Exploring Newfoundland & Labrador on a time and dollar budget.
The best way to see Newfoundland & Labrador is if you have unlimited time and money. Since we have neither we are planning our trip to Newfoundland CA to maximize the limited time (16 days) and money (Part time income) we have available for this roadtrip. We plan to drive our 2000 Astro Van Camper which
is a modular conversion so that it can be turned from a camper and back to a daily driver with minimal time and effort. Our van is all packed up and ready to go from our home in Maryland to Port aux Basques Newfoundland we are pushing hard to get there in 2 days which includes the 8-10 hour Marine Atlantic ferry from North Sidney Nova Scotia to Port aux Basques Newfoundland. We plan to do the same for the way home which will give us 12 full days on the island for camping hiking, biking tours and HOPEFULLY some fishing opportunities. Check back for updates this summer 2024 for our daily updates of this awesome must do roadtrip!
FIRST – After determining our exact departure and return dates the next and perhaps the most important pre-trip task is to get a reservation on Marine Atlantic Ferry to NL. We found the website very easy to navigate and to get our round trip reservations secured only took about 10 minutes. For the 11:15pm overnight crossing, 2 adults (1 senior), no pets and our 2000 Astro Van Camper, which is 19′ with bike rack the round trip cost is $396.40 CAD. Since were from the US our cost at the time of payment was $288.50 USD. We made our reservation 2 months before departure and all the overnight cabins were sold out if you click make a reservation there is an option to get on a waiting list. We chose not to get reserved seating which we may regret, we’ll provide an update after the trip over to NL is complete.
UPDATE – Once we started to seriously map out the trip, milages, and the amount of time between each are of interest in Newfoundland Labrador we discovered that this is no southern route between St John’s and the Marine Atlantic Ferry Port aux Basques so we are going to attempt to change our reservation so we can depart for Nova Scotia from Argentia which is only about 100 miles from St. John’s rather than our original plan to do a complete clockwise loop back to Port aux Basque.
UPDATE – We did in fact decide to change our reservation with Marine Atlantic Ferry for our return trip. We did have to call and make the change, the customer service person was very kind and patient with our change request. Of courses the cost was more on the return trip due to the longer run of 16 hours from Argentia Newfoundland to North Sidney Nova Scotia. The total cost for the round trip reservation including a passenger pod for the return crossing was $775.08 CAD ($566.29 USD).
Our Newfoundland Labrador Planned Route
Days 1 – 3 We land at Port aux Basques in the morning and head 210 miles north to Gros Morne National Park with a reservation for 3 nights at Shoal Point Panoramic RV Park
Days 4 – 6 We leave Gros Morne and continue 230 miles north to Pistolet with reservations at Viking RV Park
Days 7 – 9 We leave Pistolet and head south and east then north for Twillingate. This will be our longest travel day by road roughly 500 miles… ugh! We have camping reservations at Peytons Woods RV Park
Day 10 – Next stop Dungeon Provincial Park which is about 220 miles South and east from Twillingate. We have one nights reservation at Dunrovin RV Park.
Days 11 – 12 we head due south to St Johns which is about 133 miles south of Dunrovin. We reserved camping at Pippy Park Campground for 2 nights.
Day 13 – we travel from Pippy to Argentia Ferry Terminal for the long 16 hour Atlantic crossing back to North Sidney and head south for our 2 day 1000 mile trip back to Maryland.
Depending on the availability of internet we will be posting photos and reviews from each location and campsites along the way so keep checking back for more updates.
Day 1 – Port aux Basques to Gros Morne National Park
We landed in Port aux Basques around 10am after being delayed from our original departure time of 11pm to 4am on the Marine Atlantic Ferry. We fueled up in Port aux Basques as there were gas stations there at soon as you get off the ferry. We made the 210 mile drive up to Shoal Panoramic Park in Norris Point. The campground is right on the Bonny Bay. We had a terrific view from the site. The campground single washroom was co-ed with locking stalls and showers but a common sink area. They were clean and adequate for the amount of campers using them. A key is required to use them after dark which we were provided. Just one heads up if your coming from the US Shoal Panoramic and all the other campgrounds that we stayed at on NL required a 30amp plug for electric hookup. We rode our bikes to the camp store at the KOA Norris Point about 3 miles away and bought an adaptor for our standard 15amp plug which we needed for the entire trip.
