GROS MORNE NATIONAL PARK – BONNE BAY BOAT TOUR.
Day 140 – Today we took a boat tour of Bonne Bay. We had reserved two places aboard the 10 a.m. cruise. The weather was good, a little hazy, but warm and mostly sunny with little wind. We took this boat ride in 2019 and enjoyed it. We were surprised when we arrived at the parking lot and found that a group of 38 passengers from a bus tour would be taking the same boat tour.
We’d gotten to the Norris Point BonTours dock on time, but the bus load were already lined up to get on the boat. We joined them in line. The boat was packed; we got one of the last two seats remaining on the outside deck. If we’d had to sit indoors, it would’ve been a drag, for sure! Now we know to inquire in advance as to how many people were signed up for boat tours before we book.
The people from the bus tour were, of course, very nice. Mostly seniors, they were from several different provinces within Canada, and for many this was probably the trip of a lifetime for them. We were lucky to have done the boat ride before, so taking pictures wasn’t as important to us – since often when we were ready to take a shot, someone would stand up right in front of us.
The scenery was very nice with great views of the Bay, the small villages & towns that line the Bay, and the surrounding mountains of Gros Morne National Park. We had excellent views of Tablelands and the amazing, ancient, rocky cliffs. Close to the end of the tour, the bus tour passengers were dropped off in Woody Point to have lunch at a restaurant there. Their bus was waiting for them in the parking lot. All six of us that were not on the bus tour got excellent viewpoints on the uncrowded upper deck on the way back to the BonTours dock. Yesterday, when Rob and I were in Woody Point, we took a picture of the BonTours boat going by on yesterday’s tour. They weren’t crowded at all. Luck of the draw.
We drove around Neddy Harbour, a nice little town, and stopped at the Neddie’s Harbour Inn to make Friday reservations for dinner at the Black Spruce Restaurant. The restaurant turned out to be one of our favorite places to have dinner in 2019. We definitely wanted to go back.
We stopped for lunch at a small cafe that had gotten good reviews for their breakfasts & lunches. The Old Store Cafe in Norris Point, only a few minutes from BonTours, was excellent. They had a small chalkboard menu, and everything we ordered was great. You order at the counter and they bring the food to you – very casual. They offered various coffees and espressos, several breakfast items, several salads, a daily soup, various panini & sandwiches, and baked goods. After lunch we drove around Norris Point, stopping in at the Sugar Hill Inn to make reservations at their restaurant, Chanterelles, for tomorrow night. Chanterelles is rated as a top dinner restaurant, also.
With the next couple of night’s dinners successfully arranged, we drove into the bigger town, Rocky Harbour, to run a couple of errands. We stopped at the Post Office to arrange to pick up our mail next week. It is being forwarded from the mail-forwarding service in Florida. When we were in Port au Choix, we unsuccessfully attempted to buy fresh fish from their fish plant. We were directed to the fish plant in Rocky Harbour which was supposed to have plenty of fish for sale. We stopped at the wharf in Rocky Harbour and found they were closed for the season. Guess we’ll have to try elsewhere.
We drove to Lobster Cove Head Lighthouse. We’d been there before and had enjoyed walking around the grounds. They have an interpretive centre, also. Their parking lot was full. Busy, busy. We did stop and walk around but we didn’t stay long – too crowded. We drove back to the RV and Rob went out to the tent to read. I stayed inside in the air conditioning. It had become hot and muggy, plus I just didn’t want to go out to the tent yet with the bug nightmare fresh in my mind. Rob took a nap, then woke up too hot and came inside. Summer has finally arrived? Just the other day we thought fall was coming….
