Newfoundland 2015 – Page 3 – Steps to Anywhere

South Shore Drive

Posted on September 21, 2015 by Edward Thorpe

Sunrise in Blanc-Sablon After last evening’s rain we awoke to a bright, sunny morning with the thermometer registering 9 ℃ (48 ℉), the coolest day so far.
The high for the day was eventually 14 ℃ (57 ℉) but the wind was cool often up to 30 kph (20 mph) with stronger gusts and never really let up.

We drove the southern shore of Labrador out to Red Bay and it is uniquely beautiful and remarkably barren. At Red Bay we reached 51.7 degrees north latitude. Trees never reach any significant height and the land often looks very tundra-like. Red Bay National Historic Site At Red Bay we explored the Basque Whaling museum and talked with the Parks Canada staff. The site will close for the season in about two days, the more distant Battle Harbour site had closed already.

By the time we had finished at the Red Bay National Historic Site it was lunch time and the Whaler’s Restaurant was conveniently adjacent to the museum. Once again I was able to enjoy east coast fish, cod this time and it was another enjoyable meal.

From there we retraced our path back to Blanc-Salon then beyond along the Quebec side of the north coast of The Strait of Belle Isle until we found rain then reversed our path back to Blanc Sablon. Next we stopped at a grocery store for croissants, cheese, grapes and wine. Dinner! Tomorrow we return to the Newfoundland mainland and St Anthony. After that we begin our return home.

Typical Highway view

Labrador Straits War Memorial

L’Anse Au Clair

Brador Falls

Blanc-Sablon, Quebec

Posted on September 20, 2015 by Edward Thorpe

It is now Sunday afternoon on September 20 and we are in Blanc-Salon, QC, but I am uncertain of the time. Apparently, Blanc-Sablon is on Eastern time, perhaps not even Eastern Daylight time. My GPS Switched to Atlantic time as soon as we disembarked the ferry. Our cell phones are on Newfoundland time which is probably a good thing since the ferry operates on Newfoundland time. Regardless of the time, we have respectable internet service so let me rewind to Corner Brook and yesterday morning.

We did not have a long trip from Corner Brook to St Barbe so, after stopping for coffee at the last Timmy’s until St Anthony, we diverted from Highway 430 toward the coast in Gros Morne Park and the area known as Woody Point. From there we drove through the “table lands” to the community of Trout River. DCIM100GOPROGOPR0171. The scenery in Gros Morne is quite spectacular. We enjoy the drive and found a place to have lunch. The remainder of the drive was uneventful but the day became more and more overcast as we neared our destination.

The Dockside Inn was only a few hundred metres from the ferry terminal and part of it also served as the ferry ticket office, how convenient for the morning. There was rain during the evening but we had nowhere to go and the hotel had both a restaurant and a bar. Gail had her choice of wine, white or white. She chose white. The food was acceptable and they served locally caught seafood, yummy scallops.

While we were in the bar some of the locals mentioned that the weather was becoming very windy and the trip across the Strait of Belle Isle might be cancelled as apparently has been in the past. We awoke Sunday morning to mostly sunny skies but it certainly was windy. By the time we finished breakfast the weather was sunny and warm so we walked around the area along a trail through the woods to the ferry terminal and back to the motel. St Barbe trail Soon after 11 AM I was able to convert our reservations into a ferry boarding pass so we finished packing up the car, checked out and took our place in line at the terminal. We still had time to walk back to the restaurant for a takeout coffee and return to greet the incoming ferry. MV Apollo

The trip across the Strait of Belle Isle was, as expected, quite rough, and after a calm start the ferry rocked and rolled for about 45 minutes and then suddenly, we were there. After about 20 minutes while they prepared for disembarkation we drove out of the ferry for the 5 minute drive to our accommodation for the next couple of days.

Surf at Blanc-Sablon We took a short drive along the Quebec shoreline to the west but the heavy rain and mist was too much for any sightseeing. So back to the room and then a visit to the local hamburger emporium for a quick dinner.

St Barbe

Posted on September 19, 2015 by Edward Thorpe

Made it to St Barbe today but internet is very difficult. Hopefully better tomorrow. The weather today started well but ended with a cool drizzle. We take the ferry tomorrow to Blanc-Sablon, QC for our brief time in Labrador.

No photos because of the internet speed–or lack of same.

Port aux Basques to Corner Brook

Posted on September 18, 2015 by Edward Thorpe

Today began with a beautiful sunrise in Port aux Basques.

We then turned a two hour travel day into an eight hour trip. We first set off to visit the Rose Blanche lighthouse east of Port aux Basques along Newfoundland’s southwest coast. The GPS had no problem locating the lighthouse and calculating a route. However, “Penny” had no idea how to get us out of the town and onto the appropriate highway. We followed her instructions twice and ended up in dead-ends on both attempts. Next we drove to the Trans Canada Highway at which time she computed a new and different route that actually worked.

The road was narrow and not in the best of repair but turned out to be a view of a gorgeous coastline and low rocky hills. After about an hour we saw the first signs directing us to the lighthouse. As we followed the directions the road became more and more narrow and less and less hospitable. The final few hundred metres were on gravel but as we came over the final hilltop to a parking lot the view was spectacular but there was no visible lighthouse although we had seen it in the distance only a few moments previous.

When we got out of the car there were two women sitting on the porch and a man leaning against a fence. One of the women announced that they were in the process of closing the site but we were free to walk to the lighthouse. They politely opened the washrooms for us, having not yet winterized the water supply, then we set out up the hill on foot. It was worth the trip but the photos really don’t do it justice.

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Our last excursion of the day took us off the Trans Canada Highway past Stephenville and out to Cape St George. This was apparently an area developed by French settlers and is quite pretty although not nearly as rugged as the southwest coast. The southern route to the cape was quite populated. The southern shore appeared to offer numerous hiking trails through much less populated areas. After completing the loop we stopped to pick up a few groceries for the next few day’s lunches then set out for Corner Brook.