Oh Deer!

So right after driving 8400 km to Newfoundland and back without hitting anything....a large deer ran into ME on my way to work. It was about 7am and it came running out of a cornfield. I hit the brakes, it tried to change direction, and basically bounced off the curved side/back of the Juke and ran off.

Sorry, I didn't manage to get any pictures of the deer. Just the aftermath.

You have likely heard of looking like a deer in the headlights? Well, this is what a deer in the tail-lights looks like. Now you know.

It could have been far worse - he basically just took out the tail-light and made a few dents on the passenger side - all further proof that HE ran into ME. There was even slobber on the rear passenger window. The car was otherwise "driveable" after I googled to remember how to make a right turn hand signal.

We did have to reschedule a few plans, like picking up Dave for a visit, but everything worked out in the end. Jane did have to take him back home in the rental car, which had more legroom for Dave but was way too low to the ground for Jane and her new knees to get in and out of easily.

We are currently awaiting basic repair of the tail-light to make her roadworthy again, as we wait to see how insurance feels about the overall level of damage. It doesn't look too bad, but it's also an older car.

I Juked when I should have Jived

Now we REALLY need the screwdriver to open the fuel door

Right turn, Clyde!

The Rental

Newfoundland - Days 13-17

The drive home began in earnest....so of course after all that rain and fog, it was sunny, dry and 26 C as we drove towards the ferry! We set ourselves up for another long day behind the wheel, with about a nine-hour run from Port Union to Port-aux-Basques. We ate leftovers, listened to the audiobook, and checked the oil a few times during fuel stops. 

As usual, we were very early for the night crossing, so we added yet more driving to tour the scenic Route 470 along the south coast to Isle-aux-Morts and Rose Blanche, one of our favourites. We had planned to stop for dinner in Isle-aux-Morts, but nothing was open - we ended up back in Port-aux-Basques for a great takeout meal (and conversation with the owner) at Rosie's Burger Barn.

We checked into the ferry, this time an 11:45pm crossing on the MV Highlanders. Before long, we were boarding....and even though there was no specific "small car" lane for this boat, we still ended up down in the bowels on Deck 1. At least the ramp was a little wider and bigger cars and trucks were sent down there too. Alas though, any plans for a quick disembarkation in the morning went out the window. 

Our cabin was great again, and we watched an interesting show on exploring wrecks on Lake Superior. After a good night's sleep, we docked in North Sydney in the morning, and after a quick coffee stop headed west. An even longer day was in store, not helped by roadwork in Cape Breton, but we did about a thirteen hour run to get from the ferry to the lovely Motel Blanchet in Drummondville, Quebec.

By then we were silly tired, even after gaining an hour and a half in time zones - it doesn't mean you drove any less! After checking in, we grabbed dinner to go from the on-site restaurant and ate in the room. We also woke up early enough to have a nice sit-down breakfast in the morning, before heading out for the relatively short five-hour leg to visit family in eastern Ontario.

After a nice two day visit, we headed home early on Sunday morning for the six-hour run through the GTA. We were on the next audiobook by now, "The Chrysalids", ironically set in a futuristic Labrador and island of "Newf". We opted for the scenic route along Lake Erie for the last half-hour, mainly to add a stop at Pardo's for fresh strawberries. Arriving by early afternoon, we released the happy/angry cats, cracked a few windows, surveyed the tall weeds, and unpacked.

In the end, we drove 8,404 km and saw 85 icebergs, along with moose, deer, foxes, puffins and a whale. It had been far too long since we had been to The Rock, and we vowed to not let a whole decade go by again before going back!

Driving in to the Rose Blanche lighthouse

One of our favourite villages!

Rose Blanche

Scenic Route 470

Boarding the MV Highlanders

Our chariot for the crossing

The view from of Port-aux-Basques from our cabin

Arriving in North Sydney at dawn

Cormorants and trailers welcome us back to Cape Breton

Jane used Google Translate (Lens) to translate the menu!

A quick stop at Pardo's on the way home!

Home Sweet Home!

Newfoundland - Day 12

The Day of Bad Roads began innocently enough. After a lovely breakfast at the motel, we took the short Route 237 connector across the width of the peninsula, in search of icebergs rumoured to be in King's Cove and Knight's Cove. The "paved" road was horrible, with potholes and general erosion, so thankfully there was nobody else on it (they likely knew better) and it was only about 10 km long.

