Bonavista's Best - an Unforgettable B&B Experience!

Bonavista's Best - an Unforgettable B&B Experience!

Rear view and entrance to the Harbourview B&B

As most travelers will attest, accommodation can either make or break a vacation. When we stayed for several nights in Bonavista, we certainly hit the jackpot!

Our friends, John and Dianne Burns (house/pet sitters extraordinaire), had recommended this B'n'B, and we'll be forever grateful to them for doing so. 

Harbour View Bed & Breakfast is aptly named, and is nicely situated so that many of the local attractions are within walking distance, or accessible by a short car ride. 

There are four rooms to choose from, and we just loved #3. (We'll be booking the same room for our next visit - already being planned)! As well, there is a lovely sitting room, with communal T.V., a music room that is sometimes used to entertain guests, and a laundry room that was also available to us. 

Sitting room, with T.V.

Artwork graces several walls in the B&B

The Music Room

Dining Room

After a long day of exploration, it was wonderful to return to the comfort of our room, with its delightful sitting area at the window overlooking the harbour, and a nice comfy bed to rest our weary bodies ready for the adventures of the next day. The ensuite bathroom was perfect for our needs, and gave us the privacy that we prefer.

Great sitting area, overlooking the harbour

Wonderfully comfortable Queen-sized bed

Colleen and Terry are the perfect hosts. They bent over backwards to ensure that our stay was the very best. The breakfasts were delicious, and Colleen connected with each guest, the night before, to ask what our choices would be for the following morning; and what an amazing range of choices!! From moose sausages (or bacon) and eggs, to fluffy pancakes with homemade compote, waffles with maple syrup or molasses, toast and home-made jams, as well as a parfait of yogurt and fresh fruit which was available every morning, we felt we were being personally spoiled! On two occasions, Colleen delighted us with Toutons - a Newfoundland speciality - filled with a mixture of brown sugar and cinnamon. 

All Set for Breakfast

Home-made jams and preserves. My favourite was partridgeberry

We liked that there were 4 options of when breakfast was served, but that they overlapped so that we could interact with other guests. Unlimited coffee, tea, and/or juice was a very welcome start to the day, and they made sure that our cups didn't grow cold!

Something that is unusual in this type of accommodation - and, therefore, setting it apart - was the nighttime snack, which was amazing! Each night, we were asked about our choices for the following night, and they were personally labeled and were to be found on the table and, when appropriate, in the fridge. A variety of dips were served with cubes of fresh bread, including crab - a real treat for Mark! Cheese, crackers, and grapes were available for those, like me, who have an allergy to shellfish/seafood. To top everything off, there was always a couple of scrumptious desserts (made by Colleen or her mom) to finish the repast. (The pineapple pie is to die for!!!) 

All Set for Nighttime Snacks

We loved the personal touch, with our name on the label, together with a smiley face!

Each plate was personalized, according to the choice made the evening before

Love the smiley faces by the names - a nice touch!

All this being said, the real jewels of this B&B are Colleen and Terry, themselves. 

Colleen and Terry - Awesome hosts!

Both retired R.C.M.P. officers, they run this establishment with efficiency and zest. They both have warm and winning personalities that make you feel like family, not just passing guests. Terry has a wicked sense of humour, and Colleen's laugh is infectious. Needless to say, we had a lot of fun over the 5 nights we stayed there. 

Unknown to me, Mark had conspired with Colleen (at her request, apparently) to surprise me on my birthday. We had spent an amazing day out and didn't get back to the B&B until around 8:00 p.m. Colleen and Terry, together with all the other guests, sprung the surprise upon me as soon as we entered! A birthday cake was produced, and we all sat down for our nighttime snack, sharing stories, jokes, personal experiences, as well as travel discoveries. 

Surprize, Surprize!

Terry and Colleen then invited us into the music room where they entertained us with their musicianship. Colleen played the piano, and Terry (who had been in a band a few years prior), played the guitar and sang. It was a soirée to remember! They really pulled out the stops for us.

Refreshments in between performances!

This rendering of John Lennon's 'Imagine' was really sweet!

'Sweet Caroline' had us all joining in with the chorus

An amusing start to our stay was ushered in while Colleen was familiarizing us with the routines and amenities upon our arrival. We were standing in the entrance hall and she had just greeted us. At one point, she told us that, for our own comfort, there were two ducts in our room. 

We are not sure if it was her endearing accent, or our excitement interfering with our hearing, but Mark and I both heard different things. Mark had heard that there would be two dogs in our room and was thinking that, although we like dogs, why would there be two in our room? I had heard that there would be two ducks in our room - and was also thinking, 'How would two ducks add to our comfort level?'

Colleen saw the perplexed expressions on our faces, and repeated the information. We looked at each other and finally asked, 'Two ducks?" - at which she laughed and spelled out the word, 'ducts', and that they were for the heating so that we could adjust things for our own comfort! Of course, we all guffawed at this, and we heard her glorious laugh for the first time! That's when we fell in love with her!

