John and Cathy in Newfoundland 2013: Puffins by the Thousands

July 7

George House Bed and Breakfast, Dildo

Today we traveled leisurely from Dildo to Bonavista--with a number of stops along the way. We've found that the best way is not to overplan--just read about sights ahead of time and consult our hosts. Then we'll just pull off the highway as the mood strikes.

Our hosts, Todd and Dale, at the George House B&B sent us on our way after a wonderful breakfast and a few travel tips to enhance our day's journey. Just as we were getting into the car, Todd slipped us a paper bag with four homemade cookies for the trip.

We hit the TransCanada highway and made excellent time through the boring part of the trip--trees, hills and rocks. It's amazing anything grows here because there is almost no topsoil--perhaps half a dozen inches. It is so thin that gardeners build up soil in rows, meaning that there are also trenches for drainage.

Our first major stop--gas and snacks at Clarenville doesn't count--was Trinity. Jason and Heather told us to have bottled water and snacks in the car because most villages do not have cafes or even convenience stores.

Trinity Harbour

Trinity is a bit unusual for a coastal outpost because it was historically a mercantile centre. It has larger homes where wealthy merchants lived and large premises where they made money and oppressed the fishermen and their families. After the cod was caught, filleted, salted and dried, the fishermen would take it to the merchants who did not give money, only credit at the store. Hence, the merchants had a monopoly and could adjust the prices so that the fishermen's credit was fully used up. Money in their pockets was unknown to fishermen. The merchants lived in comparative luxury, while the fishing families lived in abject poverty. Furthermore, merchants resisted the attempts of the churches to educate the people. "Keep them ignorant and poor" seemed to be the motto.

Blacksmith's Forge

Nonetheless, the Trinity Historical Society has worked very hard to preserve and restore (in the case of the Lester-Garland, over one million dollars was spent excavating and restoring the home of this wealthy merchant family). Not counting the Rising Tide Theatre Arts Centre, there are 10 lovingly restored buildings where friendly and well-informed guides explain the history of the building. One ticket gets you into all buildings, including a general store (the original ledgers are fascinating), the Green Family Forge and Blacksmith Shop, St. Paul's Anglican Church, the Hiscock House (a widowed woman used determination and financial acumen to build a prosperous business in a time when women were supposed to be quiet, helpless and demure), and a cooperage where wooden barrels were made to transport salted cod and cod oil to Europe. Trinity is absolutely a must-stop place on Route 230 to Bonavista.

St. Paul's Anglican Church, Trinity

As we neared Bonavista, we made a short detour to Elliston. The road is bumpy and rutted, and John almost thought about turning back. What a mistake that would have been! Elliston has almost 100 restored root cellars. In the olden days long before refrigeration, people dug root cellars into small knolls (the doors always faced east to avoid the freezing blasts that came from the west). As soon as a house was built, the next order of business was to dig a root cellar with a small door--you have to duck your head to get inside. They show pioneer ingenuity on a large scale at Elliston.

Root cellar at Elliston

Even better, near Elliston, we saw our first puffins. A short walk over rough terrain gets you to the cliffs overlooking huge rocky outcropping where thousands of sea birds--mostly gulls and puffins--nest and produce their young. The puffins are particularly attractive. Cute is an appropriate word to describe them, especially their distinct and colorful bills. They perch on top of the cliffs and allow humans to get within two metres--as long as you are quiet and don't move suddenly. They behave almost as though they know what cameras are--they prune and constantly turn their heads so that the photographer can capture their "best side." It's almost uncanny how tame they are.

Seabird ecoreserve near Elliston

Our B&B, The Lancaster Inn, is a modern building and, unfortunately, away from the waterfront. What it lacks in old-world charm, it makes up for in spaciousness and convenience. Meaning, unlike the George House last night, the bathtub is full-sized and not crammed into a tiny alcove where you bump your head if you stand up.

We had dinner at The Bonavista Social Club (voted top restaurant of 2012 in Newfoundland) which is in Upper Amherst Cove, about 20 minutes from Bonavista. The young couple who own it (actually the Bank of Nova Scotia owns it, as the husband joked when we congratulated him on owning such a great restaurant). In front of the restaurant, where many people were eating outside on a nice deck, there are vegetable and herb gardens--fennel, basil, spinach, lettuce, onions, garlic and corn. Farther down the hill, tomato plants flourish. The hallmark of the restaurant is the insistence of using only fresh ingredients, including seafood that is caught that day. It's a bit rustic--the food is served on wooden bowls and plates made by the wife's father--who also built the restaurant and all the tables and chairs. There are only a few tables, but the place was full. It's very out-of-the-way--you have to make a special trip to get there--but unless you have a reservation you are sometimes out of luck. They make wonderful bread, jams, soups, etc for sale. The menu centres around simple, beautifully cooked fare like pizza, pasta and sandwiches. You can even get a mooseburger. John had baked cod and Cathy enjoyed a vegetarian pizza. Dessert was a scrumptious partridgeberry bread pudding.