Out On the Water

Good morning all!  It's early in the day on Wednesday and I'm getting down to doing a wrap-up of yesterday's activities.  We were finally able to get in some kayaks and get out on the water, and we ended up with a beautiful day for it.  The weather report was dicey for the morning, but we had some luck and it didn't start raining until we'd got back to shore and had some lunch.

We did a guided tour with Gros Morne Adventures, largely because they seem to be more confident about letting people go out when they're with a guide and we didn't want to get our plans derailed by the wind again.  The guides were great to have with us though because the one guide was terrific at spotting birds that we likely would have missed, and they both knew some neat geographical features that they were able to point out.  We started in a shallow bay and were able to just bob around on the surface looking down into the beautifully clear water.  We were probably only in about 2-3 metres of water and you could see right to the bottom, spotting little fish and even a few lobsters.  We then swung along the coast line and saw a few bald eagles, which is always a thrill.  We paddled down a ways to an interesting spot where two large rocks at the shore form a small cave, just wide enough to get a kayak down.  Once everyone had a chance to get their kayak into the cave we headed back.  It was a two hour tour which was just perfect for me.  They had the whole group outfitted in tandem kayaks, so Euphy was able to sit up front with Finn in her lap and let me do the paddling.  It was (remarkably) Finn's first time in a kayak and he loved every minute of it.

Finn's face when we told him that he'd have to get out of the boat eventually.

It was a great paddle, and I'd love to get out on the water again if I find myself back in the area.  In fact, if I was to come here again I'd be tempted to bring along snorkelling gear because I think you could have a blast in that shallow bay just across from Norris Point.  It was shallow enough for snorkelling, the water was crystal clear, and it was full of life.  It really made me want to get in the water.  The only issue would be the small matter of not freezing to death, as the water was pretty chilly.  Still, that's what wet suits are for.

I had my action camera, with the underwater lens on, and at several points in the trip I would just dunk my hand into the water while holding the camera.  I got some pretty neat footage and when we get home I'll try my hand at video editing.  I've never attempted that, so we'll see how it goes, but if I can get the various clips all edited together into a short video I'll throw it on YouTube and post the link here for everyone.  I'm going to need to do a photo roundup once we're home anyway since the bulk of my photos still haven't been uploaded.

After lunch in Norris Point we headed into Rocky Harbour to get some last souvenirs and then made our way back to the house for a quiet afternoon.  The sun is coming up here and its starting to look like our last day here will be a nice one.  I'm not sure what's on the menu, but I'm hoping to get in one last hike.  We fly out very early tomorrow morning, and I'll see what I can do about getting those photos online once I'm home.  Talk to you then!

The Peculiarities of Newfie Place Names

We kicked the day off early today because we had a long drive and a schedule to keep.  We were heading up to Western Brook Pond for a boat tour, and it's over an hour's drive to get to the parking lot, and a good 45 minute hike to get to the boat dock.  Now, before I go any further in my description of the day I'll need to explain something about the place names we've encountered in Newfoundland, specifically what constitutes a "pond" around these parts.  Most people would be confused by the notion of taking a boat tour in a pond, as the word usually suggests a small body of water, ranking below the status of a lake.  However, there seems to be sense of humour woven through Newfie place names, and ponds here can be mighty lakes, carved by glaciers millennia ago.  As evidence of this I give you Western Brook Pond.

Exhibit A

At 16 km long and with a maximum depth of 165 metres Western Brook Pond slightly exceeds what I would normally classify as a pond.  The beauty of this place really cannot be overstated, and the roughly two hour cruise is well worth a spot on anyone's itinerary.  Bon Tours runs the cruise regularly throughout the day, and each boat can accommodate a lot of people, but they still recommend reservations.  The boat is equipped with a PA system and the guides chime in regularly with interesting information about the area.  This should be part of any trip out to Gros Morne.

We had a rough hike back to the car since Finn fell asleep just before we reached the dock, and carrying a kid of his size is even more challenging when they're a limp noodle in your arms.  Euphy and I took turns, but it was still quite the slog, and it didn't get any better when he woke up and would only accept Euphy as his mode of transportation.  I get the impression that the hike out usually isn't that bad for most travellers though.

