September 27 to 30, 2012; Drummond'Ville

SEPT  27, Thursday
A beautiful sunny but cool day greeted us today.  I helped Peter in the morning then in the afternoon, we went shopping for groceries and a haircut and stopped at the bank for some cash.  Then we came home and I gave Peter a hand installing the third and final window in the garage.  We bought a BBQ chicken for dinner and had that with veggies and potatoes.  The tube was our evening!

 

SEPT  28, Friday
Sunny and clouds, the forecast was for rain but we were surprised with sunshine!  Anyway, this was a quiet day.  Peter continued working on his garage and I washed the front of the rig then cleaned the truck inside and out.  My sister Therese arrived around 3 pm to spend a week here while her husband, Michel, is gone moose hunting.  She brought spaghetti sauce that she made earlier so we had that for dinner (with spaghetti too, Rick!).  Gilles and Lise came over for a visit in the evening.

 

SEPT  29, Saturday
RAINING!  The forecast was a day late, what’s new!?  Gilles came over for his usual morning coffee on the week-end then, Therese and Val & I left around 2:30 pm to Gaetan and Josette’s house for dinner.  Peter didn’t come as he had a friend coming over later.  We first stopped at IGA to pick up a dessert and ice cream and at the liquor store next door for some wine.  Andre and Pierrette were also invited which made for a noisy dinner party.  Afterwards, Gaetan put on some music and we ALL ended up dancing.  The party came to end around 10 pm and we came home.  It was a lot of fun and the supper was absolutely delicious consisting of chicken cooked in a white sauce with pepper spices, potatoes, salad and dessert afterwards of course.

 

SEPT  30, Sunday
Another rainy day; what a boring way to end a month! 
It was a quiet day, reading and visiting with Gaetan and Josette.  Val made a pork roast for dinner then it was to bed early under a rainy sky

September 22 to 26, 2012; Drummond'Ville

SEPT  22, Saturday, Dr’Ville
Well, the day began beautifully but turned to rain in the latter part of the afternoon.  It was very warm all day.  We went to Gilles but he had no work for us so we came back and I worked on my project: putting a shelf in one of the cupboard for Val.  Peter worked in his garage and building stairs for his basement entrance now that the cement is dry.  For dinner, I BBQ’ed steaks and the girls cooked potatoes and fried vegetables in a wok.  Of course it rained while I was BBQ’uing but stopped after dinner.  Another good day!

 

SEPT  23, Sunday, Cod cook-out
The weather cooperated for us and we had a sunny day albeit with a very cool wind...15*C max.  Everyone began arriving between 1 and 2 pm so we had a great visit.  Gaetan picked up Marc and brought him over.  I served the case of QUIDI VIDI beer that I brought form NFLD and also had everyone try the “Newfie” SCREECH.  Val cooked the cod as instructed by Donna and Jeff and everyone had brought different salads.  The cod was a SUCCESS!  Actually the whole dinner was a success and delicious.  Afterwards, we found ourselves in the garage ( a guy thing) and the girls eventually joined us.  They all left by 10 pm as everyone had to work tomorrow.  It was a GREEEAAAAT day!

 

SEPT  24, Monday,
A cool but sunny day!  Fall is definitely in the air.  The trees are changing colors and some are very red and yellow; awesome!  Peter and I took 7 bags of cement back to Rona then we went to Hamel Propane to get my little propane tank fix.  They had to change the valve as they don’t sell parts to it, or so they said!?  Anyway, all this took us to 3:30 by the time we got home.  Time for HH then dinner which consisted of chicken and vegetables melee cooked in the oven...Delicious!  We watched the tube for a while then it was time for bed.

