Visited 13JUL 2018

 

Getting to Labrador requires a very long drive (8-10 hours) from the east coast to the west.  Another option would be a flight into Deer Lake, but check on whether any rental cars are available first as this was an issue for us as were the drop off charges that were exorbitant?  

Enroute to the Ferry that goes to Red Bay, take the Viking Trail (route 430) which goes through gorgeous Gros Morne National Park, also UNESCO, which we planned to do on the way back.

Also, consider a brief halt at The Arches Provincial Park along the way. It features a very photogenic Rock formation!

Our GPS didn’t recognize tiny St. Barbe, the ferry town to Labrador, but just keep on the Viking trail and you will get there.  Check out the ferry schedule carefully; we found that Friday had boats that allowed us to do a return day trip, unlike other days.  The ferry is a pleasant two-hour trip.  From the ferry dock in Blanc Sablon (actually in Quebec), it is a daunting one hour drive to Red Bay.  The road is mostly potholes.  A local quipped that we would wish it was a gravel road. In mid-July, we could see patches of snow near the highway.  The weather was sunny but winds ranged from brisk to near gale force. 

The charming town of Red Bay is situated on a sheltered sea, which made it ideal for whaling in days of yore.  The visitor’s centre is a museum dedicated to the story of the Basque whalers who travelled here to ply their trade.  Clothes, astrolabes and other sea tools and ruined ships were found to document the Basque presence in this area. 

The Museum does a fine job of detailing the whaling life, but the piece de resistance is a 5 minute (weather permitting) $2 boat ride to Saddle Island.  This isle has a fairly easy to walk trail with artefacts of the whaling industry including ovens, an old house and a large rusting wrecked ship and indications of where Basque finds had been made.  The trail has lovely views and is well signed, making it a very fine one hour walk just in time for the boat pick up.  Whalers is a restaurant with nice folks and great fish and chips just across from the Museum. 

This very enjoyable site was enhanced by the uniqueness of Labrador and its People!