The great journey to Newfoundland!

    After touring Fort Louisbourg for the greater portion of the morning we drove the hour or so to Sydney, where we would take an evening ferry to Newfoundland. I had booked tickets weeks earlier somewhere in the prairies and I will not lie...they were pretty pricey! For one van and three passengers it was nearly $500! Not a price I would want to pay very often but for our complete cross-Canada trip is was necessary. We had 6 hours to spend in Sydney before our ferry came and unfortunately it turned out Sydney is more of a 1 hour city. Sydney is a basic port town with a few shops to wander through, we spent some time rummaging around in the used book store which I always enjoy doing. There were lots of young teenagers driving around in their barely running vehicles making me laugh to myself as it reminded me of my home town. By 5 o'clock we had run out of things to look at and decided to all lounge in our home (the van) and read our novels. We were laughing at the looks people were giving us as they looked into our windows and saw our 'gypsie' style of living.
    The time finally came to go to the ferries...to wait again for our 8pm departure. Around 30 minutes before 8 I noticed something bad...really bad. After flipping the tickets around in my hands for awhile I glanced down at them and something caught my eye...

DEPARTURE: 20:00 NORTH SYDNEY----PORT AUX BASQUES

   Quickly using the free terminal wi-fi I searched 'Port Aux Basques' and to my horror it was indeed the ferry terminal on the complete OTHER side of the island!!! I had specifically ordered tickets for Argentia weeks previously, which is only 90 minutes from the city of Saint John's, but later learned something had been typed into the computer wrong and we indeed had tickets to Port Aux Basques. We were also told that the ferry had already left earlier that evening for Argentia and the price for that ferry would of been $1000! Slightly stressed at first, we all came to the realization that we had to accept the new itinerary and that it was for the best because we could not of afforded the other sailing.
    The ferry was only 6 hours, leaving us with very minimal sleep for our 11 hour drive in the morning to Saint John's. I slept under the seats on the floor with surprisingly good results and before we knew it we were there.

 I highly recommend scheduling your ferry crossings far in advance as each sailing only crosses on specific days of the week which changes throughout the year. Knowing well in advance will make sure the ferries coincide with the rest of your travel days.
http://marine-atlantic.ca/index.asp
    Driving across Newfoundland was a very, very long drive and I will put it out there right now...there is nothing for 11 hours aside from a couple very small towns. To drive it once would be alright but knowing we had to turn around and drive it again in a couple days was brutal. My favourite parts of the drive were at the beginning and end of the journey (by the water) where the land got very green and beautiful. At one point there were rolling hills that were covered in moss with ponds which was very nice and the morning fog gave it that extra flair.

 After 11 very long hours we arrived into Saint John's to our campsite located conveniently close to the downtown core. The campsite (and all hotel/hostels) were full due to festivals and summer tourism but luckily we were able to camp in a field provided by the campground. It served our purpose perfectly for our tent and the only difference with the field was we did not have a fire pit and there were many other tents in the field with you. The campground was called Pippy Campground and I would recommend staying there if you are on a budget, just make sure to book far in advance as accommodation in Newfoundland fills up fast especially in the summer months.
    We woke up extra early the next morning to venture to Cape Spear for sunrise so we could be the first ones in North America to see the sunrise. Cape Spear is the farthest point East in North America. We were up and out the tent by 4:45am (crazy I know!) and unfortunately the fog was quite thick and we could not see the sun but regardless it was amazing being out so early at Cape Spear.

 It was so beautiful there, magical really with the waves crashing against the rocks. Knowing you are the farthest you can possibly go in North America is surreal and really made me realize how far we had travelled. There was also a neat sign noting you have reached 'THE END OF CANADA' or 'BEGINNING OF CANADA' depending on which way you are going. This sign really signified to me that we have driven from one end of Canada to the other and are leaving Canada soon for an entire new journey abroad.

    After Cape Spear we headed back into town for some breakfast at Smitty's. This is surprisingly a great restaurant to go and catch a view of the harbour and Signal Hill! Refueled and ready for the day we drove up to Signal Hill and spent close to 3 hours wandering around. Signal Hill was stunning...it was everything I wanted to see in the East coast and more. After coming down the vertical wooden stairs you can roam around the rocky terrain and cliffs overlooking the ocean.

As the wind whips your hair and eyelashes you feel like you're at the edge of the earth. The views of the ocean were spectacular especially looking down on a lighthouse perched on a cliff with waves crashing up against it. Further down the path you can visit the old battery and see the canons perched on the hill protecting the harbour.

 You get a very neat view of the Saint John's harbour nestled safely behind the cliffs from above...showing you how untouchable it would of been from invading navies. Signal Hill was breath-taking and made the 22 hours of driving completely worth it! I could of spent the entire three days sitting staring at the view.

 

   The city of Saint John's was so very East coast with the pastel coloured houses lining the streets and the fishing boasts in the harbour. The brightly coloured homes really make the city and it made me wonder why we don't do that in other Canadian cities. It would bring liveliness to neighbourhoods and transform otherwise plain houses into character-rich homes.

 There are plenty of restaurants and bars to go to, especially George Street which has the title of having the most bars per square foot in North America over 2 city blocks. We went to a restaurant called Velma's advertising traditional Newfoundland dishes like the one my fiance ordered called 'Fish and Brewis'. It was a cod and bread fry that was surprisingly very tasty! I ordered in the in-house made baked beans that were hardy and satisfying.

    Later on that afternoon we stopped by at the Info Center where we found out that there was a busking festival on down the street, free of charge. Busking refers to street performers that travel to different cities to put on short performances in exchange for small donations. We were thrilled to have a free show to go and watch and entertaining it was! There was juggling, acrobatic fireman, odd men dressed like wizards and extremely talented gymnasts. We had a great time watching the shows and I will definitely look out for more busking festivals in the future.

 I had a fantastic day in Saint John's from sunrise to sunset and it is a city that really offers everything from natural beauty to city exploring. Although it was a bit of a journey to get there, I loved it and I am so glad to of seen that special part of Canada.