Western Newfoundland

Greetings,

 We left Gros Morne National park on a rare sunny day to drive up the coast to Port au Choix. We stopped at Arches Provincial Park. I learned that the Arches showcase a geological formation formed over millions of years as a result of glacial action, wind and water erosion. 

 I am showing you this picture so you can see why I get scared and want to jump up on mom's lap when we hit a dip. 

 We had a great ocean view campsite in Port au Choix. I liked sitting outside with mom catching glimpses of whales in the ocean.

 One of our first stops was the French Bread ovens (if you know dad then you will understand why that was our first stop).Under the treaty of Utrecht of 1713, France was given exclusive rights to fish in this area of Newfoundland referred o as the "French Shore". French fishermen were allowed here to catch and dry their fish, but had to return to Europe each fall. In 1904 France relinquished its exclusive rights to fish in the area and permanent settlement was allowed.

Remnants of old French ovens were found in the area and this reconstructed oven is used to bake fresh bread for tourists.

 

It was good!

We celebrated Dad's and Brody's birthday here. Can you believe they were born on the same day! I asked Brody what he wanted for his birthday and it didn't take him more than a second to say "my own hotdog" (he is such a pig). So I asked mom to wrap up a hotdog to give him.Please forgive the photography, mom was taking the pictures.

Anyway, after we sang Happy Birthday he ripped open the paper 

and before I could even turn around so he could thank me, the hotdog was half way down his throat. Mom had to put her hand it and pull it our. I told you he was a pig, but a cute one nonetheless!

Of course, we visited another lighthouse, Point Riche.

 

 Mom relaxed in the chair while Brody and I scouted out the area.

The next day we drove to the northern tip of the west coast of Newfoundland to visit L'Anse Aux Meadows. Around the year 1000, Vikings from Greenland and Iceland formed the first European settlement in North America.

Allegedly, it was Lief Erkison, looking for forests, who discovered the area. The idea was to form a new settlement, but relations with the aboriginal people already in the area were less than civil and the settlement was abandoned.

In the 1960's Helge Ingstad and his wife, noted archaeologist, Anne Stine, discovered the remains of the Vikings long sod huts in the sunken meadows near the sea.

Their sod houses which were recreated by Canada's National Parks.

I have heard dad call mom a Viking before, but I found out that women could not be called Vikings, that term was reserved for the male warriors. However, that didn't stop her from trying to dress up as one.

Too bad she can't see to draw her sword.

We did see a moose when we were walking around. I am glad he didn't spot me!

I told mom that I  was most impressed with  the sculpture, "Meeting of the Two Worlds" commemorating the first known contact of Europeans and aboriginal North Americans.

 Some scholars contend that the Viking arrival to North America brought humanity full circle.  So in the spirit of this meeting of two cultures and worlds, a sculptor from Newfoundland collaborated with a Swedish sculpture to artistically interpret this event.

The sun was out so mom asked dad to drive way to the most northern tip, Cape Norman, where she had been told she could see lots of whales playing in the rocks below. So we too a long drive, and just as we got there it began to fog over

 Mom stood for a while in the fog, disappointed she didn't see any whales.

 

On our last day in Newfoundland we drove to a small town on the south coast, Rose Blanche to see our last lighthouse, a very unique one. On this foggy day, we could just catch a glimpse as we walked up the hill.

Built in 1871 from a nearby granite quarry, it was reconstructed in 1999. 

The lighthouse engineers of the original lighting apparatus were from Edinburgh, Scotland, and the father and uncle of Robert Lewis Stevenson.

Adios to Newfoundland,

Yuki and Brody