Day 2 – Rocky Harbour and Lobster Cove Head Lighthouse
Woke to a rainy day so we grabbed rain gear and headed to Rocky Harbour and the Lobster Cove Head Lighthouse for some short hikes and to checkout the town and the lighthouse museum. We first hiked down to the overlook at the lighthouse. It was a gray day so the pics aren’t the greatest however the views of the Bonny Bay coastline were still very worth visiting. We imagined that it was days like this that the mariners of the early 20th century before GPS relied heavily on lighthouses like this one to make there way to the harbor safely. As the rain got heavier we went inside to museum where they had some cool artifacts that were used by the lighthouse keepers. Then into Rocky Harbour for an early dinner at the Fisherman’s Landing Restaurant for fish n chips and a cold Iceberg Beer. The restaurant was like a step back in time. The dining area was small but cozy. The server was attentive and engaging and the fish n chips were not the best we had on our trip but still very good. While there, some guy who we believe was a patron in his 90s stopped and put his glass of rum on our table and proceeded to tell us stories and jokes in his extremely heavy Newfinese accent. He was very friendly and seemed comfortable going up to the tables and providing some free entertainment.
Day 3 – Hiking Berry Hill Trail & Baker’s Brook Fall Trail
We hit the ground hiking the next day in Gros Morne National Park. Weather was overcast and damp from the overnight rain so it was kind of a gray day but we were determined to make the best of it. We started at the park office to purchase our parking permit which is normally $11 CAD however because it was Canada Day it was free. Next we hit the Berry Hill Trail which was a short hike of only about 1 mile out and back but it’s all uphill with lots of steps. There wasn’t much to see at the top of the climb as there was cloud cover at the higher elevation. Next we did the Baker’s Brook Fall Trail. 5.7 miles out and back mostly flat with a good portion of the trail on boardwalks over the spongy marsh areas. There were some fairly wet and muddy spots so be sure to wear hiking shoes for this time of year. Baker’s Brook Fall Trail had many wild flowers along the route. Some of which we’ve never seen anywhere else like the Showy Lady’s Slippers which were everywhere. We did see some moose tracks and scat but no moose. I suppose due to the continuous flow of human traffic on the trail that day since it was Canada Day and the weekend the moose were laying low.
Day 3 – Salmon fishing and getting Screeched in!
Still day 3 – If your a non resident the fishing thing if a bit complicated there are only certain places your permitted to fish without a having a NL resident with you. The Gros Morne park office person was very helpful with making sure I had all the proper licensing and a map showing the places we were permitted to fish. We had heard from a number of people that Lomond was were some Salmon were being caught so we headed there to give it a try. We first checked out the well marked access point which had a large parking area. A nice local hiker Tara asked if we were there to fish, and told us about a spot down the road that was not so well known so we checked it out. It was a nice spot with less people around but no fish. This was a salmon only river and if I’m not mistaken it was also fly fishing only.
After about an hour without a bite or any sign of salmon around we headed north to The Merchant Warehouse Pub & Grub in Woody Point to get dinner and Screeched in. The term refers to a tradition in Newfoundland were after a local Screecher, in this case Aunt Sophie moderates the process of making outsiders “honorary Newfoundlanders” a sort of initiation ritual where the Screechee is required to do a shot of Screech (cheap liquor in this case Screech Rum), recite a local mariner cliche and kiss a codfish. There are many pubs that will screech you in however Merchant Warehouse was quite an experience. For $20 CD you get the screech ceremony, a shot of screech rum, an shot of cod lover oil, a Screeched in certificate and picture with Aunt Sophie and kiss a real codfish. I highly recommend this experience as a rite of passage into Newfoundland it was lots of fun and quite humorous seeing how people react to kissing the old dried out codfish.
