S18: We’ve Got Seagulls In Our Eyes

Waterfront and Sunset View

The title of this post is a paraphrase of a Great Big Sea song. And the photo is at our final campfire on Fogo island:

Day 22: July (Month) 8

Yes, a gorgeous sunny morning for our departure from this lovely place in Robert’s Arm. By the way, Doug and his friends are the first Newfoundlanders to say “July MONTH”, etc. Very quaint. And Doug dropped by to invite us to join them for “Cooked Dinner” Sunday, but we thanked them and headed off. Such lovely people. We’ll be back and recommend this place.

We drove straight through to the Fogo Island ferry, boarded the Veteran:

…had a calm and sunny sail (though no whales or icebergs), and got to the Brimstone Head Campground (Site #7, $30 E/W) for three nights.

We just hung around, visited with our American neighbours, Dan and Joan from Philly, for Happy Hour and enjoyed a campfire with them and Don and Brenda from Sudbury, Ontario.

Here’s the view from my chair (last year, this view featured a whole lot of icebergs!):

Day 23: July 9

It was a beautiful morning AGAIN. Our first stop was the Marconi site:

… and then we drove to Joe Batt’s Arm for lunch:

…then went up and down the roads near the (to me) ugly, fancy hotel (which we hear is always full):

…and settled for this Ice Cream View:

We hiked the hills around the campground:

…and enjoyed a campfire adding Ethel and Daniel from British Columbia and Julie and her sweet son, Edouard, from Quebec, and Elizabeth and Fred from Grand Falls-Windsor, Newfoundland, to our group. By the way, Dan and Joan travel on land and sea to enjoy Irish music, and Don and Brenda are accomplished (and he’s a published) wildlife photographers. What a gathering:

Day 24: July 10

Again, another amazing, sunny morning. We are getting quite the sun tans, so unusual for Newfoundland! David mentioned to a local that it was going to get in the 80s today, and the man said “Not on Fogo Island. The only thing that gets in the 80s is coming out of the oven”!

We drove to Tilting and looked at scenes we’ve seen before and saw a few new things, especially a father and son (I think) tending their potato garden:

Here’s our lunch spot overlooking that plot:

After a short hike at Joe Batt’s Arm, we had a leisurely afternoon (David washed the Jeep and I read). Our campfire was special as we enjoyed the last hours with these new friends, as well as more of Julie’s Fir-based Gin from Quebec which was absolutely delicious and kind of tasted like a Christmas Tree!

Here’s the final waterfront view of Fogo:

Day 25: July 11

Seriously, it was another sunny day for our return ferry ride. But, first, the Lobster Fishermen brought in their traps:

The crossing was great (but I had to drive UP a ramp, then down it when we landed; I am becoming quite proficient with “Freddie” on ferries).

We got some supplies in Gander then headed to Eastport for a two-night stay at the Howard W. Duffet Shriner’s RV Park (Site #139, $42.50 FHU), a pricey but convenient spot on this pretty peninsula.

The campers are mostly seasonal, of “a certain age” (okay, our age, but I digress). We drove around a bit, then, after dinner, crowds started heading to the Recreation Centre across from us. I asked, and it was music night, so we headed over for 8:00 PM. For the next hour and forty-five minutes, we listened to several players and singers perform two songs each. They were all good, though, I must admit, the songs were mostly about forsaken love! One singer’s song about a family’s home being towed behind a boat to a new location for resettlement (called something like “Just a Black and White Photo”) was really moving. The MC and Violet, an amazing harmonica player from Change Islands, really stole the show:

Here’s a view of our very unlevel site:

Day 26: July 12

Well, the forecasted rain began in the morning and continued all day long. So we took a drive, including a stop at a Pharmacy and a drive by a Chip Truck:

…and Ontario thinks we can’t sell alcohol in grocery stores!

Though it was rainy and foggy, we got some great, eerie photos in Salvage and Burnside:

We spent the rest of our day in the MoHo while the rain pounded down. Oh well, we had five amazing, sunny days!

Day 27: July 13

On our way out, we had our first Roadside View of wildlife: a Fox with his stolen Muffin:

And we were back to sun.

We had a, easy drive to Elliston and headed straight to the Maberly Rainbow Picnic Site for a free overnight near Puffin Island (see us in the distance?):

I spent some time on the phone booking our return ferry (now I can plan the next almost two weeks), and after lunch, headed to see the Puffins. And we experienced something new: Puffins within feet of us. Amazing:

With some Seagulls and Gallinules thrown in:

After our fill of these sweet birds, we drove to Cape Bonavista, saw some Humpbacks and probably a Minke whale in a distance and returned to our quiet and beautiful spot for the evening. Here are our afternoon and evening views from my chair: