topping!

Wow, no responses? Where are all the Newfies who helped me so much in planning my trip?

In case you're still out there, ldb7: my trip to Newfoundland barely intersected with your itinerary, but I did get as far east as the Bonavista peninsula. I strongly recommend two activities over there: hiking the Skerwink Trail (it certainly qualifies as a "light hike"), and visiting the Random Passage set and taking the tour there. I bought a DVD of Random Passage and watched it after I got home, and I wished I had done that before I left. You could also read the books.

I had a very nice dinner at Fishers' Loft. I also had dinner at Twine Loft, which is part of Artisan Inn in Trinity. The food at Twine Loft was rather poor, in a bland way, rather than a nasty-deep-fried-gonna-make-you-sick way, but it was a charming place in a lovely location, and the people were really wonderful.

In case you hadn't realized this yet: Newfoundland auto rental companies have mileage charges. I think mine charged me 50 cents per kilometer. That really, REALLY added up. I don't really know a way around it, though. It's a big place, and you gotta get around.

hawksbill - thanks so much for your post ! I was pretty disappointed not to get any responses so I really appreciate yours.

I have already ordered the Random Passage DVDs and do plan to watch them before I go . I'll make sure to include both of the sights you mentioned in the Bonavista area.

thanks for the tip on the car - I haven't made by rental car reservations yet - from the posts I have read it sounds as if you can sometimes find unlimited mileage deals - that is what I will be hunting for. Hopefully I will have success.

Thanks again !

You may be right about unlimited mileage cars being available. On my trip, I needed to pick up a car in Gander and drop it off at Deer Lake, so I was restricted to the only company that would offer me a one-way rental. I think it was Enterprise. But you should have a lot more options, as you're picking up and dropping off at St. John's. It's possible that all companies charge mileage charges, though. I have a guidebook that says as much. Anyway, whatever you do, you should probably make the car reservation be the first think you do, as soon as possible. As I'm sure you've seen in other posts here, they really do run out of cars in Newfoundland during tourist season.

Hi ldb7,

Thought I would give an opinion on the Twillingate/Change Islands/Fogo Island portion of your trip. As a representative of an organization that promotes that region, I can certainly offer some suggestions.

All three locations are beautiful and unique in their own ways. If it's icebergs your looking for, Twillingate is definately the place you want to visit. There are also dinner theatres, a winery, museums, lighthouse and hiking trails to explore while there as well. Check out www.twillingate.com for more info as well as www.townoftwillingate.ca

Change Islands and Fogo Island are two of my favourite locations - and both are very different. Change Islands is a small community with brightly coloured houses and many fishing stages. There are a few museums there, a wonderful boat tour called Pete's Putt-Putt tours (100-year-old make and break engine boat), several food establishments and wonderful scenery.

Fogo Island is quickly becoming one of the top destinations in Newfoundland. There's a great restaurant on the island (Nicole's Cafe), an ice cream parlour, museums, beaches, art galleries, and so much more. Brimestone Head is located in Fogo which is considered one of the four corners of the world, and there are some fantastic hiking trails there as well.

When travelling to the islands, be sure to book your accommodations well in advance. As it is becoming a popular destination, you want to be sure there are available accommodations. And to really enjoy the island, you should overnight and not just make a day trip of the area.

Given your interests that you listed, I would suggested doing both Twillingate and Fogo Island if time permits.

Hope this helps!

Janice
Adventure Central Newfoundland

You've certainly identified all the great places around the island. A short note--but important-- discretionary time is critical when touring Newfoundland. "Experiencing the unexpected" and chance meetings with locals is what will make or break your trip. You need time to drive down that inviting back road you cross and time to accept that unexpected dinner invitation. Also, you will receive curve balls in the form of rain and wind which will drive you crazy if you have a tight itinerary. At first glance it appears you will be spending too much time behind the wheel, and will likely be taking a lot of photos through the window of your car. All of the places you have listed are great-however- I suggest overnight stops include at least two nights. Newfoundland is a driving vacation so its best to minimize your commute time and maximize your explore time while in the car... this can be done by reducing your travel perimeter and setting a more flexible schedule... I support the previous comments on the rental car-- check the milage charts found on the Department of Tourism's website and mark up the distance a little to ensure you won't exceed the allowable milage quotas. It WILL be expensive if you overrun the restrictions, and it WILL mentally inhibit your sense of adventure if you are watching the odometer all day long. Unlimited km cars are available if you dig and book early.

