LABRADOR – LABRADOR TO NEWFOUNDLAND.
Day 140 – Is it wise to take a ferry trip across the Strait of Belle Isle on Friday the 13th? From what we’ve read, fishermen are very superstitious, and they don’t like to go out on Friday the 13th. As it turned out, we were wise to take the ferry from Labrador to Newfoundland today. (We found this out on Saturday when the ferry crossings were cancelled due to high winds in the Strait. The ferry remained in Newfoundland & didn’t cross. We would’ve had to wait several more days to leave due to the back-up caused by the cancellation.)
18 miles, (4:15), 42451-42469
We didn’t have to be at the ferry terminal until noon, so we hung out at the campground & didn’t rush to finish packing up. It was 40 degrees and sunny when we got up this morning. A gorgeous day with very little wind. We departed for the ferry terminal at 11:40, got there in plenty of time to get our tickets, and got in line for the wait until our 1 p.m. departure. The ferry hadn’t arrived yet with its passengers from St. Barbe, NF. There was another ferry – a huge freight & cargo ferry – in port, so while we ate our lunch in the RV, we watched the ferry being first unloaded, then loaded back up for its next journey. Meanwhile, the line-up for the passenger ferry was growing longer and longer. We were glad we’d made reservations; those with reservations have priority; after they board, it’s first-come first-served based on the time you arrived to get in line (you are assigned a number). The ferry was still trying to catch up from the time period it was in safe harbor for the hurricane.
Blanc Sablon to St. Barbe Ferry, Blanc Sablon, QC
Loading the freight ferry, Blanc Sablon, QC
Our ferry arrived at the terminal late. Then it had to dock and unload all the cars, trucks, and passengers before we could all board for our trip. Getting all those huge trailer trucks off & on the ferries is quite a task. It keeps you occupied to watch the whole procedure. Then there’s the various sizes of campers, RV’s, vans (large & small), and cars & trucks towing everything from a tiny teardrop trailer to ATV vehicles to boats to camper trailers. Oh, and let’s not forget the huge tour buses. They have to juggle where to put each size (length & height) vehicle so as to best fill two layers of ferry to the max. All on a short time limit. We departed 35 minutes late, which was a miracle in itself, considering. It was 55 degrees and sunny. Rob & I sat outside most of the trip.
Ferry Dock, St. Barbe, NF
We arrived in Newfoundland at the St. Barbe ferry terminal at 3:10 p.m. Once everyone returned to their vehicles and disembarked, we stopped for gas and headed north on Route 430 to Flower’s Cove, arriving at our campsite at 3:55 p.m., (56 degrees, still sunny but some clouds were coming in & winds were about 15 MPH). There were no official campgrounds on the northwest coast of Newfoundland above St. Barbe. But last time we drove through Flower’s Cove, we saw a sign for free RV Parking, sponsored by the Town. This parking lot was on the end of a peninsula surrounded on three sides by the Strait of Belle Isle. There was an old, no-longer-used fishing dock & an old building located there, nothing else. Just pull up and park anywhere, it’s free; there are no services whatsoever. But we had filled with potable water in Labrador & had dumped the other tanks. Perfect – we have a generator & can operate on batteries. We set up camp & watched the sunset. We were joined by two other campers later, an RV about our size & a fancy new camper van. By then, the wind was picking up. Well, at least there were no bugs!
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