We got back to the parking lot and availed ourselves of the picnic tables to have lunch before getting back out on the road.  It's only about another half an hour drive north of Western Brook Pond to get out of Gros Morne park and reach The Arches Provincial Park.  Since we were already so far north it just made sense to continue up to see The Arches.  It's a small park, but the distinctive titular feature is immediately off the parking lot, so it's a cool sight to see without any physical strain.

The rock formation for which the park is named.

We actually spent a lot of time just hanging around the park.  I poked around the arches and shot a few photos of the surf.

One heck of a beach.

Once we'd taken the photos we were after we just enjoyed lounging around the grassy lawn above the beach.  Finn had a blast running around and throwing little scraps of wood that were laying around.  I'm feeling a bit wind burned since the typical Newfoundland gusts were in full effect, but it was a great chance to just relax and enjoy some sunshine.

We headed back and decided on a restaurant near Woody Point.  The Blue Room is attached to the Bonne Bay Inn, and we hadn't checked it out yet.  It was a spectacular restaurant with huge windows looking out over the bay.  If nothing else it would have been a beautiful place to eat, but they were also bringing their A game when it came to the food.  Honestly it was probably a bit fancy of a place to be bringing a three year old, but it wasn't too busy in there, and Finn behaved himself, so the meal managed to pass without embarrassment.  The food was stunning, the drinks were great (Newfie Caesar, the classic drink but made with Screech rum,) and the desserts were decadent.  Just based off the beauty of the bar and dinning room I have to feel like the inn is probably a pretty nice place to stay, and I'll definitely consider it if I find my way back here.

I'm off to bed now, it's been a long day, and we've got another early start tomorrow.  Be well my friends, and we'll talk again soon.

A Return To The Tablelands and Previous Disasters May Have Been Overstated

Okay folks, so I may have fallen slightly behind on the blogging.  I forgot that we had an early start to the day today, so I didn't get a chance to write in the morning, which means that I haven't covered yesterday or today.  Here's a catch up:

Yesterday we kicked the day off with a return to the Tablelands trail.  As I previously mentioned this is one of those rare areas where you're not asked to stay on the trial, and some suggestions were made for off-trail routes that could be hiked.  We went in a bit on the main trail and then headed out into the rocky wasteland, aiming up toward the area known as the Ice Cream Bowl.  Is a depression near the top of the plateau that routinely has some snow in it year round.  We all made it to different points in the hike; Mom and Euphy turned back with Finn when the little guy started to get too cold, and Dad stopped when things started to get pretty steep.  Jay and I managed to get into "the bowl" but we didn't make it far enough up the sides to hit snow.  It was a beautiful hike with great views of waterfalls cascading down the barren landscape.  Well worth the effort.

We took it pretty easy for the rest of the day, hanging mostly around the house.  At one point I went out with Jay and Dad into the woods behind the house.  Things get vertical pretty quickly back there and we were able to get about 70 m of altitude in a fairly short hike.  That was the extent of our adventuring for the afternoon though.

Today we got on the road early with the hope of getting to Gros Morne Adventures in Norris Point right as they opened.  They do kayak rentals on a first-come-first-served basis and we wanted our best possible shot of getting everyone in a boat.  What we hadn't counted on was that they would be very gun shy when it comes to the weather.  Apparently the forecast was calling for a significant increase in the wind speeds and they were concerned about us going out without a guide.  We ended up booking a guided tour for Tuesday to maximise our chances of actually getting out there, but it was still disappointing to have the day's plans derailed.  The wind eventually did pick up today, but long after we would have been finished our paddle.  I get where they're coming from though, as I'm sure plenty of people would be willing to overstate their kayaking experience, and the weather is an unpredictable force.  We'll hope for better luck on Tuesday.

We made the best of the situation though and hit up some short trails around Norris Point.  This is where all the photography fans in the audience are in for something of a treat.  As previously noted I've busted the lens on my phone's primary camera, and I'm having a lot of trouble getting photos uploaded to Google Photos from my computer.  Well, as it turns out the camera on my phone still has some tricks up its sleeve.  I peeled off the broken glass, but there's still another piece of the lens underneath.  I had done a quick field test and found that this prevented it from properly focusing, so I gave up.  However, upon further examination it seems that it only has trouble focusing on close objects, and if I aim at something far away the camera works fairly well.  The end result of all that is that I'm still able to take some half-decent landscape photos!

