Two Hams on the Road

Wednesday, August 10, 2016

I’m writing as we ferry back to Nova Scotia from Newfoundland.  I won’t be able to post this until we get to our campsite in Nova Scotia where I think we’ll have Internet access.  But I have 4 hours on the ferry, so I should be able to get something written.

This should be our last ferry crossing for this trip.  It’s our fourth.  We did one last year in Canada across the Yukon River at Dawson City, but the river was only a few hundred yards across. 

Loading onto a ferry is quite interesting.  This ship appears to be a marriage between a cruise ship and a cargo ship.

They loaded 18 wheelers on the open deck of the cargo ship part and most of the rest of us in the level below that.  All kinds of vehicles are loaded on board: cars, trucks, trailers, buses, buses on flatbed trucks, and I’m not sure what to call this one:

Truck is a bit big for that camper.  I’ll bet there is an interesting story to that.

We drove into the stern (back) of the boat and they very carefully guide you in.  The side of our trailer wasn’t 6 inches from the mirror of the truck next to us.  But these people are pros.  They know how to pack them in.  Entering the boat.

Getting parked inside:

Adirondack chairs in bright colors are either a trend in Canada or a trend everywhere this summer.  These were at our campground in Gros Morne National Park, but a lot of homes have them and the Canadian national parks system has placed two red ones at most scenic overlooks to enjoy the view.  Makes me want some for home.

Our drive from Gros Morne National Park to Port au Basques, where we caught the ferry was all about scenery. 

It was along the west coast of Newfoundland.  So if it was on my side, we weren’t always sure if we were looking at a lake or an arm of the ocean.  Newfoundland has lots of lakes.

We did find a ski slope.

The scenery here can be very rugged.

And towns get nestled in between hills and the shore.

There are lots of creeks, many that resemble quintessential mountains streams and others more like this.  But all are rocky!

Wherever we go, we occasionally find unusual folk art and Newfoundland was no exception.

Since these were across from a septic company, I assume they are septic tanks painted with cartoon characters.  Made us smile.

 I noticed that the farther south we got, the more meadows we saw.

 Not fields, although I did see one. 

Farming is not a big thing on Newfoundland.  There are few areas where the topsoil is good enough or deep enough.  I saw one dairy farm and they had gone to great lengths to establish some flat fields to grow hay.  I never saw the dairy cows; the only livestock we saw was one herd of sheep.

I thought these were sheep, then rocks, but they were sheep!

One last scenery shot:

We’re heading out for Quebec City from Nova Scotia, but it will take us several days to get there.  If I don’t blog, it’s either because there wasn’t much to blog about or I’m tired after a long day of driving.  Or no internet!

Take care,

Deb