Have fun!.. Ken

Thanks to all for your suggestions ... based on the feedback I have gotten and some additional reading I have tweaked the itinerary. Ken I appreciate your feedback on the travel time/# of nights - I would definitely prefer to stay more nights at a particular location and explore from there rather than a new place each night. I am still unsure about the time on the Burin Peninsula and subsequent travel to St Johns. I want to make sure to visit St Marys Ecological reserve but as it is in the middle (kind of) between Marystown and St Johns I think I need to spend a night here. I am thinking of extending my time in St Johns for another night - it is reasonable to use that as a base and travel by day on the Avalon Penn?
Another question - if I was to cut back on my travel perimeter what areas would you suggest I remove/expand?

Janice thanks for your feedback on Fogo/Change Islands - I think we have settled on Fogo for overnight.

If I keep my same general geographic area here is an updated itinerary:

Day 1 St Johns (thought we should plan to stay there the first night in case of travel delay)

Day 2 & 3 Twilingate

Day 4 Fogo Island

Day 5,6,7 Bonavista/Trinity (staying in one of those places all 3 nights and doing day trips)

Day 8 & 9 Burin Penn - likely stay in Marystown

Day 10 - want to fit St Marys ecological reserve in here but not sure where to stay the night

Day 11,12,13,14 - St Johns - day trips from there on the Avalon Penn

I have considered another option - to delete the trip to the Burin Penn - travel instead from the Trinity area along the eastern coast (Trinity Bay/Conception Bay) - spend a couple of days making our way to St Johns then still end with 4 nights in St Johns and travel from there to the southern portion of the Avalon Penn in day trips. Any thoughts on that plan?

Thanks again to all !

Lisa

Hi Lisa.... Merry Christmas!

While it's tough to make judgment calls, I think you still have a fair amount of driving. I would take out Burin and allocate the time to Fogo. First, it's a long drive from St. John's to Twillingate, and depending on when you go there might be ferry challenges that will eat up your time. Check both of the above. You may want to think about staying at Branch, which is near Cape St. Marys Ecological Reserve for one of two nights in the area.

Another alternative, you can base yourself somewhere on the Bacalieu Trail, near Hearts Content, and see Cape St. Mary's as a day trip. (You can do Cape St. Marys as a day trip from St. John's as well. This will allow you to "wait" for good weather. Always call the reserve center before you go as fog can hang over the area.). You could drive straight from Bonavista to somewhere on the Bacalieu Trail, about a three hour drive.

Finally, it helps if you think about your trip in terms of "nights" rather than "days", as one night does not equal two days when you have check in and check out restrictions.

Good luck,

Ken

Hi Ken,

Thanks and Happy New Year !

I think I am going to heed your advice and skip the Burin Penn and add time to other places. I am still considering the long drive on my first day north but am now thinking of going to Fogo first - spending 2 nights there and then another in Twillingate. Also thinking of splitting up the last portion now between St Johns and somewhere on the Baccalieu Trail as you mentioned - Brigus looks intriguing. Also thought of planning a night or 2 on the Baccalieu trail at the start of my trip - then head north to Fogo /Twillingate and go from there to Bonavista then from Bonavista to St Johns.

Thanks for the advice on St Marys - with my updated plans I can be more flexible about which day I go there weather dependent.

Thanks,

Lisa

Hi Lisa...... if you are still checking the blog, here are some of my thoughts.

We spent 3 weeks touring Newfoundland last August and you will love your trip. It is a big place so I can only echo others to minimize mileage and have time to enjoy where you are. As you are interested in birds, I suggest you go to Elliston when you are in Trinity: puffins and whales to your heart's content. And the Skerwink Trail is a must - allow a couple of hours for the trail to sit back and enjoy different stops. There is a great sandwich restaurant called Two Whales on way back to Trinity from Skerwink Trail - may only be sandwiches but some of the best food we ate in NFLD>
While in Trinity we went to see a play at the Rising Tide Theatre - local theatre as good as it gets.

We loved seeing the gannets at Cape St. Mary's - the birds and exhibit are easily done in a day weather permitting. We had supper at Gannet's Nest - catch of the day! We stayed at the Bird Island Resort motel in StBride's.... tired motel but great view and felt like we were in an outport.

We got screechd in St John's and had a very unique memorable experience with lots of local flavour at the oldest inn in St. John's Quidi Vidi neighbourhood called either Ye Olde Pub" or "Ye Old Inn" . Definitely not the typical tourist experience offered by pubs in St. John's on George street.

Enjoy
Maureen

Blanche5678, where is Two Whales? Is that the place right in Trinity, or is it somewhere else? I remember an upscale sandwich-type place in Trinity, close to the entrance to town, which looked good. But I didn't have time to try it.

