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Old 10-22-2018, 04:37 PM   #1
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Newfoundland and Labrador Trip Report

We spent 6 weeks this summer camping in Newfoundland and Labrador. The ferry was no problem for our little corgi. We sailed during the day going and at night coming back. Much preferred the night crossing, the cabin was quite comfortable, thought the weather was quite rough. The excellent crew must have clamped our trailer to the floor when the waves hit, we could see scuffs on the tires. I bet they were rocking and we were surrounded by huge rv trailers and buses within inches of the trailer. But no damage at all. It was interesting to see how they chained down the motorbikes too.
We covered most of the island, Port Aux Basque, north to Cape Onion, all the way east to St. Johns and South to Cape Saint Mary's. High lights: 5 days in Labrador, the bugs were epic but so was the scenery, salmon rivers, bears and beaches.
Whales and icebergs, all around the north of Newfoundland, close to shore, we watched humpbacks for hours, WOW. Great hiking in Gros Morne, Lark Harbor area, Twillingate, Coastal trail, Terra Nova and around Cape Onion. Kayaking the fjords in the west and from our campsite in Dildo Run (yes really that's a Provincial park name, right next to Virgin arm and Cuckold head ). We met a lot of great folks. Bumped into only one other Escape at Blow Me Down Prov. Park, Tumbleweed on their cross country trip from British Columbia in their 17. We did spy another 19 parked in the rv park near the ferry to Labrador.
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Old 10-22-2018, 05:59 PM   #2
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This sounds like a fabulous trip! What month did you travel?
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Old 10-22-2018, 06:35 PM   #3
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July 2 to August 12
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Old 10-24-2018, 03:03 PM   #4
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Thanks for the report! We're planning a 13-week trip from Seattle to SE Canada next summer with only about 9 days on Newfoundland Island but this makes we glad that we decided to include Newfoundland.
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Old 10-24-2018, 07:43 PM   #5
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Thanks for the report! We're planning a 13-week trip from Seattle to SE Canada next summer with only about 9 days on Newfoundland Island but this makes we glad that we decided to include Newfoundland.
Sounds like a great trip. Newfoundland is a fantastic place, but HUGE, 9 days can give you a great taste and the west is the most scenic in my opinion.
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Old 10-24-2018, 09:55 PM   #6
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That sounds like a wonderful trip and one I'd love to take. Where did you get on the ferry and how long was the trip? I have a dog and she's my main concern. What did you do about potty breaks for your dog? Did you get to visit your dog very often?
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Old 10-25-2018, 06:22 AM   #7
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That sounds like a wonderful trip and one I'd love to take. Where did you get on the ferry and how long was the trip? I have a dog and she's my main concern. What did you do about potty breaks for your dog? Did you get to visit your dog very often?
We took the ferry from North Sydney Nova Scotia to Port Aux Basque Newfoundland. It's a longish process, we got in line around 10, loaded and off around noon, about 6 1/2 hours going. So we were on the island around 6:30pm. Pets must stay either in your vehicle (which you can not return to) or in the kennel in a crate. I would not suggest the kennel unless your dog doesn't mind lots of barking and being crated. The few I saw in the kennel were very upset and noisy. It's a tiny room on deck but the upside is that you can visit with your dog anytime, take her out of the crate. There is a sand box in the kennel room for potty breaks. Tally, our corgi, is one reason we really preferred the night crossing. We left her in the truck, gave her her good night biscuit and left her sleeping in her own bed. You do leave a sign on your dash that there is a pet on board and the windows cracked. The night crossing has the same time line as day so we arrived back in Nova Scotia at 6:30 am. Tally was very happy to see us each time but not frantic or upset. I did go back to peek in on her the first ferry, just a few minutes after we left her before they closed the car decks and she was sleeping peacefully, so for her I think she felt secure in her own truck. The trip was well worth the ferry to us, in fact we plan to return in the not too distant future and drive back on the Labrador highway.
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Old 10-25-2018, 10:50 AM   #8
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I want to see an iceberg as big as Delaware. Your trip report brought back memories of my one camping trip to Newfoundland way back in the 70's. We also took the ?-Blue Nose- I think it was, from Sidney Mines to Port aux Basque and drove north many miles, the last 50 I think being on gravel roads, to a marvelous fishing village cove (forgot the name) with scattered lobsters on the shore, traps, unpainted, battered housing that seemed to us like being back in the 19th century. Remember meeting folks who had never seen a dollar bill. We stayed one night at some hunting cabin with no screens, a door that wouldn't close, and suffered through the night from relentless dive-bombing mosquitos.

