Highlight Photos
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Jelly Bean Row, St John’s -
Former Museum Building, St John’s -
Hawthorne Cottage -
Cupids Cove, the first English settlement in Canada -
Fort Royal remains -
Watchful Gannets -
Signal Hill coastline view -
Cabot Tower, St. John’s -
Cape Spear cannon -
Newfoundland Legislative Room -
Colonial Building, St John’s -
Street in St Pierre et Miquelon -
Pond in Saint Pierre -
Main church, St Pierre -
Seamen’s Museum impressive building -
Antique Car Collection, Swift Current -
Abandoned train, Trinity -
Port Union downtown -
Cape Bonavista Lighthouse -
Root Cellar in Elliston -
Terra Nova National Park view -
Trail in Terra Nova NP -
Gros Morne Mountain -
“Hidden” Moose -
Waterfall in Gros Morne NP -
L’Anse aux Meadows now -
L’Anse aux Meadows before -
Thrombolites, Flowers Cove -
Point Riche Lighthouse -
Photographer’s Viewpoint, Norris Point -
Trail in Gros Morne NP -
Tablelands in Gros Morne NP -
Long Point Brook View, Trout River
Highlights Map
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Our third and last major trip of the year is up north to Newfoundland, Canada. We really wanted to visit it since Covid times when we saw a youtube presentation about it. And then we understood that L’Anse aux Meadows, a site that we wanted to visit since forever, is also in Newfoundland which really gave us an additional impetus. Unfortunately we were able to visit only in the autumn and not earlier to see more seabirds but even so we had a great trip with cultural and natural attractions galore.
The one thing that we would keep in mind when visiting is that distances are longer than they appear. Newfoundland seems and is small when compared to Canada but it is a large province in itself with long driving distances and few cities between attractions. Also be careful of the moose when driving! The people are friendly and welcoming and the trails are well marked and easy to follow, at least the ones that we tried.
To learn more click on the Links below or Markers on the map above to go directly to a specific part of our trip and follow our exploration of this beautiful part of Canada.
- St. John’s, the capital of Newfoundland
We start our trip in Newfoundland with a three night stay in St John’s the capital and most populous city famous for its brightly colored houses and scenic location - Exploring the historic Hawthorne Cottage NHS
First stop today is the historic Hawthorne Cottage an NHS site honoring one of Canada’s most famed Arctic explorers - Cupids Cove, the first English settlement in Canada
We spend an hour exploring an active excavation site at Cupids Cove where the oldest English settlement in Canada was found a few years ago - Castle Hill NHS, an important French fortress
The last time sensitive stop today is Castle Hill NHS which protects what is left of a major French fortress that protected the Placentia settlement - The magnificent Cape St Mary Gannet Colony
We end the day with a visit to the Cape St Mary Ecological Preserve to hike to the famous Gannet Colony where we can still see lots of Northern Gannets both nesting and flying around - Signal Hill NHS, a famous historical site in St John’s
We spend the morning exploring Signal Hill NHS with a loop that takes in all major sites like Cabot Tower, multiple viewpoints and Queen’s Battery - Cape Spear Lighthouse NHS, the most easterly point
Cape Spear Lighthouse NHS is worth visiting due to the World War 2 fortifications, historic lighthouse and the most easterly point of continental North America - Colonial Building and one last exploration of downtown St John’s
We spend the last afternoon and evening in St John’s by visiting the Colonial Building and surrounding area and having a nice dinner downtown - The Rooms, an escape from the rain and a modern museum
To escape the rain we have planned only an indoor stop today at the Rooms the new and exciting major museum in St John’s - Lunch at Hortons and visiting the Hibernia Center
After lunch and buying provisions we stop for a short visit at the Manuels River Hibernia Center to see the trilobits at least inside the museum if we cannot outside due to rain - Fortune the gateway to St Pierre and Miquelon
