St John's to Fogo Island : need a half way stop.
 

We are hoping to visit Newfoundland for the last 2 weeks on September. We will be flying in to St John's and staying a couple of days before heading north to Fogo Island. Being seniors we prefer not to drive too far in a day so we are thinking of St John's to Trinity as half way. Is this about right ? Or other suggestions ? The Artisan Inn in Trinity looks really good, perhaps for two nights.


Coming back south after Fogo we will need another half way stopping point. Suggestions ?

We really look forward to visiting this unique part of Canada.

We just returned from a wonderful trip encompassing all these destinations. I'll write more later but in the meantime suggest you look at the Fogo Island ferry schedule and work backwards from there to determine where you will stay on your way to Fogo (less important on your way back).

There have been some instances of long lines for the ferry - the homeowner of the cottage we rented suggested getting to the ferry at least an hour and a half early. In our case two weeks ago that was less of an issue but I still wouldn't want to arrive any less than one hour before sailing time.

Trinity is sort of half way - until you add the time in the ferry line.

Will add more later..............we had a great time in Fogo and in Trinity - highly recommend spending time in both

Here's a link to our (as yet unfinished) blog

http://lizandrichardsa.typepad.com/newfoundland_2014/

Forgot to mention - had dinner at Artisan Inn two days ago - lovely meal.....but maybe staying in Port Rexton better depending upon what you want to do in the area. More later!

Elizabeth thank you very much for your reply. Your blog is really interesting and I look forward to more.
Fabulous food fotos !

Hi galiano. Lots more food pics to come (and whales - lots of whales!)

Re driving from St. John's to Farewell (which is where you get the ferry to Fogo). The Newfoundland Tourism website mileage calculator says it's 417 km and they're saying 5 hours 9 minutes. Based on our experience I'd say that's very accurate. We drive a little faster than average and don't stop much so our time was faster.

Here's a link to the mileage calculator

http://www.newfoundlandlabrador.com/...ivingdistances

And here's a link to the Fogo Ferry schedule - scroll down for the May 15 to October 15 schedule

http://www.tw.gov.nl.ca/ferryservice...es/c_fogo.html

As mentioned above - Trinity breaks the distance up (although it adds mileage in/out of the Peninsula) and we would definitely recommend staying there. 2 nights would be too short based on our experience because that's only one full day. We were there 4 nights (3 full days) and did the following (from our base in Port Rexton which is about 9km from Trinity)

Day 1 - wandered around Trinity and attended the Pageant in the afternoon. Drinks on the lovely deck at Artisan Inn and dinner at Trinity Mercantile. Cute restaurant with very fresh food.

Highly recommend the Pageant - an entertaining theatre troupe tells the story of Trinity/Newfoundland as you walk around town. The Pageant is performed Wednesday and Saturday at 2pm during the summer season - here's a link to their website. Fall schedule hasn't been announced yet. I would definitely take the Pageant schedule into account if it's convenient for you. They also have other theatre productions

http://www.risingtidetheatre.com/


Day 2 - hiked the Skerwink Trail (we took 3 hours to hike 5.3km - it was so beautiful and there were so many whales to watch!) Parts are challenging (stairs) but if you take your time it's very doable and most of the trail is relatively flat and has a boardwalk.

And at 5pm we took a zodiac tour to see the whales - they might be gone by the end of September though. Sea of Whales was fantastic! We saw so many whales breaching we lost count!

http://www.seaofwhales.com/

Quick dinner at Dock Marina after as we weren't off the boat until 8:30. Good fish and chips.

Day 3 - drove up and around the Bonavista Peninsula stopping in many of the little towns - lots to see especially the puffins at Sandy Beach (in Elliston). We were 10 feet away from them. Again, not sure if they're still there in late September.

Dinner at Artisan Inn that night - we took the 5:30 seating (they have 5:30 and 7:45 seatings - $41/person). Choice of pork or salmon - both very good and taste like home cooking.

We wanted to drive past Trinity and visit the Random Passage site and other sights in that area but ran out of time.

