Newfoundland and Labrador

[Sol Invictus]

q1Kgg0n_rck

[Creeping Death]

http://b2.ac-images.myspacecdn.com/00143/27/08/143018072_l.jpg

Newfoundland Independence NOW!!!

[Creeping Death]

Besides the Irish beat the Vikings to it:

Irish Monks and the Voyage of St. Brendan (http://www.heritage.nf.ca/exploration/brendan.html)

http://www.heritage.nf.ca/exploration/images/stbrendan_550.jpg

[Aemma]

Besides the Irish beat the Vikings to it:

Irish Monks and the Voyage of St. Brendan (http://www.heritage.nf.ca/exploration/brendan.html)

http://www.heritage.nf.ca/exploration/images/stbrendan_550.jpg

Hmm really?...We don't get any of that in our history books. :confused:

Cheers Brian!...Aemma

[Creeping Death]

Hmm really?...We don't get any of that in our history books. :confused:

Cheers Brian!...Aemma
Immaterial really as the Vikings were the settlers who stayed on the longest .

[Treffie]

Hmm really?...We don't get any of that in our history books. :confused:

Cheers Brian!...Aemma

Nothing proven Aemma, just theory so far.

Even the Welsh have their own theory (for America)

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Madoc

[Aemma]

Nothing proven Aemma, just theory so far.

Even the Welsh have their own theory (for America)

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Madoc

Wow, look at that. We don't get mention of this fellow either in our history books. Hmmm, nifty stuff! Thx Tref! :) :thumb001:

Cheers!...Aemma

[YggsVinr]

Wow, look at that. We don't get mention of this fellow either in our history books. Hmmm, nifty stuff! Thx Tref! :) :thumb001:

Cheers!...Aemma

Well, as Trefelin said there is no real proof of either of those figures landing. Its basically just local legend, while there is evidently proof of the viking landing. There's a poem about St. Brendan by a Newfoundland poet I'll try to dig up.

Also, is this section of the forum private? I'd post some pictures I've taken up around Gros Morne and L'anse aux meadows but don't really want them taken by random people and circulated around the internet.

[Loddfafner]

How is L'Anse aux Meadows as a place to visit? Is it just a remote tourist trap or is it really worth the excursion? Any suggestions for anyone taking the trip? I assume that a rental car would be the most practical way to get there. Is there much else in the region around it to do and see?

[YggsVinr]

How is L'Anse aux Meadows as a place to visit? Is it just a remote tourist trap or is it really worth the excursion? Any suggestions for anyone taking the trip? I assume that a rental car would be the most practical way to get there. Is there much else in the region around it to do and see?

First of all, yes, you definitely need a rental car for anywhere you go in Newfoundland. First of all, there is only one highway that goes around the island and the only way to get to L'Anse aux meadows is to either fly in first to St. John's, Gander, or Deer Lake (which is closest to L'Anse aux meadows, but is a very small airport you'll still need to drive a little ways up the peninsula), or take the take ferry (14 hours) from Nova Scotia to Port aux Basques or Argentia. No matter which way you take you're going to have to take that one highway (or in the case of Port aux Basques on the west coast where the highway doesn't go, you'd be stuck on a gravel road for a while so I wouldn't suggest going that way especially after dark, plus its even harder to find a Bed & Breakfast there) up to the northern most point of Newfoundland. Driving from St. John's takes about a day and half (depending on how many breaks you give yourself), or you could take the bus, but I wouldn't recommend it. Overall, arriving in St. John's by plane may be best, plus there are some nice sites in St. John's as well (Signal Hill is a must).

Honestly, I think the trip would be worth it just for the view. There are two sections of L'Anse aux meadows to visit. The first is a museum which starts indoors (you can see a replica of a snekkja, and they have a runestone there and various archaeological finds (pins, brooches, nails etc.) as well as a documentary to watch on Helge Ingstad and the dig. After you see the indoor museum you can continue on a walk outside to visit the ruins themselves (the best part!), which I found to be quite worth visiting. The ruins include a longhouse, a smithy, and a few others. I think six in total.

They also have a reconstruction site, where they recreated what the settlement would have looked like according to the archaeological evidence. They have some actors placed throughout the various buildings teaching tourists how to make rope and so on. They also provide some basic info on the Vinlandic sagas and the area itself. Personally, I preferred visiting the ruins themselves.

But from there you can head south from the northern peninsula and do some hiking at Gros Morne national park (great view and a lot of wildlife, newfoundland black bears, tons of moose). The scenery there is great, and they have some very worthwhile trails (one of them is a 6 hour hike around Gros Morne mountain which is a breathtaking view). You can also go to Twillingate where they have a fishing museum, and there is also the ruins of an old mine that is situated on the coast. There is a trail going around the area so you get both a great view of the ocean and can see some old machinery, a mineshaft etc. Interesting, in my opinion, plus very beautiful.

