NEWFOUNDLAND – ANOTHER DRIVE TO SEE SMALL TOWNS.
Day 111 – It was 52 degrees this morning and breezy when we got up. We hung out for a bit, then packed our lunch & left for an exploratory drive. Almost daily the campground empties out & new campers arrive. There are only a couple of longer-stay campers here like us. We were curious who our new neighbors would be later when we got back to the campground. So far it’s been a variety of retired couples from different countries or provinces. We’ve had France, Switzerland, the U.S., Germany, and Canada (Newfoundland, Quebec, British Columbia, Alberta).
Rob took a walk this morning and saw a few Bald Eagles.
Bald Eagle, La Scie, NF
Bald Eagle, La Scie, NF
Herring Gull, La Scie, NF
Today we drove down several roads, dirt/gravel & paved, to some villages located at the end of these roads. Every single town we’ve been to that’s on the Ocean had a town dock or wharf, no matter how small the town was.We visited the following villages: Shoe Cove, Snooks Arm, Harbour Round, Brent’s Cove (beautiful), Woodstock, Pacquet, and Nipper’s Harbour. We saw the process of Squid Jigging. It’s the big deal right now because it’s in season. Each of the different fish have a season when they can be caught, we assume based on when they are the most plentiful. Fishermen are given a quota of how much of each kind of fish they can catch each season. We’ve seen many different kinds of fishing since we’ve been here, from different kinds of nets, to dragging, to long-lining, to jigging, to farming, to traps. Squid Jigging is different. Rather than the boats spreading out to fish, they congregate together in a bay and sit there. Then the fisherman turn a crank by hand to raise the jigging lures which are connected periodically along the line being wound in. The lures hook the squid and they are flung into the boat as the lures are taken up on the reel. For example, check out this video
Seeing it in person is just as strange-looking.
Click any picture below to see a slideshow.
Back in the afternoon, campers had left, more had arrived, some changed sites, and the rowdy ones returned – they’d left for two nights and now they were back – everyone else has been super quiet & friendly. We sat out in the tent. The weather was perfect; the high today was 71 degrees, mostly sunny, breezy. And once again, an incredible sunset.
Sunset, La Scie, NF
Sunset, La Scie, NF
Sunset, La Scie, NF
Wow! The squid fishing method used seems to be very efficient even though hand crank powered from a small boat. Squid deposited right into the boat on one side with the other side jig line being re-strung at the same time. Squid fishing is also common here on the west coast but typically done at night, shining lights on the water surface to attract the squid, which seems to be more productive than during the day. Have you sampled the local squid? Being caught and available that fresh, I’ll bet it’s great!