My mother has been doing a lot of travelling this past year. My younger brother was on sabbatical, and planned two months in Australia and Tasmania with his family. My older brother's girlfriend, also on sabbatical this year, decided to take her family to New Zealand for six months. My brother was able to arrange to work from down under, and off he went. My mother took advantage of the unique opportunity and spent a month in New Zealand and a month in Australia. We had a brutal winter, cold with surprising amounts of snow. It was an ideal time to be in the southern hemisphere.
My younger brother's family had spent much of the rest of their sabbatical year in the Laurentians at my mom's cottage. Arriving two months following my father's death, having Eric and Leah and their twin six year olds moving in was a wonderful experience for everyone. They came in August while it was still swimming weather, started school for the first time in the local Morin Heights school, enjoyed the colourful autumn and had enough of winter (skiing, skating, snowstorms) before taking off for two months. They arrived just in time for the beginning of spring, and left as the blackflies were beginning to bite. Around the time they left, my mother asked me if I wanted to go to Newfoundland.
My mother had been there once, around twenty years back, with my father and my younger brother. At the time I already had kids, and I did not have the time, money or energy to do a long road trip. Newfoundland is an island, and pretty far off the mainland. This means that getting there requires an expensive plane ride, or a long (and equally) expensive ferry ride. In fact, it is not much cheaper than flying to some European countries. When my kids were old enough to do a long trip to the maritimes, New Brunswick was a much closer and more affordable option.
In addition to being a gorgeous place to visit, Newfoundland also is where my cousins Barbara and Brian (from Toronto) bought a house to spend the summer. They bought a house in Salvage (that's pronounced Salv-AGE, age as in how old you are, with the accent on the second syllable). My mother and I systematically mispronounced it and were corrected up until almost the end of our ten day trip. We were told that it is not pronounced in the English way, referring to what one does when there is a shipwreck, but rather is comes from the Portuguese word meaning safe, and is related to the fact that it is a safe harbour off of the Grand Banks of the North Atlantic. They have been there for seventeen years, and we have had a long term invitation to stay with them.
There were two answers to this question, depending on how it was asked. Did I want to go to Newfoundland? A resounding yes. Can I afford to go to Newfoundland? That was another story altogether. At the time my mother asked, I had yet to have any news of a contract in the fall. It looked promising, but I have been in that situation far too many times to spend money I might need to pay the mortgage. So I answered honestly, and my mother decided that she really wanted to go, and was willing to make it affordable for me to be her travel companion.
This summer is also the first time ever that all of my children are working, and I am not. Because it did indeed look like I would be getting work in the fall, and because I was really wiped out by May, I decided that I would take it easy this summer rather than picking up whatever short term contracts I could as I have done in the past few years. So I am, for the first time in a long time, really on an extended vacation. Also, this past year I was fortunate to have full time work from Vanier both semesters, which meant I continue to have my full time salary all summer long, again a first for me. Working small contracts in the summer were necessary to supplement my reduced paycheque. Not an issue this year. My son started working full time in April in tech support at a company that designs websites. My older daughter got a job at a residential camp for adults with developmental disabilities. When I left on vacation, my youngest had interviewed for a position at a Tim Horton's coffee shop, and started work before I got home. Not quite an empty nest, but there was no question that I could disappear for a while without too much collateral damage.
So I said yes. On June 24th, a mere four days after Ori's prom, my mom and I hopped a flight to St. John's via Halifax. This was my mother's show, so we did it her style. Rental car, meandering along the coast staying at AirBnB's, taking each day as it came and being spontaneous as we explored. She had wanted to travel on both the east and west coast, so we booked a place to stay in St. John's, a cabin in the woods near Bonavista and an apartment in Corner Brook, with the plan to stay a few days with my cousins as we drove from Bonavista up the coast, and then overnight on our way back to St. John's at the end of the trip. Well, that was the initial plan, anyways.
