On our way to Newfoundland for a month - St. John's August 17th - 20th

Monday morning at 3 am I woke up to find out our flights are cancelled and we'v been rebooked.... the worst part was we lost preferred seating and were sent to economy, not even sitting together with 2 layovers instead of 1.

We finally flew out at 7 am, Victoria to Vancouver, a 2 hour layover, then onto Toronto, then another 2 hour layover before getting to St. Johns.

Leaving Victoria:

We got put here ...

Instead on the other side of the black curtain!

I called WestJet in Calgary from Vancouver, and they were able to at least get us seats together in the emergency exit so at least Ray had a little more leg room. This was a 4.5-hour flight. Of course, now we are all squished into 3 seats to a row instead of 2. Fortunately, the guy beside Ray was tall and skinny. Slept most of the trip to Toronto as he was severely hung over. He was about 24 or so I would guess. Had to wake him to go pee lol 

Flying into Toronto:

Next leg to St. John's,  another 3 hours, we at least got "comfort seats" so they would recline and had a little more leg room. Of course, the whole trip we were supposed to have meals etc., but not now, and the line up to the bathroom was horrendous so we drank very little. We ate quickly at the Toronto airport and of course the gate we exited was at one end of the airport and we had to walk 1 km in tunnels and walking sidewalks to the other end of the domestic terminal. All our flights were at least 30 minutes late taking off so lots of sitting in non-moving planes on the runway or gate.

I must say that the inflatable seat cushions I bought for this trip, really made a difference to the "numb bum" after so many hours of sitting. 

We arrived in St. John's finally at 11 pm when we should have been there at 6:30 pm. I called Thrifty Car Rental and emailed our B&B our status and they held the car and the B&B gave us the door code to get in. The only good part of the day is all 4 bags of our luggage arrived minus 2 luggage straps. I guess they opened the bags for a check and just threw the straps away.

After getting our bags, getting the car, it was about a 15 minute drive to our B & B. Boy are St. John's roads like a "rabbbit warren" lol Good thing google actually took us to the right place. We finally got into bed at 1 pm NFL time, and up at 7am for our breakfast at 8, which was delicious.

 
Pictures of the The Rock's Signal B&B where we stayed. We were treated fabulously by Lisa, our host. This Jelly Bean Row house was completely renovated 5 years ago, with great care to keep the character of the place.

Communal lounge and dining room.

Breakfast was an omlette and parfait with fresh fruit and toast.

Tuesday, we had a great day of touring as the weather is sunny and warm. You take your sunny days when you get them here. Unbelievable day with very little wind. 

Ray headed out after breakfast for a walk to take some shots of the Iconic Jelly Bean Houses which were all around us.

Ray loves their mailboxes!

This being an "old city" you see all the electrical wires going into the buildings. Reminds me of Mexico. It's no wonder during heavy snow and windstorms, St. John's loses power.

Off in the car for our first adventure in Newfoundland!

First up, we drove to the other side of St. John's harbour and looked across to the city and battery neighbourhood from the viewpoint.  

These red ships below are offshore platform supply and support vessel operating on the Grand Banks off Newfoundland. One of them is battery powered.

I waited in the car as there's no parking available while Ray walked the docks to get a few shots including fishers filleting their catch.

Next we drove around the harbour and up to Signal Hill National Historic Site (Parks Canada) and looked down on the harbour and town.

Signal Hill National Historic Site of Canada, located at the northeastern end of St. John’s harbour, is composed of two cultural landscapes – Signal Hill itself and the south side of the Narrows. Signal Hill is the steep hill that frames the entrance on the north side of St. John’s Harbour from St. John’s Bay. Identifiable by the castellated profile of Cabot Tower, Signal Hill descends gently in ridges and valleys towards St. John's to the west and Quidi Vidi waterway to the north. Across the Narrows, a ribbon of land at the base of the steep Southside Hills contains several fortification and communication sites including Noone Room, South Castle, Frederick’s Battery and Fort Amherst National Historic Site of Canada. Today the historic place of Noone Room and its mooring area known as Ring Noone are buried beneath an industrial marine boat basin built in the 1980s.