Hooking up with  Route 235 on the west side of the peninsula, we meandered in the fog and rain down to King's Cove - not only was there an iceberg off shore, but it was a lovely little village, worth a visit in its own right.

Heading northeast, we followed an often sketchy 235 along the shore to Bonavista, a larger town at the tip. We visited the iconic lighthouse and interpretation centre, but the extreme wind and rain kept us from doing much more than that. We skipped the dirt road into scenic Dungeon Provincial Park, again due to poor weather....luckily I had been there before at least. We were surprised by an unexpected puffin colony on an island next to the lighthouse. 

On our way back down the peninsula, we did a grocery and beer run before leaving town, and stopped at the motel to drop off supplies and scarf down ham sandwiches. Heading out again, we went south this time and explored the lovely little town of Trinity, before carrying on further down Route 239 to Old Bonaventure and New Bonaventure, used in the The Shipping News and also the film set location for CBC mini-series Random Passage. 

At first the road was good, actually better than many other more important roads....leading us to wonder if filming projects in the area had led to some improvements. But then then "good road" stopped abruptly, and the ensuing "bad" road was very, very bad. We took a much-needed break at the end for a nice hike into the Random Passage set, and we got about an hour of actual sunshine as well.

Re-tracing our way back, slowly, we regained the main road and then explored another arm a little further north, into the villages of Champney's East and English Harbour, before returning to the motel for a relaxing evening of Greco's pizza and Umbrella Academy, while packing the Juke to go during infrequent breaks in the rain.

King's Cove and its iceberg

More lovely King's Cove

Bonavista Lighthouse....

...and neighbouring puffin colony!

Bonavista shoreline

Trinity is an old community

Well-kept homes in Trinity

More coastal scenery

Random Passage set

New Bonaventure

The view from English Harbour

Some crappy roads!

Crappy Roads, Part II!

Newfoundland - Day 11

The next day was another driving day, as we moved from the Twillingate area over to the Bonavista peninsula. With an eye on the worsening weather forecast, we cancelled plans to camp for two more nights near Clarenville, and instead booked a sweet little room at the Seaport Inn in Port Union. While further to drive today, it was much better situated anyway for the sights to see in the days following.

After grabbing coffee and some colourful local culture at the Summerford gas station, we headed back down the 340 before cutting east, to follow Route 330 along the shore and around through Musgrave Harbour, Lumsden and New-Wes-Valley. We stopped to tour the scenic village of Newtown, dubbed the "Venice of Newfoundland".

We drove through proper "RDF" (Rain-Drizzle-Fog) all day, regaining the Trans-Canada at Gambo. We skipped plans to visit scenic Salvage, since we wouldn't have seen much anyway.  After a foggy but beautiful run through Terra Nova National Park, we took Route 230 and cut across the Bonavista peninsula to Port Union.

Along the way, a woman in an SUV made a nearly ill-fated decision to pass several RV's as they laboured up a steep hill - when there was clearly not the time and space to do so. As I slammed on the breaks and headed for the right shoulder to avoid a head-on collision.....Jane offered the woman an emphatic "double bird" displayed prominently in the windshield. At least we could laugh about it after!

After checking in to our room early, we grabbed sandwiches to go for lunch from the on-site restaurant, Carl's Fireside Lounge. With a bit of a break in the weather, we drove the short distance to nearby Elliston to check out a puffin colony. The road got a little rough towards the end, but it was worth it. Not only is it the "Root Cellar Capital of the World", but there is a large puffin colony easily accessible after a short but wet walk.

The main colony was on an island just off the end of the point, and even more birds were bobbing in the waters around. Once the other people left, we stood back a bit, quietly - and several pairs of puffins fluttered over to our side of the divide and started checking out the cliffs for nesting sites right in front of us.

Walking back in the "misting" rain, we opted for the "scenic loop" to Maberly, a little further up the road, where we had to wait for two young fox pups to get off the "road", which had deteriorated significantly by the end of the line. Returning to Elliston, we stopped at the gift shop and grabbed some Mummers and a puffin for the wall.

Wet and tired, we called it a day early to enjoy the motel room, and got hooked on Umbrella Academy on Netflix. We checked in on the cats using the home cameras, and also returned to the Inn restaurant for dinner, Jane opting for pan fried cod with scrunchions, while I went for the pork chop dinner.  

Scenic Newtown

The Oldest building in Newtown?

Seaport Inn - Port Union

Elliston root cellars

Puffin colony at Elliston

Thar be Puffins!

Then...they came to us!

Nesting on the cliff

Scenic walk back to the car