Newfoundland Cruise
Last August (2017) we met a couple, Gordon and Barbara Russell, from New Hampshire. We were on a cruise from Alaska to northern Japan via the Bering Strait. This past spring they emailed and asked us to join them on a 10 day cruise starting in and returning to St. John's Newfoundland. We said... why the hell not!?
The pic below shows the stops. It's described as a 10 day cruise but in reality it's only an eight day cruise. The first day is a write-off as you only get on board around 2:00 PM and the last day is even more so - they kick you off the ship by 9:00 AM. No matter....still a lot of fun.
It's what's described as an "expedition cruise" - that means you get off the ship every day and do stuff - hiking, kayaking, beach walking, skiffing (riding in rubber boats looking for critters), etc. We've done two previous expedition cruises with this same company (Silversea) and they have both been a lot of fun.
Never having been to Newfoundland we thought we'd come a few days early and see what there was to see. We've met a few newfies recently and they are so proud of their province.
I have to agree it's a very beautiful place...so many trees and so much water. So many funky little towns and so many great parks.
So we came six days in advance of the cruise and we spent three in the middle of the province - around Gander and then the final three in St. John's.
Getting to Newfoundland from Kelowna is no easy matter...it's easier to go to Europe. To get to St. John's we have to fly to Calgary - hang around there for a couple hours - and then fly to to Toronto - and hang around there for a couple hours - and then fly to St. John's. And the flight leaves Kelowna at night so it means trying to sleep sitting up because WestJet doesn't have a proper first class seats.
So to prepare for the flight we need to make sure that we have eaten properly and had enough beverages as well. Wine and onion rings....a fine combination!
And one of the reasons we love flying so much is the goofy looking fuckers we see in airports. Look at this putz - purple hair, turquoise blue hair! Unreal!
A shot of the coastline as we approach the airport. It's looking nice and green.
A shot of St. John's as we're just about to land.
So after we landed we rented a car and drove up the Trans Canada to Gander.
Gander
St. John's
The Cruise
Day 1 We get on board.
Day 2 L'Anse aux Meadows, Newfoundland
Day 3 Woody Point, Newfoundland
Day 4 Havre St. Pierre, Quebec
Day 5 Bonaventure Island, Quebec
Day 6 Iles-de-la-Madeleine, Quebec
Day 7 Louisbourg, Nova Scotia
Day 8 Sable Island, Nova Scotia
Day 9 St. Pierre & Miquelon, France
Some pictures of the ship and the people.