Day 24 Trinity Bay

Today was a travel/work day so not many adventures to brag about. We were in line almost two hours early for the ferry back to Farewell but with the grumbling we had heard we weren’t absolutely sure we would get on. The next ferry was 3.5 hours later and as this was a day when David had to work, we really hoped we’d make it!

These ferry guys know what they’re doing. They tucked all 55 feet of us on board no problem, but as we sailed away we noticed we had left a line of disappointed cars on shore. Note to the wise – arrive early for ferry crossings to and from Fogo Island. The wait is worth it!

Once back on the “big island” we continued our trip east to the Bonavista Peninsula. We really are so fortunate to have the jobs that we have. Mine may be crazy and consuming throughout the school year but you can’t beat the summer vacation. David’s may be somewhat unpredictable and isolating but he can work from anywhere and that is a beautiful combination! Today, in the middle of Terra Nova National Park, with his cell phone ringing incessantly, we pulled over into a gravel pit. I made lunch and David tethered his computer to his cell phone and worked for an hour! Technology may be criticized for never allowing us to escape, but in our case it may be credited with allowing us to escape!!

This time around we are staying in a Provincial Park. Not many of those left, since many like the Codroy Valley Park have been privatized, but there are some! We laughed when we came upon the sign at the turn off to the park warning us of a dirt road for the next 17km. Now this is a little late to be warning! It’s the first we knew, and what are we to do at this point? As it turns out, it’s in much better shape than some sections of the TCH we’ve travelled!!

The park is beautiful and we are nestled into a spruce forest without another soul in sight – perfect!

The Fogo Island ferry on its way to get us. The cars here represent some of the line in front of us, and we were 2 hours early!

View from the back window of the trailer,

The sky tonight was beautiful!

Day 23 Fogo Island

Today was another glorious sunny day! While we have had all four seasons in any given day, overall, the weather has been spectacular! This morning we had booked a tour of the Fogo Island Inn. We had tried to get lunch reservations but apparently we need to book that a week in advance!

As I’ve said, the Inn hasn’t won me over despite my want to like it. We approached the tour with an open mind and although I can’t say I LOVE it, in some ways I was a little more a fan on the way out than on the way in.

I can’t imagine what anyone could do for me in a hotel that I would be OK with paying them $5,000 a night. I did learn that the Inn is run more like an “all-inclusive”. All meals are included. They have local ambassadors who wait in the lobby to introduce guests to any and all of Fogo Island and all of that is also included in the cost. They provide a driver and will bring you wherever you want to go. If you want to go into Joe Batt’s Arm and eat at Nicole’s Café, they will bring you there and pick up the tab. It really is a full-service experience that supports the local economy. Now the little voice in my head kept insisting, “And well they should for $5,000 a night”, but I shushed her, and remained open to the tour. There were plenty of luxuries like remote control toilet seats (not kidding!! Who in the name of God can’t manage to put down their own toilet seat??), towel warmers and white noise generators (apparently guests were having difficulty sleeping because it was too quiet!!). Every detail was considered and local flavor comes through. Every piece of furniture, piece of art and handmade quilts on the bed are made locally and for sale. The Inn isn’t air conditioned but a wool shawl hangs beside every door, locally knit of course! The cushions on the chairs and couches in the common areas and rooms are the crocheted, round throw pillows, with the big button centres that graced every Newfoundland home of my youth. Here you are welcome to take one home for $350!!! I almost choked! But more power to them if they can sell them to tourists for that! Who am I to talk? I bought a rock! Even the wallpaper on the bedroom walls was specially made for the Inn and printed with local scenes.

The architect was a local man from Gander. We learned that he now lives in Norway but came back to complete this project. That actually made a great deal of sense when you looked around the Inn. The overall impression of the Inn was Ikea comes to Newfoundland. Clean and simple lines, funky but unobtrusive lighting, storage and decorative features all screamed Scandinavian influence.

