Tom, Here's what I'm using.... You might try Google Earth.... http://www.bing.com/maps/default.aspx?encType=1&where1=Nova+Scotia%2c+Canada&FORM=MIRE1
Elmer,Sharon, I contacted the scallop folks at Digby and am ordering up 5 lbs of scallops which they say can be shipped to flatistan....mmmmmmmmmmmmboy!!! Told them y'all had stopped there and they nicely doubled the price....
Elmer/Koifarm, Those maps really helped!! Provided me with sense of direction and a better connection to the narratives of the ride report. Koi---now I am toying with idea of ordering scallops!!! Was it easy to order? I think I am going to get some. Let me know how yours turn out. Tom
Hi you all down south of us...being warm, hot, drinking ice teas, putting steaks on the Barbie, etc. while we have very inclement weather here with temps in the high 30's, winds a howlin', yet we strive to see places. We wanted to touch an ICEBERG but the weather Gods unleashed such relentless fury outside the cove that all boat tours were cancelled for ours and their safety:eek1 . However, we prevailed ....BUT first the usual of how we got there and our daily walkabouts. Here's our daily fixer-upper...ain't no Starbucks but up here when its COLD who cares.. Long way up to St. Anthony..left yesterday moring from Stephensville, NL ski resort for those who wanna have fun in winter when there is nothing else to do... snowmobile and ice fishing is another way to pass time during the cold cold winter months.. threatening clouds loom over ahead winds picking up we're riding along the viking trail how true.. only 413 km....sigh.. egad....the darkening clouds up ahead :eek1 riding along Gros Morne..truly a beautiful place but no time to stop (maybe on the way down) view from the sidecar winds blowing from the Strait of Belle Isle keep trees & brushes bare.. this is what keeps the poles from being blown over.. firewood available for the locals and they pay $$ to the gov't for the taking.. plenty of them everywhere... our first moose sighting....2 females and one ran away at the sight of our motorized creation...this lady was curious and didn't move a muscle what a ride....what a day!! this was converted to a dinner theatre...at Iceberg Alley no icebergs in sight (was told a big one hung around for a few weeks and just broke up and moved away yesterday....just our luck) Portugese Codfish Cakes...they were excellent!! Pan fried cod...good too!! both are local delicacy! while we mulled over the fact there were no icebergs to be seen...a tour guide came up to us and told us to go to Goose Cove where she sighted few icebergs earlier today. We paid for our dinner and headed out...luck came to us and we saw..... ICEBERG..... (Sharon left her zoom SLR camera behind....so this was the best shot with my pee wee Panasonic 10x Lumix camera) beautiful village of Goose Cove notice the sleds....not wheels Woke up to rain today and the tour boat to view Icebergs up close was cancelled due to weather....we rode up to view a Viking village at L'Anse aux Meadows (30 km away which is a long ride in the downpour). Imagine 1,000 years ago setting foot upon the New World. The Vikings crossed the Atlantic Ocean to discover Newfoundland and Labrador but didn't stay long...probably a generation. Their habitation at a place is known today as L'Anse aux Meadows and this place is regarded widely as the first European settlement in North America. from these peat bogs the houses were built.. roofs are genuine earth...walls are peat bogs. they were called sod house.. we were amazed when we stepped inside from 6C degree weather to about 20C indoors. this is how well insulated those viking homes were (the walls were about 12" thick) the master bedroom.. charcoal making hut.. see 3 icebergs... more bergie bits...do you see 2 of them?? look closer!! then the rain gods opened the sky....and our cameras didn't like getting wet we hightailed outta there...after enduring all the rain & wind storm, we sat down and enjoyed a local delicacy...cod tongues!! and a typical plate of salmon & "home fries".. our faithful steed... In spite of the predicted 50 - 70 km/h winds & rain...we will try to head south.
Icebergs!...Vikings!....Cod tongues!....what a cool thing. The vikings looked pretty well settled in those fine long houses....they looked quite cozy and warm.... It looks like weather is a big factor up that way, and surprised at how cool it was for you guys...brrrrr.... Interesting array of tools as well, they were pretty well stocked with tools and such and what would have been in those delightful coopered kegs? The charcoal thing was interesting as well, never would have thought they had that technology but it makes sense although it would seem peat would have been the fuel of choice. On second thought maybe the charcoal was used to forge metal. Wonderful pictures of the trip as usual, boy, that was a long 400 mile haul to the tip of the island. Looking forward to more.... koi
This trip account is not just a detailed diary of your trip, it's also a serious piece of education. Always claimed that I learn something new everyday, these are proving to be exceptional learning days. Fantastic !!!
Hey Elmer: I sure do enjoy your blog! Thanks again for taking us along. It is so wonderful to read and see your photos all the while knowing that when I venture out in a few minutes into a dry day with temps in the 80's and knowing that this evening I will have a wonderful thick and juicy "steak"; that there are true adventure riders having "all the fun"
Been following your adventures thusfar... absolutely breath-taking. Your posts/pictures sure do leave me feeling rather hungry. Noticed you "tied" up your bike while eating at the place with the big scallops; reminded me of typing up your sailboat! Smile! Glad you got to see some icebergs. Impressive!