Norris Point from the first trail we hit.

The staff at Gros Morne Adventures directed us just down the road to a lovely little trail that loops along the coast and then curves steeply upward to get back down to the parking lot.  There's a side trial that could have taken us to the height of land, but none of us were particularly keen on more climbing, so we just took it easy.  The trail offers great views of Norris Point and Bonne Bay.  It gets steep at times, but the worst parts of it had stairs and boardwalks to take the edge off.

Euphy particularly liked this cool bench.

Once we got back to the car we headed a little way up the road to a trail that starts just off Main St. and then winds gently down to Wild Cove.  Euphy and Finn opted not to join us for that for that hike for fear of the local wildlife; they were reporting a bear sighting in the area, and far more terrifyingly the trail was said to be a bit marshy and there was concern about the mosquitoes.  It wasn't prohibitively buggy, but given Euphy and Finn's strong reactions to mosquito bites it was probably best that they stayed clear.  Also, it was decidedly clear of bears.

Wild Cove was wild.

The hike down was very easy, but that was fine for everyone involved.  We made it down to Wild Cove, which is really beautiful.  By the time we got down there the wind had picked up significantly and the cove was getting hit directly.  It's an amazing thing to stand by the water and get the full force of a strong wind, especially knowing that we were just getting a small taste of what the area has to offer.

We've spent most of the rest of the day puttering around; we hit Rocky Harbour for lunch and souvenir shopping, then Wood Point for groceries, and swung back toward the house for gas and additional supplies.  By the time we got back to the house we only had a short time to kick back and relax before it was time to head back out again in search of dinner.  Everything we've done has been pretty light, but we've stayed busy today.

Tomorrow will be another very early day, so I wouldn't anticipate a post until the evening.  I'll do my best to get something posted tomorrow rather than waiting until Tuesday.  Stay tuned!

Staying Dry

Good morning everyone!  This will be a short post as yesterday we didn't get up to much.  It was the first day of the trip where we got a significant amount of rain and it kept us a bit hunkered down.  We still went out to see the town of Rocky Harbour, which Jay and I missed while we were hiking Gros Morne.  It's a nice little town that seems to be a popular base of operations for people exploring the park.  There are lots of little cabins and B&Bs scattered around town, and all the groceries and supplies that you'd need.  We did a bit of shopping and had lunch at Java Jack's where the fishcakes are worth the flight to Newfoundland.

After lunch we made our way back to the house, stopping briefly in Woody Point to grab some lobster for dinner.  All told a pretty relaxing day, and my legs appreciated the rest.  With any luck I'll be able to do a hike today without whimpering.  I'll let you know how that goes...

Pull Up To The Table(lands)

Okay, so I find myself once again writing in the morning and reflecting on what I did the day before.  This might just be my rhythm for this trip.  It seems like I'm frequently up before much of the group and these quiet moments before the day really starts are great for writing.

Yesterday we kicked the day off by going to an area of Gros Morne park called The Tablelands which sits on the western edge of the park, very close to where we're staying.  Every morning during the busy season Parks Canada puts on guided tours of the area, so we headed out to join the tour.  If you find yourself out here I'd highly recommend the tour; our guide was engaging and very knowledgeable, and we walked away with an understanding of the area that we wouldn't have got by just walking the short, easy trail on our own.  The Tablelands were formed as part of the cycle of plate tectonics that forced a section of the Earth's mantle upwards.  After millennia of erosion wore down the mountains that piece of mantle was exposed.  The rarity of exposed mantle in our world, and the fact that The Tablelands were fundamental in establishing scientific theories around tectonics was instrumental in getting the park a UNESCO World Heritage designation.

As previously noted, the selfie cam still works.  Here are The Tablelands.

As you can see, the area is covered in distinctively ochre coloured rocks, punctuated by sparse patches of vegetation.  The rock is rich in iron which oxidises to give it that colour, and it's also rich in heavy metals, creating a toxicity that prevents the vegetation from getting more established.  Another interesting thing here is that unlike most parks you can just wander freely off the path; the flora is sparse and the fauna are virtually nonexistent, so there's not a lot you can hurt by walking around.

The tour lasted about 1.5 hours and even if you aren't a geology nerd I'd recommend it as a great way of learning something new.  It's a fascinating area and the tour was really illuminating.

