It's not a holiday without a boat trip

Heading into the fjord on the 3km walking trail

We (more like D) really misses our boat, so couldn’t pass up a boat tour on Western Brook Pond. 

Technically the pond cannot be considered a fjord - it has to be open to the ocean for that, and Western Brook Pond is a lake. However, the majestic billion year old cliffs of Western Brook Pond out-fjord anything found in Norway or Alaska.

We did not have reservations for the boat tour (and the tours were booked for the day), but decided to walk the 3km trail to the lake head. As luck would have it, there was a couple at the dock with extra tickets, so we were able to take the tour after all! Well worth it, though we were little concerned about the weather - which held out until we go back to our van. Phew!

Many stunning waterfalls along the way

Here come the Vikings

A re-created building at L'Anse aux Meadows

The archaeology geek in me has always wanted to visit L’Anse aux Meadows, a national historic site in northern Newfoundland. I got to check this one off my bucket list on this trip.

L’Anse aux Meadows contains the remains of an 11th-century Viking settlement (settled by Eric the Red) - the oldest known European settlement in North America. Although the current buildings are recreations of what archaeologists found, they are a very close replication of what was there all those years ago.

As serendipity would have it, our guide for the our of L’Anse aux Meadows was the great granddaughter of the man who discovered the remains of the Viking settlement in his field.

 

Costumed Viking interpreters

Weaving loom - more geek-out for me!!!

Sleeping quarters

Statue of Eric the Red - the first European in North America

Are you sick of rock photos yet?

Well, fooled ya! These ones aren’t rocks, they’re fossils.

In the small northern Newfoundland coastal town of Flower’s Cove lies something apparently pretty spectacular - Thrombolites. 

To you and me, they look like large flat, bun-shaped rocks on the edge of the ocean. But to geologists and biologists, and biogeochemists and all the other ‘ists’ out there, they’re more than that.

I’m not much for science, but my understanding is that each Thrombolite fossil was once a giant colony of tiny living algae and bacteria. These organisms are the earliest forms of life - living from 3.5 billion to 650 million years ago.

Not only is it amazing that we can still see evidence of these organisms that are the foundation of us, and everything around us, but that apparently they are pretty darn rare. the only other place you can see Thrombolites is in Western Australia.

So, no rocks this time, but I can’t promise there won’t be any more rock photos in a future blog post.

In the early 1900's, this was the only access to Flower's Cove - and by foot or by horse only.

Mother Nature is an amazing artist

 

Not far north of Gros Morne National Park is yet another jaw dropping bit of scenery, with thanks to Mother Nature. The star of the Arches Provincial Park is a short drive from the highway, and if you blink, you may miss the turn-off. Trust me, you’ll want to turn around.

We arrived, thankfully, just before a huge tour bus pulled into the lot, and thankfully because it started to rain, the mass of people returned to the bus just as quickly as they got off.

Over millennia, the ancient limestone rock was carved by the pounding surf into this natural rock formation. There were once four arches, but sadly the ocean has laid claim to one, and I’m sure in time the others will follow.

I’m glad we had a chance to see them before it’s too late.

If these rocks could talk

 

I managed to convince D that a 180km roundtrip detour was in order, so off we went to visit the Fleur de Lys Soapstone Quarries National Historic Site.

Over 1600 years ago, the Dorset people mined the soapstone in this region to make various use vessels and stone oil lamps. The rocky outcrops above the village of Fleur de Lys still bear the scars of the work of these people, and this is one of only a few in the world so well preserved.

On our way down the hill and back to our car, we chatted with one of the volunteers of the site, a man in his 70’s at least, who lived across the road from the museum. He explained he lived in the ‘new house’ on the property his great, great grandfather had homesteaded after arriving from France on one of the fishing schooners. Oh, and the ‘new house’ was 125 years old, built using some of the lumber from the ‘old house’, which would have been built around 250 years ago, maybe more!

I’m just gobsmacked every single day over the history we uncover every day here in Newfoundland - whether it’s at a national historic site, or just chatting with a local. Amazing.

Fogo Island in pictures...

... because words cannot even begin to describe the experience.

Fogo Island Inn

The Great Auk

The Sheds

A feast of wild blueberries

The Pitcher Plant is the official flower of Newfoundland

Oliver's Cove

The old farm at Oliver's Cove

Tilting

Squish Studio artist residence in Tilting

Long Studio artist residence in Joe Batt's Arm

Nice, breezy day to air your quilts

The climb to Brimstone Head

Sign at the top of Brimstone Head

Brimstone Head from below

The fishing shed - an iconic part of Newfoundland and its history

"We were expecting you."

 

Cashin’s Chestnut Tree Café

It never ceases to amaze us just how friendly Newfoundlanders are. We were stopped at the end of the driveway to a private campground, deciding whether we wanted to spend the night there or continue on a bit further, when a fellow came up to the RV and started chatting.

He introduced himself as Sean Callahan, son of former NL cabinet minister Bill Callahan. Bill Callahan served under Joey Smallwood (Newfoundland’s first premier after confederation in 1949) and was responsible for the creation of Gros Morne National Park, making the west coast of Newfoundland the tourist destination it is today.

Sean also, upon learning this was our first time in Newfoundland, offered many suggestions of places to see and visit, and even gave us his phone number - in case we needed more ideas on places to go. One restaurant he highly recommended was the Cashin’s Chestnut Tree Café in Gambo, a town located about a half-hour’s drive east of Gander. Turns out, his friend Billy Cashin owns the café, and there’s a bit of a story behind the restaurant, and the town itself.

