West Coast Weekend

We spent this past (long) weekend with some friends on the West Coast of Newfoundland, soaking up some sun and checking out a few sights!

Woody Point in Gros Morne

The main purpose of this trip was to visit our friends who have been living in Corner Brook for the past year, Rebecca and Piers. We planned the trip a few months ago and we were really looking forward to it - especially because it would be Luke’s first time visiting the area. Corner Brook is the largest community on the West Coast of the island, with a population of 20,000 people, and it takes 7-8 hours to drive there from St. John’s. For some perspective on where we went, this is a map of our road trip to give a general idea about the distances and locations. 

On Friday after work, we set off and completed the first step of our journey by driving 2.5 hours out to Bunyan’s Cove, where Lauren’s parents have a house. We spent a weekend there last summer and it was a lot of fun. Unfortunately since this time it was only an intermediate stop, we just stayed overnight and then continued driving on Saturday morning.

Driving across the province, we saw a variety of landscapes. On the Avalon Peninsula and into Central Newfoundland while there are quite a few hills, they pale in comparison to the Appalachian mountain range that extends from Western Newfoundland all the way south to the state of Georgia. Interestingly enough, apparently at one time the Appalachian mountains reached elevations similar to the Alps and the Rocky Mountains, but were eroded as time went on.

We arrived at Rebecca and Piers’ house in Corner Brook shortly after 2 pm and between the six of us, we scrounged up enough food for a nice lunch in their backyard. It was 25+ degrees outside and we were lucky because it stayed sunny and warm for the entire weekend. After lunch we figured that we’d walk around Corner Brook to get a feel for the place. This mostly turned into drinks outside on a patio. We weren’t complaining.

While having a few drinks outside at McHugh’s, we decided to plan a spur of the moment trip to Gros Morne National Park! After a bit of Googling and few phone calls, we had rented a cabin in Rocky Harbour for the six of us for Sunday night. The rest of the evening consisted of tasty food, a great view, and some good conversation. Unfortunately, the bar we wanted to go to that night is closed on Saturday nights (who would have thought?), but it was probably for the best as we had a drive to Gros Morne facing us the next morning.

On Sunday, on our way to Rocky Harbour, we stopped off to see the Steady Brook Falls. They are located right next to Marble Mountain and are a sight to be seen, especially in the spring when the snow is melting, substantially increasing the flow of water. Even from the lookout point, we could feel the effect of the increased flow as the falling water bounced off the rocks below and created a refreshing mist which cooled our faces. Later in the spring/summer when the water flow has decreased, the top of the Falls are a popular swimming spot for locals. However, it’s hard to believe that they are ever safe for swimming when you see them at this time of year. Here’s a video we took at the Falls:

After climbing back down the hill, we went on our way to Gros Morne National Park. Gros Morne is a 1.5 hour drive from Corner Brook and is well worth the extra effort. The park is full of wildlife, hiking trails, interesting geology, beaches, and seaside communities. We actually stayed there in the for a few nights in June 2012, when Luke visited Newfoundland for the first time. During that visit, we went to the Tablelands, the Arches, the wreck of the SS Effie, Shallow Bay, and Western Brook Pond, among other places.

This time around, we had much less time but still made the most of it. We started off by venturing on the Stuckless Pond hike, near Woody Point. Unfortunately we faced a few obstacles along the way. We managed to overcome the snow-covered trail, dodge the unbelievable amount of moose droppings and the lone American toad perched on the trail (that we coincidentally learned about last week), as well as a strange object that looked like an intestine. However, a couple of kilometres into the hike, the trail was washed away by a gushing river and although we debated it for a few minutes, that’s where we decided to draw the line and turn back.

Slightly disappointed, but pretty hungry, we made our way into Woody Point for some lunch on a patio overlooking the ocean. The views were spectacular and we managed to cram food and drinks for six on a tiny bar table. Then we went on a short stroll to the Woody Point lighthouse.

Although we could nearly see Rocky Harbour from the lighthouse, we had to drive around the Bay to get there, which took us an hour or so. Once we were there, we decided to check in at the cabin and then check out the remaining beached blue whale that washed up on the shores of Rocky Harbour a few weeks ago, due to the increased pack ice this year. It is a rare occurrence and has become quite the news story recently. It was sad to see the whale in person and the shear size of it was unbelievable. We also happened upon what looked like a headless seal washed up on the beach while we were there, which was equally sad but also confusing. 

On a lighter note, after a BBQ at our cabin for supper, we went to see Sherman Downey as part of the Annual Trails, Tales & Tunes Music Festival in Norris Point, near Rocky Harbour. The show was a lot of fun and was a great way to spend our last evening on the West Coast.

Then on Monday, we set off for the long eight hour drive back to St. John’s. As we got closer and closer to the city, the fog got thicker and thicker. It made us really appreciate the great weather that we had all weekend, and since returning to St. John's we've unfortunately had to unpack our sweaters and raincoats.

Here are some more pictures from our road trip: