We checked out arount 1030am and headed down #432 . The road was a typical Newfoundland road with trees and marsh on either side. These are actually very pretty, very relaxing drives. For Bob and I, we have long spaces in our own minds, contemplating life, as we both enjoy the silence. There are other times, we we talk for an hour. It is a comforting space to be with someone who "gets" you.
At Highway #433, we turned south and headed towards the coast. The pavement (if you can call it that) turned to gravel after Roddickton. At the end of the road, we arrived at Englee, a small fishing village. We followed the Viking Trail, that meandered through the village. It is a sleepy place, an enchanting place. There were streamers strung from many houses, and "Welcome Home" signs. We wondered if we had arrived during a community reunion. We passed a fellow drying cod, and we stopped to chat. He explained that it is "Welcome Home" year in Newfoundland. He had children of a previous neighbour coming to stay with him next week. They had not been here since they were children. He wore a T-shirt that said "I'm retired. What's your excuse". Wouldn't mind getting one of those for Bob.
At the end of the Viking Trail was a walking trail that started with climbing about 300 stairs. At the top was a .6km trail that overlooked the ocean and the village. Beautiful.
Heading back up the highway, we turned into Roddickton. During our conversation with the fellow in Englee, he told us about a Green Mouse Interpretation centre here. He said we couldn't miss it. Yeah. .. sure! We stopped one local and asked where the interpretation centre was, and she said there wasn't one, but then decided that maybe there was one, and gave us directions. After driving around a bit, another local added to the directions and we found it. It is actually the town hall with a local display. It was quite interesting and gave us a feel for the community, whose major industry is logging. Logging has had ups and downs over the years, and the community is looking to other opportunities, including tourism. As far as moose, this area has the highest density of moose in the world - about 7-8,000 per km. Have we seen any? NO.
Back on the road, we turned onto #434 towards Conche. This is another small fishing village along the French shore. This is where the French fishermen first settled. Conche's claim to fame is a tapestry done in the Bayeux tradition. In 2002, a group decided to embroider the history of Conche into a tapestry that is 220 feet long by about 24 inches high. It starts back in the prehistoric days to current time. It is an incredible piece of art. Twelve women stitched for over 20,000 hours to creat it. There are panels located periodically through out the tapestry that explain the stories and meaning of the embroidery above. I was blown away!
It was already after 4pm, so we headed back towards #430. But along the way, we saw a turnoff for the underground salmon pond. It was two km in on a gravel road, and then a half km walk in. Part way there, we crossed a bridge and met a young fellow with a friend and three children playing in the water below the bridge. He indicated that he is currently living in Nova Scotia but is home for his grandfather's funeral.
He showed us a couple of salmon in the riverbed under the bridge and directed us up the road to the undground pond. By now, the sky was overcast, and the sun (if you could have seen it) was getting low. The water was dark, so it was hard to see the salmon, although we did see one or two and they came towards the surface of the water and dived back down.
Back in our car, we continued on to return to #430. Both of us were tired and were ready to call it a day. Back on #430, we turned in at the first motel we saw - Tucker's Cottages. After an great meal at the local restaurant, Viking 430, we are settled in to a 2 bedroom cottage with living room and kitchen. This is a delightful place to settle in for the night. We have excellent satellite and internet, so I have been able to post the past three days blogs. So now it is off to bed!
Hotel: Tucker Cottages
Temp: Sunny and warm, with overcast periods. Rain in the evening
Distance: 201 km
Mileage: 8.5 L/100km
No comments:
Post a Comment