Witless Bay Ecological Reserve

Witless Bay Ecological Reserve Review

Four small islands and the water surrounding them make up the Witless Bay Ecological Reserve, the summer home of millions of seabirds—puffins, murres, kittiwakes, razorbills, and guillemots. The birds and the humpback and minke whales that linger here before moving north to their summer grounds in the Arctic feed on capelin (a fish that belongs to the smelt family) that swarm inshore to spawn.

This is an excellent place to see icebergs in late spring and early summer, which can remain in Newfoundland waters into June and sometimes July, cooling the water temperature before falling victim to the milder climate. The loud crack as an iceberg breaks apart can be heard from shore, but a boat gets you a closer look at these natural ice sculptures. Icebergs have spawned a lucrative business in Newfoundland beyond tourism. Iceberg water and iceberg vodka are now on the market, made from ice chipped from the 10,000-year-old bergs as they float by. The best views of birds and icebergs are from the tour boats that operate here and are the only way to visit the reserve.