We spend two nights in Fortune but it is not to explore the village really it is more to spend the day taking the ferry to St Pierre and explore a different country - Saint Pierre, the quaint capital of St Pierre and Miquelon
Today we are visiting Saint Pierre et Miquellon a relatively unknown oversea territory of France on a daytrip to see the capital and the protected natural area around it - The Valley of the 7 Ponds/Vallée des 7 étangs hike
During our day trip we take a couple hours to explore the Valley of the Seven Ponds a beautiful natural area with many ponds right next to Saint Pierre - Short hike on Grand Bank Cape Trail
First stop today is at Grand Bank Cape Trail to enjoy a short hike along the shoreline and find some birds - The Provincial Seamen’s Museum, a worthwhile stop
The second stop of the day is the Provincial Seamen’s Museum housed in a futuristic building and exhibiting artifacts and objects related to the fishing industry in Newfoundland - Vernons Antique Car Museum, a must see
In the middle of our relocation drive we stop at the biggest surprise of our trip the huge collection of well maintained antique cars at the Vernons Antique Car Museum - Abandoned Trinity Loop Park
On the way up the Bonavista Peninsula we have to stop at the abandoned Loop Park near Trinity to explore the old railway and the adequately scary delapidated buildings - Port Union, the workers and fossils town
Last stop for the day is Port Union a historic town own by a powerful fishermen union that was trying to provide fair prices for catches but now also famous for its fossils - Puffins, Lighthouses and Statues at the tip of Bonavista Peninsula
The first stop is at the tip of Bonavista Peninsula to see the lighthouse Cabot statue and of course puffins and breathtaking views - Ryan Premises NHS, an interesting historical location
Second stop for today is Ryan Premises NHS to understand the importance of cod and the impact of the cod moratorium on this fishing community - Elliston, the root cellar capital of the world
We cannot resist visiting the root cellar capital of the world and entering a root cellar but we skip on the puffin site as we already have seen puffins today - Salmon River Short Loop Hike
We arrive relatively late at the Terra Nova NP and start with the short Salmon River Loop Hike at the entrance station of the NP - A beautiful afternoon loop hike around Sandy Pond
Last major stop today is Sandy Pond Loop Trail a beautiful deserted trail along a scenic lake with lots of birds - Beautiful hike to the foot of Gros Morne
We hike today to the base of Gros Morne past beautiful waterfalls blundering moose and exciting birds while enjoying breathtaking views and flowers along the way - Evening Loop around Berry Head Pond
In the evening we do a short hike around Berry Head Pond looking for birds while enjoying the evening and the nice views - A long dreamed about visit to L’Anse aux Meadows
After a long wait we finally make it to L’Anse of Meadows to see the first known European settlement in North America of which little is left - Thrombolites Trail, how can we resist it?
The Thrombolites Trail is a worthwhile stop for us as we really wanted to see some of the fossils that Newfoundland is famous for and these ones are some of the most special - Port au Choix National Historic Site at night, almost
In the evening almost at night we explore the Port aux Choix NHS especially the lighthouse and a few ancient sites while observing foxes - Jenniex House and Humber Trail
We start the day visiting historic Jenniex House and breathtaking Photographer’s Lookout and taking a short hike on nice Humber Trail - Southeast Brook Falls a nice and short stop
On the way to the Tablelands we stop for the the short and scenic hike to Southeast Brook Falls - Discovery Center visit
We make a short stop at the Discovery Center to look over the exhibits related to the native people and geological wonders - Tablelands, a shorter hike than we would have liked
The major stop for today at Tablelands is cut short by rains but still we enjoy the great views but not the cold and the rain - Short exploration of the Trout River Pond Trail
We end the day with a short hike on the scenic but difficult Trout River Pond Trail and then dinner at the acclaimed Seaside Restaurant - Leaving Newfoundland
Today we leave Newfoundland passing through Gros Morne for the last time and seeing otters and bald eagles on the way