Newfoundland - west coast and Gros Morne National Park, Canada

  

nets to hold the rubbish together... still haven't worked that out.

Deer Lake - hmmmmm

Deer Lake Beach.... the clean up.

  

bring it on moose... we want to see a real one! And we did... not here.

Getting ready for winter.

Arriving in Newfoundland was almost as expected... a mysterious, eerie fog settled upon us and it felt like the edge of the earth. A foggy drive across hilly terrain, many brooks and flat seaside landscapes finally led us to Deer Lake via Corner Brook. Corner Brook is the largest town on the west coast of Newfoundland. If you are expecting the franchises, malls, convenience stores on every corner such as that in Ontario, you've come to the wrong place. The road across to Deer Lake was pretty good, although several bad patches with dreadful potholes and bumps along the way. We stopped at several 'arms' along the way, especially in Corner Brook. The arms are like small peninsulas - houses dotted throughout, no rhyme or reason why they're there and definitely no shops. Many had just gorgeous backyards... the oceam or small bays. Yet, there didn't seem to be many people around. It was a bit weird really. The houses all had nets out in front - at first I thought it was a symbol of what you sold [like on the boats on the Mekong between Cambodia and Vietnam - if you want pineapple, you find the boat with the pineapple pole! So I figured the houses with nets sold fish or were fisherpeople. Idiot, Mary. They were to hold the rubbish together so the animals and weather didn't get to it. Now Adam and I still haven't figured out the rubbish collection- here or in Ontario. A garbage truck goes around with a guy that gets out and manually puts the rubbish in the truck. Rubbish is put out in bags and the garbo picks up. Tiny little wheelie bins are found in modern Ontario - I THINK that might be for recycling. So there is a pile of rubbish bags just lying in the street. Out here in Newfie land, this is real moose territory... and deer.... and racoon.... and skunk.... and squirrel.... and chipmunk.... and lots of raptor birds and LOTS of gulls. The nets hold the rubbish in... supposedly.


Deer Lake - a small, dull town. Main claim to fame is entrance to Gros Morne National Park. The locals told us they love their beach, so we wandered down... blah.

Gros Morne is a National Park that is AWESOME.... diverse geography from tablelands, brooks, bays, fiords, mountains, mesas, wetlands, swamps... and much wildlife. Little towns such as Trout River and Woody's Point are cute and well worth a visit. This part of the world is on the Viking Trail - I just loved it. The arm of the Gros Morne National Park is on Bonne Bay. If you are here, the Discovery Centre is a must. [thanks again for our discovery pass]. Watch the film to see GMNP in all seasons - just as spectacular in winter. Of course, we were visiting whilst extreme heat warnings were being blasted across all media. Many places had no air-conditioning [including our motel]. As it was only about 30 and little humidity, we relished the warm temps - guessing Canadians don't handle heat that well! We were lucky to see a moose and her baby in GMNP. Mum glared at us and bounded off. Baby wasn't too sure and after staring at us awhile, legs went in all directions until balance re-established and off in to the bush after mum. We saw 5 moose on Newfoundland.
With wildflowers everywhere and magnificent sunrises and sunsets, it's no wonder that GMNP is a UNESCO site.

We had a 4 hour drive [which we somehow know will turn into 6 with us] through GMNP to get to our ferry crossing for Labrador. The province is called Newfoundland and Labrador, although there are two distinct parts of Canada. There's a bit of political and geographical history I won't go into here, although I must say it's only recent and quite fascinating if you want a look :-)  http://www.britannica.com/EBchecked/topic/412929/Newfoundland-and-Labrador
and if you really want the satire and politics a good read can be found at http://theindependent.ca/2011/05/06/the-%E2%80%98newfoundland-and-labrador%E2%80%99-naming-fiasco-%E2%80%93-part-2-2/

PS: If you visit this area again - factor in extra time to complete the Viking Trail and head up to St. Anthony's and the Viking area. NL is very challenging to get around - it's still not really geared up for tourists and signage, directions, maps and help are confusing. We like it like that!