Sharon here....we're brain dead...pen won't write so this will be a short posting tonight. Been on the road for nearly 10 hours in cold, rainy & strong winds gusting straight out from the North. It was a hard ride for the first 3 hours then the rain stopped but the winds howled from the Viking gods all the way from St. Anthony to Gander, NL Stopped at Rocky Harbour for lunch. As soon as we sat down 39 kids from 4th graders thru middle school came off 2 school buses into Fisherman's Landing cafe. They were on a field trip. Luckily we put in our order.....here's what we ordered...fish chowder that tasted like flour sauce and 2 pieces of salmon.. and this.....lobster sandwich & fisherman platter (remember that everything in NL & Labrador are fried)... obviously, our worst meal!! too cold & rainy to take pictures til Rocky Harbor area. Rough seas from the Gulf of St. Lawrence in Gros Morne area. I did take 2 videos from the flip video camera but unable to download them. Will try and figure out how to do it...in the meantime, you can suffer along with us and enjoy ONLY 2 scenic pictures... Rocky Harbor... until tomorrow...
Koi Farm....we thought so too, that the 400 mile was a long trek to St. Anthony but today's weather gods beat us up quite badly. :eek1 :eek1 Sidecar John...we learn something new everyday and never cease to be amazed. This am at our B&B we talked with a fisherman from Nova Scotia and learned that he paid $350k for a lobster license and that he could lease his license to other fishermen and collects a percentage ($$$) of their catch. It's an investment...just like playing the stock market. That nearly blew our mind!! :eek1 Glad you're enjoying our posting! KHJPHOTO...wish you were here with us today. CODArider...good to see you back here. ahh, remember those good ole days when we were sailing, today felt just like we were back on the boat except we were going 70 mph and it took us 10 hours instead of 2 days to get from St. Anthony to Gander...
Rest well, we're all here rooting for you guys!! Be safe and stop when you're cold and tired. We'll still be here... Tom
Hey Claude: Are you following Elmer's/Susan's blog? I gotta tell ya, maybe Baja is a better (well more comfortable ride) you know Clear Skies, Warm Breeze, Warm Sandy Beaches that you can swim in, and and lots of BEEF for tacos, burgers and STEAKS. I mean fish is OK....but only on Fridays
Ya just gotta take whatever a ride dishes out after planning for the worst and hoping for the best. THAT is part of the ADVENTURE If that concept doesn't ring true then misery can follow no matter what the conditions end up being. Pretty simple really I thought after reading Elmer and Susan's account of their Alaska trip with all the hardships they were confronted with and how they handled them so well that they surely were in the right frame of mind for about anything on the road to about anywhere. Then after getting to meet them in person here at the shop my suspecions were confirmed. Great folks with the right state of mind!! Don't tell 'em I said all this .
Eh, you see....these are roads less traveled by Hackers. And you see in June ICEBERGS are at their best exposure. It takes about 2-3 years for an iceberg to reach the Newfoundland shores from Greenland..which is a 1800 km trip. And these Bergie bits are 10,000 years old and so was the 1000 year old settlement at L'Anse aux Medows. It was just so sad that we couldn't have touched one even chipped one for our 150 year old rum to be cooled by it. The weather Gods just unleashed such a severe low that the local fisherman bellowed....NO...nobody goeth out there today heaven forbid! Wanna come here when it's warm then come in July or August..but then it's only 20 some degrees celsius. Also remember this is the northeastern most civilized outpost of Canada. You must come..you'll get acclimated...Claude could build you a Hack that has all kinds of heated wear outlets. Claude's the man
Guys! I lived in Alaska, I know COLD And since I have traveled all over this beautiful North America...well only BC and Alberta as far as Canada goes (driven the Alcan as well) and the dry HOT deserts of the West and the brutal August heat of the WY and SD "Bad Lands; I'll take the cold any day! But Elmer - "10,000 year old bergs" - just gotta make a margarita with some chips!
Hi all...after making haste from Gander to Fortune in order to possibly catch the Ferry to France we rose at 0600 hrs and went outa Town by 0700. Weather was clearing but still cold and of course as always windy from the wrong direction. Skipped breakfast altogether which was a mistake after having to ride about 4.5 hours in the wee morning, but the Ferry is prompt. Route 210 from Canada #1 Absolutely stark, bare and imposingly beautiful....very few trees on this windswept plain.. There's another country over there... Town of Grand Bank.. Finally made it into Fortune where the Ferry was about to depart..we politely hagled whether we could be squeezed in and as you know these Newfoundlanders NEVER let one down. I was told by a lady Newfie..".if when in doubt on the road, just knock on any door here"... FORTUNE... Hurried and grabbed the bare essentials for a 2 day visit to FRANCE. Stored the rig under cover in a security fenced compound. Boarded the small passenger ferry with a gazillion of kids on a field trip to the island... Off we went at 12 knots into the cold Atlantic/St. Lawrence seaway... Sharon thanking Le Captain for delaying the departure a bit... Don't worry....Baquettes n' Cafe au Lait's are waiting for us after this cold, c-o-l-d sail... Part of her is coming into view... We're in St. Pierre/Miquelon..which is a French possession across from the pond. It's Euros here and parlez Francais all over the Island... Bienvenue en France French Customs House... Gendarmes.. Passports,.... Merci...! Proofs in the pudding....Renault... Notre Maison Till tomorrow...
Route from Mapsource It's 2230 hrs here while it's 2045 down in the USA. Taking a stroll through the hilly town for a bite to eat... Passing a you know what.... Restaurants for dinner don't open here till 1900 hrs and we're on our way to celebrate our day here in St. Pierre, FR with... Croustillants au Chevre Saint Jacques a la Marseillaise for the Madam... (by the way it's Sharon...not Susan) Escalope de veau a la Normande for the Monsieur.. All was fingerlickin' good..... And for now this reporting is.....
FYI St-Pierre is the only place in North America where the guillotine was used to execute a prisoner who was found guilty of murder.
saw how stern the Gendarmeries were: "Passport"..."your intention to visit the Island???".....uuhh......better behave ourselves.....and :eek1