Southern Newfoundland 2021

It is difficult to imagine this was our tenth day of touring Newfoundland.  Over 1800KM have been covered - the portions of the west, the south and the east coasts of Newfoundland that we have seen represent a lot of terrain, but still represent a drop in the bucket of this vast province, which is dear to us. We left our AirBnB at 9:45AM and took in a few last sights of Placentia, including its incredible boardwalk.  From there, we took a spin to see what remains of Argentia, where two ferry runs per week connect Nova Scotia and Newfoundland and where the Americans built an air force base in 1941 that continued until 1960.  (In nearby Ship Harbour, the Atlantic Charter was signed on August 14, 1941 by President Roosevelt and Prime Minister Churchill, setting out American and British goals for the world after the end of World War II.) We then drove 134KM back to St. John's to return Pam's mom back home and then drove to Clarke's Beach to see David's parents.  It was ...

Based on the weather forecast before leaving Halifax last week, we expected most of the trip to be shrouded in fog.  Up to last evening, sunshine -- not fog -- ruled our time in Newfoundland.  But by the time we arrived in Branch, the fog was as thick as pea soup, a situation that hadn't dissipated when we awoke this morning. We had a wonderful breakfast in our AirBnB, enjoying several complimentary items from our host.  It was a relaxing and slow morning, as we hoped a delayed start might usher in an end to the fog.  But by the time we left Branch at 10:30AM, it was still as thick as ever.  We headed to nearby Point Lance to do a beach walk there, and then drove to Cape St. Mary's Ecological Reserve, the most accessible seabird colony in North America.  Accessible, perhaps, but the guide told us that on average 26 days in June and 25 in July each year see the site blanketed in fog!  Which took some of the sting away of our fog-bound experience there....

Having made the transition from Newfoundland's south and west coasts yesterday, today marked the start of our exploration of the Avalon Peninsula.  Having both grown up on the Avalon, it may seem odd to learn that neither of us has ever been around the peninsula!  This summer trip 'home' to Newfoundland presented an excellent opportunity to see the full peninsula, and to take Pam's mom along for a much needed jaunt outside St. John's. We left St. John's at 9:30AM and arrived at our AirBnB in Branch at 5:45PM.  It was a 350KM trip and only covered half the Avalon.  To put it in perspective, you could leave Innsbruck, Austria, drive through the small country of Lichtenstein and on to Zurich, in the center of Switzerland, and that is only a distance of 280KM!  It just goes to show how vast the island of Newfoundland is. Our Avalon roadtrip comprises two of the province's tourism routes, both of which we touched on today:  the Irish Loop (routes 10 and 90, sou...