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Published: October 1st 2015
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An absolutely beautiful morning here in Deer Lake. Warm and sunny, and the strong winds of yesterday have moderated into a pleasant breeze. Forecast high is 20°.
Holiday Inn breakfast. I'm sure most people have had at least one of these in their lives. It fills the void, anyway.
And we're off on the eastward trek back to St. John's along the TCH. The aim is to go as far as we can/want and then see whether we will have time for other excursions. The fact we have already made it to Deer Lake is a plus.
A ways out of Deer Lake, we pass the town of Howley. Our friend Andrea has roots here and so we give it a salute as we drive past. Andrea tells us that this was where moose were introduced to Newfoundland back in the 1900s.
As I have already mentioned, the TCH is great here. We make excellent progress.
We stop in Grand Falls-Windsor to gas up and have lunch. The fast-food outlets on the strip don't appeal to us, so we take the next exit and randomly go left. Wrong choice, as we end up in an industrial park. Ok then, we'll try the other way. We eventually find a cute little restaurant called 48 High after its address. Its lunch menu features funky soups and sandwiches. We have chicken pesto soup (delish) and two different sandwiches: smoked salmon and avocado; and brie, apple and chicken. You have to guess who had which.
Back on the road. Quick stop at a Timmie's in Gander. We decide as we are driving that we will have enough time on this trip to see some of the Conception Bay area, which we previously skipped over. That means we should stop for the night somewhere west of St. John's that is near the highway to Conception Bay. We settle on the community of Arnold's Cove, which reportedly has a motel.
As we're driving along the TCH about 5 pm, looking for the turnoff to Arnold's Cove, with the brilliant sun starting to sink in the cloudless sky, we start to see wispy tendrils of mist weaving patterns in the sunlight. It's extremely odd and at first we think there's a fire somewhere–but there's no smell of smoke in the air. Then we spot our exit and start descending into Arnold's Cove. In an instant, the sun is blotted out and visibility is bad. I wrench off my sunglasses in order to see.
You've probably guessed: It's fog rolling in from the sea. When we find Arnold's Cove Motel, we mention this phenomenon to the desk clerk. "Oh yes, me darlings" she replies. "They should have named this here place Foggy Cove." Apparently, the fog is so common and predictable that they actually hold an annual Fog Festival here in late July.
Best news is that they have a room. We rest up a bit then go for supper at the restaurant attached to the motel. The young man serving us is awkward and shy and very hard to understand. The menu has "wine" on it, so we ask what kind of wine it is. The young man says he doesn't know but will go ask the pub next door where the wine comes from. He returns after a bit and tells us, "It's red and white." We order beer.
The meal is ok, nothing more, but we're happy. Just before heading to bed, I check the sky outside. The fog is completely gone, and the stars are brilliant. I can even make out the Milky Way. Go figure.
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