There were some very interesting and effective architectural features in the floor to ceiling windows that take full advantage of the spectacular north Atlantic scenery, the vanishing point stairway that draws you to upper floors. The hallways that appear to go on forever in this surprisingly small Inn with only 29 room. The ceiling gets higher as you move down the halls and the tall thin windows actually get shorter. You really don’t notice until it’s pointed out, but it creates an optical illusion that makes the hall appear much longer than it is – very cool! My favourite feature though was the shape of the Inn. Not apparent until you see the fire escape map at the elevator, the building was designed as an X. It is intended to represent a cross-roads. A point where old ways meet new ways. Where locals welcome strangers. Pretty cool really!

I’ve often said that something was so much greater than the sum of its parts. I think this is the first time I have ever thought that something wasn’t as great as the sum of its parts! The Fogo Island Inn has loads to recommend it. Having visited it and each of its remote studios, there are things that I like and things that I think are clever and cool. I love that it is helping to resurrect a community. I just don’t think it fits into the local landscape as it might have, and I certainly can’t justify the cost with anything I’ve seen. Clearly its intended audience is the rich and famous.

Following our tour we had a few hours before our reservation with George and Valerie at Nicole’s Café. There was a hiking trail we hadn’t checked out on the other side of Joe Batt’s Arm so we were off to Etheridge’s Point and the hiking trail that leads past The Longhouse Studio, the only one we hadn’t seen. It was a great hike but by the time we returned to the truck it was hot enough to kill ya!

We are on vacation, and supposedly we’re adults, so we decided to have dessert before we went to dinner and went to Growlers for ice cream! On the ferry over the girl at the coffee shop told us we had to go to Growlers. She wasn’t wrong! I have never tasted ice cream so good! We had a grand chat with lady behind the counter who offered samples to help us decide. She brought out the woman in the back who makes the ice cream daily. In the end, despite her great help, I couldn’t decide and had a mixed cone with caramel in the bottom and rhubarb/strawberry sherbet in the top! Talk about worth the calories!!

When we met George and Valerie for dinner at Nicole’s we heard all about their day cod jigging and we talked about our experience of the Inn. The menu was problematic in that I could have ordered anything but finally settled on pan fried cod on a bed of split peas, cabbage, carrots and celery in a butter broth – ambrosia!! David chose a fresh pasta with pulled salt beef! Wonderful company, delicious food, shared wine – a perfect ending to our amazing time here on Fogo Island!

Fogo Island Inn

Built on stilts as so many Newfoundland buildings are.

David in the lobby sitting next to a $350 crochet throw pillow!

Art exhibit by Wilfrid Almendra - Light Boiled Like Liquid Soap????

And then the light or the liquid soap captured a potato sack???

One of the Inns common spaces

Vanishing point stair from above

Bench cushions that told the story of the Inn hooked by local artists

The X design that represents the crossroads of old and new

Optical illusion. The ceiling gets higher and the windows get shorter making the hall appear very long

View from the beds at the Inn

The grey box on the wall is the remote for the toilet seat!

Guest house and artist studio so much prettier than the Inn to my mind and not $5,000 a night!

Just another scene along the road

See how the Inn dominates the view? 

The Longhouse Studio, my second favourite because it has windows.

Dinner at Nicole's Cafe

Day 22 Fogo Island

Who knew laundry could be such fun! After David determined that there was not a dentist on Fogo Island for another two weeks (so he is going to have to live with his broken crown), he set to work to repair the water heater. With Home Hardware near at hand he was enjoying his hot shower in no time and we were on our way. Yesterday we had asked Valerie about the location of a laundry here on Fogo. She assured me that our only option was upstairs at their place! Wonderfully generous, but we’re family so I suppose they’re stuck with us! Besides, if we want clean clothes and I don’t want to beat them on a rock, I have little choice but to take them up on their kind offer.

We arrived in Tilting and there was no answer to my knock. We had been told to go right in, the doors here are never locked! I was afraid after our partying last night they may have gone for a nap and as the laundry is on the second floor, we thought we would go for a walk and check back later.