 

SEPT  25, Tuesday,
Sun, clouds and cool, that was the day!  Peter had to go to town so we went with him to return some dishes to Gaetan and Christiane from the cod dinner.  We also stopped at the Propane place to pick up my tank then on to the Vet to pick up pills for Tucker's arthritis and some medicated shampoo for his scratching.  While there, we made an appointment for him tomorrow.  We drove to “Morgane” for coffee, Peter’s favorite coffee shop, sat outside, had our coffee and watched people walking by then came home but stopped at “Laffertie” for some 2X4 and electrical boxes.  At home, Peter decided to take on the task of preparing the window in his garage to be pulled out and replaced with a double pane window.  For dinner, Val made chili and we invited Lise to join us as Gilles is at work in Gatineau (4.5 hrs from here) and he stays there during the week.  After dishes and coffee, for Lise and Peter, we went home, watched the tube for a while then to bed.

 

SEPT  26, Wednesday
We went back into town again for Tucker’s Vet visit.  He got a shot and more pills to take plus we got a bag of diet food for him.  His problem is that he’s constantly scratching and the Vet figures it is definitely an allergic problem along with skin problems.  We also visited the bank for some cash then to the garage to have the tires rotated on the truck.  We also visited a couple of dentist about my tooth and most want $150+ which is too steep for my liking so I may have to wait until we get to Texas!??
We came home and I gave Peter a hand with the replacement of the window in the garage until Val called us for dinner, he's changing all of them with double pane windows he bought a while back.  We watched “Survivor” afterwards.

September 18 to 21, 2012; Drummond'Ville

SEPT  18, Tuesday, Drummond’Ville
This was a rainy day!  We had breakfast with Peter and T&M in the house. We spent most of the day inside the garage helping and/or watching Peter installing four fluorescent lights and the automatic door opener on the garage.  Gaetan showed up near the end and put in his two bits.  We called it quit around 5:30 pm, had a beer and Therese prepared dinner; Italian spaghetti and it was delicious!  Val made the salad.  After dinner, I showed some of our pictures of NFLD then it was beddy-bye by 9 pm.  It is still raining.

 

SEPT  19, Wednesday
We had quite strong winds overnight and heavy rains!  Right now, at 8 am, it is gusting at times and the sky has patchy blue sky; the forecast is for sunshine later on.
We spent the day in the garage again working on the automatic door and a couple of other items.  We drove to Rona to pick up some parts and cement for Peter.  For dinner, we had spare ribs compliment of Therese; they were very good!  After dinner, it was more pictures showing and Gilles and Lise also showed up for a drink.  Val and I watched the first episode of “Survivor” then went to bed.

 

SEPT  20, Thursday
Sunny and cool today!  Today was spent pouring cement to fill a hole in the garage and to do his outside entrance to the basement.  Therese made us lunch and at one point, I had to take a drive to Rona to return and exchange two fluorescent for Peter and to pick up my visa card which I had forgotten there yesterday.  Therese came with me and did some grocery shopping then we came home.  I also filled one propane tank.  At 4 pm, I went inside our house and cooked a shepherd pie for everyone (7 of us).  Everyone enjoyed it and after dinner, we visited.

 

SEPT  21, Friday,
Warm and sunny again today and it was a busy one.  I fixed my door screen which had been damaged by Tucker then we finished smoothing the cement.  I also walked to the mailbox to pick our mail parcel which had arrived.  Afterwards we went to Gilles’ place to help him with the new gazebo which he’s turning into a spa for Lise’s business.  We had to raise the roof so that he could add another 2X4 all around.  What a job!  At one point, we almost lost the roof when it slid without any warning as we were raising it!  WOW!  Anyway, we got it straighten out and finally finished the job by 6 PM.  Therese had made dinner when we got back so we ate and after a short visit afterwards, I called it quit.  I went home and opened our mail box which was full of bills, of course and also some magazines.

September 13 to 17, 2012; Drummond'Ville

SEPT  13, Thursday, Drummond’Ville
This has been a quiet and relaxing day, at least for me; I slept most of the day nurturing my cold.  At the end of the day it was much better.  Val did laundry (almost two weeks worth) and we had a roast for dinner.  In the evening, we had a fire burning branches and wood, Gilles and Lise joined us.  A week or so ago, a mini tornado came through here and did extensive damages in town and on Pierre’s lot, big branches either broke clean or hung and had to be cut down.  Sure glad we missed all that!
It was a sunny and warm day, temperature up to 27*C.  We are told to enjoy it as it is supposed to cool right down by the end of the week.

