We headed out of the park and stopped to find the “office” to pay for our overnight stay.  We found the office manager actually trimming and shampooing a dog!  Just like we were told the day before.  Go figure.  But this time she directed us to the office, and we paid for the pad.  Then we were out of there. 

We hopped back on Trans Canada Hwy 1 to Deer Lake then turned onto Hwy 430 and headed north.  Our destination was Cow Head at the Sea Breeze B&B and RV park.  We got a text to meet our friends at The Whale’s Back Grub Hub in Sally’s Cove which, when we checked, we had just passed.  We pulled into a large parking lot, unhooked the Jeep, locked up the RV and went back to meet them!  We had a good lunch and got caught up with our friends.  Then we went back for the RV and finally made it to the park, got settled, and then went to find the laundry mat in Cow Head. 

As for exploring, they had signed the group up to go into the Western Brook Fjord on a tour boat the next day.  First, we needed to get park day passes to make us legal while in the Gros Morne Park.   And since we had a few hours before the tour, we went over to the Shallow Bay Beach for a little stroll on the beach.  I read somewhere it was rated #6 on the list of 10 best beaches in Canada.  I don’t know the other 9, but it was nice.   It was a sand beach which on this rocky island is unusual. Then we were off to the tour and ended up parking in the same lot as the day before!

The day turned out to be bright and sunny.  And even if a bit cool, we were dressed for the weather.  From the parking lot to the pier, we had a pleasant 1.5 mile walk with everyone else going on the tour. 

The tour was up the fjord/valley for 2 hours.  But this fjord is not like a fjord as you may think of a fjord.  First, it is fresh water with no access to the ocean.   And it is not frozen (yet) as it is just September!  But it was a fjord in the past.  It just changed over the past umpteen million years.  So, we were going to see what changed.

The boat was full, and we got a nice seat on the upper deck near the aft rail.  Our guides and tour directors were named KJ and Jamie, and they took turns explaining things as we went along the and through the watery canyon.  It had been formed by ancient glaciers and tectonic plate movements.  The sheerness created many waterfalls, cliffs, rock sculptures, and very clear water.  It is really hard to explain but the photos tell the story better. For example, find the face profile in one of the photos and find the rainbow in one of the others.

On the way back to the dock, the captain sped up a bit and it got much colder on the deck.  But KJ and Jamie got out their guitar and spoons and played some typical Newfie songs.  I had trouble understanding the words, but others were singing along.  Fun and a great way to spend the afternoon.

Back at the RV we took a walk up the “Big Hill” to check out (yes!) another lighthouse.  The walk was easy-ish and the view of the village and bay from the top was nice.  We had plans for another big day the next day.  And I mean BIG!

We were off to the western side of Gros Morne National Park.  Gros Morne, from what we could find out, means” large, rounded mountain standing alone” in a combination of French and Creole.  And Gros Morne Mountain is the epitome of that definition.  Check the photo.  You can see it from the highway and there is a short and long hiking trail.  We decided to save that expedition for next year. 

But the park has many other features, and we met up with our friends at the Visitor Center to learn more about the formation of the park and what there is to do now.  They decided to go on to Trout River and have lunch and we selected a hike to the Tablelands mountains. 

Here is where it gets technical.  Seems (like the fjord) this was not just Newfoundland about 500 million years ago but a large mass of land with a huge ocean.  The land split up and then came crashing back together.  In the end, the western part of the island is actually part of North American and the eastern part is part of Africa.  In two sentences, I think I got the gist of story. 

But during the last big push, some of the magma from the center of the earth was squeezed out and pushed up and that formed the Tablelands.  It is one of the only, if not the only, place that geologists can study the center of the earth.  See the photos again.  It is so hard to explain.  But one big item is that the rocks are very heavy.  I tried to pick up one that was not too big and could hardly get it to my waist.  Gail could only tilt it a little. 

We took the 2 mile walk up to a stream that had a look out and small cascade of water.  We sat with some other people and had a snack lunch and rested.  As we were leaving, I saw 4 Caribou come grazing over a small hill and walking their way toward the stream.  Looked like possibly a large bull with a cow and two calves.  They just moseyed to the stream then jumped and ran to the other side and continued grazing.  A really great sight.  We have added this as a possible stop again next year to see the stream again as the snow is melting off the mountain.  Don’t think it will be quite as calm.

We stopped at another lighthouse and another waterfall on the way out of the park and then met up with our friends to attend the Cow Head Festival Potluck Dinner at the church.  The home cooked dishes were all made with moose.  There was moose stew, moose brisket, moose lasagna, moose meatballs.  Get the picture.  And they were all good.   And to finish it off, great home cooked pies, cakes and cookies!  (Gail had lemon meringue which she doesn’t get often since I am a founding member of the “Save the Fruit Foundation” – especially citrus!)

Another quick antidote.  As we were getting ready to leave this morning and I was loading the Jeep, I set a travel mug of ice water on the bumper of the Jeep.  Well, I forgot about it until Gail wanted a drink.  Gone.  But walking back from the church along the road, Gail said “What’s that?!”  It just looked like a piece of PVC pipe to me.  But Gail recognized that it was the bottle, and the ice was still frozen!  Serendipity! 

So, this is the end of the western part of the Newfoundland trip.  Tomorrow, we head east and on to toward St Johns.  But we still have some fun things to do and new things to learn about.  Hope you will still come along.