We landed in St. John's in the evening. There is a one and a half hour time zone change, and the day is slightly longer than in Montreal this time of the year, at least in the part of Newfoundland where we stayed. On the west coast, the island stretches much farther north, as it does in Labrador as well. We were pretty far south of the land of the midnight sun on this trip. Despite that, it is much, much colder than in Montreal. During the time we were there, Montreal was hitting above 30 degrees, while our warmest day was 19, and our coldest was 6 degrees, and that was not when we were out in a boat but on land. I wore my lighter winter coat, a sweater and a t-shirt (sometimes each in turn on the same day). As someone who does not deal well with heat, I was in paradise. Sitting by a fire to warm up in July is my kind of vacation.
We spent the first two days in St. John's. We went to a few museums, including the Rooms. If you look at the photo of St. John's harbour, the huge colourful house is the museum. We thought the name odd, until the guide explained that Newfoundland fishing families all had a fish processing space called the Room, so in local culture, everyone knew the significance. The museum has separate sections each in its own house, connected by a glass building which is wall to wall windows. The view through the windows from up the hill overlooking the harbour was fantastic (the first photo at the beginning of this post was taken through one of the windows). The Rooms has one whole building of local art, including a spectacular exhibit of Billy Gauthier's work. He is a sculptor and activist of Inuit and Métis ancestry, born in Newfoundland and living in Labrador. He works with traditional materials (soapstone, bone, antler, baleen). I was amazed at his work. (To give you an idea, http://www.spiritwrestler.com/catalog/index.php?artists_id=568&sort=6d&page=3 ) I was able to take photographs in that part of the museum, but as this is a garden blog, I am restricting my photos to flora and landscapes.
The other parts of the art galleries included some prints by David Blackwood (http://fineartcollector.ca/a-guide-to-david-blackwoods-best-prints/) and many others who depicted the culture and history of Newfoundland through their art. Paintings of mummers (a Newfoundland Christmas tradition), houses being hauled over water or dragged across ice (relocating of remote villages in the "resettlement" program of the 1950's and 1960's), ships on fire, whales and icebergs, the original designs of Newfoundland's stamps are all part of a collection that is as much a history and cultural lesson as an aesthetic experience. The other sections of the museum had historical exhibits, as well as natural history. We decided to focus on the art sections rather than spend the whole day indoors, so that we would have time to go to Cape Spear. This is the point which is the furthest east in North America, and boasts the oldest surviving lighthouse in Canada. It is located along the East Coast trail which spans over 300 kilometers on the Avalon Peninsula in the southeastern part of Newfoundland. We did not have time on this trip to do more than a four hour hike along the coast at the cape, however I would very much like in the future to explore more.
From the lighthouse, we could see our first iceberg in the distance. We had not planned out a hike, however when walking around the tip of the cape, we wanted to get a closer look at the iceberg, so we followed the trail quite a distance. Granted, we were in what my mother refers to as "point and shoot" country, where every step leads to another incredible Kodak moment. I am certain our hike would have been a hour shorter if I forgot my camera.
The top of the cliff along the coast were cool and humid, and the ground was quite boggy. The trail had raised boards at various points, and huge puddles intermittently. Off the path, there was a thick covering of plants: pitcher plants, all kinds of low growing berry-producing plants, and fields of wild Canadian rhododendrons with pink blossoms that turned to orange when they died.
Under the vegetation, it was difficult to see where the ground turned to bog and my feet would begin to sink and drench. Having only one pair of shoes, I aimed for the larger bushes and learned to avoid the pitcher plants as they seemed to grow in the wetter patches. Despite the signs advising against it, I did leave the path fairly often to get closer to the edge of the cliff in order to see if I could get a better glimpse of the iceberg. We managed to get relatively close before giving up as it was getting late.
Our second day, we headed to Signal Hill, where we had a stunning view of the fog rolling into St. John's harbour. It is the site of the final North American battle of the Seven Year's war, and was a communications point from the 17th century until the 1960's. We hiked around, exploring the cannons, anti-aircraft guns and fortifications, as well as watch some kind of training exercise of young RCMP men. There is a communications museum in the Tower at the top, with the history of Marconi's first transatlantic wireless transmission received on that site. Down the hill we visited the Johnson Geological museum, of particular interest given Newfoundland's unique geography. My mom had been picking up interesting red and green stones which turned out to both be sandstone, some having been exposed to oxygen at some time in the past while the sedimentary rock was forming, (oxidizing red) and some staying the original green. It turns out that Newfoundland was not initially from the same continent as the mainland but was initially volcanic and equatorial, and migrated north in the cataclysmic shiftings of tectonic plates. Along the coasts, the layers of sedimentary rock are pushed up at various angles and broken into huge tumbled chunks, with plenty of cracks for puffins to nest.