We drove to the other side of the bay, parked the truck and were getting out, when Valerie and George walked by! Chastised for not having, “just gone right in and gotten started on the wash”, I explained my thought about the nap and the possible need for it following last night’s consumption. “Oh go on girl. Sure we’re professionals. We can drink like that all the time. No need to worry there!”

Valarie is hilarious and a perfect sample of Newfoundland humour and perspective at its best. I have been reminded in my time here about the importance of language. How a story is told and how a conversation unfolds has a great deal to do with how you feel! Long before Tony Robbins popularized the idea of neuro-linguistic programming, Newfoundlanders were lacing the darkest stories with humour. Conversations with George and Valerie are lively and entertaining and riddled with examples of a Newfoundlander’s way of dealing with aversion! George was telling a story about a group of difficult people and commented, “And this is the crowd he died for.”  At another point Valerie was telling a story about someone who had been exceptionally nasty to her. For many, it could have been devastating! For Valerie it meant ending the conversation with, “Let me know if they ever finds out what’s wrong with you, will ya? I’ll donate to that!” You can acknowledge the misery, but you certainly don’t have to dwell on it, and sur b’y, ye may as well laugh!

So that’s how my laundry day passed! I went back to the house to get started. George and Valerie continued on their walk. I insisted David stay on the other side of the bay with his camera, because by now he had discovered tilting sheds in Tilting that were just begging to be photographed. Before long we were altogether again on the back porch and the stories continued to flow!

I felt badly for taking up their entire afternoon. I have come to really appreciate our front loading washer! It’s quick and the clothes come out mostly dry with the higher spin rate. But they were gracious and didn’t complain about the fact we had taken up most of their day. When they suggested we head out for supper together, we were happy to join them and hoped we could treat them, as a thank you for their laundry kindness.

Despite the surge in tourism on Fogo Island, there are still plenty of opportunities for someone to develop an industry to support the visitors. Laundry facilities might be one I would suggest, maybe a local dentist, but restaurants would certainly also make the list. There are a lack of places here for tourists to eat. When you stay at the Fogo Island Inn, all your meals are provided. Of course for $1,200 to $5,000/night, they had better feed you! We had tried to get lunch reservations there, but even with three days’ notice there was no room at the Inn! Nicole’s Café is also a spot, but we couldn’t get in there until 8:00. There was a spot back close to where were camped. It wasn’t the kind of place you made reservations, but we decided to drive back there and check out Mudder’s Place. Oh my goodness! We arrived first and went in to be greeted by a rather dishevelled looking woman who was chief, cook and bottle washer! She was the only person there. Well technically that isn’t true. She was also looking after her grandsons, one about 12 the other 2. The 2 year old was in the process of spilling his juice all over the floor and the 12 year old was cleaning it up as only a 12 year old boy can! The woman offered us a menu as we waited and produced a piece of dirty photocopy paper. There was fish on the menu and I asked if it was fresh. She first look puzzled the said, “Oh yes. It was caught this year and froze at the fish plant”??!!

We may be camping, eating out a lot and not had recent access to great grocery stores but I was confident I could do better than Mudder! We cobbled together a BBQ and spent a lovely evening with George and Valerie at the trailer.

The sun set on another glorious day!

A tilting shed in Tilting!

Another beautiful sunset!

Day 21 Fogo Island

A little disaster to start the day, just to liven things up a bit! Honestly, with the life we’ve been living, if something bad didn’t soon happen we could have thought we’d died and gone to heaven! Today’s drop of misery involved a malfunction with our water heater. In the process of trying to fix it, MacGyver let loose a flood! There was a fountain in the trailer with me shouting out to him to shut it off, and the circus was on! No damage done that a couple of rolls of paper towel couldn’t handle. Given that it’s Sunday, repair parts are out of the question. So, once the water was mopped up, it was relegated to the “worry about it later” category. We shut off the water heater until Home Hardware opens in the morning and set out to enjoy the day.

