Puffins, Jellybeans and Monuments

At St. John's we were at the most easterly city in North America.  We came into port off the Atlantic Ocean on the northeast side of the Avalon Peninsula on Newfoundland Island in the Canadian province of Newfoundland and Labrador.  That's a whole lot of geographical information in just one sentence.   

To get to the harbor itself we passed through a long channel known as “The Narrows”, where there is a lighthouse and a couple of old gun batteries.  During WW2 there would have been a large chain strung across this bottleneck to stop large enemy ships, as well as anti-submarine and anti-torpedo nets below the water.  

The latter were added after a March 1941 attack by a German U boat on a steamer that was entering St. John’s harbor, luckily the sub’s torpedos got hung up in the defensive nets already in place. 

Years ago cod was king here as the fishermen set out from harbors and coves all around the island to fish on the Grand Banks, one of the richest fishing grounds in the world.  But in 1992 that all changed when Canada put a moratorium on cod fishing as the species stock collapsed.  35,000 fishermen and plant workers were suddenly out of work.

Newfies, as the locals call themselves, had to find work elsewhere.  Many stayed with the sea and began to fish crustaceans, especially lobster, instead.

You know you're in Canada when every sign or monument is in both English and French.

When I did my research, one source I read said that we might be greeted dockside by a pack of leashed Newfoundland dogs.  The only one we saw was this beauty with its owner there to greet us.

We headed off to the Alt Hotel to meet our shuttle to get out to our puffin and whale watching tour.  The actual shuttle bus was completely full when we arrived but we were assured there was a school bus on the way to pick us up.  Riding on this type vehicle was a first for this trip, and the first time that I've ever seen one that was a "Citywide Taxi & Bus Service".

We drove for about 40 minutes through some lovely, pine filled country, with the occasional farm, to get out to Bay Bulls where Gatherall's is located.

This family owned company was taking us out on the water for what they called their "Puffin Palooza" tour.

We boarded our boat to sail into Witless Bay and then to circle Gull Island, part of the Witless Bay Ecological Reserve, where hundreds of thousands of sea birds nest each year.

My thanks to Mark Sweetman for most of the wildlife pictures in this post, his camera is much better than my phone.  As we headed out to the island a pair of Bald Eagles were pointed out to us.

This pair are permanent residents of the area.

Another lighthouse sits atop the rocky shores where most rugged outcrops are covered with bird guano.

The rocks here are laced with iron oxide, giving them the red tint.  This one had a rainbow hue to it with all the colors.

Just a selfie from the stern of the boat.

As we got nearer Gull Island there were hundreds of puffins circling above, flying out to sea to fish.  The largest colony of puffins in North America can be found here this time of year.

Under these small bumps in the hillside are the puffin nests.  They burrow in to lay their egg to keep it safe from the predatory gulls and other sea birds.  See all the gulls sitting patiently on the hill?   They are waiting to steal fish from the puffins who bring them back to feed their chicks.

Just so you can see the difference, this photo is mine, the rest are Mark's. :)

The puffins are only six to eight inches tall.  They fish for the capelin that live in the cold waters of the North Atlantic, bringing multiple small fish back in their beaks.  Puffins are excellent divers and can stay under water for about 30 seconds, using their wings to propel themselves and their feet as rudders as they fish.

They will spend most of the year out at sea, floating like this.  It's only during mating season, May through September, that they come to Gull Island and live on land.

It's also only during mating season that their beaks are large and colorful like this little one has here.

Puffins struggle to get airborne.  They are super fast once they get going, which is why it was hard to get a good photo.  To keep themselves aloft their wings will beat 400 times per minutes.

A chick will stay hidden in the nest until they are ready to fledge, to fly on their own.  The parents, who mate for life, will continue to feed them until they know they are ready to fly, then they abandon the chick, and the nest, heading out to sea.

Chicks will usually fledge at night to avoid predators.  They will head to sea themselves for four years, until they reach sexual maturity when they will return to where they were born, sporting an orange bill to find a mate of their own.

Just a couple more photos, this one with the puffins in their natural habitat, floating and fishing,

and another from Bob, where he caught a puffin taking off on camera.  I'm lucky to have friends with excellent photo skills who share their talents.

Other birds on the island included the murres, who look like small penguins but aren't related to them in any way.

They too only come to land to nest, spending most of the year at sea.

The other type of bird we saw on the island were long necked cormorants.  It really was a paradise for watching seabirds.  The hope is that the capelin will stay plentiful so that the birds will as well.