Heading north, we drove north up the coat onto one of the many "arms" (long peninsulas jutting into the ocean) towards Bonavista. Once a fishing town, the economy has shifted to a focus on tourism. There are many museums depicting the traditional or historical ways of life of people of different social classes. The Mockbeggar plantation once belonged to the Bradley family, F. Gordon Bradley having been a politician and strong advocate for Newfoundland joining confederation. Mockbeggar, the guide explained, would be the modern English equivalent of mucky bog (nice name there), as it was a particularly fertile property which allowed it to be self sufficient. Although its main focus was on fishing, the term plantation was used to mean a self-sufficient settlement. The house has its historical furnishings and gives a sense of what a wealthier family lived like in the past.
We went up to Cape Bonavista, at the tip of the arm, where the views were breathtaking. Not one but two icebergs were within view, although a bit too distant for interesting photography. It was cold and windy, so we decided against a picnic and ice cream (we ate in the car) but it was comfortable enough to walk. I loved the way the waves rolled and tumbled over the broken rocks at the foot of the cliffs. Like at Cape Spear, the ground was covered with trailing juniper growing low to the ground and over the edges of cliffs, tiny blue flag irises not yet in bloom, grey alders (also small, low to the ground twiggy plants), the fattest dandelions imaginable, and everywhere black crowberry. This last plant looked like small succulents that grow like little fingers along a mat, a ground cover with rust coloured patches where the plants have died and the rest green (the red and green patches on the ground in many of the cliff photos are these plants.)
The lighthouse contained yet another museum, with the living and working spaces of the family of the light house keeper preserved to show their clothes, furniture and artifacts. The guide explained the workings of the lighthouse, and the need to turn a crank every two hours so that the light would continue to rotate all night, a job that was shared in shifts with the light house keeper's family members.
We also visited a museum that housed a life sized replica of the Matthew, John Cabot's ship that is believed to have landed at Bonavista (no one is completely sure, but that is their claim to fame). Recommended by my cousin, it was nicely curated, giving the history of the "discovery" of Newfoundland. Definitely not the first people, not even the first Europeans to find the Grand Banks and land on the shore, but it was the beginning of modern European colonization. There was one tribe of indigenous people who lived throughout Newfoundland, the Beothuk, who were completely wiped out as European colonization pushed them deeper inland where food sources were insufficient. Close to Twillingate later in our trip we went to a museum recording what is known about the Beothuk and the devastating impact of European colonization.Bonavista harbour is lovely. Although many Newfoundlanders have rebuilt and replaced their older houses, there are still some old ones around, and traditional dories in addition to modern motor yachts.
We stayed overnight off in the woods around twenty minutes down the coast from Bonavista near Neuman's cove, in a wood cabin in the woods called by the owners the Off the grid cabin. They had a wood burning stove, and a propane tank for the electrical power supply, as well as a water tank that supplied cold water. No shower or hot water, so it was still "roughing it" by my mom's standards, but not quite camping. Just down the path was a lake (the locals call lakes ponds) forested and surrounded by spring wildflowers. Although it was late June, Newfoundland was just getting their spring flowers that we usually see early to mid-May: lilacs, cherry and apple blossoms, bunchberries, partridgeberries, blueberries, even some wild strawberries were in bloom. Choke cherry and service berry trees and Mountain Ash in blossoms everywhere. I used my mom's cell phone data to identify trees and plants whenever she was taking her turn to drive.
Newfoundland has some very interesting place names, and along the way we detoured to take a look at Come-by-Chance (which was a refinery and a few houses), Dildo (a fish processing plant and a very nice town, where we took a walk). We had some excellent homemade ice cream at a gas station/convenience store in the New-Wes-Valley. It was cold enough that the ice cream did not melt quickly. The store had a very small vegetable section, with a rather ancient looking cabbage, two huge turnips and a small bag of onions. Newfoundland has a short growing season and not much topsoil, so fishing has always been a better food and income source than farming. Fruits and vegetables come "from away" and are more costly than on the mainland, so we chose carefully based on price. The larger grocery stores had a decent selection, but not in the small village.