We started our hiking in Deep Bay. We discovered an island graveyard – that’s the only thing on this little island just off shore – a graveyard. It dates back to 1896. The locals claim there were much earlier graves but that’s as far back as the headstone evidence suggests. The hiking trail that runs along the ridge above the little outport also leads to another of the Shorefast Foundation artist studios. This one, known as The Bridge, was unfortunately as unappealing to me as The Tower. I had talked about it yesterday with George. I was interested in a local artist’s perspective. He shared that the retreats are not overly popular with local artists. They are mostly occupied by “come-from-aways”. The location alone would discourage a painter like George. The only way to get to these studios is on foot. They are remote, and so far have included open bogs and tops of ridges. Given the weather in Newfoundland, I can just imagine George carrying his large canvasses back to one of these places. A good gust of the ever present winds and he’s off like a kite! Honestly, I really am trying to like these things!

We had plans to join George and Valerie for dinner at their little artist’s retreat, so we decided to head toward Tilting and explore as we went. We went as far as Joe Batt’s Arm when we noticed a string of dories bobbing in the cove! We completely lost ourselves in wandering, and poking, and discovering new angles for what I am sure will be an outstanding series of photos for David! Chatting with locals, pausing to admire, and excitedly shouting to one another to “come over here” to see the whole thing from a different angle, and the afternoon disappeared. Trying to get David out of there was like wrenching a kid from a beloved toy! I eventually managed but I can tell you it’s the most work I’ve done since I left home!

Arriving in Tilting is a delight. It began as a Portuguese fishing community in the 1600’s. The French soon followed but by 1752 the first settlers from Ireland arrived. It was established and remains to this day, a proud Irish community. Recognized as a National Historic Site of Canada, it is my opinion, the prettiest spot on this incredibly beautiful island! We dropped a bottle of wine with George and set out on foot to explore the area. We were assured to come back when it suited us!

Walking through town we watched Sunday afternoon life unfold for folks much as it always has here. Fishing boats were resting on slips for the day and locals chatted over fences and on porches overlooking the ocean. Everyone calls a greeting and comments on the beautiful weather and no one much minds if you’ve wandered into their yard in search of the perfect shot that will capture the essence of this beautiful place.

The Turpin Trail runs off the end of town and happens right by another of the funky studios. The Squish Studio sits on a crag over the ocean and it the first one I can say I like. Maybe because it has windows (not many, but it has them); maybe because it’s the first one we’ve seen occupied so it appears less stark and cold; maybe it’s because I stood between it and the oldest Irish Catholic cemetery outside of Ireland and the contrast of old and funky new is striking; maybe it’s because I am just so darned happy to be here…but whatever the reason, I like this one! The trail that leads out from here is again coastal but the rock here is very different. Very black and appearing far less ‘rough’ than many of the other sections of coastline, it is no more or less beautiful, just different.

We made our way back to George’s back kitchen studio to admire the beautiful work he has done in his time here as artist in residence in Tilting. His paintings beautifully capture the remote landscape and his love of Newfoundland is captured in the brushstrokes. The Jennifer Keefe House, built in the 1800’s has been beautifully restored. Probably not a great spot for our 6 foot+ sons, as the ceilings are only 6 feet high. The architectural features combine to a marvellous effect though and the house was a charming and cozy place to enjoy sharing wine (maybe too much of that!), a delicious meal and conversation and laughter. We shared memories, as families do, and stories of our lives, as families who have lived apart for years must do! It would be tough to pick a highlight of the day, but if pressed I think I would have to say it was that moment in the kitchen. Sitting at the table, bellies full, as the day fades just outside the window. In the age old tradition of Newfoundlanders, George entertained us with recitations. We sat at the table, eyes closed to best savor the moment, and drank in the words of Yates, Dylan Thomas, oh the absolute joy of the moment!

Three shots combined to show the entire community of Deep Bay!

The white markers on the island are headstones. This is a graveyard dating back to the late 1800's.