We were also lucky enough to see a couple of dolphins doing a little bow riding.  Thanks to Jane for this photo!

Speaking of Jane, she was a good sport and went along with Karl's search for fresh lobster for lunch, despite her strong dislike of fish in general, and things that have to be cracked open in particular.

She did warn the lobsters in this tank that one might be meeting its Waterloo soon, not knowing at that point that Karl's plan was

to eat not one lobster, but two.  Jane was hoping they were best friends so that at least they went together.  Karl totally enjoyed every bite.  Our waitress said he was only the second person she'd ever served who ordered more than one lobster.

I had some delicious lobster mac and cheese, which I enjoyed but couldn't finish, just too big a portion.   While we were having lunch we found out our schedule had changed again and that we would be staying overnight in St. John's, which gave us more time to explore the city.

As we wandered through town there were multiple businesses that had these signs welcoming us to town.  Newfies are well known for their friendliness and they did not disappoint when it came to kindness.

These were the best of the street art I saw in town.

After seeing the real thing earlier we visited the statues of the two dog breeds who originated here in Newfoundland and Labrador.  They aren't sure where the first gentle giant of the Newfoundland breed came from but it is known they came here with fishermen and adapted to the climate, having a double-layered waterproof coat, webbed toes, and a large tail that acts as a rudder when they swim. 

I never knew it but the Labrador Retriever is a descendant of a Newfoundland and an English Setter or Pointer mix, creating a smaller dog that still had the main features of a Newfoundland.   Their gentleness and loyalty have made them one of the world's most popular breeds.

Three flags fly at the war memorial in St. John's, the Canada flag top, Union Jack below, and the Newfoundland/Labrador flag at the bottom.

The war memorial commemorates the service of men and women from Newfoundland, as well as the courage of the residents here, in times of war since WW1.

St. John's has had its great fires in the past, as have so many other cities, the latest here in 1892, so you find a lot of architectural styles here.  The most colorful place in town is called Jellybean Row where the houses are all sorts of vibrant hues with brightly contrasting doors.  There are even mailboxes all over town that recreate them, as well as all kinds of souvenirs with their image.

According to Jane's research there was an initiative in the 1970's to liven up the area with the bright colors and residents continue to embrace it today creating really fun streets to photograph.

We continued our climb upwards towards the Signal Hill National Historic Site.  The hill was used to send signals to the surrounding area for over 200 years.  Signal Hill is most famous for being the spot where Guglielmo Marconi received the first transatlantic wireless telegraph message from Cornwall in 1901, proving that radio waves could travel the curvature of the earth.  

A view of the harbor and Serenade behind me.  The weather couldn't decide if it was going to be sunny or rainy, something I suspect often happens in St. John's.  One moment I could take my jacket off, the next the drizzle was spitting again, but you could always count on wind.

We were most surprised to see a couple up there taking bridal photos, not an optimum day for formal wear, especially a sleeveless gown.  Notice how the photographer is all bundled up!  Jane and I felt sorry for the poor bride.

At the very top of the hill is Cabot Tower, which we didn't make the climb up to as we needed to get back to the ship.  In 1762 this was the site of the final battle of the Seven Year’s War between the British and French which made the victorious Brits the dominant European power in North America at the time.  The tower itself was built between 1897 and 1900 to honor Queen Victoria’s Diamond Jubilee as well as commemorate the 400th anniversary of John Cabot’s voyage of discovery.  It served as a flag signaling tower from 1900-1958. 

Back down at the waterside we saw the inspirational monument for Terry Fox, a Canadian national hero.  In 1980 he had a leg amputated due to cancer and decided to then run across Canada to raise awareness and money for cancer research.   After 143 days and 3,338 miles the cancer forced him to stop, but made him a national hero.  A Terry Fox Run is now held annually in 60 countries and continues to raise millions.

Back on Serenade we hustled to the theater to watch our beloved Whitney Drake perform her one woman show.  This womanl is a true performer who had everyone singing along and dancing in front of their seats.  Our favorite shows are always the ones with the Royal Singers.

Winds and seas were calmer the next morning as we sailed away at 8:00 a.m.

The houses looked so pretty nestled against the hillside,

this one was especially nice.

The gulls were waiting on the rocks and soon gave us a flying send off.

While we waved goodby to others along the way, this lone watcher atop the rocks stood silently as we passed, then turned to go on with his day.  I think that's kind of the way it works in Newfoundland, they take things as they come, doing what they need to do to make life good.  Thanks for sharing your kindness and lovely land Newfies!