Day 4 – Western Brook Pond Boat Tour
Day 4 we were able to get a 12:30 reservation for the Western Brook Pond Boat tour. Since this was a 230 mile travel day from Shoal Point Panoramic Campground in Norris Point to the Viking RV Park in Quirpon and the tour was on the way we decided this was a good way to break up the drive and not miss one of the key attractions of the Gros Morne National Park. Although we had a 12:30 reservation but got to the dock early enough to make the standby list for the 11:00 tour. The 4 of us and another couple were able to get on the 11am tour. There is a 3 kilometer (1.86 mile) walk from the parking lot to the dock however for those not able to make the hike they have a golf cart you can ride for $10 CAD each way. Since we were trying to make the 11am tour we decided to take the cart as they get you there in about 15 minutes. If you plan to walk I would recommend hitting the trail head at least an hour before your reservation time and if your a slow walker an hour and a half. The tour was fabulous and well worth the $79 CAD fee for adults. We even had an overcast day and the sites and views from the boat were still beautiful. The tour guide on our boat (KJ Hollahan) was very informative, engaging and entertaining. We highly recommend this tour if your in the Gros Morne area. We sailed on the Westbrook I tour boat. Since we just made standby we were one of the last few to board and therefore had to grab whatever seats were leftover. Most people went for the upper deck and bow. We were in the enclosed lower deck which was fine since we could open the windows and get a good view from there.
Day 4 – Arrival at Viking RV Park
Upon arrival at Viking RV Park we found the owners just as welcoming and kind as all of the other blogs we read described them. The showers and toilets were dated but clean and roomy compared to some. First order of business was laundry which requires a bit a patience since there were only 2 coin operated washers and dryers for the entire campground. Normally we would have plenty of patience to wait for a machine to open up however, the misquotes were swarming and very hungry. We were forewarned that they and the black flies were bad in the north. Thanks to our Simms bug stopper clothing we got our laundry done with only a few welts from the battle.
Day 5 – Hiking The Cape Raven and Burnt Cape Ecological Reserve
Day 5 we ventured out for some hiking in the area. On our way to the Pistolet Bay Provincial Park we noticed a trail from the road that was not well marked but looked like a beautiful hike to a high point where we might be able to spot icebergs. We only found out after the fact that this was the Cape Raven Trail in Saint Lunaire-Griquet which is also part of the Iceberg Trail. The Cape Raven Trail is about 2 miles out and back to the vista overlook it 90 precent uphill but well worth the effort. The view at the top was a beautiful 360 panoramic of the area. Visible from the top the quaint little port town (don’t know the name) and all around the rocky cliffs in the St Lawrence Golf, to the bog meadow trails winding through the greenery. The largeness, color and size is humbling and memorable. And as I always say the pictures just don’t do it justice. Of course we were on the lookout for the ever allusive Newfoundland Moose. During our hike we could smell a sort of livestock oder and rounding the next corner we saw a fresh moose track. Of course we were talking and making all kinds of noise so we probably spooked it off the trail. We even spotted a very small iceberg too far to get a good picture, even though we were told by the locals that due to global warming there were none around.
After the day 5 Cape Raven Trail excellent detour we continued to Pistolet Bay Provincial Park. After chatting with the Park Ranger we decided to go directly to the Burnt Cape Ecological Reserve as Pistolet was a nice campground and picnic area but not much in the way of hiking trails. The ranger gave very detailed directions to hike down to the water and find the Cannon Ball, Little and Big oven caves at Burnt Cape. The hike was wonderful and just as he described. Thankfully the tide was low when we made the hike so it was fairly easy to make our way along the rocky coast for the Cannon Ball (called cannon ball because there as a cannon ball found in the caves) and Little oven caves. The trail is kind of hard to follow at spots you have to look for the trail markers some of which are were blown over by wind. Once you get out of the gravel area the trail is pretty clear. It’s like a narrow goat path in places with about 100′ drop-off on the ocean side so wear good shoes and if your a bit unsteady I would not recommend this hike. It was about 1.3 miles round trip from the parking area to the little oven and back.