Are there puffins in Ellison? All summer long? I really wanted to see puffins when I was in Newfoundland, but I didn't make it any farther east than the Bonavista Peninsula, and I thought one had to go to the Avalon Peninsula to see puffins.

Hi Maureen,

Thanks so much for your thoughts - glad for the info on Elliston and the Skerwink Trail - I have been trying to decide between 3 or 4 nights on the Bonavista penn and with what you said I may be leaning now toward 4 - with a travel day to get there 3 nights just doesn't leave much time. With cutting out Burin I hope I have reduced the travel distance to a reasonable amount - I am now thinking of 3-4 nights for Fogo/Twillingate, 4 for Bonavista Penn and 5-6 for Bacc trail/St Johns - still working out the details. Hard to believe that 2 weeks will go by so quick - what general area did you cover in 3 weeks and how much time did you allot for the areas I am going ?

Also thanks for the specifics on places to go/eat - I am keeping a list by area of recommendations.

I too really want to see Puffins (and icebergs ) so I sure hope they are in Elliston in June !

Hi

We stumbled across Elliston beginning of August and there were hundreds of nesting puffins - it is a treasure spot run by locals not advertised anywhere! We were just lucky!

Two Whales is a more upscale eatery just outside Trinity in PortRexton- memorable soup and sandwiches. I was disappointed with lots of the restuarants though I have to say most make great chowder and pea soup so we really appreciated this one - had lunch there 2 days in a row!http://www.fs.fed.us/r10/ro/naturewatch/southeast/fish_creek/fishcreek.htm

We spent about 24 nights Newfoundland - 12 on the West Coast from Port aux Basques, the southern tip, to Raleigh the northern tip with Gros Morne in between. Magnificent scenery, wildlife galore, people and music = love at first sight.

We then spent 12 nights on the East coast, 5 nights in Trinity, 5 in St. John and 2 Cape St.Mary.

We drove to Nfld from Montreal so we really planned long stopovers. I don't think it matters where you visit in Nfld so long as you stop long enough to really meet some folks and soak up the local culture / scenery. The smaller the place the better IMHO.Try to find some local music - most of it is really good. If you get a chance to see a group called Anchors Aweigh- jump at it!!
cheers
Maureen

I quite enjoyed seeing Anchors Aweigh too, but I believe they only play at the Ocean View Hotel in Rocky Harbour (on the East Coast). The leader of the band is apparently the owner of the hotel, and also of the BonTours boat company.

http://www.anchorsaweigh.ca/About%20Us.htm

Hi LDB7 - You have a wonderful trip that you are planning. Newfoundland is a magical place. I first travelled to Newfoundland in 2002 and have been back every year except one. I did it in a similar way you are planning - in chunks - and kept going back to see more. We now bought a summer home up there. If you take the trip you have planned you will love it, but I thought I would offer my two cents based on my preferences & experiences. First I'll be bold and suggest that you consider skipping Twillingate and spend more time in Fogo and/or Change Islands. It has been about 5 years since I was in Fogo and I heard it changed a lot. I was on Change Islands two summers ago and loved it! We stayed either 2 or 3 nights and that wasn't enough. I suggest you minimally take a day trip to whichever Island you are not staying on. The ferry ride is short. Also I would suggest you plan on spending a couple nights on the Avalon/Irish Loop. Ferryland is a good area, there are some fossil beds out near Mistaken Point which are a great walk, Cape Pine and Cape Schott are wonderful - we saw Caribou herds down by Cape Pine. St. Vincent's is great for whale watching. Cape St. Mary's is one my two favorite places on the Island. It is easy to spend the entire day there so plan on staying in St. Brides. That way if there is fog the day you go there, you have the second day as a backup. About Bonavista Pennisula - plan on quite a bit of time. Bonavista is a good place to visit - Ryan's Premises, the lighthouse. You can see puffins from the lighthouse property, and we have always seen whales and icebergs from there. Trinity - it is easy to spend two or three days there. From there you could hike the Sperlink trail, visit the Random Passage site and fromn there walk down the carriage trail to Kerley's Harbour which is an abandoned community with a few skeletons of houses left. I would follow the advice of others and skip the Burin Pennisula. And yes - it is not too early to reserve your car now.... and even book your flights when you see a good fare, as they get outrageously high closer to the season.

