Green Point, Gros Morne National Park

EASTERN CANADA ROAD TRIP 2019

Another stop in Gros Morne National Park was Green Point. After just a short walk from the parking lot and down some stairs, we came to what is a very geologically significant area, adjacent to the ocean.

As you can see, the layers of rock stand vertically, but originally they formed flat as sediment settled to the ocean floor. Later, tectonic forces pushed them upright, so now, the oldest layers appear to the right and the younger layers to the left.

After her talk, the park ranger encouraged us to clamber up on the rocks and look for fossils of ocean creatures. Even Lyle was allowed, and he scrambled right up like a mountain goat, much to my surprise.

And we even found some remains of organisms that lived in the ocean hundreds of millions of years ago! We of course left our finds at the park and enjoyed showing them to other visitors who were on the hunt as well. I loved the sort of communal spirit that we all shared in our common quest after the lecture. That seems pretty far off as we enter year two of Covid-19 and socially distancing, but perhaps that is why I remember it so fondly.

Ferry, Newfoundland to Labrador

EASTERN CANADA ROAD TRIP 2019

We decided at the last minute to hop over to Labrador and were happy to get reservations on the next ferry out. Headed to Labrador, it was pretty easy to figure out where to be and when. Coming back was another story - the only time a single person was rude to us our entire trip was when we were in Labrador, trying to check in for the ferry back across. It’s chaos, with only a very tiny lot to accommodate all the cars, trucks, RVs, and semi trucks who wish to purchase tickets. There is no room for larger vehicles, so semi trucks were parked in the road, and since we could not go forward, we did the same, and then heard an earful from someone who had no helpful information (that said, literally everyone else we encountered on our Canada trip was delightful).

Aside from that, it was lovely. We saw an iceberg! It was not that far from the town of St. Barbe in Newfoundland, where we departed. It’s less than two hours across the Strait of Belle Isle. I am told frequently you can see whales, and we stood outside most of the time, hoping.

Norstead, Newfoundland

EASTERN CANADA ROAD TRIP 2019

Just a couple of miles from L’Anse aux Meadows National Historic Site is Norstead, a recreated Viking port of trade. The buildings are similar, and there are costumed reenactors, but Norstead is supposed to represent what a village in the homeland would look like, while L’Anse aux Meadows is the site of an actual Norse settlement.

These buildings are larger, and reflect what a more permanent settlement would have looked like back in Norway. One of the coolest things on display was the ‘Snorri,’ a 54-foot long replica of a Viking knarr, which actually sailed from Greenland to L’Anse aux Meadows in 1998 with a crew of only nine men. I am sorry not to have gotten a picture of it, because it was really cool.

Also, we saw Minke whales here! This is the best whale photo I got, because I don’t always pack my long lens. But that did not take away from my excitement one bit. I sat on a rock and watched this guy/girl for almost an hour.

L'Anse aux Meadows, Newfoundland

EASTERN CANADA ROAD TRIP 2019

L’Anse aux Meadows National Historic Site (and a UNESCO World Heritage Site) at the very tip top of Newfoundland, was our most anticipated stop. I heard about this place, the southernmost known Norse settlement, many years ago and had been picturing it in my mind ever since. It was thrilling to actually visit the site of first known European contact with North America (and it is assumed, native Americans).

You can still see the indentations in the earth, made by Norse settlers in the 11th century. Why did they come here? No one really knows - the settlement lasted just a few years. Perhaps they came to scout, to trade, or maybe they were shipwrecked and repairing their transportation home.

There is a recreated village where you can interact with costumed reenactors. It was fascinating to sit by the fire and listen to Norse tales, watch the tanning of a seal skin, and my daughter even got to help demonstrate how to forge iron. She got to take home a nail she made with Ragnar, the blacksmith. I just have to mention that he teased her about not knowing how to tie her shoes (my fault, of course) and it was not long after that she figured it out, so thanks for that, Ragnar.

We had such a great time there that we returned again a second day in a row. I have to reiterate the brilliant thing about the Canadian parks and historic sites is that dogs are welcome. The Norse folk were delighted to meet our ‘little sheep,’ haha. My daughter loved dressing up as a Norse person and literally spent hours in the village. We did tear her away to do a hike around the site, which as you can see in the image above, is situated right on the coast.

We hiked past a little snow, through the peat bogs and up and over some rocks, enjoying the view of the ocean and the constant breeze.

You can see a more modern village nearby.

Port au Choix, Newfoundland

EASTERN CANADA ROAD TRIP 2019

Our next stop along the western coast of Newfoundland was at Port au Choix. This area’s most notable feature is perhaps the Point Riche lighthouse, which is still active. It’s perched at the top of these long layers of rocks, which were fun to scramble along.

There were even neat formations in the rocks - fossils of some kind, maybe?

The highlight, however, were the caribou that roamed the parking area. We had never seen a caribou in the ‘wild’ before, and were delighted even at the sight of this scruffy one. There were three in the area, grazing nearby and then walking out to the shore, just like us, haha.

Port au Choix is a National Historic site because it was found to be an important place for Maritime Archaic peoples and their ancestors, as well as a major fishing settlement for the French and English. This ‘cultural crossroads’ is still home to a town and also to a fantastic museum that tells the story of this place. Right across the street from the museum, we took the Dorset Trail, an easy route through the limestone barrens and the tuckamore.

These beautiful lady slippers, and several other wildflowers, were growing in the delicate soil along the trail.

This is tuckamore - if you are not familiar with that term. It refers to short, bent spruce that have been shaped by the strong winds. They can be alone or in groups where they seem too thick to walk through.

We walked through the trees for a short way, and then it opened up to some boggy areas.

Not far beyond the bog was a lovely lake.

Gros Morne National Park, Shallow Bay

EASTERN CANADA ROAD TRIP 2019

We spent the afternoon and night at Shallow Bay, the longest sand beach in Gros Morne National Park. Because, and I’m just guessing here, the water is shallow far out into the bay, the swimming was glorious. It was truly warm (and I am a tough critic, being from South Carolina where the water gets bathtub warm :) and I wished we had stayed a little longer.

The campground was situated in lush forest, and we walked a trail lined by these crackerberry flowers to the beach - maybe a quarter of a mile. It was quite a pleasant stay.

Gros Morne National Park, Broom Point

EASTERN CANADA ROAD TRIP 2019

I’ll never forget our trip to Broom Point in Gros Morne National Park, because it is where we first saw minke whales. There were a couple of them surfacing right off the point and we watched them for a while. Trying to guess where they will surface next and watching the top of the water for motion just never gets old. The interpretive staff identified them for us, but the whales were not close enough to get a good photo.

But why were we at Broom Point in the first place? Every summer for about 34 years, the Mudge family - three brothers and their families - would set up in the cabin (the white building) and use the area as a base for fishing lobster, cod and salmon. Today you can see all the equipment they used and learn about the process from knowledgeable local staff. Our guide was raised in a fishing family nearby and was able to answer all our questions. This exhibit really helped us understand what a labor-intensive activity this was, and just how important it was to not only the Mudge family, but many like them up and down Newfoundland’s coast.

The surrounding landscape was just gorgeous, and we had fun looking in the tide pools at the site.