 

SEPT  14, Friday,
Sunny and warm!  What a busy day; for someone getting over a cold, I sure sweated it out.  First we cut and picked up all the branches, small and big, and piled it all by the fire pit except for the big pieces which we stocked up on the wood pile.  That took about an hour and a half then Val made us lunch.  My toilet had leaking for a while and Val complained that it was worse this morning so I took it apart, hauled it outside and found the problem.  I drove the Lupien RV and got a kit for a the valve that is causing the problem, came back home and replace it all, put it back together, tested it and all was fine.  I also installed a shut-off valve as I had to turn off the whole rig water supply.  After this, Peter and I walked over to Gilles and gave him a hand building a small new office for Lise’s business.  We got the roof on by 6 pm and decided to call it quit as we were tired and hungry.  Val made us pork chops, rice and carrots for dinner.  Afterwards, I had a shower and Peter decided to build a fire to burn the branches as there was no wind.  We sat around until 10 pm then went to bed.  My cold is much better!

 

SEPT  15, Saturday, to Andre’s place for a Corn Roast Party
It rained overnight and the temperature dropped quite a bit, down to 16*C max. And to think that last night we sat outside with just a t-shirt on!  The three of us left at noon and went to MAXI for some grocery and wine/beer then drove to Andre’s house in St-Basil le Grand, near Montreal.  Everyone was there except Gilles and Lise who was too tired from yesterday’s work.  We had a great visit and the weather cooperated and we had even had some sunshine.  Around 4PM, we shuck the corn cobs, (Andre bought a whole 50 lbs pouch of it) then we cooked them and had a “corn on the cob feast”.  Some people cooked hot dogs to supplement their craving for meat.  After clean up, we sat around the fire pit and proceeded to tell jokes and lies about our youth days J!  The highlight was my niece Emmanuel (Christiane’s daughter) who has “Artistic” and has an incredible talent of making paper figurine from memory.  She made us a horse, a butterfly and a bat.  She made Pierrette, who is an animal lover, a cat.  She got lots of compliments from all of us and we could see the pride and joy in her face.
We finally called it quit around 11 PM and came home.  I stopped for fuel along the way @ $1.35 then it was straight to bed when we got home.

 

SEPT  16, Sunday,
A quiet day at home!  We went for a walk then visited with Gilles and Lise for a while.  Peter did some little jobs in his garage and I helped whenever I could.  We had dinner then I showed Peter some of our pictures of the party Saturday at Andre and our trip to NFLD.

 

SEPT  17, Monday, Drummond’Ville
I posted pictures on Picasa this morning, which by the way, is clear sky and sunny!  Val and I went into town grocery shopping and also stopped at Cdn Tire to get some screen material.  I also stopped at a lumber yard to get a piece of laminated plank to build shelves in the cupboard.  We came home and found Therese and Michel had just arrived with their trailer and were just hooking up.  We had a short visit then had dinner together, a stew prepared by Val.  After dinner, we sat by the fire until 10 pm when it became bedtime for everyone.

September 9 to 12, 2012; Port aux Basques, NFLD to Dr'Ville, Que.

SEPT  9, Sunday; Crossing to Nova Scotia
We were up by 7 am and on the road by 8AM.  We stopped at TIM HORTON in Port au Basques for a quick breakfast, fuel @ $1.42 then on to the ferry.  Here we had a SURPRISE in that there was a fruit and vegetable check point where we had to hand over our potatoes and carrots due to a bacteria that has infected some of the those vegetables and it is being quarantine!  We began loading about an hour before departure and left 20 minutes early.  The ferry was half full.  When we got here back in Aug 17, it was windy and cloudy; we left Port au Basques this time under the same conditions.  The crossing wasn’t all that bad though and we eventually made it to North Sidney, Nova Scotia 6.5 hours later (That’s a long trip).  We went directly to Arm of Gold RV Park, paid our $36 and relaxed on real land one more time.  We also set our clocks back a half hour to Atlantic Time.  It is cloudy but very warm and humid!  By the way, I did confirm the distance on water between Port aux Basques Nfld and North Sidney NS= 96 miles or 158 Km!  Val has had a nasal cold for the past couple days and guess what...now I have it!  We have to share you know!

We travelled a total of 30 miles (49 KM) and 6.5 hrs on the ferry

 

SEPT  10, Monday, to Moncton, New Brunswick
What a day!!!  Rain, rain, rain, the whole day up to New Brunswick where we finally got some blue sky!  But I am getting ahead of myself.  We left around 9:15 AM under a slight rain and got on Hwy 125 to Sidney then south on Hwy 4 after I drove right by it and had to turn around.  As we got nearer the causeway separating Cape Breton with Mainland Nova Scotia, the rain became heavier and by the time we got on TCH 104 across the Causeway, the rain was coming down in buckets and we had strong SW winds.  I had the wipers on full speed trying to keep up to the rain.  We fuelled here at $1.37 (coming down) and again near Moncton at $1.37 there too.  We kept hearing about all kinds of flooding near Truro, N.S, and as we drove by, we could see fields flooded over and a couple barns under.  As we watched the news later, it was much worse!  As we got nearer Moncton, N.B, the sky began clearing up and the sun finally showed up just in time to set up!  We found a P.A, park off exit 450 called Stonehurst RV Park and we are now relaxing after a delicious dinner.  I unhooked when we arrived and drove into town to get some wine and beer then decided to take the “Beast” for an oil change at a “Quick Lube”.  It was way overdue so I feel better that it is done.
We’re sure glad we crossed one day earlier as the ferries to and fro Newfoundland are now cancelled until Wednesday due to hurricane “Leslie” which is forecast to hit part of Nova Scotia and full on Newfoundland.  What a day and to top it all, I am feeling really lousy over my cold!!!  We called UPS at home and had our mail forwarded to us in Drummond.

We drove 331 miles (539 KM) in 6.5 hrs @ an average 54 MPH.  We stopped for an hour total!

N  46* 07.571’
W 064* 55.564’
Alt: 428 ft

 

SEPT  11, Tuesday; to St-Edouard Ouest, Quebec, near Riviere Du Loup.
We left around 9 AM and drove West on TCH 2.  As we neared Fredericton, I decided to try a scenic route and we got off TCH 2 to Hwy 105.  It was worth it up to Fredericton.  The scenery was breathtaking as we were following the St-John River. We stopped for fuel outside the city @$1.37 then went on.  However the road got worse a few miles past the City.  First, it wasn’t too bad but as we progressed on, it became obvious it wouldn’t improve so the first chance we had, we got back on TCH 2.  We stopped in Woodstock for lunch at the Walmart parking lot.  At the line between Quebec and New Brunswick, a lot of construction was happening on the new 4 lanes highway.  We stopped one more time for fuel @ $1.37 then continued on TCH 185 (Yes it changed again).  In Riviere du Loup we got on TCH 20 and headed south-west.  We gained an hour as we crossed into Quebec but I am tired so we stopped for the night at St-Edouard Ouest, near Riviere du Loup at Rayon du Soleil Camping. Paid $28 and set up for the night!  Glad to off the road; it is still sunny but the wind has picked up in strength.  My cold is a bit better but it is taking its toll.
 
We travelled 366 miles (595 Km) in 6 hrs 50 minutes @ an average 53 MPH.  We stopped for over an hour.
N  47* 41.836
W 069* 39.563
Alt: 307 ft

 

SEPT  12, Wednesday, to Drummond’Ville
I spoke to soon about my cold.  I had a horrible night, coughing and sniffling, just couldn’t relax.  I did sleep some after loading myself with Advil but I was up by 5:30 AM as I just couldn’t be comfortable anymore.  I’ll be glad to be back in Drummond.
The day is clear and sunny!  We left around 8:30 AM and headed SW on TCH 20 and of course, the famous headwind too!  We stopped south of Quebec City for fuel @ $1.37 and lunch then drove on.  We arrived in Drummond’Ville around 1 PM and I stopped at Lupien RV Shop to get the left front wheel on “Bear” as it was showing signs of leaking.  We left the rig there and when on to fill one tank of propane ($21.), stopped by the pharmacy to pick up some cough syrup then headed to Pierre’s house and Tucker.  We had a great reunion and a bonus to boot as Gaetan was also there.  We chatted until 4:30 when we decided to drive to Lupien to see how they were doing.  Tucker was following me everywhere and didn’t want us to leave without him again.  On the way down, Lupien called to say the rig was ready.  We found out that the leak was caused by a crush seal in the axle; they cleaned the brake pads and we were on our way to Pierre (No cost).  I backed up Bear in its spot and we set up.  We had dinner together then we gave Pierre his present for baby-sitting Tucker while we were gone.  Gilles & Lise came over afterwards, we chatted then I went to bed early.

We drove 218 miles today at an average 50 mph.

September 7 & 8, 2012: Back to Port aux Basques

SEPT  7, Friday, on the road back to the West Coast
I got up at 7 am to pouring rain but it’s supposed to clear up later this morning so we waited for a while. 
Around 10 AM, it became more of a drizzle than rain so I went out and packed up.  We were on the road and TCH 1 by 10:30 AM under drizzling rain and fog.  It rained on and off all the way to our final destination for the day: Catamaran RV Park in Badger.  We stopped twice for fuel and lunch.  Diesel is now at $1.43 in the Central Region.  No moose and no wild life!  It is 5:30 PM, we are set up and relaxing.  I called my brother Peter to find out how Tucker is and to let him know we are taking the ferry on Monday morning.  The weather is good over there, warm and sunny!

We drove 475 Km (292 miles) in 5 hrs 20 minutes at an average 54MPH.  We stopped for a total of 40 minutes. 

N  49* 03.171
W 056* 04.876'
Alt: 426 Ft

 

 SEPT  8, Saturday, to Doyle, NFLD

Val woke up with stuff nose and a bit of a fever!  We were on the road by 9 AM.  The weather was great, cloudy with sunny periods and the winds were light.  We stopped in Deer Lake for fuel @ $1.414 and we had brunch here too.  We were soon back on the road and arrived without any incidents at the KOA Park in Doyles, approx. half hour from the ferry.  Val wanted to leave tomorrow instead of Monday ( why spent an extra day when there is no need she reasoned!?) so she called the ferry and changed our reservation to tomorrow (cost $25, cheaper than an extra night).  We arrived at the park at 2:20 PM and paid $30 + $1.50 for using my visa ( Pretty tacky).  We are set up in #5 and doing last minute preparations for our crossing tomorrow; hopefully it will be without any incident and ON TIME!!!  I researched the NET yesterday and found that the crossing is approximately 160 KM (100 miles).  I will have to confirm that on the vessel.

We drove 406 Km (250 Miles) in 4.5 hrs @ an average 55 MPH and were stopped for just under an hour.
N  49* 03.171'
W 56* 04.876'
Alt: 82 ft

