Today after breakfast we start with Signal Hill National Historic Site just about a quarter hour away from the downtown area. In fact today we have planned to visit only Saint John’s and the surrounding area as tomorrow we are leaving the area. We are happy that there is parking available as it is at a premium here supposedly and then in the visitor center we go. And then out we go because it for pay, again the park is for free but the exhibits at the visitor center are for a good chunk of money that we decide not to pay because we are here to hike.
We select a loop hike that seems to cover a nice distance and also will reach most of the attractions and on we go starting on the Burma Road Trail. And soon we stop in shock, there are two women taking a bath in the lake in front of the visitor center which seems wrong somehow on many levels, but there is no “No Swimming” sign so if they can take the cold of the water, great for them I guess.
This trail is as described, very easy, as it follows the lake shore with some nice views of Cabot Tower, high up on top of the hill where we will get in due time as the loop will lead us there.
There are also some nice views of the city proper and we can already recognize many of the buildings even from a distance especially The Rooms and the major churches that we have seen the previous days.
Surprisingly after the lake we pass an area where it seems the park has thrown away unwanted thrash containers and also has a secret entrance leading to the middle of the earth. Probably?
And then we reach the intersection with the Ladies’ Lookout trail that we are going to take up and back towards the parking lot. And yes it is up and foggy almost immediately as we start on the trail.
Up means many times taking long stairs to climb higher and higher, we are surprised how high the lookout is. At least there are many strategic stops where we can relax and enjoy the great views, whenever the fog lets up and allows us to catch glimpses of the coastline.
There are a few hikers along the trail but not that many so we enjoy the nice hike and the birds, even though there aren’t any special ones really on this stretch.
And then we see the peak almost in reaching distance with some nice views towards the eastern most point of Canada where we are planning to go next.
From the Ladies Lookout the views are special, if only you could see them. We have little luck with fog blocking the view almost the whole time while we were on top.
It is now a short descent to the Cabot Tower parking lot where we also see a beautiful Savannah Sparrow enjoying the foggy weather.
Even though it looks like a fortress Cabot Tower was actually built around 1900 on top of the remains of the previous garrison and was used by Guglielmo Marconi to receive the first trans-Atlantic wireless message, so it is a historical site that is nice to see from the outside. And inside as we visit the very busy gift shop.
Now it is time to descend towards the parking lot proper and with the fog lifted we really like the beautiful views of the city and the harbor. And we can also see the last attraction here the Queens Battery and Barracks.
As we arrive to the battery there is a concert going on that we enjoy from a distance while also admiring the views and then it is time to return to the car which is just ten minutes away.
On the way down we are stop at the Johnson Geo Center which we saw from the top and really liked the architecture and were wondering how much it costs to enter. And it costs a lot so we decide to just enjoy the starlings and the outdoor exhibits.
In fact the outdoor exhibits are quite interesting, likely more interesting than what they have inside which is more children oriented. And then, look at the time, it is time to move on as we still have a few stops planned for today, first Cape Spear Lighthouse National Historic Site which is also the most Easterly point of Canada and continental North America.