The Bridge Studio??

Dories on a string!

This is the artists studio where George is resident, and where we spent a wonderful evening!

The view from the front of Jennifer Keefe Studio! Tough NOT to creatively inspired from here!

Boats resting for Sunday!

Tilting

More Tilting - the prettiest place on the island!

Oldest Irish Catholic graveyard outside of Ireland

The Squish Studio

View from the Turpin Trail

Artist at work.

Another artist at work - a happy boy!

Another view of The Squish Studio.

The water calms toward evening and the reflections are fabulous!

Day 20 Fogo Island

We woke this morning to sunny skies and the first job of the day was to extend the slide. For the first time since we have owned the trailer, we thought it a good idea to bring in the slide before we went to bed! The location of this site, right on the beach is incredible but the wind! We wouldn’t even consider extending the awning but the slide has never been a question…until last night. It really isn’t a big deal, literally the push of a button. Given the way we were rocking and rolling, it seemed prudent to slide that sucker in since we really wouldn’t need the space until morning. The less surface area the better!

David had been googling last night and found information on fishing communities on Fogo that had been abandoned in the early part of the last century. Little villages like Pilley’s Head, Lock’s Cove, Eastern Tickle, Shoal Tickle and Lion’s Den are no more. Through part of the effort to highlight Fogo’s history a coastal hiking trail has been marked to lead you through the spots where these communities once stood. Seemed like as good an idea as any so that became the morning plan.

I’ve long claimed that, like having their own time zone, Newfoundlanders also have their own measure of distance! Trails that are purported to be x km are absolutely NOT. Today I had proof that measurements here are random …or estimates …or something other than true measurements. We had a map that claimed the Lion’s Den Trail was 4.2 km. When we hiked into the trail head about 1.5 km, we found a trail sign that claimed the trail was 5.6 km from there! Whatever, since we really don’t care, but we laugh every time we see a trail identified as being a certain length. We look at one another, shrug, and say, “Of course it is!”

In addition to being prepared for hikes of unknown lengths, Newfoundland weather also dictates that you be ready for any kind of weather! I know this. I’ve lived this. The old Newfie joke certainly holds true, “Don’t like the weather? Wait a minute. It’ll change.” Knowing it and experiencing it are two different things! I would say we experienced all four seasons on our hike today, but it didn’t actually snow. Now it felt cold enough at one point that we thought it might – but it didn’t. Newfoundlanders would say, “It’s could enough to freeze the arse off ya” … and they would be right! We had rain and heavy cloud. We had wind that threatened to blow you off the cliffs. We had sun that was so hot we thought we would bake. It all happened on the 4.2 km, or 7.1 km, or however long the trail was!

The hike was worth any (and all!) of those! This coastal trek was spectacular! During the resettlement, houses would have been rolled on logs down to the water’s brink and floated to the next town that held promise in a changing world. All that remains is incredible scenery and a real sense of the resilience of people who survived life on this very remote edge of the North Atlantic. I also imagine there was many the scoff served up on these shores if the abundance of blueberries, raspberries, bakeapples and partridgeberries blanketing the hills is any indication!

By the time we finished this one, it was time for a rest! We went back to the trailer to freshen up. I have a cousin who is Artist in Residence here on Fogo this summer. We have sent messages back and forth and they knew we would be here but we hoped to meet up with Valerie and George while we were here. By the time we arrived back in the trailer and were settled, they arrived! Old friends and family, it doesn’t matter how much time has passed, you pick up where you left off. Maybe a few more tales of woe the older you get, but there is such comfort in familiarity! We had a lovely day, destroyed a bottle of wine and made plans to get together tomorrow for dinner!

Our late day hike was a little less ambitious than our earlier jaunt. We hiked out to one of the four artists retreats associated with the Fogo Island Inn. The Tower Studio is certainly a remote escape to get the juices flowing, but like the mothership (The Fogo Island Inn), I am not sure I love it. It’s funky, but it’s weird, and it doesn’t have windows to appreciate the views! I guess scenery is distracting and stems creative flow? I don’t know, but while I am really trying to give this whole project a fair shake, I think it may be lost on me!

