to La Manche Provincial Park set us up for a walk to the site of a village destroyed in the 1960’s from a terrific storm.  The suspension bridge over the steep gully enabled us to see (and hear) the rushing torrent and waterfall below.  Sites such as this, underline the power of the sea.  Incredible!

A very early start (4:30am!) meant we were through security at the airport by 5:45 am ready for our move to the east of Newfoundland.  Saving us 6 hours of driving (12 if you count the return journey), a small (16 seats) plane flew us over miles of wilderness to Deer Lake.  As so often happens, queuing for car hire took longer than the flight itself!  Our destination was Gros Morne National Park, which is a UNESCO world heritage site, because of its unique geological features.  A fascinating three hour walk ensued, helped by the provision of an IPad, which gave lively and interpretative explanations of what was around us.  The Tablelands is one of very few areas on earth where the earth’s mantle has come up through the earth’s crust (do hope the geologists amongst you are keeping up!).  We were captivated with the different sorts of rock on view ( peridotite,serpentinite ) not to mention the wild flowers that manage to grow in this inhospitable environment.

It was definitely one of those occasions when I have to pinch myself to believe that I really was there, and seeing this phenomenon at my feet.  The National park scenery is second to none  – snow capped mountains, beautiful lakes – yet rugged and untouched.   Newfoundland’s  reputation for being welcoming and hospitable came through in spades at the Candlelight B&B in Rocky Harbour, where nothing was too much trouble for our hosts.  Big thick pancakes, oozing with maple syrup and wild blueberries set us up for the day.  A 3km walk through the hinterland, led us to an inspirational two hour boat trip on Western Brook Pond – an unusual way of describing an inland ‘fjord’, with a depth of 165 metres and 600 metre sheer cliffs with some spectacular waterfalls.  There was quite a bit of snow still lying in the gulleys – and despite beautiful sunshine which improved the photos, our many layers of clothing were much needed against the cold winds.  Rain swept in during the 3km return walk to the car, making us very thankful for the heating and warmth at our B&B.

The 366km Viking Trail, follows the east coast of Newfoundland all the way to L’Anse aux Meadows, at the very northern tip of Newfoundland.  With great excitement, (and whilst dodging numerous potholes) we stopped to photograph both moose and caribou during our journey.   Yet another UNESCO world heritage site awaited us.   On this desolate rocky coast, Leif Ericsson and his Viking friends first landed from Greenland more than 1000 yrs ago.  Excavations carried out in the 1960’s have helped piece together the Viking way of life.  Once again, the interpretation centres and guided tours were inspirational and helped us understand why on earth ANYONE would want to land/live in such an isolated, bleak and barren place.  In the case of the Vikings, they needed wood to take back to Greenland, and to build their boats.  Now-a-days, the local population (31 people) exist on fishing and tourism.

Even the provincial news channel got excited when a polar bear appeared in a village ten miles south of where we were staying!  News travels fast and we followed several cars hurtling down the road to try and spot the infamous bear.  Apparently several ‘polars’ have been sighted this year – this one had been filmed wondering through the little settlement, (even putting his paws up on someone’s window!).  Facebook and social media weren’t quite fast enough however – when we arrived half an hour later, the bear had taken his leave, swimming across the harbour to an island, where there are (or were!) three moose.  The locals assured us that those moose would have been his supper!

The promise of seeing passing icebergs was certainly a draw for visiting Newfoundland and we were not disappointed.  We christened them ‘iceberglets’, and their turquoise-blue colour was exquisite.  Larger ones out to sea, smaller ones in the numerous little harbours, these stunning chunks of ice have broken off the pack ice and glaciers further north.  Every year they pass by on the coast of Newfoundland, to the point where there is now an Iceberg Festival.  Anything for a celebration!  It says something for the temperature of both air and water that they are still floating past in June!

Sadly it was time to say our goodbyes to Newfoundland (province No 6!).  We’ll miss the hospitality, and the stunning scenery  – but we won’t miss the weather!