Still day 5. On our way back from the Burnt Cape hike we were four wheeling our way out of the park when we came across some weary hikers that still had a few Ks back to their vehicle down at the parking area at the entrance to the park. It was very hot and they had no water so we offered them a ride which they immediately accepted. There were 4 of them and 4 of us but with sitting on the tailgate we managed to squeeze them all in. The road was very rough and rocky so we couldn’t go much more than 5 mph. We got to their car and they were very grateful and wanted to take our picture we our course complied (picture below). We then decided to head to St Anthony the only “city” in the area, for a well deserved beverage and some food. The place we settled on was called RagnaRock Northern Brewing Co. We loved there beer, food and tagline “Beer at the end of the world”. Anyway the funniest part was the people we saw in the brewery, the 4 weary hikers from Burnt Cape. They invited us to sit with them and we had a nice reunion and made some new friends from Canada.
Day 6 – Twillingate – Travel Day
Day 6 was mostly a 490 mile travel day from Viking RV Park to Peytons Woods RV Park in Twillingate. Also considered best part of Iceberg Alley. The Paytons Woods RV Park was a very nice camping experience. The sites were roomy and semi private unless you were in the center section or the farthest end of the main loop. Our site had the usual 30 amp electric and water. The view was spectacular of Black Harbour and close enough to town to walk or ride bikes, however the ride back all up hill was a bit challenging for those without E-bikes. After setting up camp we drove into town in search of a local brewery and some food. We landed at the Stage Head Pub which featured local cod selections and a selection of beers from Split Rock Brewing Co. which is right behind the pub. The Skipper’s West Coast DIPA paired perfectly with the Fish n Chips. We powered through the travel day fatigue and stayed for entertainment from local talent at their open mic night! Great end to a tiring day on the road.
Day 7 – Twillingate – Captain Dave Boat Tour
Day 7 we booked a boat tour with Captain Dave in hopes of seeing some Icebergs close up. He joking told us that we would have to travel to Iceland to see any icebergs this summer due to an unseasonably warm winter and spring. The boat held him and 8 passengers with plenty of room to move around. Captain Dave was very entertaining and made the trip fun but still informative, well worth the $90 CAD plus tip per person if only for the entertainment alone. Since there were no icebergs, puffins or whales to see and the cod season was now open in NL we asked if we could do come cod fishing and the entire boat agreed that would be fun. And it was!!! Captain Dave putted around looking at his sounder until he said this is the spot at a depth about 200′ and the Cod were hanging on a ledge at about 90′ by what looked like the hundreds. No fishing rods and bait were used only hand lines and weighted jigs. You would lower the line and when it got to about 90′ the line would stop sinking as if it hit the bottom but that was the cue that you had a cod hooked and to start pulling the line in. They were all pretty nice sized fish about 7-9 lb. I believe we kept 7 or 8 fish total. When we got back to the dock I had fun learning from Roger how to clean the cod as I have never cleaned one before. He showed me how to remove the tongue and “britches” (roe sacks) from the females. We divide up the spoils among all the passengers and whet on to the next stop… back to Split Rock Brewing Co for a late lunch on the deck.
Day 8 – Twillingate – Biking and Hiking
Day 8 we first went to the Back Bay Trail a trail close to the campground The Paytons Woods RV Park to which we were able to ride our bikes. FROM ALLTRAILS : “The trail 2.0-mile out-and-back trail near Twillingate, Newfoundland and Labrador. Generally considered an easy route, it takes an average of 51 min to complete. This trail is great for birding, hiking, and mountain biking, and it’s unlikely you’ll encounter many other people while exploring. The best times to visit this trail are May through October. Dogs are welcome, but must be on a leash.” We found it to be a bit challenging for the mountain bikes and abandoned them about a mile or so into the ride and continued on foot which was definitely easier. The view at the highest point of the hike was well worth it. Also we, as ALLTRAILS mentioned we only saw 2 other people during the hike. One suggestion keep track of the trail you came in on as the trail is not very well marked and tends to split off in different directions near the top of the lookout.
