P.E.I. or New Foundland?

[bdsaint13]

planning NF this summer, end of july into august. Weather averages online say temps range from 55f to 75f. Do I trust these? And how bad is the rain/wind this time of year? Do the storms last for days or do they come and go quickly? Normally I dont care but on this trip the wife is venturing out with me.

[JimmieA]

As a general statement you could say Sept. has nicer weather in the Atlantic Provinces. This is mainly due to less rain and still warmish weather. Could be a littler colder at night. Early in the summer can be rainy. As a general statement NFLD. will be colder than the mainland, more wind as well. Regards to your NFLD. trip you could focus on one area of the island, say the west coast and see that better than all the island. Make sure to make reservations to and from on the ferry and watch out for moose after dark. A lot of people try to cross at night and it can be worth it to get a bunk if you do that. Otherwise sleeping on a bench/chair can be a problem. From the boat there isn't much to see and it isn't exactly warm weather on the North Atlantic. The highlight of the trip will be the hundreds of small fishing villages and the people are really friendly. They call it the rock for a reason too.

[EvilClown]

Hands down, NFL. The Alaska of the East coast, I call it.

Originally Posted by hammerhoot

I think I like that idea, go to P.E.I. and then a ferry to New Foundland

If you insist on PEI, do it on the return. If you come to your senses and end up deciding to spend more time in NFL instead, PEI is easier to reach in a later trip. If you miss it, just look at the farms you'll see in other areas of your journey.

Ferry service could make this decision for you, btw. Good to give them contact info that they can reach you while on the road. Our ferry over was actually several hours early as they were playing catch up due to a dead boat.

Best advice we got was reservations for a place before and after the ferry. Everyone getting off the late afternoon boat in Port aux Basques is thinking the same thing - 'find a room'. Imagine its the same for the long boat landing in Argentia but not sure what time it lands.


The rest of the time we just winged it and were fine. Labor Day time frame, btw.

In any event, have a blast!

[Pay Dirt]

Originally Posted by Pay Dirt

Just returned from visiting all of these wonderfull places and many more and the only regret was not being able to stay for much, much longer!!
Ixnay PEI, done that too and every moment you can get on the Rock is 10 fold better spent than on the potatoe patch!!
Quit your job if you must but allow at least 2 weeks on NFLD! that will just wet your appetite for the next visit!!
PD

I have heard this before somewhere!
Impossible to "count" on the weather on an island in the middle of the Atlantic but we had stunning weather for the most(your timing is perfect for the best odds) ,it ain't the rain ya gotta worry about, it's the moose!

PD

[EvilClown]

One other PEI consideration: when we went they let you on the island for free and charged you to get off. My understanding is the ferry is more expensive than the bridge. :KLR

YMMV

[dresda]

We've been over twice - I recommend taking the ferry to Port aux Basques in the late part of the day and stay at a hotel in PAB. If you do the night crossing GET A CABIN. Otherwise you end up with no sleep and nobody to talk to since they are all asleep in the cabins. Most boring night of my life.

The evening trip means you can get in a good day of riding to PAB, finish in ferry parking lot, (buy a sandwich in the Subway just outside the hole in the fence because the food on board was dismal when we crossed) then spend a happy evening chatting to people, arriving in PAB late in the evening, just in time to go to sleep.

Also TAKE A FOLDING UMBRELLA so when you spend two hours waiting in the rain to board the ferry you can stay a bit drier.

[EvilClown]

Originally Posted by dresda

...
Also TAKE A FOLDING UMBRELLA so when you spend two hours waiting in the rain to board the ferry you can stay a bit drier.

That right there is wisdom.

[dresda]

Originally Posted by EvilClown

That right there is wisdom.

Yeah, just because the expected departure time is say, 7:23pm doesn't mean you will even be on board by then since we are dealing with a ship and weather etc.

Its not like an inland river ferry where the ship arrives, the cars get off, new cars get on and it leaves. Things seem very unhurried and relaxed and nothing at all seems to happen then they start waving people to board and everyone gets on and ties the vehicles down then you go upstairs and bag a comfy seat by the window and you can wait and wait and wait.

[csisfun]

How many days in advance do you people think is necessary to book a ferry from North Sydney to Port-aux-Basque in order to get a spot?

[JimmieA]

The latest I have heard is the way over isn't the issue, it is the way home. Labour dispute, unhappy workers sort of thing. People have been stranded over there for days. Not so much of an issue on a motor bike but larger vehicles.

[bdsaint13]

Must sees in NFLD?

[dresda]

Originally Posted by bdsaint13

Must sees in NFLD?

Where should I start!

eta: Its worth a trip out to Rose Blanche. The thing about Newfoundland is that the scenery changes dramatically every 100kms or so. Its a really interesting road.

Cape St George, that penninsula south of Cornerbrook, you go through Stephenville to there there. Really beautiful. The Inn on the Cape is a wonderful B&B.

The Tablelands. Bonne Bay Road - The south shore of the river that runs through Gros Morne Park is spectacular - goes through the tablelands and ends in Trout River. There's a reasonable motel there and an excellent restaurant. And if you continue through there and go down the gravel roads the scenery continues to be spectacular. Not a loop though, you have to go out the way you came.

Grose Morne Park.

The north penninsula gets a bit boring after you turn right and start heading north again. Only go up there if you have TONS of time. We turned around at Daniel's Harbour.

Fogo Island, we stayed at Diane's Efficiency Units. A full 2 bedroom apartment with views in three directions and laundry facilities. Highly recommended.

Twillingate if you don't have time to go to Fogo.

The Bona Vista Penninsula. We stayed at the Sherwood Suites in Port Rexton (more 2 bedroom apartments, or motel rooms if you want). Beautiful scenery, close to the historic Trinity, good access to the fantastic boat tour of the abandoned outports - Rugged Beauty Boat tours. Really worth the time.

A trip around the Avalon Penninsula is great fun and St John's is gorgeous.

We plan to go back this year (our third trip there!!) and visit the Burin Penninsula, can't wait to get there.

ITS ALL GOOD!

(Well, the Baie Verte wasn't worth the three days we spent there but it was still fun).

[JimmieA]

The previous poster talked about Grose Morne National Park. The ride to it on the main road is like going through the Rockies but with ocean views thrown in. This is from Deer Lake to Rocky Harbour. In Rocky Harbour there is a hike up the Grose Morne Mountain which is nice, not that hard, there is also a boat trip in Bonne Bay Pond that is nice. Best to make reservations before you go, it is a hike to get to the boat. There is the Viking settlement way north at St. Anthony a half day ride at least. You could go across on the ferry to Labrador and make a half day return trip up the coast if you wanted. There can be ice bergs there and whales by the dozens at the right time of the year, when the Caplin are running. The Labrador road is paved to Red Bay. From Red Bay it is about 450 Km (could be more I forget) of gravel up the Trans Labrador Highway to Happy Valley/Goose Bay. I'm not recommending this trip to you but it is there if you wanted it. This is a new road only opened in the last 4 or so years. Never was a road there before that. This is totally remote country, no one lives there.

[Maggot12]

Lots of good info so far, i'll add, that once you get towards the Avalon Peninsula go south on hwy 90. Its a beautiful winding coastal drive that'll put you in the middle of a caribou herd, and the drive will bring you north into St. John's. Youll want to stop a few times for pics, so allow most of the day for this trek.

[kelsow]

PEI is nice. That's all I'll say.
Newfoundland is AMAZING!

Don't forget Port Au Port Peninsula as it has lots to see and doesn't take a lot of time.