All in all, it turned out to be our favourite accommodation of our entire visit to Newfoundland, and we are thrilled that we'll be staying in touch with them. 

In our opinion, no stay-over in Bonavista would be complete without availing yourself of the hospitality and friendliness that you would experience at Harbour View B&B!

A final note!

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Here's the link to their website:  Harbourview Bed & Breakfast Ltd.

... and their Facebook page.  

"Walk For Samantha" - A Remarkable Young Man is Making the Trek Across Canada!

"Walk For Samantha"

 A Remarkable Young Man is Making the Trek Across Canada!

We were really fortunate to have met Neil - an amazing young man with a huge heart!

We often speak about how fortunate we are to continue meeting the nicest of people. Occasionally, we are truly blessed to meet someone who inspires us with their brand of heroism.

Some of you may remember that, just under a year ago, we encountered a young man who was cycling across Canada to raise awareness for Mental Health. (Here's the link to the blog that we published regarding that occasion:

Ryan Martin - a Hero in the Making

Ryan raised more than $120,000 for the Canadian Mental Health Association, and is now the national lead of youth advocacy and philanthropy with the CMHA. He regularly speaks publicly about his illness and helps youth who struggled as he did. Ryan is not cured - he still has bi-polar disorder - but he has learned how to better manage his mental health. He continually inspires others by his example.

Today, we were blessed to have met another individual, whose story is very different, but whose decision is set to affect the lives of many others, and who will inspire other young people to come forward to do great things.

We were traveling from Cow Head to Twillingate, along Newfoundland Highway 1, when we came upon a sight which intrigued us. A young man, with a heavy backpack, was pushing a cart with what looked like camping equipment. As we passed by, we saw a sign with the words, 'Walking for Samantha' that really caught our attention. We googled those words and found out about the tragic story of a young woman, 35 years of age, who was involved in a car collision, just in front of this young man as he was traveling along a highway in Ontario. He rushed to the car, but she was trapped beyond his reach and he suffered the experience of watching her die. 

Neil Hamilton was traumatized by the experience and it played havoc with his mental health, causing job loss and the collapse of relationships. 

18 months later, still thinking of the stranger he could not save, Neil decided to hike across Canada to raise awareness around post traumatic stress disorder and solicit donations for local mental health organizations in each province as he travels through the country. He is calling it his 'Walk for Samantha'. (You can read about this at this link: Worth Sacrificing Everything).

We immediately turned our car around, stopped just past where he had reached and crossed the road to chat with him. We got his permission to film him as he tells the story of his decision to walk across the country. We'll let him speak in his own words: 

After spending just a few minutes with this incredible young man, we knew that he would be the last one to describe himself as a hero; nevertheless, to us, he was exactly that! He represents the very best of our Canadian youth and we knew we were in the presence of someone with a huge heart and love of his fellow human beings. 

Before we left him, Mark commented that, with young people like Neil and Ryan, he felt that the future of Canada was secure!  

I couldn't agree more!

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Neil intends to raise awareness and funding in every province through which he travels, assisting local organizations as he works his way through the country. Please do not feel under any pressure from us (or anyone else) to donate. 

To find out which charity the 'Walk for Samantha' is linked with in your province, follow Neil on Instagram:

neilhamilton91  

If you would like to donate to his cause in Newfoundland, please visit: https://www.canadahelps.org/en/charities/south-and-central-health-foundation/

and use the drop down menu to choose the fund, 'Walk for Samantha'. 

It looks like this: 

Rum with Walter - A True Newfoundland Experience!

Rum with Walter - A True Newfoundland Experience!

Friday, June 7th, 2019

So, today, we had an amazing experience which has left us feeling gobsmacked! 

We were in Daniel's Harbour to take a picture of NurseBennett's home (we had seen the play about her in Elliot Lake, last year). 

We saw a driveway that went to the edge of a cliff to take a picture of the beautiful coastline. It was right next to a neat bungalow with a big lawn, separated from us by a fence. We were about to turn the car around to leave, when we saw a little dog come right up close to the car. We were worried about running it over, so I got out of the car and started fussing her to get her away from the car.

Just then, a man in his early 60's came out and spoke to us. At first, I thought he was going to tell us off for being on his property. Instead, he asked us where we were heading and then said, 'Come and join me for a glass of rum!'

We had heard about the friendliness of the Newfoundlers and had witnessed it over and again since we've been here. This, however, was taking things to the next level, so we accepted his kind invitation.

We introduced ourselves and found out his name was Walter. He took us into his home, took out a bottle of rum, some coke, some ice, and two glasses, and told us to fix our drink the way we liked it.