Now I must get back there to see it all again. Assuming, of course, the roads have since been paved and going east across to St Johns is now easier.
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Old 10-25-2018, 12:07 PM   #9
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We left her in the truck, gave her her good night biscuit and left her sleeping in her own bed. You do leave a sign on your dash that there is a pet on board and the windows cracked. I did go back to peek in on her the first ferry, just a few minutes after we left her before they closed the car decks and she was sleeping peacefully, so for her I think she felt secure in her own truck.
We had the same experience with our dog.

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and suffered through the night from relentless dive-bombing mosquitos.

Now I must get back there to see it all again. Assuming, of course, the roads have since been paved and going east across to St Johns is now easier.
The road's fine but, oh, those mosquitos

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Old 10-25-2018, 12:23 PM   #10
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I know Minnesota mosquitos are big as dogs, but I do recall very well that Newfies are much bigger.
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Old 10-25-2018, 01:17 PM   #11
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I know Minnesota mosquitos are big as dogs, but I do recall very well that Newfies are much bigger.
I would caution anyone to avoid using the term "Newfie" when describing people from Newfoundland, as to many Newfounlanders that term is just as offensive as using the "N" word to describe African Americans. https://www.cbc.ca/news/canada/hamil...land-1.4115872 I know that during my own three year stay in Newfoundland, we were told in no uncertain terms by various Newfoundlanders that we should not be using the term Newfie.
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Old 10-25-2018, 01:30 PM   #12
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Guide book?

TallyHo, we will be visiting the Atlantic provinces for 6 weeks next Summer. Appreciated your post about the highlights of your trip there. Wondering if you might have a recommendation for a travel guide covering that area?
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Old 10-25-2018, 03:53 PM   #13
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TallyHo, we will be visiting the Atlantic provinces for 6 weeks next Summer. Appreciated your post about the highlights of your trip there. Wondering if you might have a recommendation for a travel guide covering that area?
We sent away for the free material from https://www.newfoundlandlabrador.com...avellers-guide and used the web before we went. Once there the people we met both local and other campers were very friendly and more than willing to give us lots of ideas of places to see, hikes, good places to eat etc. We were even invited to come along on hikes and kayaking trips by others. We reserved some things but tried to keep most of our time flexible. We stayed in a combination of provincial parks, free camping and the two national parks. None except maybe Dildo Bay Prov. park were full. Most did not have hookups but we were fine with our solar.
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Old 10-25-2018, 04:11 PM   #14
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[QUOTE=MyronL;267354]I want to see an iceberg as big as Delaware.
Go early Myron, by early July there were still bergs but not many.

Your trip report brought back memories of my one camping trip to Newfoundland way back in the 70's. We also took the ?-Blue Nose- I think it was, from Sidney Mines to Port aux Basque and drove north many miles, the last 50 I think being on gravel roads, to a marvelous fishing village cove (forgot the name) with scattered lobsters on the shore, traps, unpainted, battered housing that seemed to us like being back in the 19th century. Remember meeting folks who had never seen a dollar bill.
That must have been a great trip! A lot of the Newfoundlanders we met either themselves went to Florida for the winter or their parents, or aunts etc did.

