For those questioning whether to travel Newfoundland/Labrador, do it! We're in 15th day and soon to depart but have had really terrific experiences I feel compelled to share. Perhaps the most help was getting the Newfoundland/Labrador Travel guide & map available from the tourist site. (Once here, we found the ? Info Sites quite helpful as well).
We took ferry to Argentia (yes, it was long but worth it),traveled the Avalon, up the coast to Cape Spear, into St. John's, out to some coasts, north to tip and across to coast of Labrador, back through Gros Morne and now in Codroy Valley. Have had cell coverage most of time (Verizon Wireless which permitted us to get a Canada plan for a period so no charge per minutes in Canada or between Canada/US). Have had WiFi in a no. of campgrounds, at the campsite. So, our family members say they've learned so much in traveling vicariously with us as we have downloaded pictures & sent back home regularly as we travel. And we've been able to communicate well, important for us as today was our grandson's first day of school but we got pictures from them too and got to hear him say it was "awesome."
Didn't see sun for a no. of days when we first arrived, with drizzle and fog and cool, but that didn't dampen the experience much--just caused us to use more layers than anticipated. But, when my southern sister saw picture of us with hooded sweatshirt over sweatshirt over long sleeve shirt, she said it sounded better than traveling there in summer where no way to get comfortable! Have seen awesome sights, met wonderful, helpful people, enjoyed trying Newfoundland foods and some festivals (at Carbonnear & Bakeapple in Labrador)and liked especially the following campgrounds: 1--Argentia Sunset Park very near ferry, because we got there at 2 in the morning and they greeted us and helped us to site even in heavy fog; 2-great views, including whales, from our camper window at Celtic Rendezvous at Bauline East; 3--Beothuck CG at Grand Falls-Windsor where the nice people let us hook up to electric next to building (and we had WiFi) when we arrived late without reservations and they didn't have a site; 4--Gros Morne RV (private) at Rocky Harbour where we had private site, WiFi, nice laundry, even a covered cooking area if you wanted; 5--Oceanside RV at Por au Choix, right down at the shore--owned by Lion's Club and helpful Lions; 6--Grand Codroy RV/Tent with nice sites, laundry, WiFi, nice people.
We just returned from a 5wk trip to NL and echo your sentiments. It was by far, the best trip we have taken to date. We also stayed at Celtic Rendevous for a few nights. Even though it was just a parking lot, although with a spectacular view, it turned out to be one of our best stops of the entire trip. This was due to the like minded campers who just happened to all arrive at the same time. We shared the lot with about 10 other RV's that turned out to be amazingly friendly people from all walks of life, all ages and from all over North America. It was a great experience.
P.S. The pic of Norris Point reminded me of the fantastic aquarium tour we enjoyed at the Memorial University sattelite campus!
We went to NFL & Labrador in June. It was a wonderful trip and we hope to go back when the Labrador Hiway is completed. We had a 9 hour delay for our ferry crossing at North Sydney, as a result we met several other R.V'ers. We kept encountering each other in NFL, camped together, had dinner, etc. In addition to the local folks being so friendly, we kept running into "old friends", making it one of our best camping experiences ever.
Is Bauline East close to Bell Island? Is it a campground? For some reason
we never made it to the end of the Peninsula. I feel another trip coming
up......
Bauline East is a town on east coast, off Route 10, not too far south of St. John's & Cape Spear, just south of Witless Bay area. The campground sites areat Celtic Rendezvous by the Sea which also has cottages and some rooms. Check: www.celticrendezvouscottages.com
Found the Traveller's Guide for Newfoundland and Labrador immensely helpful--available free for asking on the tourism website. Some of the campgrounds listed were not listed in our other campground directory.
The provinces do a really professional job of tourist info, I think. And, you're right about the increased interest in Labrador as the roads get developed there. One of the Labrador ladies we talked with about their work ethic, great attitude, and pride in their land indicated she expected that only to increase as more people can travel their area.
We did 2 months there last year and would strongly suggest anyone doing the trip purchase a detailed map book called “Atlantic Canada Back Road Atlas”. I believe we got ours at a Canadian Tire store and it is published by MapArt. It shows all the roads nd a lot of the attractions. It was invaluable to us. We also had a GPS in both the motorhome and toad.
It was a great trip and we look forward to doing it in another 3 to 4 years.
Lonnie and Sue
2007 HR Ambassador 40'
2008 Chevy Colorado Z71 4x4 Crew Cab
West Texas, Retired
Fulltimers. No more grass to cut, no more leaves to rake, and can move if we don't like our neighbors.
States we spent time in, drive throughs not marked.
We found our GPS was somewhat helpful but, as you indicate, it was outdated in a no. of spots. For example, we were told we'd be on unpaved road twice when we were not and maps were already up to date. We didn't do a lot of dependency on it though we used it some. Even in New Brunswick where are now, the GPS showed us off the road for a long distance when we were on an apparently relatively new Highway 2 along the St. John's River.
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