Signal Hill has been a military site since the 17th century, but most importantly during the four periods 1660-1697, 1697-1870, World War I, and World War II. Today it contains a broad range of military and civilian resources, among them works on the south side of the harbour narrows, notably the remains of Fort Amherst, a British fortification completed by Captain Robert Pringle, R.E. in 1777 to guard the entrance to the Narrows. Fort Amherst was also declared a national historic site of Canada in 1951. The hill was also the site of the Battle of Signal Hill (15 September 1762) when Lieutenant Colonel William Amherst led an expeditionary force to recapture St. John’s from the French, itself an event of national significance.

Ya it's a little windy lol. Had to hold on to my visor. 

Holland America Cruise Ship.

After that we went to Quidi Vidi, (pronounced kiti vidi). A picturesque fishing village but with tourist prices! We walked a bit of the waterfront and saw this guy showing off his Newfoundland Dog, Sable, who is trained for water rescue. He weighs about 180 pounds! Very drooly. lol

A quintessential fishing village.

We checked out the Quidi Vidi Brew Pub, but we saw the offerings that people were eating and it didn't look that great. Also they were charging $12.50 for a pint of their Iceberg beer.....(we got it at the Duke of Duckworth where we went for lunch later for $10!)

They had a food truck area on the wharf, but again, the lobster roll looked really puny for $32 so we moved on.

Next after picking up a camera battery charger for Ray, (it was forgotten at home), we decided to go to the Duke of Ducksworth. We were told (including by our friend Cory) that have the best fish and chips in St. John's. Unfortunately a cruise ship is in and alot of passengers were also eating there. We did have a 20 minute wait for a table, but I got the Iceburg Beer for $10 and we both ordered 2 pieces of fish and chips for $23 each. Talk  about delicious, some of the best I've had. I took half my meal home and that was Ray's dinner. It was 2:30 before we finished eating, so I definitely am not hungry later.

Waiting in lineup.

Back at The Rock B & B at Signal Hill, our afternoon treat was waiting, fresh baking every day. Ray get's two lol I had my Iceburg Beer.

Afternoon tea/coffee in the gazebo outside. I don't think Ray was winning with the not sleeping lol

We managed to stay awake until lights out at 9:30 pm. We were so surprised to wake up at 7:30 am the next morning ... 10 hours sleep. We needed to "hoof it" as breakfast is served at 8 am for us. Today's breakfast is a breakfast parfait and bacon, eggs, with toast. I passed on the parfait this time and just had toast and bacon.

Ray had the "full meal deal".

Wednesday we woke to an overcast sky and it apparently rained a bit overnight too. The sun is supposed to break out later in the day, but at least it's not wet or windy. We decided to drive to the Cape Spear National Historic Site and Petty Harbour, about half an hour from St. John's.

Cape Spear is the easternmost point in Canada and North America, located on the Avalon Peninsula in Newfoundland, about 12 kilometres from downtown St. John's. It features the oldest surviving lighthouse in the province, dramatic coastal hiking trails, and historic World War II gun batteries. 

It sure is pretty, even though somewhat cloudy. A lot of people go there to be the first people in North America to greet the sun. We got there just before it opened so walked around the site. Good thing we were there early as parking was easy with one bus tour already there .... a bunch of quilters from all across Canada.  They were going to visit many fabric shops and a quilting festival on the weekend. Pat don't be jealous! Not more than 30 minutes another bus tour arrived. Busy place.

The wildflowers are gorgeous, especially the wild roses.

Trail to the most east part of North America

Ray's in jail!

Down below in the red chairs is where people sit to be the first to see the sunrise in North America.

Lots and lots of stairs!

The original lighthouse. Now it's a museum inside.

A military ship in the distance.

Back in the car for Petty Harbour. 

Petty Harbour is a historic, picturesque fishing village in Newfoundland and Labrador, Canada. Located on the Avalon Peninsula just 10 kilometers south of St. John's, it is one of the oldest European settlements in North America, continuously occupied since at least 1598.

Alan Doyle is from the band Great Big Sea. We watched a Christmas Special last year with Bryan Adams and he was one of the singers.

A feeding frenzy with the guys cleaning their cod and filleting them.

Chafes Landing in Petty Harbour is today's choice to have lunch. We chose this place because of watching a show recently called Andy's East Coast Kitchen, where he highlighted this place. Unfortunately Ray's first lobster roll was rather tasteless. I had the lobster clubhouse and it was just "okay" too. I think they used frozen cooked lobster. Beer was good though. :) I must say everyone's french fries are delicious though, no coated fries here. Oh well, we had and adventure anyway.

