Newfoundland is a large island in the North Atlantic, part of the Canadian province known as Newfoundland and Labrador, the latter being the mainland part of the province. Some 94% of the population lives on the island, known locally as "The Rock". There are two ways to get to Newfoundland: You can fly or go by boat. Since we were in 65 feet of motor home/SUV combination, flying was out of the question. Going by boat presents a choice, a 14 hour ferry ride from Nova Scotia to St. Johns on the east coast of Newfoundland or a six hour ferry ride to the village of Port aux Basques. We chose the six hour trip, thinking we might take the longer ride on our return.
The most eastern part of Canada, Newfoundland has about 500,000 residents. Although traces of humans on the island go back some 9000 years, it was "discovered" by Europeans when explorer John Cabot arrived in 1497. (There is conflicting evidence that Vikings Erik the Red and Leif Erickson may have visited the island 500 years earlier.) Various wars, mostly between the British and French, have been fought over this inhospitable land. After many years of independence, Newfoundland became part of Canada in 1949.
Pulling onto the huge ferry in North Sydney, Nova Scotia was the start of a great adventure. The island and its people (they call themselves Newfies) are definitely unique. Fun loving people, they make their own special entertainment, as we learned on the ferry ride. Two Newfies played and sang much of the trip, making it seem shorter and less boring.
Arriving in Port aux Basques, we got a taste of what the weather would be like throughout our visit, cloudy and rainy...great for plants. Everywhere we looked we found beautiful gardens and dazzling green fields.
The village of Codroy had the friendliest and most welcoming residents, as evidenced by their yard decorations.
The community of Cape Anguille had a modest but beautiful church, as well as signs of their seafaring heritage. Fishing for cod is a major part of their history. Tourists who go to local taverns are expected to "kiss the cod", so we stayed away from the taverns.
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| Mother and son? Strange. |
We also took the rig in the ferry to Newfoundland . . we were told my a tourist guide that we would see about 90% of what Newfoundland was like if we got as far as Gros Morne . . which we did . . had no desire to drive across to St John . . . Loved the Cape Breton area and Prince Edward Island . . we spend a whole summer up there .. crossed over from Detroit . . I was also amazed at the headstones in the cemetery . . many lived to their 80's and 90's . . back in the early 1900's . . unbelievable . . was not real crazy getting on the road with the drivers after watching them in the lounge drinking for the six hour crossing . .
ReplyDeleteThanks, Judy, but in my view, the trip to St. Johns and back was totally worth it. I only regret we didn't stay longer and see more of the island.
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