September 4 to 6, 2012; St-John's NFLD

SEPT  4, Tuesday, St-John’s, Capital of NFLD

We left under sunny sky after dumping our tanks.  We headed for St-John’s on 230 and 230A which was very rough.  We stopped in Clarenville for fuel @ $1.35 (the cheapest so far) and then got on TCH 1 for St-John’s.  One of the things about NFLD is that one is crossing mountains range after mountains ranges hence you always go up and down.  As we neared St-John’s, the landscape changed quite drastically in that it became more a landscape of rocks, low brushes and grasses.  We also FINALLY SAW OUR FIRST MOOSE CROSSING THE HIGHWAY!!!  Unfortunately, our pictures didn’t turn out too good but we at least saw ONE!  As we neared the city, the sky became cloudier and the temperature cooler.  We got off exit 46 and arrived at PIPPY RV PARK around noon.  We paid $41.80/night, tax included, and set up in Lot # 3.  We are here for 4 nights, maybe 5! 
We went into town and drove to the end of TCH 1 so now I can officially claim having driven from one end of this country to the other!  We went into city centre and found the Info Centre and got some directions on places we want to see.  We walked onto George Street where all the pubs and clubs are situated.   We first stopped at an Irish Pub, “O’Reilly”, and discussed their schedule for “Screeching” and they didn’t have any so we went to: “TRAPPER JOHN” where we finally got “SCREECHED” and became “HONORARY NFLD’ers!  Finally, that’s over!  Instead of kissing the lips of a cod though, we got to kiss the rear end of a Puffin.  There were 7 people being “screeched in”.  It was time to go home and wouldn’t you know it, we got right into the centre of ‘RUSH HOUR”.  The streets in St-John’s are definitely not in any order nor straight.  We finally made it back to our Park and had HH.  Our spot is very nice and under trees; actually we are surrounded by trees, a forest within a city!  St-John’s is the Capital of NFLD and also the biggest city holding over 125 thousand citizens.  This also becomes the end of our trip in Newfoundland.  We will explore the area and peninsula but this is the end!

We drove 144 miles (234 Km) in 3 hours at an average 47 MPH.

N  47* 34.898
W 052* 44.002
Alt: 258 ft

 

SEPT  5, Wednesday, ST-John’s, NFLD
The day began cloudy and rainy but soon cleared and then we had a beautiful sunny day!  We took a drive to Signal Hill National Park.  What a site and what a VIEW!  WOW!  We first took a tour of the reception building, watched a short film on the history of St-John’s and its battles between French and English for control of the fishing off shore.  It is also the location of Cabot Tower commemorating 400 years since John Cabot landed in Newfoundland.  Signal Hill is most famous for its first Trans-Atlantic communication  We went inside and up the Cabot Tower and looked over the Atlantic Ocean, the entrance to the Harbour (looked very narrow from here) , the Harbour itself with all the fishing boats, Coast Guard Vessels and a huge Cruise Ship (the longest one ever to enter the Harbour).  We had a great view of the city and its surrounding; one can see for miles all around.  From here, we went to Quidi Vidi which is a small village and home to the famous Quidi Vidi beer factory.  There are numerous tours given  throughout the day but today and tomorrow, it is book solid because of the Cruise Ship, so we couldn’t have a tour.  We stopped for lunch at this funky Pub in the village.  It is hard to describe but it was full of all kinds of trinkets and junk and the menu consisted of chili, fish soup, chicken soup or/and chicken sandwiches.  We had the chili and a couple beers.  While there, they held a “Screeching Ceremony” and instead of kissing a cod, people had to kiss a crow!  COOL!!!  They have been in business for over 20 years and her husband died of cancer.  The owner was very friendly and fun to talk to.  Everyone was called “Love”; neat!  I just LOVE Newfoundland!
We ended our day by going groceries shopping then came home and put everything away.  I have to say here that St-John’s is a nightmare to drive around; for starter, there is NO road in a straight line for any distance or grid line.  They all criss-cross and as an example, to go from our place to Downtown, we have to drive over and around 4 different streets in a very short distance so it really becomes confusing!  Rush hour is a nightmare and just about every street is busy.  Not complaining, just giving you an idea of what it is like.  It may also have to do with the fact that I am tiring of all this driving and sightseeing!?  I am looking forward to being back on the Mainland and seeing Tucker...I miss him!
I have uploaded new pictures in Folder #92, Bonavista Peninsula!

