From 3pm late into the night …Wow today we became honorary Newfoundlanders and we were screeched in. We have photos and videos to show you. There was a big party and the ceremony started. We had to eat hard bread and something like spam meat and then kiss an ugly cod fish and drink the screech rum in one go after saying     

 ” indeed I is me old cock and long may ye big jib draw!”   

               It was such good fun and we were kind of knighted with a boat oar and given a certificate and small momento s.  

 Then the party went on late into the evening. We chatted to lots of lovely people and drank alcohol finishing with a coffee that had very little coffee in it mostly whisky I think! An unforgettable memory. It was amazing!

Earlier on we had a ferry trip to the nearest island, Bell Island, It is only 3 miles over the sea and a long island     We knew there was an iceberg behind it and after eating fish and chips at the famous Dicks ” I love me Dicks” was their slogan (sorry just had to put this in my blog). …we did a circular tour of the island to view the iceberg.     There was a class of teenagers on the return ferry and they were so well behaved and respectful. They all quietly sat while their teacher called out their names and quietly walked over to the outside decks. So unlike British teenagers! 

     Well that was our day and definitely one to always remember!

MONDAY AND TUEDAY IN BRIGHTON

We are on the way to Brighton Newfoundland now with Ken to see where he grew up and it’s pouring with rain This is the Gumbo area.

   After about 3 hours driving it stopped raining and then after 7 hours total driving time we reached Brighton. The sun was shining and it was warm. 

 We went into the holiday cabin they own and met Kens step mother Lena who is 88. She stays here all the Summer and Winters over in St John’s. She is very alert and agile for her age and had made us a lovely salad for “supper” followed by lemon meringue pie. She took us for a tour of the small island and showed us where she grew up and the land Kens family owns.  

   About 5 or 6 houses are Cave family owned. The water surrounds every house. We saw where Vinces aunty lived before she died very young when Ken was only 18 months old. She was very ill and the weather was so bad that the doctors couldn’t get to the island in time to save her. You could only reach Brighton by boat in those days. Now there is a causeway connecting Brighton to Triton and a causeway connecting Triton to the mainland. Needless to say that the cabin is is picturesque and beautiful for a holiday location. There is a calm relaxed feel to the island and a sense that it must have always been like this nothing has changed over the years.        We are staying here for 2 nights before heading on to Gros Morne National Park. Hope the photos show how amazing this small community is. 

   Lena has lots of stories to tell us and is very kind to us. We also met Violet her sister who is lovely too. I am laying in bed early morning, listening to the birds singing, (One small bird has a whistles tune, very distinctive,) and the sound of the ocean. We heard fireworks last night as it was a national holiday for the orange men. There is a strong Irish presence in Newfoundland.

Today we had another guided tour of Brighton Triton and Roberts Arm. Lena chatted away to us and directed Vince where to drive. There wasn’t a breath of wind and there were beautiful reflections in the ponds. We visited the local museum and the old Methodist church that the museum now looks after. People can still use the church for weddings funerals etc. if they ask. The sun was warm in the blue cloudy sky.

   

 We came back at lunch time and then visited the graveyard where Kens parents are buried. It was a surreal experience. The graves were mostly from only about 5 different families and Lena proceeded to tell us about each persons life. She seemed to have known them all! We must have been there for an hour or more while she talked about each one. 

  Vince and I went out by ourselves to explore. We walked high up along the coastal tracks through the forest. The mosquitoes were biting! There were lovely views over this idyllic island. 

   

 We got in the car and went over to Triton and to where the ferry takes cars onto 2 more islands. 

  Many photos later we called at a souvenir shop which advertised “fresh fudge” vince asked to buy some fudge and the girls said” oh we had some last summer” what a laugh!

After another hearty meal cooked with ease by a sprightly 88 year old for 6 of us, (Kens youngest daughter Deborah and husband Mike had arrived,) we did a house call which was like a pub crawl! We met Violet, Lenas youngest sister,Diane another niece, and another relative across the road with an American husband from Virginia. Alcoholic drinks at each house!

Back at Lenas we ate her carrot cake yummy and chatted until late into the evening. We move onto Gros Morne tomorrow by ourselves for a few days. This island of Brighton is magical and holds a special place in our hearts.

Fog and cold weather today, what a contrast from the heat and warm sunny day yesterday

We went for a long drive up the Trans Canadian Highway to Clarenville and then back via the Cape Shore to Placentia.

