We slept really well in our glamping (glamorous camping) tent by the lake last night. We awoke to a perfectly calm lake view serenated by the music of the loons. Loons have four different songs, and they are one of our favorite birds. It's going to be another beautiful weather day here in Newfoundland.
The nearest town is Greenspond, and that was our first stop this morning. While Newfoundland is an island, this village is on a separate smaller island. They have a hiking trail that encircles the entire island of Greenspond.
Our first stop was one of the green shelters on this hike. It's no secret that this is a windy place with sea breezes coming in from all directions. So picnickers here have the option of eating inside one of these table-sized buildings, that still allow an ocean view.
By the time we were half-way around the island, we were warming up. We can see that this is a fishing village, with piles of two different kinds of crab traps stacked near the trail.
While we saw few people on the trail this morning, the ones we saw were the typical friendly Newfoundlanders. We talked to two sisters, who educated us on partridge berries. We have eaten these new-to-us berries in scones and pancakes, but didn't know how to pick them.
We had heard that you had to wait until after the first frost to harvest them. But these ladies pick them earlier and put them in the freezer to bring out their best flavor. They showed us their harvest, and let us take a picture of their hand-full. One woman had lived on this little island her entire life, while the other was picking them to take home to Toronto for a taste of her childhood home.
They also taught us about the black berries that they weren't harvesting. We have seen them on several hikes but were afraid to try them. They called them crow berries, and they said that some people use them to make a pudding. They aren't poisonous, but they didn't recommend their flavor. I guess we'll just keep hiking right past those crow berries. Then we got more stories as the sisters recalled, "Remember Mother used to say that there were no poisonous berries on this island." "But remember that she would warn us . . ." We love to hear stories from the locals!
Our loop hike took us into town, where we found the colorful simple houses that are prevalent all over Newfoundland. In the foreground we saw some of the boats used by the fishermen that make their living from the sea. While most houses have a car, every house has a boat.
While they proudly fly the Canadian flag, we noticed that Newfoundlanders also fly their laundry. Laundry lines can be seen all over the island, making good use of those sea winds.
They also use today's sun and wind to dry out their fish. We saw our second batch of cod being dried on a driveway in Greenspond.
We loved our walk around Greenspond, and we felt like we got a true look at life in a Newfoundland village. This isn't a normal tourist stop, so we didn't see any touristy shops or boat rides. It was just locals making a living from the sea, and harvesting the fruits and fish to use later in the harsh winter that will buffet this little island.
But today the weather was lovely. We've taken off our coats and gloves and enjoyed another blue-sky day as we explored the picturesque court house. Signposts here educated us that this little fishing village has been around since 1690, so it is one of the oldest settlements in Newfoundland. It was once a trading and supply centre, and was known as the "Capitol of the North." Now it has a population of only 425.
After our hike around Greenspond (that stretched to 4.2 miles), we headed inland again to drive some miles closer to home. Once we got to the center of this big island of Newfoundland, most of the scenery looks the same--trees and green as far as we could see. There is a single road that traverses the province, with smaller roads that lead to the little villages along the coast. So today we are back on Highway 1. It is part of the bigger Trans-Canada Highway, that extends all the way from the Pacific Coast on the most westerly shore, to St. John's on the Atlantic Coast on the most easterly shore. That's 4,645 miles that one could drive the Trans-Canada Highway.
After a 1.5-hour drive, we came through the narrower neck of the island. This brought us close to this Province's second national park. Since we're big fans of national parks, we made the drive into Terra Nova National Park. We found those familiar red adirondack chairs for the best view of the Newman Fjord.
After a summer of seeing Smokey the Bear warning of extreme fire danger in national forests in the western United States, we are so glad to see that fire danger in Newfoundland is in the lowest category.
We've already had a long hike with sea-side views this morning, so we opted for a short walk and a picnic lunch here at the national park.
Canada is very serious about social distancing, even on the trails. A sign at the trail head warns us that if there are multiple vehicles, we should consider returning when this trail would be less crowded. But we are here after the crowded season and even the visitor center is closed today. So we decided it was safe for a short walk on the Heritage Trail. It is 26 degrees Celsius this afternoon, so we are looking for shade. That is an unusually high temperature for Newfoundland!
We made one last stop at a Walmart in Clarenville. (Walmart is obviously everywhere--even in Newfoundland.) That's our last stop in our return car trip across the province of Newfoundland. We have been so blessed that Brian and Alexia planned this time for us. After traveling with the entire family to the western coast of this island province, they allowed us to keep one of their vehicles so we could wander slowly back to their home on the southeast coast. We had a delightful time experiencing Newfoundland and her friendly citizens while we wandered at our slow pace. It has been delightful wandering among some of God's best Newfoundland wonders!
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