After our hike we headed in to Trout River for lunch.  There's a terrific seafood restaurant there called the Seaside Restaurant and we had a great meal.  True to the name, the restaurant is right on the beach, and we got a seat on the second story which offered a great view of the ocean.  After lunch we headed over to the Eastern Point trail, which is directly across the wide Trout River Bay from the Lighthouse Trail we hiked at the beginning of our trip.  It's a stunning walk along the top of the cliffs, but it's very exposed so the wind absolutely screams up there.  Jay did his best to fly his kite on an open grassy area up there, but I think the wind was a bit too much and it became nearly impossible to keep the lines from getting tangled.  We'll have to give that another go somewhere more calm.

We capped off the day back at the house.  There's a small charcoal BBQ here and Dad grilled up some halibut that we bought the previous day.  This area is famous for its seafood, but it's still remarkable how well we've been eating on this trip.  Halibut cooked over charcoal is a triumph, and it made for a great dinner.

We haven't established any plans for today, and the weather report is looking grim, so this might be a nice, quiet one.  We'll see what the day brings!

Didn't Skip Leg Day

Howdy folks!  My apologies for being radio silent for the last couple of days.  I haven't found myself with copious amounts of free time in the evenings and what time I have has been spent wrestling with my equipment.  Google provides a whole host of amazing tools to help an intrepid blogger, but it all falls apart if that blogger's internet connection is anything less than spectacular.  With the recent demise of my phone's camera I no longer have photos automagically finding their way up to Google Photos, and for whatever reason I'm finding that the upload function on the Google Photos website is nonfunctional.  I don't know if that's a result of a bug or the poor quality internet connection, but after a few days of monkeying around I'm going to just have to call it quits.  I always enjoy throwing photos into the mix on these posts, but for the remainder of the trip I'm afraid they're going to have to be pretty sparse.  Anyway, on with the show!

I last posted on Tuesday morning, just before we got our day started.  The forecast for that day was calling for rain in the morning, tapering off through the afternoon, so we decided to take the drive into Corner Brook while it was still wet outside and hope for improved weather by the time we got there.  It was a strategy that paid off spectacularly.  We rolled into Corner Brook and made for the train museum on the closest end of town.  It was still a little bit drizzly outside, but the bulk of that museum is spent on a train, out of the weather.  I'm happy to report that despite all initial indications Finn was willing to return home with us and I still have my son here; I genuinely believed that I was going to have to leave him there for the remainder of the trip and grab him before our flight home next week.  My boy loves trains, and they've got some beauties.  The centrepiece of the whole museum is the Newfie Bullet, a steam train that will be turning 100 years old next year.  You can't get up into the engine, but they've got several cars hooked up that you can explore, and they offer a guided tour with the cost of admission, which was well worthwhile.  Our guide provided a huge amount of insight into what we were looking at, and I would strongly recommend opting for the tour if you visit here.

When we were ready to leave the train museum our guide recommended a small "train" (actually an automobile) that drives tourists around Corner Brook's downtown.  We used the promise of more trains to lure Finn away from the museum and headed out to find the train.  We had to wander around for awhile, but we eventually found the stop when Jay popped into a pizza shop to ask directions.  The tourist train is $2 to ride and putters around the downtown area playing lively local music.  It was a fun ride, and an opportunity to see a bit of Corner Brook while staying off your feet.

My selfie camera still works, so you'll occasionally get some of those shots.

We grabbed some lunch at a nearby restaurant and then made our way to Margaret Bowater Park, which is a lovely spot on the bank of a small river.  They've got a splash pad and playground equipment for the kids, as well as a really nice facility with a snack bar, washrooms, and changing areas.  They also have lifeguards on duty at the river if the splash pad just isn't doing it for you.  Jay and I went out for a swim, which was really nice since by that point the sun was out and it had got quite warm.  We even coaxed Finn out into the water for a bit, although I think the splash pad was more his speed.  All told it was a great day in Corner Brook.

