Planning Summer 2018: Avalon Peninsula, Newfoundland

In the past, we've only blogged trips on Little Rabbit's Planning. After a couple of days of migraine-inducing marathon planning for Summer 2018, I set myself a limit of 1 hour/day and decided to blog the process.

The Avalon Peninsula is that little bit of Newfoundland that projects out of its south-eastern corner, almost forming an island.  You could argue that the Avalon Peninsula itself is formed of four lobes, each of which is just about the right size to visit in a day. However, we have two and half days.

Actually, this part of the trip isn't so complicated to plan. We just have three short driving routes with a range of things we could do along them. We won't be able to do them all, but we'll pick and choose at the time, depending on the weather, which can be rather unpredictable in Newfoundland.

This loop has 4 hours of driving for 300 km of distance. Although it might not seem the most efficient way to cover the distance, that stretch of road we drive twice only takes 15 minutes. Doing things this way round allows us to be in the right place at the right time.

Arriving with the overnight ferry

The ferry arrives at Argentia at approximately 9.30, but disembarkation could take some time. I'm going to assume that we might be on the road by 10.30.

Things to do in Brigus and Cupids

It takes about 1 hour to get from Argentia to the Brigus and Cupids area

• Spectacle Head Trail: in Cupids, it's more of a short climb to a viewpoint than a trail.
• Burnt Head Trail: in Cupids, just 2.5 km long
• There are many attractions in the area, either paying or free, indoors or otherwise.
• The Country Corner Restaurant: in Brigus

Things to do in Bay Roberts

• Shoreline Heritage Walking Trail
• Madrock Cafe, purveyors of  toutons, a Newfoundland specialty which surely can't be good for us.
• Bay Roberts Cable Building. There is an art gallery and a museum of local history inside, open 12.30 -17.00, free. Worth driving past for a quick look to compare with the cable station at Heart's Content?

Things to do in Harbour Grace

• Stop for a quick look at the Spirit of Harbour Grace / Amelia Earhart statue and the SS Kyle. 

Things to do in Heart's Content

It takes about 1 hour to get from Brigus and Cupids to Heart's Content, not allowing for any stops. We should aim to arrive by 15.30.

• Heart's Content Cable Station - where the first permanent telegraph cable connecting Europe and North America was hauled ashore. Open 9.30 - 17.00. Entrance fee: $6.00 each. 

St Johns

The scenic route along the coast from Heart's Content takes 1 hour and 45 minutes, which is only 15 minutes slower than the fastest route to St Johns and may allow for some photo stops. 

• We're staying on the university campus. There should be laundry facilities, which we may be wanting to take advantage of by this point. NOTE TO SELF: email and ask if I can swap the twin room for a double room, since booking.com didn't offer this option.
• For dinner, there is a pub on campus if we're very tired, or we can drive 10 minutes to the town center, where there are many restaurants and pubs, ranging from really fancy to pizza. In which case, here is a helpful guide to downtown parking.
• St Johns Haunted Hikes offers an evening tour of St Johns (Thursday only, as far as we're concerned), complete with ghost stories of course, beginning at 21.30 at the Cathedral for $10 each. The walk lasts about 1 hour 15 mins.