After we'd done that, he brought two chairs out on the lawn, next to his, and we spent nearly an hour chatting with him, while overlooking the Gulf of St. Lawrence and playing catch with Maddy, the cute two-year-old standard poodle.

Maddy, having a rest after playing fetch!

He was such a kind gentleman and at one point, he asked us where we lived, in Ontario. When we told him, a smile spread across his face, and we were astounded to find out that, as a 17 year old lad, he had worked (above ground) in the mines in Elliot Lake! Talk about a small world!!!

He told us that he had been born in Daniel's Harbour, and had lived there all of his life. We asked the inevitable question, and - yes- he shared that he had known Nurse Bennett personally, how she had pulled his tooth as a young boy, and how she had fixed a couple if injuries he had had over the years!!! We were mesmerized.

He told us about his family, proudly showing us some photos of his children, grandchildren, and lovely wife, and how he was sad to be leaving his home for the next 4 years to work in Labrador City, only getting home for holidays.

Looking out across the view from his home, we could relate perfectly as to why he would not want to leave. Just an hour before we had arrived, he had been watching a whale from his own lawn! It was truly a little piece of paradise.

I can truly say that, apart from the spectacular scenery and amazing wildlife we have seen, we have discovered the real treasure of Newfoundland...and that's the people! Walter exemplified all the wonderful things we had heard about Newfoundlanders!

This will be an experience we shall never forget.
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(Permission was obtained from Walter to post all pictures and the movie clip)

Clicking on words/phrases hilited in blue will take you to more information about the subject hilited.

A Gorgeous Gorge!

A Gorgeous Gorge!

Over the last year and a half, our friends had been telling us about the beauty of Newfoundland, knowing that we were planning a vacation here. We'd also seen video clips online; but we were not prepared for the astonishing vistas which have presented themselves to us - even on these first few days. Just when it seems that we have seen something spectacular, we turn a corner and another view leaves us breathless!

Last Sunday was no exception!

Mark had booked us onto a boat tour of Western Brook Pond, billed as a landlocked fjord in Gros Morne National Park. 

Gros Morne National Park is probably the best known one in Newfoundland

We had to drive for half an hour from our cabin, in Rocky Harbour, to the parking lot. The coastal drive was awesome, with the Gulf of St. Lawrence on our left, and the mountains on our right. 

From there, we had a 45 minute walk to the dock where the boat was moored, ready for the first of its two tours. 

The 45 minute trail winded its way through bush and small bodies of water

Our first view of the gorge up close

The walk, itself, was interesting as we followed the gravel trail. We noticed so many of the bushes had been windswept and Mark told me that he had looked them up and that they were called, tuckamore trees. (It's so good to be continually learning new things about the world in which we live). 

We ate our picnic overlooking the 'pond', and the opening to the gorge beyond a spit. While waiting for the call to board, we got chatting with a group of people from B.C., and compared our traveling experiences. 

The ferry was docked at the end of the pier

We arrived at the dock area a good hour before the boat tour was due to start

Once on board, we found a seat on the upper deck and got ourselves ready for the trip. We had been advised to wear warm clothing but, at the beginning, it was quite warm before we got out onto the open lake. 

The scenery was magnificent and we marveled at how the treed mountain-sides seemed to plunge directly into the water. The highest peaks reach 2000 feet.

I noticed the reflection almost creating the letter X (marking the spot!)

Carter, our guide, explained about rockslides and how they had affected the terrain. 

He also pointed out some interesting shapes on the mountain sides.

You can see this sleeping man facing the 11:00 o'clock corner of the photo

Just to the left of the centre, you can see the 'Tin Man'!

He also told us how the lake was only fed by melting surface ice and snow, even though there were numerous waterfalls in the surrounding gorge. 

The captain took the boat in very close to these first falls - so much so, that the passengers on the lower deck found themselves showered by the spray - much to their delight as was evidenced by squeals and laughter that emanated from below! 

Carter informed us that, technically, this was not a true fjord because a fjord is comprised of salt water, and this body of water got cut off from the sea when the land re-emerged after the glaciers melted. The remaining salt water was flushed from the fjord and it is now completely constituted by fresh water, thus defining it, more accurately, as a gorge. This fact did not minimize its dramatic landscape!

Almost at the innermost part of the gorge, the so-called, 'Pissing Mare Falls' were a sight to behold!


(N.B. to watch video clips on full screen mode, click the small square at the bottom left of the clip). 

After an hour and a half, the boat was turned and we made our way back to this impressive entrance to the gorge.

On the way back, they started to pipe some music over the loudspeaker - of course, it was traditional Newfoundlander songs - some of which we had heard, but there were many new ones. 

Mark really got into the mood... 

After a while, Carter took to the helm and led the singing, accompanying with spoons and tambourine, which he shared among some of those whom he 'voluntold' to participate! It was a a wonderful way to finish the tour. 

It was an awesome day, in all respects!