Blogs from Gander, Newfoundland & Labrador, Canada, North America

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North America » Canada » Newfoundland & Labrador » Gander August 30th 2019

We left Halifax on Thursday. The day before it was almost 80 degrees. Thursday morning it was 55 degrees and raining. We left around 1:00 pm and flew to Gander, Newfoundland. For those of you who don't remember, Gander was the airport that received 225 planes and 6,000 people after 9-11. They took strangers into their houses, hotels, resturants and schools. We visited the Aviation Museum and went to the Silent Witness Memorial. It is a memorial to honor 225 American soldiers whose plane crashed on takeoff in December 1985. All perished. Tomorrow, we leave for Deer Lake, which is 185 miles west in Labrador.... read more
Pub time!
Silent Witness Memorial
Another part of the memorial

North America » Canada » Newfoundland & Labrador » Gander August 16th 2014

We left under a dark cloudy sky; happily the sun came out by the time we reached the Beothuk Institute Interpretation Centre. The Beothuk are an indigenous people who were made extinct in the late nineteenth century, primarily because of conflicts with the settling Europeans and their diseases. Unusually, the Beothuk preferred to keep away from the Europeans, but they were quick to use materials, particularly iron, left behind by the seasonal fishermen. First I took the path to the excavation site, now dormant, where settlement artifacts give present-day archeologists a good picture of how the Beothuk society worked. The path was well curated, especially the many discrete signs identifying plants and flowers. Boardwalks protected the damp areas in the lush woods. A vigorous stream joined a sheltered cove, which is prob... read more
Iceberg at Crow Head Point
St Peter's Anglican Church
Michael Morton's home

North America » Canada » Newfoundland & Labrador » Gander August 27th 2013

I visited downtown St John's, with its curvy narrow streets and shops upon shops. It was colourful and at the end of season so I got a cheap tshirt. With a fond goodbye to Harvey, I left Friday morning for Tera Nova National Park. Here, I have found great vistas, vast sandy beaches and easy paddling. I decided to paddle first because it had rained overnight and looked to stay gray all day. The young, friendly woman at the visitors centre told me I should go out of the park to Sandy Cove and paddle around the point to see the Dungeons. So, I did. To get to the beach is a 100 m climb down steep stairs. I wasn't sure if I would make it with my 17 foot kayak, but I was going to ... read more
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A hearty breakfast at the Rothesay Inn energized us for a workout on the bikes today. It is an excellent B & B by the way. We had a tastefully decorated room in a heritage house that was built in the mid 1800s for a well to do Scottish family, and moved in the early 1900s to its current location in Harbour Grace. Proprietors George and Lynn were extremely gracious and we felt very relaxed and comfortable in their home. From the time we left at 9:30 this morning to arriving in Gander at 4:30 pm, 432 kms later, we waged war against the weather, engaging in a battle of wills with the wind that you know you simply can't win no matter how hard you try. The dispute went on all day, with winds gusting ... read more
Ochre Pit Cove, NL
Ochre Pit Cove, NL
Ochre Pit Cove, NL


Slow Snow Schedule 8:00 - 9:30 Get up, shower, breakfast. 9:30 - 10:00 Go to bank to get cash for B & B. 10:00 - 10:30 Pack all bags, load up bikes. 10:30 - 11:15 Ride 52 kms to Deer Lake. Ride through town to gas station. Fuel up. Use bathroom. 11:15 - 11:50 Ride 40 kms to RestStop Restaurant. 11:50 - 12:30 Drink copious amounts of tea to warm up. Use bathroom. 12:30 - 1:40 Ride 85 kms to Eddy's Diner in South Brook. 1:40 - 2:40 Drink copious amounts of tea to warm up. Eat poached eggs for lunch. Use bathroom. 2:40 - 3:40 Ride 83 kms to Grand Falls-Windsor. 3:40 - 4:40 Drink copious amounts of tea to warm up. Talk with locals in Tim Horton's about road conditions onto Gander. Advised by ... read more
Where have we seen this before?
Unbelievable!

North America » Canada » Newfoundland & Labrador » Gander September 2nd 2011

Hi again! We left Gander with great memories! Our next stop was a very small Community called Glenwood. There were 4 Medal Bearers here. What an emotional meeting. These people had such amazing life stories they had us all in tears. From here we moved onto Grand Falls-Windsor. Celebration here was a little disappointing because everyone was expecting Rick to be there and he wasn't. We are really trying to spread the word that this is not about Rick, but about our 7000 "Difference Makers/Medal Bearers". We ended the night on a good note! Hank's birthday! The following day was a day off, so Hank and I took out the bikes for a long ride around the town. We stopped at the Salmon interpretation centre where we saw the salmon moving up the salmon ladder. This ... read more
Hank on bridge
Me and Misty on the bridge
Salmon almost at the top of ladder

North America » Canada » Newfoundland & Labrador » Gander August 29th 2011

Day 4 started in Clarenville. Kayla and I only had 4 Medal Bearers. Even with such a small bunch we were able to make it alot of fun! After we dropped them off, we headed to Glovertown for the end of day celebration. 25 years ago, Rick and his team played a game of baseball against the Glovertown team. We did the same today! What a great time! We won 14 to 7. I think they went a little easy on us! Only 2 injuries on our team! At the end of the day, most of the team stayed in several locations in Glovertown. The rest of us carried on to Gander. The ones in Glovertown had cottages on the water with BBQs. We made our own fun. We had muskoka chairs on the side of ... read more
Ballgame at Glovertown
Final Medal Bearer in Gambo
High Five Rick!


Had a little trouble with the wifi at the hotel last night... Well, today was a long day. Had to be at the ferry terminal by 9:15 for a 10:45 ferry and arrived at St. Barbe at 12:45. Met a nice couple from the Toronto area and they had driven the same route as us and we shared stories. He had just retired and this was their first “retirement trip”. They were fortunate enough to have not been able to get a room at the hotel we stayed at in Churchill Falls, but they also spent the night in their car on the road (they couldn’t get out of their car to set up their tent because the black flies and mosquitos were too bad). Met another couple that left Goose Bay at 9PM and drove ... read more
ferry to Newfoundland
ferry to Newfoundland
west coast of Newfoundland




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