After all the walking today we decided that it was time to get back to the B & B for our afternoon tea and an hour or so rest in our room. For dinner we didn't want to move the car, as parking is a bit of a hit and miss in the street. We'd parked right in front of the B & B for easy packup tomorrow. There was a Chinese Food Place called the Lucky House Restaurant a couple blocks away so we decided to eat there. A great choice, the food is fabulous. Ray says best chinese ever just missing bean sprouts.

Unfortunately all the streets in St. John's are hills you either walk up or down. We walked down towards the water for dinner, but it was quite a hike back up to the B & B. Our legs are jello! We should be in great shape by the time we get home! 

Thursday morning a great fritata for breakfast. Boy does Lisa out do herself for her guests. There is only one other couple staying at the same time as us. She usually rents out 3 rooms at most at a time so we all get special treatment.

By 9 am we were on the road to our next destination, Happy Adventure Inn, in Happy Adventure NL. The clouds had come in and it was pouring rain as we left. Sure glad we had two nice days in St. John's before it was time to leave. 

With a quick stop on the way out of town at Walmart for a thumb drive, we were on our way. 3.5 hours later we arrived first at Salvage, a cute fishing village on the other side of the penninsula from Happy Adventure. They have a brew pub on the water that they have been developing the past few years.

Salvage is Newfoundland's oldest continuously inhabited community, with European migratory fishermen visiting its waters as early as the 1660s. Its name stems from the Spanish word salvaje (wild or untamed), reflecting early Basque and European presence near Beothuk lands. Permanent English families from Wessex settled the area heavily by the late 1700s

History of Salvaje Brewing Company

The Salvaje Longhouse is a modern tourism and cultural development built inside an abandoned 22,400-square-foot fish plant in Salvage, Newfoundland and Labrador. The site transforms a pillar of the local fishing industry into a microbrewery, restaurant, cafe, and inn.

The Fish Plant: The building served as the community fish plant and a primary source of local jobs before shutting down in 2013.
The Revival: Entrepreneur Jeff Mierins bought the derelict property in 2019 to revitalize the working wharf and local economy

The Industrial Past

This was on the list to see as it has great photographic potential, I read.

This is a painting on the wall of what the harbour looking out looks like in early spring with icebergs coasting by. It wasn't for sale or I might have bought it. lol

A fishing stage that is still being used.

Looking across to the Savaje Longhouse, brew pub.

One of the viewpoints before you hit the village.

After a great beer and a smaller lunch, as we will be having a big dinner at the Inn, we headed to the Happy Adventure Inn, 18 minutes away, to check in. Our room has a lovely view of the harbour. 

View from our room.

After checking in at 2:30, we had a relaxing couple of hours catching up with computer stuff before heading down for dinner at 5:30pm. What a fabulous meal. Best one yet!

My scallop dinner, also included was a loaded baked potato and fresh warmed bread.

Ray had fresh lobster that they pulled out of their holding tank on their dock, with loaded potato as well.

That concludes our first four days in Newfoundland. Tomorrow off to Rocky Harbour and Gros Morne National Park.

Steve and Dianne arrive to take care of the house for 2 months! August 10 - 16

Monday through Wednesday we spent on final tidy up of things before Dianne and Steve move in for 2 months. Final appointments dealt with and some dock time. Boy is time flying by. Finally Thursday afternoon, the Colibabas arrived with two vehicles, stuffed to the gills :)

They arrived a little ahead of me as I needed to make an emergency run to the Chemainus Urgent Care to pick up my friend and neighbour Pat. She broke her arm and they sedated her, so she couldn't drive. Ray came with me so he could drive her car back to the lake. 

Once they had unpacked some, we all headed down to the dock for Happy Hour with Ray's famous Margaritas.

Thursday night for dinner, I took out the Split Pea Soup I'd made the day before, emptying out my fridge. They stopped for lunch on their way to the lake, so a big dinner wasn't needed.

Friday, we decided to go for Sushi for lunch as Steve and Dianne have never been and they were unsure what to order that they would like. We introduced them to some delicious rolls etc. Great meal at Laketown Sushi in town. We even took the take-out menu and circled what we ordered, so they have choices while they stay at our house. Thanks for the lunch Steve and Dianne.

As I'm still clearing out room for them in the freezer, tonight is frozen lasagna with a homemade cesear salad.