We stayed one night at some hunting cabin with no screens, a door that wouldn't close, and suffered through the night from relentless dive-bombing mosquitos.
Newfoundland bugs were nothing compared to the black flies in Labrador, you couldn't even speak without choking on them. Never more happy to have a hard shell camper in my life!
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Old 10-25-2018, 07:38 PM   #15
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Your trip report brought back memories of my one camping trip to Newfoundland way back in the 70's. We also took the ?-Blue Nose- I think it was, from Sidney Mines to Port aux Basque...
It could have been the Bluenose II, a replica of the vessel on the Canadian dime. We went out for a two-hour afternoon sail on the Bluenose II this summer, from its home port of Lunenburg, Nova Scotia; I recommend that for anyone visiting the Atlantic province who has any appreciation for sailing or history.
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Old 10-25-2018, 09:11 PM   #16
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The Bluenose has a great history. It had several classic races against the Theobald. For anyone interested in the history of sailing along the Labrador coast please read Green Seas and White Ice by Miriam MacMillan of the Schooner Bowdoin.
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Old 10-25-2018, 09:27 PM   #17
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I would caution anyone to avoid using the term "Newfie" when describing people from Newfoundland, as to many Newfounlanders that term is just as offensive as using the "N" word to describe African Americans. https://www.cbc.ca/news/canada/hamil...land-1.4115872 I know that during my own three year stay in Newfoundland, we were told in no uncertain terms by various Newfoundlanders that we should not be using the term Newfie.
Could say the same thing about "Cali" to describe the Golden State. The difference of course is that Newfoundland is probably 80%+ the same as 40 years ago whereas California sure isn't the same place it was in the 70's. And while I know that is true just about everywhere, it is magnified here statewide....and it is a huge state.
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Old 10-25-2018, 10:01 PM   #18
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The Bluenose has a great history. It had several classic races against the Theobald. For anyone interested in the history of sailing along the Labrador coast please read Green Seas and White Ice by Miriam MacMillan of the Schooner Bowdoin.

And a book I highly recommend, "Great Heart".
https://www.amazon.ca/Great-Heart-La.../dp/1568361688


In July 1903 Leonidas Hubbard set out to explore the uncharted interior of Labrador by canoe, accompanied by Dillon Wallace, his best friend, and George Elson, a M?s guide. Bad luck and bad judgment led the expedition into disaster and the party was forced to turn back. Hubbard died of starvation just thirty miles from camp.
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Old 10-25-2018, 10:24 PM   #19
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And a book I highly recommend, "Great Heart".
https://www.amazon.ca/Great-Heart-La.../dp/1568361688


In July 1903 Leonidas Hubbard set out to explore the uncharted interior of Labrador by canoe, accompanied by Dillon Wallace, his best friend, and George Elson, a M?s guide. Bad luck and bad judgment led the expedition into disaster and the party was forced to turn back. Hubbard died of starvation just thirty miles from camp.
Thanks for recommendation. Best purchase is through Abebooks.com.
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Old 10-26-2018, 02:44 PM   #20
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"I would caution anyone to avoid using the term "Newfie" …"

Thanks Dave...I didn't know that. Wonder why. Seems every ethnic or geographical identity has their prejudiced put-down word to deal with. My guess is users of them do it primarily to elevate their own self worth and others mean just to be mean.

I don't take offense or feel mocked when someone listening to me snidely replies, "oh, you're from Joisey…or "Po-lack" because I'm Polish. Of course I think to myself, oh here's an idiot. Back way back in the day however, my dad felt the sting strongly enough to have our name legally shortened. His first name was Marian, which I think is a beautiful, manly name when you speak it with a rolling "R" --but he named me Myron because he thought it was less prejudicial. Guess he didn't know John Wayne's real first name was Marian.

Never knew or ever heard that Californians resented being called "Cali" (rhymes with Bali) or Maine folks being called "Maniacs." Guessing however, "Mass-holes" is used primarily by folks on their northern borders, (that's only where I ever heard it) -- we all know plenty more. No need to go there. But "Newfie?" is a new one for me. To be fair, though I thought I was clearly refering not to the person but of the mosquito. The things one learns!
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