Above Placentia is Castle Hill National Historic site. We had a tour of the fortifications and the artefacts found there. It was so interesting and  the views were picturesque. This is where there is a fort and cannons defending the fishing town. In turn the French defeated the English and vice versa. Eventually the English took the fortress. They had 2 flags flying the 17th century British flag which was without the Scottish part on it and the French flag which was white in those days.  

   
  We saw where the cod was prepared and dried out on the cobble beach.

 We still haven’t seen a moose! BUT when we got home we had roast moose, roast potatoes and vegetables with gravy. It tasted very like roast beef but darker meat and a slightly different taste and texture. We really enjoyed it and would eat it again.

Looking forward to seeing you all soon. Xxxxxxxx

We did a lot of travelling yesterday and so decided to stay in St. John’s area and have a lazy day. We explored the streets and shops in St. John’s and then went up to Signal Hill. 

    

  It was still misty and not too clear over the sea so we waited for a while for the sun to burn through. We asked at the tourist Information how to reach the lighthouse we could see from signal hill. It is called Fort Amherst. 

   

 We were so pleased we went over there as we got much better views of the Cabot tower, the batteries and the port. You park the car and walk up the road to reach the lighthouse. From the lighthouse you can see the vertical strata of the steep rocks and cliffs of Signal Hill. There is a view of the path leading all the way from signal  hill  down and along the cliff to the battery and town .

From Fort Amherst we drove to Cape Spear  to photograph the other lighthouse and this is where we had a special experience! 

 There was a much bigger iceberg there than the ones we’ve seen before and …….. Lots of whales! At least 5 and people told us there would be more than this . They were probably minky whales. 

   The capelins were rolling and the seagulls gannets and whales were there feasting on them. Capelins are like large sardines and this time of year they come in large numbers to the coast round here. We could see the whales blow holes and their huge bodies coming out of the water. We sat over an hour just watching the spectacle. There were lots of people doing the same as us. We felt so lucky to see this and a huge iceberg too.

On the way back to conception bay South we stopped in Maddox harbour and had a sandwich. What a wonderful day.

Looking forward to seeing you all very soon and missing my home a lot now. 3 months is a very long time to be awayxxxxx

Hi we woke up very early this morning and crept out while everyone was asleep. We wanted to do ALL the Irish Loop this time. First we stopped at Witless Bay for a yummy breakfast! At last proper bacon… We continued along taking photos and exploring coves and harbours. The sun came out and we could see for miles after a misty start from St John’s.  

   We soon got up to Ferryland and stopped at the cafe advertising a million dollar view. We sat drinking tea and looking out on a scene like Ireland. Look Lily, we saw a moose! But really we haven’t yet seen a real one. 

   We passed St Vincent’s at one point and it was beautiful, very remote but lovely. We found surf beaches too.  

    With lots of stops and chats to very friendly people it took us 9 hours to do the whole drive. We set off at 7.30am and got to Conception Bay South at 4.30pm tired but excited by all we saw !

We got back to Doreen and Kens and their 2 daughters and families came for supper as they call it and we had lobsters! It was great fun cracking them open and very messy but they tasted delicious 

 

Well…. We assumed we could do this all in one day…no way we only got a third of the way round today. These are a few bays we passed through on our way.  

 We passed this miniature ship and harbour scene, it was very well done.  

 We travelled  to the archeological dig at Ferry Land. The staff all spoke with an Irish accent, 

We spent 2 hours there and were shown some of the artefacts they had found, how they washed them and labelled them. We saw the archeologists at work and the village remains from 1600s. The English set up a fishing port at Ferry Land for the abundant cod in the area, the French then burnt it down, and then the English built it back up again. Many pieces of pottery are from Bristol and Devon.

   

 We saw a 17th century working kitchen too. 

 We had chowder soup at the Tetley Tea Rooms with a view over the bay. By this time it was 4 pm and time to go back. We cut across the loop on the way back. It was like a moor with lakes and rocky outcrops, very barren lands and a different environment to what we’d seen before. 

In the evening we went out to Shananigans Pub for our dinner to save Doreen cooking for us again.

I will write more tomorrow and add the photos

We woke up to cloudy cold weather but no rain. Vince and I and Ken (Vinces cousin) set off after breakfast to chase icebergs and to explore the coastline. Dressed in warm clothes.

 We called in at various places along the way. Brigus is a beautiful harbour and this tunnel is famous. They had to blow their way through with explosives to create more landing space for boats, smuggling went on .