Kristi arrived for a "Mom without Kids" weekend with her friend and collegue, Allie. Definitely some dock time. A little windy down there though, we all didn't swim except them.

However, they requested Ray's margaritas too!

We shared a charcuterie plate for lunch after the girls went riding all the way to Skutz Falls on our e-bikes.

Saturday, we cooked one of Steve's salmon he caught from their recent vacation at Cluxewe Resort in Port McNeill. Delicious.

Sunday, with no more advice to give, we packed our car with our luggage and drove to Sidney. Kristi and Allie left earlier and put "the basement to rights" as Diannes family will be there next week. Ray and I took Steve and Dianne out for lunch at Jack's on the water in Sidney, as a thank you for taking care of things for us. 

Going back to the car we walked past the Clamshell on the harbour front where Fleetwood Magic were playing. The park is full of people.

It's great to just "walk away" from all the food in the fridge etc. and not have to put the whole "house to bed" leaving for 2 months. They dropped us off at the hotel at 2:30 and made their way back home to the lake.

Ray and I walked over to the Charles Dickens Pub for dinner, a short distance away. It wasn't very busy but the food was good. Funnily enough, they had an open mike evening and the last group is from Newfoundland singing a folk song with an "ugly stick" How appropriate.

Stay tuned for our adventure to Newfoundland!

Jason helps with our boat and stuff, Smokey skies and Laurel comes to visit - July 28th - August 9th

Time is going by so quickly. Hard to believe we're leaving for our 2 month tour to the Maritimes in a couple of weeks. Packing lists made, stuff to do before lists made and some packing into suitcases completed so we have time to "think" about what else we will need. So different than leaving in our old Motorhome with mostly everything already in there. lol

I cleaned out the greenhouse of plants and washed it out, moved out the collapsible shelving units. Irrigation disconnected from the trunk line and power unplugged.

It's been quite windy again do not as much "dock time" as we would have liked, but the back yard works.

On Saturday, August 1st, Jason came down from Nanaimo, so he could help us get the boat out of the water, washed and shoved back into the garage for the season. Of course this meant the greenhouse needed to be moved from in front of the boat garage to under the sundeck. Before Jason arrived, we moved all our front patio furniture on the driveway back into the basement for the season so we can get to the greenhouse and boat garage. Ray's been having problems with sciatica pain and his shoulders and physio is barely helping. This is why Jason is coming to help us out so Ray doesn't hurt himself more before our big trip.

Once Jason arrived, Ray and Jason walked the greenhouse up our driveway and then down Mike's driveway, lifting it over the curb and rolling in under the sundeck. Not hard but cumbersome.

Now that's done, the boys got the boat trailer out of the garage and hooked it to Jason's truck. Ray took off in the boat and Jason and I drove with the trailer to the boat launch to retrieve the boat. 

Once the boat was on the trailer and fuelled up for the winter, we took Jason to Jake's for lunch to "fuel him up" so he could wash the boat. While the boat was drying he finished off putting self tapping screws in the gazebo on the dock. Boat was pushed back in the garage by 2 pm. I had a prime rib on the barbecue for him as a thank you. It's his favourite meal. By 5:00 pm he was back on the road home.

Thanks a bunch Jason!!!!

We spent the next few days putting other things away for the season that Steve and Dianne won't be using. I also used our little pressure washer to clean the concrete up from the patio area and greenhouse from the "green" from the irrigation.

Tuesday, our friend Laurel came for a visit for a couple of days. We managed a bit of dock time in spite of the breezes.

 

Wednesday, skies turnedreally smokey, so decided to take a drive to Maple Bay for lunch at the Lion Rampant Pub. Not nearly as smokey there. Laurel has asthma and my lungs do not like smoke either.

Once home, we sat on our sundeck for the afternoon. A great visit.

The fires in the interior of BC have gone crazy. On August 8th a State of Emergency has been declared for BC. We are lucky we only have a bit of the smoke come our way. By Friday, August 7th most of the smoke disappeared here.

Thursday, Friday and Saturday we were able to sit down at the dock again and swim as the weather is really warm for 3 days. Ray got busy scrubbing the ladders from the lake scum.

A week today Steve and Dianne will drive us to Sidney to stay overnight in preparation for our 6am flight out. They are house sitting for us for the next 2 months.

That's it for the past two weeks.