Destination Unknown 23: Fish & Chips

Day Seventy One

A few months back, we booked four campgrounds in Newfoundland, all placed in a central locations to tour around. Just before we left Nova Scotia we received a reminder email from the Gros Morne KOA that was going to be our first stop. The dates in the email were correct but it also stated that we were on a water only site, thinking this was an error, I called to to be sure. The lady from the campground confirmed the emails accuracy and when I inquired about a power site I was informed there are no spots available for that weekend; being Canada day of course.

We called around, and found another campground close to Stephenville along the Rothesay Bay. It was shorter drive from the ferry, but really pulled us away from the areas we wanted to check out. The Zenzville Campground was a family run business and seems to be fairly decent campground.

Today we took off early to the Gros Morne National Park. The drive to the park was expected to be approximately four hours with plenty of stops along the way. We packed an overnight bag with a few essentials just in case we became to tired to continue driving on our return home.

Today, the day started with a temperature of eighteen, with blue skies. We headed to the only highway in Newfoundland and turned north towards the Long Range Mountains. About two hours into our drive we were stopped on the highway for almost an hour, while rescue crews dealt with an RV that was on its side in the ditch. We certainly hoped the travellers were okay.

After we passed the accident we made our way to Deer Lake where we left the highway and headed northwest on the 430. We entered the park shortly after and headed towards Rocky Harbour. Throughout the park there were great places to stop and see the scenery. I will have to admit, I have always envisioned Newfoundland to be rocky, grassy plains with the ocean visible in every direction, this was far from the truth. Newfoundland’s mountain ranges are certainly smaller than the Rocky Mountains but can hold their own. Coming to, and going through the park was mostly mountains, freshwater lakes, and forests.

When the road finally approached the ocean, we pulled over for some photos at a scenic stop where the trees opened up to a view of the South East Arm. After a few pics, I wondered around the rest area and noticed a little movement in the trees. I approached the tree to discover two baby weasel’s playing in front of their den. After a quick video of the weasels, we moved on towards Norris Point.

It was getting close to one o’clock when we entered Norris Point. We drove down the harbour and found a small pub overlooking a bay and headed in for some lunch. Back before the trip started, Lori had declared that she was going to try fish & chips during her trip in the maritimes. True to her word, she ordered the fish, and I ordered some pizza fingers just incase the fish was a flop.

In her own words “it didn’t go swimmingly”, she did her best, but she felt there was not enough tarter sauce in the world for her to finish it. I finished her fish, while she snacked on the pizza fingers. After lunch we headed north to visit the Lobster Cove lighthouse that was built in 1897. The lighthouse certainly had some fantastic panoramic views, along with a few hiking trails along the cliffs that you could explore.

After the light house we headed north along the coast towards the beaches of Cow Head, stopping for the occasional photo along the way. We arrived in Cow Head around four o’clock and drove towards the beach located at the north end of the town.

By this time, Lori was at the wheel of the truck and missed the turn off too the beach. She stopped in front of a house and attempted to back into their driveway to turn around. As she was backing up, she missed the driveway by a foot, backing into the owners garbage bin, with a thud, she stopped the truck and looked at me. I informed her that she just plowed into their garbage bin. She quickly put the truck into drive and pulled away towards the beach. Now I will admit, my wording of “plowed” was a little strong when she just bumped into it, non the less…… we drove to Newfoundland to do a garbage hit and run. 😂

We made it to the beach and walked a fair distance before deciding to begin our journey back. We talked possibly of finding a pet friendly hotel for the night, but we have become comfortable in our RV and preferred to sleep in our own bed. We arrived home around nine and us and the puppy’s were happy to back home.