Day 8 continued. After the Back Bay Trail we met up with George and Cathy for a ride up to Crow Head and more hiking after parking at the lighthouse we picked Nanny’s Hole Loop and down to Sleepy Cove which was about 1.6 miles and a fairly easy trail. The trail goes along the coast with nice scenery eventually leading to Sleepy Cove which was a cool place to stop take your shoes and socks off and wade in the cold water. It was definitely refreshing. We saw a few hardy folks swimming in the cove but a bit too cold for us. Below is the view for Crow Head lighthouse and next down is Sleepy Cove.
Day 8 continued. After our hikes we went back to the campground and cooked our fresh Cod fillets and the britches. We cooked them in the skillet with olive oil, garlic, ginger, bacon bits, green onions and lemon. One of the best dinner we had the entire trip. In the morning we would be leaving Twillingate and heading for Dunrovin RV Park.
Day 9 – Travel Day from Twillingate to Dunrovin RV Park
Day 8 we hit the road again for 221 miles from Twillingate to Dugeon Provincial Park and Dunrovin RV Park.. I would say this was the only negative experience we had with our campgrounds during the entire trip. We had a reservation and when we paid and went to the site there was a motorhome parked next to the site using our electric hookup. We drove back to the office an told them that our electric was being used they insisted that no one was using our electric and we must be looking at the wrong site. So we again verified the site number and went back only to find it was as we said. So I took a photo of the site and electric being used and the rig plugged in and returned to the office with evidence in hand. They seem very annoyed and told me they would check into it. Which they did however it took about an hour before it was resolved we could get our van hooked up. They also only had one single use shower/restroom open for the entire campground which was also a bit of a challenge. On a positive side the pond that the campground (Mosquito Pond and properly named) was surrounded by was very nice with a beautiful sunset. Not a bad campground for a single night stopover but I would not recommend spending a lot of time here unless you have a self contained rig.
Day 10 – Dungeon Provincial Park, Bonavista, Elliston NL
Day 10 we left Dunrovin RV Park. very early and drove the 51 miles up to Bonavista Lighthouse in search of Puffins. We did manage to find some puffins there but they were not easy to see from the viewing area unless you had binoculars. It was pretty crowded there as well. But as with every place we stopped it was beautiful scenery and fun watching the Puffins flying back and forth from the water to their nesting area on the rocks about 50 yards from the viewing area some with a mouthful of small fish. While we were there a nice tourist told us about another place where the puffin viewing was much better. The name of the spot escapes me I believe it was Elliston but that was the best tip… she was right the puffin viewing was much better there. More puffins less people and the puffins were closer MUCH closer.
Day 10 continued, at the Elliston puffin viewing area there were definitely more birds and less people and one puffin came within 5′ of my camera and gave a beautiful pose. We stayed there for a couple of hours exploring down to the waters edge where we saw many puffins fishing. Unless your very fit and confident climbing around on lose rocks I would not recommend hiking down to the water here.
Day 11 – Travel Day Elliston to St Johns
Day 11 travel day from Elliston to St. Johns – leaving the puffins behind we traveled 200 miles from Elliston to St. Johns. We made reservations at the Waterford Rive Valley Campground for the remainder of our stay in Newfoundland. I can’t say enough good things about this campground. The reception person was polite, patient and very helpful answering all of our questions before escorting us to our sites. The bathhouses were spotless and single use. They had 4 to choose from so it was rarely a problem finding one open. The location is also very convenient (technically Mount Pearl) to restaurants and breweries downtown. There is a hiking/biking trail that connects to the campground which allowed us to ride our bikes to Banished Brewing in St Johns with only about a half mile of riding off the trail which had sidewalks most of the way except for the last quarter mile. We absolutely loved Banished Brewing the food and beer (my favorite beer of the trip was Banished Space Puffin) were exceptional and the staff were attentive and courteous. Excellent reward after a long travel day.
Day 12 – Cape Spear Lighthouse
Day 12 we went to the Cape Spear Lighthouse early in the day it was a short drive of about 50 miles from St. Johns. The easternmost point in North America (excluding Alaska which has a weird little island that crosses the line into the eastern hemisphere to the west… that’s not confusing) this is the first place in Canada where the sun rises. Even though the weather was cloudy, windy and cold, we enjoyed beautiful views and some nice hiking around the lighthouse. We did see some whales breaching but they were out really far so we could only see detail with binoculars. There was a tour boat that was right next to the whale pod too far to get any decent photos hope they got their moneys worth because this nasty looking front was right behind them.