Hi Katrinasl,

Thanks for the great suggestions - you've given me lots to ponder - in particular your bold idea to skip Twillingate. I am very intrigued by what I have read about Fogo/Change and like the thought of settling there for a few days to really get the flavor of the islands. Based on this and other input I am going to re-work my itinerary to include extras days in Fogo/Change, likely 4 days in Bonavista/Trinity and 5 on the Avalon Penn - still trying to figure out the best way to fit in St Marys because this is high on my list of "must sees". Once I get it put together I'll re-post an itinerary to get feedback.

I am watching air fares daily and planning to book air/car shortly.

Thanks again to all - your comments/suggestions have been invaluable in my planning to date !

Lisa


Lisa

Hi Lisa - Glad I could be of help. My favorite place on Fogo was Tilting. The town is a heritage site. A professor from Toronto had a lot to do with preserving the houses. He wrote a book about it too. I was fascinated by it and I hear now there is a b&b there. We saw a line of ice bergs (maybe 5 or 6) floating out at the sea from the shore. They looked like whipped cream. Out on Change Islands we stayed at Seven Oaks run by a wonderful woman named Beulah in her 70s or 80s. Bob Porter has a great museum there and plays a mean button accordian. Here are some short youtubes of Bob playing accordian with my husband on the guitar and also the put-put boat. Also here are some from Cape St. Marys.... it was fogged in when we arrived.... and the last one was filmed maybe a 1/2 after the ranger told us they'd be fogged in all day. http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=gdG3iBXev_0 http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=XEp4IZwHufk http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=o-jnxMyT9Bg http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=bDdBvzQu2mc

Enjoy your planning, that is part of the fun!!!!

this is the one from Cape St. Mary's I meant to post.... http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=YyGwVM0S-Co&feature=related

Wow - loved the videos ! I certainly have read how much the weather changes in NL but still can't believe the difference in a day on the clips from St Mary's. I am leaning toward staying a night in that area - leaving from the Bonavista/Trinity area to head toward St Mary's - if the weather forecast isn't good for St Mary's we could make stops along the way and hope for a better day the next.

I have settled on staying in Fogo for 3 nights (thanks Katrinasl for freeing me of the idea that I had to go to Twillingate ! I figure if I really want to see it we can check it out the day we leave Fogo - also time permitting we can ferry to the Change islands). Also checked out a website for boat tours that leave Fogo/Change - anyone familiar with " Fogo Island & Change Islands
Adventure Boat Tours " captain John Sheppard?

Also, any suggestions on boat tours in the Bonavista/Trinity area?

Yes.. Rugged Beauty Boat Tours... http://www.ruggedbeautyboattours.net/

Don´t skip Twillingate if you want to see icebergs, which is an amazing experience. They often float into the bay there so you can see them very close. Twillingate was one of the highlights of our trip. Also I would not stay more than one or two nights in St. John´s. Stay in Brigus instead. It is a beautiful place. My advice would be to stay at the http://www.brigusseacliff.ca/ and ask for the Lighthouse room. We were blown away by entering this room and experience the view for the first time. The hosts are lovely people, too.

I'm going to inject a contentious note here and suggest that the Skerwink Trail is not worth the effort unless you like walking on a board walk through forest. There are a few nice coastal outlooks but most of the time all you see is trees. We felt that the time we spent walking it (a decision based on the hype we had read) was wasted and would have been much better spent in Trinity which has tremendous historical interest.

I would, however, fully endorse the comments about Random Passage.

Evening all !

Much thanks for your continued feedback - I am weaving in so many suggestions to our travel plans. We have decided to stay one night in Cape St Mary's so we will have a chance on 2 days at clear weather then traveling from there to St Johns so hopefully we can hit St Vincents and other spots on the way.

CapeRace - thanks for the boat tour suggestion - I have looked into Rugged Beauty further and it is just what we are looking for.

I would also like to take a tour from the Witless Bay Area - I have seen suggestions for both Obrien's and Gatheralls - anyone have any recent experience with either (or an alternative suggestion?

We use an operator out of St. John's for our customers called Oceanquest. Adventures. While they specialize in diving, they have recently expanded into the adventure market. We send our customers as observers on the dive boats as they dive amongst the whales- much more exciting as they are part of the expedition. You can help out or just hang out. (he has a new spa at the lodge where the boat departs from) Contact Rick. http://www.oceanquestadventures.com/

Also, my facts may be wrong--but I think the Skirwink trail is actually a loop that does go through the forest-- but also loops back along the coast. The above poster may not have known this. We recommend it as a more "social" trail as it can get busy- some like this, others do not. Your choice. Be sure to drop in to see John Fisher at Fisher Loft-- Great food and accommodation in the Trinity area--(tell him I said he would buy you a beer... ) have fun... Ken http://www.fishersloft.com/Default.asp

Hi IDB7
This is great..and Ken thanks for contacting us and yes we do have some exciting trips..
Close Encounters: Snorkeling with Humpback Whales…..or touch an Iceberg…boating into Sea Caves….It’s all Guided!

