Sept 1 - Happy Valley Goose Bay, Labrador to Forteau, Labrador.
I started bright and early since this drive was estimated to be about 7 hours or so. Only 613km away, but due to the road condition and speed limit of 70km/hr, it feels like it takes foreveeeerrrrrr! Luckily, it had rained a bit the night before, but stopped in time that the pot hole filled gravel road (for 5 of the 7 hours) wasnt full of water and masking just how deep those pot holes can be. The other benefit - no dust! I learned on my way to HVGB that dust kick up from other vehicles and big rig trucks is pretty well worse than fog. Can't see a darn thing. So I considered myself lucky that I had a pretty decent time driving over that road. It took 4 hours or so to get to the gas stop in Port Hope Simpson. I also figured since they had gas, they've have cell reception. Boy was I wrong. The girl at the gas check out said "we have wifi though" hahaha. Onwards I went, she assured me there was only about 1.5 more hours before the gravel ended, I couldn't wait! It changed back to glorious, wonderful pavement in Red Bay. This was also the first spot on the trip that I really got a good view of the Atlantic Ocean. Perfect way to re energize myself for that last bit of my drive! The sun came out and I drove right next to the coast until I hit Forteau, Labrador. Every time I went up a steep hill, the downhill led me to another cute little coastal town in the valley. I watched some Minke Whales jumping along the coast with me, which made watching the road ahead of me a bit tricky lol - sorry, Mom! I got to my hotel that overlooked the ocean, it was recommended to me by a co worker and it was lovely. They upgraded me and charged me for it, until I showed my Expedia receipt with the original price and made the necessary adjustments, no questions asked. So I got the King Suite for the Double Bed Room price! Win! I ate dinner there and got some free entertainment - a whale! I thought I was crazy at first, that I hadn't actually seen a whales tail while he dove deeper. Until I saw it again.... and again..... and again! He made his was across the shoreline and I could still see him from my room. It was so wicked!
Sept 2 - Blanc Sablon QB - St. Barbe NFLD
Bye Bye Big Land! Off to the Rock! The ferry is technically out of Quebec, but a 2 min drive over the border, so most of it was still Labrador! The ferry was about 1.5-2 hours, and I couldn't have had better weather. Clear blue skies! This ferry was much, much cheaper than the BC ferry's I have used lots in the past. $25 for me AND my car!? But, it certainly shows it, this ferry was quite old and weathered. It did the trick though and got us over safe and sound. Due to a ferry employer mishap, I have a wee scratch on my car. I won't get into details, but because of dealing with the rather unpleasant fellow and paperwork that ensued, my plans for the rest of the day had to change. I planned on doing my Viking excursion that afternoon, however, by the time I got to the turn off, I decided to go onto my hotel and avoid the hours of the day that the Moose are out wandering the roads. I've heard that area is Moose Central. So I made the adult decision to just check into my hotel, figure out the rest of my plans and how to fit in the viking stuff and also explore a bit of St Anthony. St Anthony is on the Northern Peninsula of Newfoundland. I wandered Fishing Point and ate at the Lighthouse Keepers Restaurant. A delicious meal while looking out to the 180 degree ocean views.
Sept 3 - St Anthony - L'anse aux Meadows - Corner Brook
I made the decision to re-jig my plans to go to the viking site. I figured the only reason I came up to the Northern Peninsula was to get to see this UNESCO site. I also realized that I may never be up that far north again, so I better get up there! Off I went, it was only 40 mins from St Anthony, and when I arrived I got there just in time to join the guided walking tour. If you've seen my Insta or Facebook you know how I felt about this experience. The guide was incredible and super knowledgeable about the town of L'anse aux Meadows and the UNESCO National Historic Site. He grew up there and remembers the beginning of the viking discoveries, and has since worked for the Parks Canada to share all his stories with us. Very cool man, funny and difficult to understand at times with his thick Newfie accent. It's crazy to think that the rock I was standing on there, was the same rock Vikings walked on 1000+ years ago. I highly recommend visiting this site and taking the guided tour. The tour ends with a replica viking settlement complete with real life vikings!
After L'anse aux Meadows it was time to head to Corner Brook! Which mean a very coastal drive along the western edge of Newfoundland. The sun was shining and it made the atlantic a bright blue colour. This drive was about 5 hours I think, with some random pee stops and photo ops. This is where I caught views of THREE ice burgs! They were pretty far off the coast, so pictures make it look even further away, but in person they were clearly visible! I pulled off a random gravel stop to take in the views of water off the steep cliffs and to take a longer look at the ice burgs! I will be heading to Twillingate soon, which is part of the well known "Ice burg alley", here's hoping I see them a bit closer when I get there. Fingers crossed. This drive to Corner Brook also took me through Gros Morne National Park. WOW was this incredible. Seriously though, I knew Newfoundland was beautiful, but it has surpassed that expectation, and I've only seen the West/North Coast of it! The cliffs on one side and big blue ocean on the other, huge hills and deep valleys, tree lined and rock faces. The tablelands visible from the road, and a bunch of cute little communities along the coast to explore. Gros Morne is stunning. It was such a beautiful drive. It is certainly among my top favourite drives with the drives from Banff to Jasper, Top of the World Highway, The Dempster Highway and Haines Junction YT to Haines AK. I am heading back there tomorrow, and writing about it has gotten me so much more excited to return!
Sept 4 - Corner Brook and area
I am taking a few days to stay in the Corner Brook area because of how accessible it is to Gros Morne and other local Corner Brook attractions. I spent the day today checking out Bottle Cove and Lark Harbour. These are just 45 minutes from Corner Brook and absolutely stunning. Bottle Cove is a beautiful trail starting at a beachfront and going up to the clifftops then to an upper parking lot. I initially wasn't interested in climbing to the steep clifftop, but am I ever glad I said "to hell with it" and gave it a try. It was super steep, but I made it! And the view made it all worth it. I wish I took tripadvisor reviewers advice to bring a lunch and enjoy the time there. I could have easily spent the whole day there. I did spend a good few hours there, a lot of it just sitting along the clifftop taking in the sights and sounds. I stopped off in Lark Harbour afterwards at a random little cafe for a bite to eat and a pee stop. This place was right on the water and today was a perfect day to sit and eat out in the sun. I got chatting with the ladies who were working and came to find that one of the ladies kids is a nurse in Thompson MB! Haha, what a small world - she is apparently considering travel nursing so she had quite a few questions for me. It's so fun to sit and chat with strangers, everyone is so friendly here. I'm glad I stopped off there. I then drove around Corner Brook, OK, I got lost a couple times. But my nav lady was going crazy with directions like "turn left now, then make a sharp right turn immediately.... turn left NOW... turn right... turn right now... immediately make a sharp left". I've seriously never heard her talk so much. My other drives home have been 500km stretches of the same road, she never said much on those ones. I'm doing some hotel laundry tonight (making me remember those times back in Virden, MB living at the Comfort Inn for 3 months and doing many, many loads of laundry there!).
Plan for tomorrow: Taking a boat tour through Western Brook Pond and meeting up with a HVGB friend! Off to get laundry and get to bed for an early morning!