Like I said, there are many small fishing communities that have nice scenery. The thing to keep in mind is that you won't be finding hotels or anything of the sort. Its very important to book a bed & breakfast in advance (there are many of them). In Twillingate I recall that there was a South African couple running a bed & breakfast. It was quite nice, I can dig up the name if you want. Also, at Gros Morne you can rent a log cabin to stay in, that are typically on the water. I can't recall where we stayed up at L'Anse aux meadows but I think it may have been a log cabin as well. There are also some sites to see around Baie Verte, its been a while since I've been there though. Most of Newfoundland beyond St. John's is made up of small fishing communities and a "town" would really be an overstatement, so you need to keep in mind that planning ahead is a must or you may find yourself camping out in your car. ;)

[Treffie]

I've never visited Newfoundland, but it's an ambition of mine before I die! :D

Whenever I fly out to the US, I always make a point of getting out of my seat to stand at the back of the plane to watch Newfoundland slowly pass by beneath me. From the air it looks incredible, especially in Winter - the only problem is that I wish I had a parachute so that I could just jump out. :(

[YggsVinr]

Here are a few old pictures from various trips I've dug up:

http://i219.photobucket.com/albums/cc158/Velglarn666/lanse-1.jpg

http://i219.photobucket.com/albums/cc158/Velglarn666/DSCN0460.jpg

http://i219.photobucket.com/albums/cc158/Velglarn666/troutriver1.jpg

http://i219.photobucket.com/albums/cc158/Velglarn666/troutriver2.jpg

http://i219.photobucket.com/albums/cc158/Velglarn666/troutriver3.jpg

http://i219.photobucket.com/albums/cc158/Velglarn666/ponds2.jpg

http://i219.photobucket.com/albums/cc158/Velglarn666/DSCN0465.jpg

http://i219.photobucket.com/albums/cc158/Velglarn666/DSCN0496.jpg

Sorry about the quality of some of them.

[Treffie]

Yggs, what is St John's like to visit? It looks inviting, the only problem is that the prices of flights from London to St Johns is very expensive. Zoom Airways used to fly to Nova Scotia, they were cheap, but they are no longer. Any suggestions?

[YggsVinr]

About flight prices. I usually use West Jet that always has cheap prices but unfortunately its only a national company, or Air Canada which usually has some deals. I checked out the Air Canada website just now and they seem to have some flights year round from London to St. John's ranging between $461 CAD and $3796 CAD depending on the package you choose.

St. John's is a nice town, its pretty safe and nice to walk around. The weather in the warmer months is typical around 23 or so degrees at most, often rainy and very windy. The winters aren't as cold as most of Canada typically just below zero and going only about as high as -16 to -17 degrees, but also very windy and the weather is pretty unpredictable. There are quite a few things to see, and Signal Hill is a pretty big attraction. From the top of Signal Hill you can see the most eastern point of North America, Cape Spear (which is also nice to visit, its just on the outskirts). There are also various ruins like a barracks, old tavern, and cannons from when British soldiers were stationed there in the 18th and 19th centuries. Its a great view of the north Atlantic, but has very high winds so if you visit St. John's during the winter time it wouldn't be a good idea to go up there. Plus everything would be covered in snow anyways. But in the spring and summer there's a trail that goes through Signal Hill that you can follow and if my memory serves me well it can take you as far as Fort Amherst. A lot of people like to come see if they can catch a glimpse of the icebergs from end of March to June depending.

Some sights you can see all year around are the Rooms (you can read more about it here http://www.therooms.ca/ ) which is a sort of museum for Newfoundland history. There's the Fort Amherst Museum that I heard is supposed to be quite nice though I've never been there myself, the fluvarium is quite interesting to visit as well. You can read some more here: http://www.stjohnskiosk.com/ Also, if you come in the fall every two years there's a Wayzgoose/printer's festival that is interesting to go to and has all kinds of events about book/print history in Canada. If you like that sort of thing its fun to attend.

Most people that come to St. John's take a trip to George Street, which is most famous because it is the street with the most bars per square capita in North America. There are a lot of dance clubs that I'd stay clear of but there's also some decent pubs like O'Reilly's. I personally love the Guv'nor Inn & Pub, though its not on George Street but Elizabeth near the university. The Duke of Duckworth is a decent place too. Also, if you're going to be trying any of the local brew, don't drink Black Horse even though it says its brewed in Newfoundland. Its brewed by Molson. Try out what Quidi Vidi brewery has to offer. They have some nice ones like Honey Brown and Erik's Red.

It all depends what you like to see, really. When my mum used to come and visit me she used to like walking around downtown St. John's along Water street and around there.