The awesomeness of an incredible sunset however is not lost on me and we sat out in front of our trailer to watch the sun go down over the ocean as the storm clouds rolled in. Another night with the slide in I suspect! A small price to pay for this prime piece of real estate!

 

Over hill, over dale - The Lions Den Trail

 

Fascinating rock formations and colours

 

Here, if you look closely, you can see the trail wind along the coast

 

Beautiful views of offshore islands

 

Bakeapples not quite ripe!

 

You don't see near as many tended gardens here as you do in Ontario, but the roadside wild flowers are absolutely beautiful!

 

View of Fogo from the trailhead. That "bump" in the middle is Brimstone Head!

 

Valerie and George visiting the trailer!

 

The Tower Studio?

 

The sun sets as the clouds roll in!

Day 19 Fogo Island

Once again, with regret, we move on. David is right when he says every place is my favorite, but it doesn`t make it any easier to leave Twillingate with so much left undone! It`s a short drive to the ferry that will take us about an hour off the north coast of Newfoundland to Fogo Island. We had been told to expect that the ferry schedule was really more of a suggestion. While we didn`t experience significant delay, when David asked the young man in the ticket booth if the ferry was running on schedule he was only given a shoulder shrug!

Having travelled on public transits throughout the world, one of my pet peeves is how costly it is to use public transit in Canada. Now I get that speaking of government subsidies is a complex issue. I enjoy universal health care but don`t have efficient, cheap transit like we have had in Washington or Chicago! I get it! Today I was taken aback though when our return, hour-long ferry trip, including the trailer was $28.00! Not sure who is subsidizing my trip to Fogo Island but I am pretty sure that $28.00 is not covering the cost!

The ferry was exceptionally well run, very comfortable, with friendly staff. We enjoyed a local, Flat Earth coffee and a Bare Buns Bakery treat. Fogo is doing an incredible job of mining local talent and rejuvenating a community that was threatened with extinction along with the cod! Although very much a collection of rural communities that in many ways look much as they always have, there is a resurgence in arts and tourism that provides future promise to the people of Fogo Island.

There is of course the famed Fogo Island Inn. I haven`t made up my mind yet if it appeals aesthetically, but it has certainly provided a boost to the local economy and helped put Fogo on the map. After all when Gwyneth Paltrow called Fogo ``heaven`` while she was here last week, well it can`t hurt! Despite the rooms starting at $1,200/night, the Inn is run as a non-profit and all money goes back into the community. Everything from the menu to the furniture is produced locally and if you like something you see, it can also be purchased locally. We have really just scratched the surface of Fogo in the one day here but I am looking forward to understanding more about the revitalization in the next few days.

Our campground is operated by the local Lions Club and is pretty simple as campground go but our campsite is on the beach, steps from the ocean! What a view! Happy hour tonight was on a rock with my toes in the water – it doesn’t get any happier than that! We keep looking at one another, giggling and acknowledging that it’s unbelievable! We were also thrilled to realize that the Brimstone Head Trail that we had planned to hike is 100 feet from our door!! Considered “challenging” (I would argue, but whatever!) it climbs the side of the cliff to a lookout that is known by the Flat Earth Society to be one of the four corners of the earth. Now those people are c-r-a-z-y, but with a little Newfoundland humour mixed in, you get trail caution signs that warn that one false step could be your last!

Thrilled by the one hike we’ve already taken, we wandered the island to catch a glimpse of what’s in store. The little towns scattered along the coast, each one prettier than the last, hold enormous promise for the next five days!

That's our blue truck and trailer - first ones on, first ones off!

Some enterprising soul, iceberg ice $5/bag!

Our "front yard" for the next week!

Newfoundland humour!

Stairway to heaven

Fogo

Fogo Island Inn

With several hundred caribou on a small island, you're bound to run into one or two!