Day 27 - L'Anse aux Meadows

Today, we visited the Visitors' Centre at L'Anse aux Meadows. We watched an excellent documentary about the discovery of the site and the uncovering of the living area of the Vikings. After that, we hiked to the site and saw the recreated village. Along the way, park interpreters explained each part. The houses were built from peat and timber, some as thick as 6 feet, and they were very snug and warm. It was a windy day, and the houses were put to the test. We also saw another cruise ship in the bay, and its passengers were being ferried to the shore in orange lifeboats to tour the site.


Our next stop was the Norstead Village, a recreation village created by locals. It is staffed by actors dressed in period costumes and is home to the Norse recreation ship 'Snorri,' which was built in Maine in 1997 and sailed from Greenland to L'Anse aux Meadows with only 9 crew members. The Vikings typically sailed a ship of this size with 20 or 25 people. It took the crew 47 days to make the journey, while the Vikings, according to their records, could do it in 14 days. It was really interesting to see.


We also saw a statue of Leif Erikson in the town where the cruise ship passengers were coming to shore.


For lunch, we stopped in Saint Lunaire, where they make all the Tickle Cove jams sold in souvenir shops here in Newfoundland.  They also make homemade ice cream. The small bistro we visited had really good food.


Finally, we decided to head back to Gros Morne for the night, to the Green Point Campground, which was 4 hours away. The wind continued for our trip, making it tricky, but we arrived safely just after 6 p.m.














Comments

Post a Comment

Popular posts from this blog

Day 30 - Codroy Valley

Image
 This morning, we left Kippen and drove further west on the Trans Canada, taking a couple of scenic driving routes off the highway. We ended up in the Codroy Valley, which is surrounded by the Long Range Mountains on one side and the ocean on the other. This area is known for its farming. It's incredibly beautiful here. We hiked through some wetlands and then had lunch at a local diner. After that, we did a driving loop that included the Codroy Valley Provincial Park, which has the first truly sandy beach we've seen here. We walked up and down the beach and then continued on to the Codroy Valley RV Park. Originally a Provincial Park started on land donated by the Downes family, in the 60s the province wanted to sell it and they sold it back to the Downes family, who still run it today. It's a really nice park and the closest park to the ferry with services. We are leaving the island tomorrow. 😞
Read more

Day 31 - Port aux Basques to North Sydney

Image
This morning, we left our campground at 9 a.m. and headed to Port aux Basques to catch the 11:45 a.m. ferry. We arrived in line at 9:30 and were loaded onto the ferry by 11. However, the ferry didn't depart until 12:30. The crossing was smooth with sunny weather and calm seas. The ferry is massive, measuring over 600 feet long and accommodating about 1,000 passengers. The ferry was called the Blue Puttees after a Newfoundland regiment in the first WW.   There are 3 levels for vehicles. We enjoyed a delightful lunch on board and spent time both inside and outside during the crossing. We arrived on time at 6 p.m., and by the time we drove off, it was probably 6:30. We decided to stay at the same campground as before, which was about 30 minutes away. This worked out well as it was just starting to get dark. 
Read more

Day 35 - Quebec

Image
 This morning, we left Mactaquac at 8 a.m. and stopped for breakfast at McDonald's about an hour down the road in Woodstock, NB. We continued driving until stopping for lunch at a rest stop near Riviere du Loup. We then switched drivers and continued driving. We found Quebec and Ontario to be extremely busy after the quiet roads of the east coast. We stopped at Glengarry Campground, which is a park in the St. Lawrence Park System. We are back in Ontario! We will be home for sure on Thursday. We are going to slow down a little now.
Read more