We we were heading in that direction a few days later, so took Sean’s advice and stopped into the Chestnut Tree (known to the locals as Billy’s Café) for lunch. That is, we drove by twice looking for the restaurant, before realizing it was completely obscured by the giant (we guessed chestnut) tree in front.

Wandering in, we told Billy that Sean recommended we stop in for a meal. He said, after making a few jokes about his friend, “We were expecting you.” I’m not sure we received any extra special treatment for dropping names (because everyone there was friendly with everyone), but the food was fresh and delicious, and served in huge portions. And although Billy was too busy to chat with us that day, he did send us on our way with a bag of freshly made chocolate chip cookies. Yum!

So, what’s so special about Gambo, and the Chestnut Tree Cafe? For a start, Joey Smallwood was born in Gambo in 1900. There is a statue commemorating him in the centre of town, very near the Chestnut Tree Café. And stepping into the café is a bit like stepping back into Smallwood’s time. Originally a general store located a short distance down the road, Billy acquired the building and moved it to it’s current location to open a café/bookstore/general store. The interior is an eclectic, yet inviting, mix of old and new and just plain odd - the original store counters from 1938, paintings on the wall from local artists, a wood and glass cabinet filled with antique shoes and other curiosities, and Christmas decorations adorning the piano in the corner of the adjoining room.

Inside Billy's eclictic Café

There’s a joke about Newfoundlanders. It’s a knock-knock joke. It goes something like this:

“Why are Newfoundlanders bad at knock-knock jokes?”

“I don’t know. Why?”

“Well, let's try it. I’ll be a Newfoundlander. Say knock-knock.”

“Okay. Knock-knock.”

“Come on in, the door’s open!”

That kind of sums up our trip here. We’ve never felt more welcomed by the land, the culture, and the people, than here in Newfoundland.

At the crossroads of the world

Gander Airport in the early years (photo credit Library and Archives Canada)

On yet another recommendation by a local, we stopped at the Gander International Airport. The woman said we had to check out the International Departures Lounge, and make sure to visit the washrooms, too.

What??

The airport was opened in 1938, and by the 1950’s it was one of the busiest international airports in the world, and known as ‘the crossroads of the world’. Why, you ask? In those days, non-stop transatlantic flights did not exist. Airplanes needed to refuel, and the international airport in Gander was the perfect refuelling location. So, anyone who was anyone has been to Gander - or at least the Gander International Airport. Marilyn Monroe, Clarke Gable, Jimmy Stewart, Mohammed Ali, Einstein, and even Fidel Castro - they have all flown in and out of Gander.

And the bathrooms? I sat in the same spot where Queen Elizabeth II sat to powder her nose in the women’s washroom when she came to open the international terminal building in 1959. Apparently there is a similar “Frank Sinatra was here” sign in the men’s room, though I didn’t sneak in to check.

Queen Elizabeth II sat here!

The main floor of the departures lounge is a throwback to the era when travel was still new and exotic. Although the passenger benches and chairs are new, the architecture, the travertine floors, and even the modernist clocks on the wall are all original.

Original decor in the International Departures Lounge

The upper floor has been made into a museum of sorts, depicting the history of the airport and filled with photos and paraphernalia related to the high times of flight.

Oh, and did I mention the only movie theatre in town is in the Gander International Airport Departures Lounge?

A day trip to the airport? I never expected it would be so fascinating!

It seems neither D nor I bothered to take many photos, so sadly, you’ll have to take my word for it. Or visit the airport yourself. If you’re flying, you will have to arrange a special layover, since transatlantic flights no longer require a stop in Gander to refuel.

Chance encounter with a local

 

Colourful fishing sheds at Chapel Arm

A short two-kilometre drive from the TCA (that’s what the Trans Canada Highway is called in Newfoundland) is the town of Chapel Arm. Most likely named by Captain James Cook sometime between 1765 and 1772 while surveying the coastal waters of Trinity Bay, the community is small, but has all the conveniences a resident would need - two churches, a post office, and a hardware store. Oh, and a lovely harbour and government dock for the fishing boats.

Traditional way of making salted cod

We stopped in Chapel Arm for the night, choosing to stay at the government dock parking lot (that is allowed unless otherwise posted) with it’s lovely view of the bay. We no sooner parked and were out of the RV checking out our new surroundings when a car drove up and an older fellow jumped out.

We began chatting with him - Pat was his name - and from what we could understand (I don’t think we’ll ever catch on to the Newfie dialect) he asked us, “Have you ever tried fresh cod?” When we responded that the only cod we’ve ever had was deep fried and from a restaurant, Pat responded with, “Well, I bes’ be gettin’ ye some, then.” He walked down the dock to his little fishing boat, untied the lines and was off.

We settled into our boondocking spot, and just poured a bevvie when we noted Pat coming back with a large bucket in hand. He’d only been gone for about 45 minutes, and he’d already caught, cleaned, and filleted five cod!

“How many ye want?” he asked.

“Oh, they’re pretty big,” I replied. “Just one should do.”

“Well, if yer only takin’ one, t’was hardly wort’ my while goin’ out, b’ye!”

“Well, how about two then.”

Mmmm, fresh cod fillets!

We offered him money for the fish, but Pat refused. So we offered him a beer, and he replied, “I quit that stuff years ago. Had to. Only way to keep me out of jail.”

Thirty minutes later, the steak we had planned was back in the fridge and we were feasting on freshly caught pan-fried cod with corn on the cob, wild rice pilaf, and cranberry sourdough loaf.

That was one of the best pieces of cod I’ve ever tasted, and one of the most memorable meals on this trip so far.

Oh, and did I mention it was our anniversary? We didn’t tell Pat, but he made our special day truly special.

Dinner is ready!