Here is a picture of 2 cousins 

  

 Further on we reached the place where Amelia Earhart flew from. From Grace harbour singled handed over the Atlantic Ocean.

 We drove through the towns of Hearts Content ,Hearts Desire and Hearts Delight  amongst other lovely names. 

  The light house at Hearts Content and the bay of Hearts Desire and Hearts Delight. We saw these rocks jutting out of the sea at one point. 

   It was a lovely drive along and round the headland opposite to Conception Bay.

Love this island xxxx

Hi Doreen had a phone call from her friend this morning to tell her that there was a large iceberg passing by her part of the coast and that it was breaking up. We followed Ken and Doreen to the area and were really excited to see the icebergs in the fog rain and cold wind! (Also when we got back to their home later on in the day you could see another ice berg from their garden in the bay near them!) 

       It is 8c and very cold and rainy today. What a shock to the system..winter clothes. We had to find things to do inside in the warm and dry.

We went to the geocentre under Signal Hill. It was so interesting geology,anthropology, archeology,history,space,astronomy, 3D films, titanic story……… All about Newfoundland. It was sponsored by the oil industry and the whole exhibition must have cost millions. 

 We then went to a fluvarium. It is a section of a running river sliced off with windows to look through to see the ecosystem and trout swimming by in the weeds. So it is the river in action. Also frogs, toads and eels were there to see. 

About 4.30pm it stopped raining and Vince and I went shopping in St Johns. We needed trainers as our sandals are letting in the rain 

P.S. We left Vancouver at the right time. There are now huge forest fires with smoke drifting all over Vancouver and Vancouver Island and still high temperatures and no sign of rain!

Counting the days to see you all now missing you all but enjoying Newfoundland lots of love Grandma and Grandaddy xxxxxx 

      

   

 Today we went to the “church by the side of the road” with Doreen. It is a lovely church in a lovely location. You can see the sea through the church windows. We were introduced to the congregation. We had to stand up and turn to face them and then they clapped us. Can you spot grandma and Doreen walking up to the church?

    

 After lunch we drove right round the long headland stopping at each bay and learning each ones history. Pope John Paul had visited one church and shrine in 1984. The Queen and Prince Phillip had opened a hall in another town. We didn’t see a moose but we saw moose horns on the side of a shed!  

   We read about ship wrecks and saw houses mostly all made of wood in different shapes and sizes and painted in different colours. There are several small coves all rocky and with vertical cliffs. The waves were crashing on the rocks. We saw fog and cold winds and sunshine and heat. The weather was very variable and localised. Hope you like the photos. Hope they show how natural and wild the landscape is …. 

           Love you all and missing you all xxxxx

. 

Hi we went out with Ken and Doreen and their daughter Tania and granddaughter Chelsea to see the local landmarks and now perhaps I’d like to live in Newfoundland!

First we drove through the main road and historic part of the city and passed the docks and harbour. Then we went up to where Vinces aunty went after Ken was born, right on a cliff side facing the main harbour at the Battery.

 There was a cannon placed right on the top protecting the town from the French. St Johns is a natural harbour with a deep channel leading into the harbour. The wooden houses are all different colours. 

 We then went up to the Signal Hill and Dead Mans Lake. There was a reconstruction of an English / French battle. When the French surrendered to the British.

 Signal Hill was later an important defence site for St. John and all of North America.

Next to the lighthouse at Cabot Tower, we saw 2 icebergs! They were quite far out to sea so it was hard to tell how big they were. Tania said it was probably huge and that most was under the water out of sight. 

 We could see over to the most easterly point in Canada,  Cape Spear.

 It also has a lighthouse which is the oldest surviving lighthouse in Newfoundland and they took us over to see it. You can walk right around the headlands and watch the waves crashing on the rocks. There is a WW2  era bunkers,tunnels and pill boxes there too.

 Then we went down to Conception Bay near to where we are staying. It is a rocky beach and there are barbecues available to use too. We could see the white church on the hillside.

We are staying in a lovely place with lovely people xxxx

We got delayed by fog as we approached St. John’s. The pilot circled and tried to land twice but then flew us 200 miles to another airport Deer Lake to refuel and wait until the weather cleared in St Johns . We finally landed 3 hours late…never mind we’re here now and it’s lovely to see Doreen and Ken and to stay at their house. Tired so will write more tomorrow xxxxx 

Deer Lake Airport

 This is Ken and Doreen’s house