I realize this post is long, but I do want to emphasize that it was very difficult choosing the best photos from the more than 500 I took (not including any from my mother's collection). I narrowed it down to my favorite 80.
From Bonavista, we spent a few days enjoying the wonderful hospitality of my cousins Barbara and Brian. Their home overlooks the harbour of Salvage. The surrounding countryside is stunning. There are hiking paths with spectacular views. The village is full of warm and friendly people, fishermen, artists, refugees from large cities. Fishing and boating follow the natural rhythms of fog and migration patterns of the capelin, food for cod and whales. The recreational fishing season began the day we arrived, but the capelin only came in a week later. We did manage to have some superb fresh cod when we reached Twillingate further north, in the form of fish and chips at D & T Seafood and Restaurant, and baked with cabbage, onions and gnocchi at the Canvas Cove Bistrot. Both were excellent restaurants on the harbour, which lived up to the recommendations of the locals.
I am jumping ahead of myself, though. Twillingate was the last stop on our trip. Barbara and Brian gently persuaded my mother that the three days we had designated to drive to Corner Brook, explore the Gros Morne National park and return to Salvage would result in very long, dull inland drives and a lot of mosquito bites with minimal time for real exploration of the interesting parts. So we extended our stay in Salvage an extra day before driving further north to Twillingate for two days. During the three days we were with my cousins, we did a lot of walking until the fog lifted long enough for them to launch their boat. The photos here are the views from their bay windows and their deck, looking down at the garden Barbara had just planted towards their stage (the small boat house down by the water). The other photos are from the hike we took to the top of a mountain in nearby Terra Nova National park, walking up to a lookout post at the mouth of Salvage Harbour, and walking with Brian and their dog Lola on Sprucy Hill. Each walk was punctuated by greetings and a chat with the various friends and neighbours in the village interspersed with bits of local history and personalities.
The highlight of the trip was going out on the boat with my cousins. The first day we arrived, we could see a large iceberg out beyond the harbour. It had been there for a while, and had started breaking apart into smaller (yet still massive) pieces. It disappeared in the fog and emerged later in the day when the fog rose up and dissipated. On our third day, we finally had the opportunity to go in close.
It took around an hour at high speed to get close (but not too close for safety sake), and Brian slowed the motor and circled the larger piece so I could take lots of photos. Lots and lots of photos. Once we had our fun, he circled back to an area a bit past the opening to the harbour where there is a puffin colony.
Those are clouds on the horizon behind the iceberg. Water in all three forms!
Another highlight of the trip was the Wooden Boat Builder Museum in Twillingate. The exhibit included a live demonstration of net-making techniques, and a workshop where an old fashioned dory was in the process of being built. The guides were excellent. The museum raffles off the dory they build during each summer as a fundraiser. It was definitely worth the visit.The days we were in Twillingate we had the worst weather of the trip, cold and rainy, so we did not do any hiking, and certainly had not interest going out in a boat when it was 7 degrees.
We were driving up the coast towards Twillingate on Canada Day, and in Gombo we passed this house with a rather unusual festive display (there was a lot more, but this gives you a taste). Canada day is not generally celebrated in Newfoundland (they joined Canada much later, in 1949), but they have Memorial day on July 1st in memory of the 700 soldiers from Newfoundland who died on the first day of the battle at the Somme in 1917.
These are some views from the road. We aimed for the more scenic and interesting routes.
Upon arriving at our hotel, as I walked through the door, I saw a familiar face. A former stage student from my day centre days, had just moved to Halifax. She is starting a career as a creative arts therapist, but had taken on a contract as an educational tour guide. She was just finishing the contract and spending the last night at the hotel before her group flew back to Alberta the next day. I was delighted to see her, and once her group were settled, we made some microwave popcorn and spent a couple of hours catching up. It was well worth the hassle of a cancelled flight.