Ocean Discovery: We actually take you underwater , on SCUBA, to see the underwater ecosystem and see the marine life of Newfoundland and Labrador..No experience in SCUBA Diving necessary… It’s Guided!

Submarine War & Ore Tour: Where you get an interactive experience of a part day on the bay and part underground mine tour…hitting on Adventure, Culture, heritage and history of Bell Island…..

All out tours are unique, exciting and Sexy! They range from 129-199 for the ½ to full day tours.

We also have a Spa and 4 star resort in Conception bay South.

Hope this is exciting to you…

All the best,
Rick
rick@oceanquestadventures.com
www.oceanquestadventures.com
Ocean Quest inc.
709-685-4565

I'll endorse CapeRace's assessment of the Skerwink Trail, rather than that of wasleys. It's true, the trail has parts that pass through basically generic Newfoundland forest, and these parts look like any other trail. But it also has those striking coastal overlooks with interesting rock formations. There are also some great panoramic views from high altitudes, which are unusual, especially if you take the quick spur trail up to the little overlook with a picnic table. It also includes a nice rocky beach, and it passes through a big meadow with some serene ponds. All in all, I'd say it's a pretty diverse hiking trail.

@CapeRace, I can assure you that we did not take the short loop back to the car park but went round the coast along the full length of the Skerwink Trail.

@hawksbill,The trail doesn't just have parts that go through forest, most of it does apart from a dull finish once you get away from the coastal meadows. The parts that are on the coast were not worthwhile by our standards.

We did the full loop, clockwise, from the car park. There is an initial, boring section along the old tramway before you start to rise to moderately attractive semi-open country. The forest gets thicker and there is a section near the coast where you get occasional views of some interesting but not wildly exciting sea stacks and a pleasant view across the bay. (Care, especially with children, is needed in some places to get to points where you can see the stacks clearly.)

In my opinion at this point you may as well return to the car because what follows is only worth doing if you want some exercise. For most of the time you are on a well maintained board walk through close forest. There are a number of significant climbs and descents. There are a few places where you come onto open headlands - the view down to Dog Cove Beach is pleasant enough - but in general these few open spots do not give views that are in any way exceptional.

As you descend to sea level you get some pleasant views across to Trinity. Once by the sea there is a fairly ordinary beach and a passable stroll through grassland but this is followed by a tedious section back to the car.

Skerwink has been billed as one of the best 35 walks in North America and Europe and one of the top three in Canada. Frankly, that is laughable. We found several trails in Labrador and the Northern Peninsula which blow this one away. There were several short local trails we found in Newfoundland which took you onto headlands with views far better than these offer. In UK we have been on coastal walks in Wales, the Western Isles and Shetland which leave these standing.

I am aware that the Skerwink Trail is some sort of holy cow and that people flock there because it is on the 'must-see' list (hence my use of "contentious" earlier). Obviously it depends on what you like, what your expectations are and what your experience has been, but for me this one was a waste of time.

"Best 35 walks in North America and Europe"? "Top three in Canada"? I'll agree, that's just laughable. I think maybe it's one of the top three hikes on the Bonavista Peninsula. Although I can't say that I've traveled the area exhaustively.

wasleys, at some point I'm going to ask you to recommend those trails in the Northern Peninsula and Labrador. But that's not relevant to this thread, so I guess we can save that discussion for another time...

I must clarify one point. My comment about some UK walks "which leave these standing" was badly written and should have been "which leave Skerwink standing". The other walks in NL which I mentioned were all good.

@hawksbill, Ask away, although I may take a while to reply as I don't get in Fodor's much these days. We had five weeks in NL and NS last autumn and I am currently (and very belatedly) putting together a website of pictures and notes from that trip which I will link to in this forum when uploaded and which may answer your questions.

Evening All,

Thanks for the info - we are planning 4 nights in the Bonavista/Trinity area so weather and schedule dependent we will likely try to hike Skerwink Trail, after all the discussion I feel compelled to check it out now -I'll include my impressions in a trip report when we get back !

Ken - I'll make sure to mention your name at the Fishers Loft - I definitely plan to go there to drink and dine. I will follow with oceanquest for more details. We will be in that area the week of June 20th - will we likely be too early for whales?