My sister Beverly, her husband Jason and I (Dave didn't go on this trip which opened the opportunity for me to 'entertain' the Canadian fleet when they came into port) were greeted at the St. John's airport by our genial host/guide/naturalist/babysitter/etc., David Snow of Wildland Tours (yet another free plug - I'm getting soft in my advancing years). After checking in to our hotel we had dinner and called it a night.
The next day we took a taxi to Signal Hill which was the place where Marconi received the first Trans-Atlantic wireless signal in 1901. It also has offers a magnificent view of the harbor, ocean and coastline and has famous Cabot Tower as well as a representation of a 19th century battery barracks. We walked the 1.5 miles back to our hotel.
After lunch we waited for the arrival of Mavis from England and, after dinner David Snow had a slide presentation to introduce us to the highlights of our Whale Study Week.
This morning we went to Cape Spear the most easterly point of North America which sits on the opposite side of the harbor from Signal Hill and served as a lookout during the war. Due to heavy fog, we were unable to see the magnificent ocean views. We also went to see the world's only giant squid that has ever been captured alive. We know they exist because Sperm whales have been found with them in their stomachs. This speciman was caught by Italian fishermen but unfortunately they hacked it to death with an axe so it was badly damaged. It was over 30 feet long and the word "attractive" didn't come to mind. Even I looked good next to it!!! In the afternoon we went on a large whale/puffin watching boat and spent 2½ hours cruising around Bay Bulls.
The next day we set off on our first actual whale study excursion. We were on a 20' boat and left from Bay Bulls. The weather was sunny and cool and the water was a bit choppy. In our 6½ hours we saw a kazillion birds on the rocky cliffs many of whom still had chicks in the nest. There were Puffin, Kittiwakes, Guillemots, Gulls and Auks in countless numbers.
Needless to say the purpose of our trip was to photograph whale flukes (tails) for identification purposes and we were not disappointed. We saw several Fins, which are second only to Blues in size and many Humpbacks. The highlight of the day was having a 'friendly' Humpback who I named Casper. He/she stayed with us and a larger vessel for about an hour, swimming between the two boats. No matter how many times you see a whale the thrill never goes away, especially when one is within touching distance and seems to want to contact you. When Casper finally tired of playing with us I felt a sense of loss. They are fantastic . . .
With the choppy seas and being so close to the water, photographing the whales was a challenge (not to mention the heads of our fellow travelers popping up when trying to take a picture but I was able to get several good fluke and dorsal fin shots which I've forwarded to David for identification purposes. However, the water is so clear and these Atlantic Humpbacks' pectoral fins are white on top (the Pacific ones are grey) so spotting the whales was very easy.
The next day we went to St. Vincent's Beach which is probably the only place in the world where you can see Humpbacks lunge feeding from shore. We weren't disappointed. These huge animals feed on sardine sized fish called Capelin which appear in schools so large, the water is black with them. All the whales have to do is open their mouths and they'll be filled with fish. It's quite a spectacular sight and we watched for over a hour.
We took a break and went to Cape Pine hoping to see vast herds of Caribou. The only herds we saw were way out in the distance but we did enjoy the magnificent scenic cliffs of the cape. While sitting on the cliffs David spotted several Minke whales beneath us and they were swimming on their backs then turning over cavorting in the beautiful, clear water. Minkes are small and fairly elusive so seeing them for such a long time was a treat for us all. We then drove back to St. Vincent's and watched some more lunge feeding.
The next day was another 6½ hours on the little boat and once again the whale gods smiled upon us and we saw more Humpbacks, Minkes and Fins. At one point we had four Fins around us at one time. Sadly, we didn't see Casper but the scenery and animals we did see almost made up for it.
The next day we visited the continent's third largest Gannet colony, Cape St. Marys. Not only are there tens of thousands Gannets but also at least four other varieties of seabirds most of whom had chicks. Here again the scenery is breathtaking (in spite of the fog). Another wonderful day in Newfoundland.
Although this was our last day with David, we spent an extra day and took a tour of fishing villages along the scenic coast. The highlight was at a marine biology study area where they have a touching tank with all kinds of marine critters . . . I was really surprised by how soft they were - especially the Sea Cucumber which I though would be rubbery. We stopped at the site here Pope John Paul II blessed the fleet.
Although I had seen most every place we visited when I was last in Newfoundland, I still enjoyed my return and am so glad I went. Newfoundland is a beautiful place with a variety of attractions and a wonderful place to visit and St. John's is one of my favorite cities.
GO TO PHOTOGRAPHS OF NEWFOUNDLAND, 2001
GO TO VANCOUVER
BACK TO MAIN PAGE
Email: o2bnuk@webtv.net