Yesterday was considerably less relaxing, but ratcheted up the AWESOME!  Since we got here we'd been aiming at Wednesday for our trip up Gros Morne, and we managed to make it happen.  When we woke up the forecast had deteriorated somewhat and was calling for more cloud cover than original.  This can be problematic for Gros Morne since at 800 m over sea level the top can get covered in clouds fairly easily, and if the top is obscured it's considered unsafe to climb.  Jay and I decided to head to that section of the park anyway to try our luck; the weather has been consistently better than what's being predicted, and there's a 4 km hike to the base of the mountain that gives the weather a chance to clear.  The rest of the family walked briefly down the trail with us and then left to go do something less strenuous.  Our strategy paid off and by the time we drove out to the trail head and hiked in to the viewing platform at the base the clouds were very obviously clearing.  There were still some scattered wisps near the top, but they were blowing away and we were confident that we'd be safe at the top.

The trail at Gros Morne is an interesting beast.  Once you've got to the base of the mountain you've gained a little altitude, but the bulk of the climbing happens all in one shot.  The trail runs right up a rocky slope, and in less than two kilometres of hiking you've gained enough altitude to hit the 800 m peak.  It's a tough scramble up loose rock, but it gets you to the top very quickly.  The mountains on the east coast are very different animals from their cousins in the Rockies and don't come to the sharp peaks that you see on the west coast.  Out here the mountains are older and worn down to gently rounded tops by the elements.  The top of Gros Morne is a broad plain of low plants amongst great swathes of small rocks.  This is the reason that you can't make the climb if there's any significant cloud cover, as it would be incredibly easy to get lost if the visibility was poor.

Jay and I at the peak.

Someone has constructed small, semi-circular walls of rocks at the top that you can sit behind to keep out of the wind, and we claimed one of these to cook our lunch in.  Jay had scored some interesting hiking meals that self-heat in the bag via chemical reaction with the addition of some water.  Very interesting stuff, and a great way to have a warm, hearty meal while adding very little weight to your pack.

After lunch we set off for the rest of the hike.  One of the more challenging aspects of the Gros Morne hike is that because the ascent is so steep and rocky it would be ludicrously dangerous to come down the way you came up, and so the trail continues on across the top of the mountain and winds gently down the southeastern slope until it loops back around to the original 4 km stretch of trail.  This adds a lot to the hike; the total loop from the base and back is about 9 km, after which point you're retracing your steps through the original 4 km hike in.  It makes for a whole lot of walking, and by the end of it we were both pretty cooked.  The views are absolutely stunning through the whole thing though, and it was one hundred percent worthwhile.

Okay, I'm finally caught up.  I'll try to do my usual routine of writing tonight, without getting too caught up in monkeying around with my photos.  I'm not sure what the plan is for today; the weather isn't supposed to be great, and my calves are killing me, so probably not a hike.  Stay tuned for more updates to find out where we end up!

Disaster Strikes (my equipment)

Good morning all!

Sorry about the lack of a post last night, but I was feeling a little rough by the time we got back to the house, and just didn't have it in me to get on and do some writing.  Also, the internet here is atrocious, so it took a long while to get my photos uploaded.

We headed out to the Coastal Trial yesterday, which is an easy little stroll along a rocky beach.  Unfortunately with the backpack I use to carry Finn my pockets were blocked, so I was fumbling with my phone the whole time trying to get photos, which lead to me dropping it on the gravel path.  It was just from waist height, which really shouldn't have been a significant issue, but it must have landed perfectly on a rock because I managed to shatter the camera lens.  This is a significant setback as I was planning on using that as my primary camera for the trip.  In fact, the only other camera equipment I've got are my action video camera and my good Pentax, but only with my long lens.  I'd intended to use the phone for scenery and the Pentax for wildlife.  Leaving my short lens at home has put me in a situation where I've got no backup plan.  Shakespeare would have something to say about my hubris, I'm sure.

Fortunately between Dad and Jay we've got a decent amount of photography still happening.  Jay's been routinely uploading his shots to Google Photos, so I should be able to integrate those into the blog with minimal effort.

The long lens comes in handy sometimes.

The last photo I took before destroying my camera phone.

After our hike we headed into Deer Lake to pick a few things up, and we hit the Insectarium, which is a small but delightful museum just on the outskirts of town.  They're breeding all manner of butterflies there and you can walk around checking them out.  They've also got exhibits dedicated to various other forms of insect life.  It was very interesting, and Finn had a blast running around there.  I'll grab some of Jay's photos just as soon as I figure out how...

Well, I'm going to get my day started, I'll try to check in again tonight.