 

SEPT  6, Thursday, Cape Spear, cloudy day!
We had a late start but eventually made our way to Cape Spear.  I entered the address on Miss Daisy and she took us there through town.  Sure glad too as we must have made a half dozen turns before finally arriving on “Cape Spear Drive”.  It was a very nice drive to the Cape and a wonderful walk around the area.  We first walked up to the souvenir building and ended up buying 2 jackets for ourselves.  We then went across the way where there were over a dozen paintings of ALL the Light House around Newfoundland.  A Coast Guard officer was there and  gave us a verbal tour of all the painting; he was full of stories and facts.  As a matter of fact, we spent over a half hour in there with him.  I should mention that to get here, we had to climb stairs to seem to never end!  After the paintings, we went to the OLD Light House but unfortunately, it was all closed up.  There is a NEW LIGHT further down but it is automated.  We then walked down to the most Eastern Point in Canada AND North America ( W 52* 37’ 14”); took lots of pictures, of course!  During the Second World War, Batteries of huge guns were installed here and bunkers which are still here, again, check out the pictures (to be posted soon).
We walked back to the truck and that’s when I remembered about the Geo-Caches I had to find here.  Four to be exact, so back up to the light, over the cliff and along the rock face for our first one where I left a TB and took a TB (Travel Bug for those who don’t know) then down to the second one at the Most Eastern Point; so now I know this place VERY well!  We drove just down the road for the next two.  WOW, geo-caching in Newfoundland!  We drove back to St-John’s and stopped at the Railway museum.  It was very informative and well lay out with lots of history of St-John’s and the Province.  We walked the streets of downtown for a while and had a late, or should I said very late, lunch at “Bridey o’ Molly’s Pub” where I tried Jig beef dinner.  It was very good but salty!  Then we went to the “Terry Fox Monument” where it all started.  We took a few minutes to reminisce then it was on to Walmart for some serious shopping then home.

Well...This is it!  We’ve decided to leave tomorrow for the West Coast and get ready to cross back to the Mainland.  We have enjoyed ourselves and have loved every moment here and throughout the Province.  There is still much to be seen but I think it will have to wait for our next trip here, if ever!

September 1 to 3, 2012: Easport to Bonavista, NFLD

SEPT  1, Saturday, Eastport, NFLD
The countdown has begun: we have 9 days left to finish our explorations.  I had a tank of propane filled and had to go to a town about 20 minutes from here to get it done.  It was cloudy and drab this morning but now it is sunny and the sky is clearing although there are still a lot of dark, stormy clouds around!  We went for a looooong walk then stopped at the local restaurant where we have seen a lot of vehicles stopped every time we drove by and we had breakfast.  We then walked back home and I washed the jeep then took the truck into town to top it up @ $1.37.  Geoff and Donna arrived back around 2 pm and she went for a nap as they had partied quite hard the last two days.
At 4:30, we had HH on the deck but it was too cold and it began raining so we moved inside the house.  Donna cooked Capelin fish and re-heated fisherman brewis that she had in the fridge.  I loved the Capelin fish but the brewis was still not my thing even though it was better than the one I had in the restaurant.  We had a few drinks and a nice visit but called it quit early because Donna was bushed from her week-end and Geoff was going fishing at 6:30 am.  We said our good night to both of them and our goodbyes to Geoff then went to bed.

 