As mentioned we stayed in Port Rexton at a terrific place with one bedroom efficiency suites - spotlessly clean and well equipped with a bit of a view of the bay and $89/night

http://www.sherwoodsuites.com/index.htm

Nearby is a fancier place called Fisher's Loft - they also have a nice dining room (5:15 and 7:30 dinner seatings at $56/per person)

http://fishersloft.com/

We preferred to stay in Port Rexton as it was convenient to the Skerwink Trail and our drive up to Bonavista. But it really doesn't matter as Trinity is only a few minutes drive.

Back to the drive from St. John's to Farewell/Fogo. If it were me I'd just make miles the first day - and get to Gander (less than 4 hours driving) or maybe a bit further to Lewisporte. That would put you in easy range of the ferry for the next morning. We got to the ferry dock at 7:30 for the 9:00am ferry (no problem making it) and were in Joe Batts Arm by 10:15 so it gave us an extra day on Fogo. Or you can have a more leisurely morning and make the 11:15am ferry.

Gander has an interesting aviation museum and a memorial (Arrow Air crash). And the airport is actually fun to see for its retro chic interiors. I confess to having a soft spot for Gander after the events of 9/11 but it would be a fine place for one night and put you in good position for the ferry the next day.

Then I would do Trinity on the way back from Fogo - we took the 10:15am ferry (arriving at the dock at 8:30 and were car #4 - a little early!). We were in Port Rexton by 2:30 and took a couple of detours.

Whew! Well that gave me a good start on my trip report!

Where are you staying in Fogo? We rented a cute, cute cottage across the bay from Fogo Island Inn. The Inn was too expensive and I'm glad we stayed in the cottage - went for dinner at the Inn which was sadly disappointing. More on the blog this week. Here's a link to our cottage - they have 2 .... we rented the two bedroom cottage which was $170/night.

http://www.jigloft.com/#!beach-house-pictures/c1z0v

Hope this helps - happy to answer any questions!

Hi, you may want to look at Charlottetown at the south end of Terra Nova NP. It is about 3 hours from St. John's. Charlottestown is a small quaint seaside town. A popular song was written about it. There is a quaint rather old-fashioned hotel there that we enjoy called Clode Sound Motel. Definitely like something out of the 50s/60s but it is clean, well maintained with a good reasonably priced restaurant and an in house bakery. Sandy Pond is only a few km from the motel and it has a wonderful trail around the pond and a nice sandy beach. The visitor center for Terra Nova is also interesting and quite scenic. Just a tip - as you plan remember that the last two weeks of September is past peak tourist season. To avoid disappointment, check to make sure that attractions are still open. Lastly while at Fogo take the time to visit Change Islands. It is the first stop for the Fogo Ferry. It is a beautiful, quaint, quiet place.... almost like time forgot it.

Just read Elizabeth's blog and swooned at the photos of the food and at all else in an area of the world I'd never thought of, as far as travel, for one second. Suffice to say that that has changed!

I am in awe! My deepest thanks!

eks - thanks for topping! But it grieves me to see that we didn't finish the NL blog. So many more meal experiences! (and whales - lots of whales!)

Truth be told we went to NL as trophy hunters - it was our 10th province......but left absolutely in love with it. Before we went we thought it was a "great Canadian destination" but left knowing it is a great world destination. Our time there led to our recent visit to PEI and Nova Scotia - where we had a great time - but we left a bit of our hearts in NL.

Haven't been to your city yet this year - long overdue! Hope we can get together when we do.

Best

Liz

Liz I would enjoy that so much!

impossible question: If you had to choose: NL or Chilean Patagonia, with food playing an important role in the decision
but not the only factor....which of the two would you choose?

ekscrunchy, my observation, from rather short trips to both, is that good food is available in both, but takes some effort to find.

Scenery wise, Patagonia wins, but I didn't get to the western side of NFL.

eks - I think Other Liz nailed it --- NL (including the west) scenery is lovely but not as dramatic as Patagonia.

OtherLiz ;)

Or as I like to call you "OL"

I just read your NL blog! Great photos.. and the food looks wonderful there! I'll definitely beg you for more recs once we decide to go!