Day 12 continued – after an hour or so at Cape Spear we headed back to St. Johns to enjoy some of the well known attractions of the town like the Jellybean Houses and the harbors. Sunny and warm just 50 miles from the coast. We walked around the best streets for viewing the houses and found with the sun position in the afternoon the corner of Gower and Victory Streets was the best for photos. One of the things that I noticed while visiting each area coastal area of Newfoundland very different from the US was that most of not all the boats in a given harbor were work boats very few if any recreational or pleasure boats.
Day 12 continued – we wrapped up our final full day in Newfoundland the way we started it with dinner and drinks this time at Quidi Vidi Brewing Co. Of course the beer and food friends and view of the harbor were all fabulous there was excellent live music as well and a great way to end our incredible 4400 mile Newfoundland road trip. In the morning we would be heading to the Marine Atlantic Argentina Ferry Terminal to make the 16 hour crossing back to Nova Scotia and the 2 day drive back home to Maryland.
Day 13 – St. Johns to Argentia
Day 13 Woke up to another rainy start to the day. We packed up the Astro to prepare for the long run to Nova Scotia and back to the states. On the way to the Marine Atlantic Argentia Ferry Terminal we stopped at a cool little pub on the harbor for lunch. Dockside Pub in Jerseyside Hill only a short detour off Rt 100 to Argentia but well worth it. They had most local beers on tap and for the fish n chips we saved the best for last. Once again beautiful view of the work boats in the harbor.
Day 13 continued – on arrival at the Marine Atlantic Argentia Ferry Terminal we saw what would be our home for the 16 hour crossing to North Sidney NS. The brand new Ala’ suinu ferry, our trip across would be her first crossing from Argentia to North Sidney. This ferry was more like a cruise ship with several restaurants and bars on various decks. Comfortable lounging areas and a spacious sun deck. Everything was new and clean. We also paid extra for a sleeping pod which I believe was around $100 CAD. If you plan to make this crossing at night I highly recommend paying the extra for a pod. The bunks were comfortable and quiet. Much better than trying to sleep on a chair or sofa in the common area especially if you have to hit the ground running in North Sidney as we did.
Day 14 – North Sidney NS to Maryland
Day 14 we woke up to the Ala’ suinu ferry making port 2 hours ahead of schedule only took 14 instead of the forecasted 16 hours. So ended our wonderful roadtrip of Newfoundland. We highly recommend this trip for anyone who likes the outdoors, hiking, biking, and doesn’t mind fighting with mosquitoes and black flies. Many of the gems here do require some difficult hiking to see them close up. We found the Newfoundlanders to be kind, helpful and welcoming wherever we went. Our only disappointments were what we didn’t see. We did not see any moose only one that had sadly been hit on the Road. We also did not see any real big icebergs like many of the internet pictures from Iceberg Alley showed. We were told by some of the locals that because of global warming they were not making it to NL before melting. So we have 2 good reasons to go back maybe earlier in the summer (we went in July) which hopefully we will get to do. All and all another memorable roadtrip with good friends. However unknown to us at the time, this would be the last roadtrip for our beloved Astro Van. She carried us comfortably through the 4400 miles and safely back home only to throw a connecting rod about a month after returning home. Thankfully we were only 30 miles from our home when it happened. The engine replacement would be cost prohibitive given the her age and milage. We are trying to find a DIY buyer that will give her a new engine rather than parting it out or scraping, because otherwise this van is in great shape. This is really the end of an era for us we have owned 2 wonderful Astros in the last 15 years that we camped in and many memorable roadtrips. Since Chevrolet stopped making them in 2005 finding one with low miles and in as good shape as ours was to build into a “campvertible” again is nearly impossible. We will be moving on to another platform for our next roadtrip/daily driver… stay tuned.
Waiting for pictures
You guys look rested already ♥️♥️♥️