SEPT  2, Sunday, to Charleston, Bonavista Peninsula
We have spent way too much time in Eastport and now we have to rush on although we did enjoy Geoff and Donna’s hospitality.  We were up by 7 am and ready to go by 8 AM.  We said goodbye to Donna then we were on our way by 8:15.  We drove on 310 to TCH 1, south to 233, East along a beautiful Bay and finally arrived at our destination at Cabot Highway RV and Cabin on Hwy 230 at 10AM.  We had made reservations and I knew we would be placed in the overflow lot for one night but I didn’t expect power, albeit, only 15 amps but better than nothing; so we paid $16 a night and decided to remain in the overflow the two nights.  We then set up after filling the tank with fresh water.
Because of the early hour, we left and drove to TRINITY which was an absolute joy to walk through.  It’s a quaint little place and also a Provincial heritage place.  We had lunch here then walked around and poked our nose in every building we could and took lots of pictures of course.  We also drove to the light house but had to pay $10 each so we decided to pass.  It was picturesque though.  From here we continued on Hwy 230 to Port Union, the first fishermen town to be unionized and built by the Union.  There is an old museum which we went through then the factory which turned out to be a bit of joke as our guide knew very little of what was inside but we had to pay $6 each anyway.  It was interesting and we saw the owner paper press and building floor.  We then went to the “Bungalow”, home of Sir William Ford Coaker, built in 1917 and was still fully furnished and we had a tour.  Sir Coaker was the founder of the town and the Union.  He was a very basic and ordinary guy.  Our guide was VERY informative and we had a complete and educated tour.  It was a beautiful house.  It was time to return to “our little house” and got back by 5 pm.  A good day overall; it was sunny and warm.

Right now, we are listening to live music put on by two local guys and the owner of the park.  Nothing professional but much appreciated and fun to listen to as there was lots of local folklore.  Later in the evening, they had fireworks celebrating Labor Day and the last long week-end for the summer.

We drove 72 miles(117 Km) in 1.5 hrs @ an average 43 MPH

N  48* 22.334
W 053* 42.155
Alt: 279 ft

 

SEPT  3, Monday, Labor Day and a tour of Bonavista Point
Temperatures have drastically dropped in the last couple days; it is 9*C (48*F) this morning at 7 pm.  The sun will warm it up but it is a change all the same, autumn is upon us.  We left around 10 AM for the village of ELLISTON which is famous for hundreds of root cellars (some over 200 yrs old) and its bird population especially the Puffins.  And we were not disappointed!  But first, we turned off on Hwy 238 to the village which was extremely rough (not a good way to attract tourist), we stopped at the Info Centre where we found out where to go then drove up to the site.  We had to walk in to the end of the bluff and here they were on this Island across a chasm.  We had to use our binocular to see them but how cute they were. As a bonus, ALL my pictures turned out!  We spent a good half hour watching them and the sea gulls.  The interesting is that they build their nest in these little holes, how they dig them, I don’t know but it was wonderful to watch them.  The other interesting thing, they fly to the Grand Banks for the winter where they float on the Atlantic Ocean and dive for fish (up to 200 feet deep) and become prey themselves to sharks and other big prey fish.  We continued on to Bonavista and the road was much better.  In Bonavista, we drove around a bit then stopped for lunch at this pub/cafe we found on Church Road and had lunch.  We walked Church St, took some pictures, then drove to the Matthew Legacy Site where a replica of the ship the “Matthew” was kept on dry dock and inside this huge building.  The Matthew is the vessel that John Cabot sailed on to America and supposedly landed near Cape Bonavista although there are no archeological proof.  The display was wonderful and awesome!  We went on board after reading a story and watching a film of her sailing into Bonaventure for the first time in the late 1990’s (she was built in and by Newfoundlanders).  After this visit, it was time to drive to “DUNGEON”, an underground cave that collapsed creating a huge crater with the sea coming in from two entrances.  After taking some pictures, we drove on to the famous Lighthouse where there is a huge statue of John Cabot.  What a setting, what a view!  It was breathtaking, honestly!   We visited the Interpretive Centre then inside the lighthouse which was furnished as it was back in the 1800’s.  The living area was built around the lighthouse so that the keeper had instant and constant watch over the light which was of two colours and ran on kerosene/oil.  It was built and completed in 1843.  It was replaced by an automated light (next to the lighthouse) in 1962.

It was time to go home so we drove south on 235 which took us back to 230 and home by 5 pm!  What an exciting and wonderful day!  Tomorrow we head for St-John’s