We camped at Pippy Park Campground on a hill above St John's. There was a pond with lily pads populated with many frogs. They croaked so loud and deep that Buddy had to go over and investigate. We wish we would have recorded them but we did not. Investigation revealed that they were Green Frogs and thrive in ponds, lakes, and streams of Newfoundland.
The pond:
St John's is not a large city, the metropolitan area is about 1/4 the population of Knoxville, but we decided to take advantage of shuttle services for the bus tour we took on Wednesday and the boat tour on Thursday. The bus tour picked us up at the campground and the boat tour provided a shuttle service from the campground to the dock in Bay Bulls. We did drive around each day in the city exploring and finding places to eat and it was obvious that the street layout came about without any planning. Not only did the streets run in random directions, in the older section of town they were very narrow and difficult to navigate.
We enjoyed the combined bus tour that not only showed us sites of the city but took us to Cape Spear, Signal Hill, and a small harbor town named Petty Harbor. Our bus driver was Danny Breen, who was the mayor of St John's from 2017 to 2021. He was a high school teacher for 30 years before he got into politics and now retired and working for Legend Tours. He was born and raised in St John's and there wasn't much he didn't know about the area. He was a fantastic tour guide.
We first drove out to Cape Spear, the eastern most point in North America. The waters at Cape Spear are extremely dangerous due to powerful waves, strong currents, and unpredictable tides. Our tour guide made sure we observed the signs and did not veer off the path because the area is known for sneaker waves and rapidly changing conditions. There are two lighthouse, the historical one and the modern operational one.
Looking towards Ireland at Cape Spear from the Eastern Most Point in North America:
The historical lighthouse:
The active lighthouse:
After visiting Cape Spear we drove to Petty Harbor, a small harbor town of less than a 1000 people. Fishing is still a source of income for the village but many of the residents work in St John's. Petty Harbor has become a bedroom community for folks who seek a quite, laid back way of life. Down on the waterfront we spoke with a young lady who had four small children. The oldest was about 5 or 6. She said they come down to the harbor and the children talk to the fisherman when they arrive home after a day at sea. Her husband works in St John's and they purchased the old town store as a home. They converted it from the store and painted the exterior orange.
Petty Harbor viewed from the other side of the harbor.
Our tour guide:
Next on the tour was Signal Hill. Many think Signal Hill got its name because Marconi made the first transatlantic wireless communications from there but the name predates that event. Our tour guide told us that because you could see both the ocean and the city of St John's from signal hill a system of flags was developed to signal the merchants when a particular ship was headed to the harbor. Signal Hill and Cape Spear were both important military locations where large guns were located for defending the harbor of St John's.
Cabot Tower on Signal Hill:
View of the ocean from Signal Hill:
A view of St John's and the harbor from Signal Hill:
We ended the bus tour in downtown St John's. There was a mixture of architectural styles downtown including wood frame houses painted with bright multiple colors. Many of these colorful houses were in an area referred to as Jellybean Row. Stories say they were painted these bright colors so the owners could find them in the fog or when they were intoxicated. Our research indicates they were painted from left over paint from the boat building industry. The excess paint was not thrown out but used to paint houses. When one color ran out the next available color was used and the results was houses of multiple colors. Today the trend is continued because it has become a part of the St John's culture.
A section of Jellybean Row:
The following photos are other buildings downtown. Notice the contrast to Jellybean Row.
On Thursday we were picked up at the campground by a shuttle provided by the boat tour company. The driver was interesting and very talkative. She drove like a taxi driver in Southeast Asia. We spent time in Southeast Asia during the Vietnam War and often took a ride in a taxi. You basically held on tight and prayed. The horn was a significant and necessary part of the vehicle steering system. This description is a bit exaggerated as it applies to our driver, but the experience reminded us of riding a taxi in Southeast Asia. The driver suggested a local restaurant downtown near the harbor that was a favorite of locals. The name of the restaurant was "The Duke of Duckworth" and their specialty was fish-n-chips. After the boat tour we got our truck and made our way downtown in search of this restaurant. According to our GPS we were there but we could not find the restaurant. We noticed a young lady getting out of her car and ask her if she was local. When she replied in the affirmative we ask where the restaurant was. She pointed to a small sign and said if we walked down the stairs below the street level we would see "The Duke of Duckworth". We both ordered the fish-n-chips and they were hands down the best fish-n-chips we have ever ate.
Duke of Duckworth:
Fish-n-Chips at Duke of Duckworth:
Below is photo of us on the boat going out of the harbor. As you can see this time we brought the 500mm lens and were able to get better shots of the puffin.
Here is a photo of a ship at the dock where the boat tour embarked from. It is interesting because it carries rocks. You can see the large conveyor extending from the ship and there was another one on the other side. Our shuttle driver explained that the ship was loaded with rocks and then sailed over underwater cables ejecting the rocks on top of the cables to keep them secure on the bottom. We never knew there was such a thing.
Puffin up close with the 500mm:
There was some humpback whale activity but the whale never showed its tail. In the following video we placed on youTube the whale is following a group of dolphins.
https://youtu.be/RBrqiYPcgZc
