Happy 150th CANADA!!!! (Saturday, July 1st)

This morning, I take the time to sign up with uship.com.  In case it comes to this, I just want to see how much it would be to ship the trailer home.  Not dwelling on it this morning though because we are heading out.  Wow! It's like nothing ever happened.  We are on the road continuing our adventure.  We are on our way to Twillingate this morning.  It is a very touristy part of the island.  Famous for its icebergs and whales. We've seen our fare share so we are not convinced that it will be that spectacular but today will be a good day and we will have a great day!  After all it is Canada Day.  I must be out of practice because we miss a turn and make it all the way to Little Burnt Bay (where we see a burnt house....not funny but fitting).  Mom also calls and tells us that she called Good Sams describing our situation and she tells us that they say they would tow us all the way home.  Seems a little unbelievable but it could work to get us towed to another city.  We will give that a try later on tonight.

Today is also memorial day in Newfoundland.  In Lewisporte there is a ceremony and when I mention to Justin that I had heard on the radio that it is important to not forget that it is also Memorial day here (it is overshadowed by Canada Day), he knows right away what I am referring to.  My military history buff knows all of this.  We arrive in Twillingate and there are still a few icebergs to see.  Nothing like what we saw on the Northern peninsula but we still think they are beautiful.  Our first stop is at the supposedly most photographed lighthouse of Newfoundland.  We both don't understand because it is probably our least favorite.  It's unfortunate because the area is more of a tourist trap than anything.  Sure the shore line is beautiful but the area looks very much like a tourist trap and it is not charming like most other areas we visited.  We do a small hike. It's a rugged path and not stroller friendly so we decide to head back.

We drive through town and visit the campsite we had planned on staying at.  Boy, they have a way of making things look much nicer online.  From their site map online, a good portion of the sites look like they are right on the water.  Not at all.  Some sites have a view of the ocean and the campsite looks ok but far from what you expect when you look at their site map.  This is all good information for me to pass along to my parents as they are planning their Newfoundland trip for next year.  I'll be able to be their private holiday planner!  There is a winery in Twillingate and they have the cutest names for their wines.  They first got my attention when we were at the liquor store with their wine 'Fifty shades of Bay'.  I love play on words and I bought it just because of the name.  I told the cashier that and he said so many people do.  We stop in at the winery and decide to have lunch.  Unfortunately, James is not a happy camper and the service was terribly slow.  Justin ordered some seafood appetizers and we both had the fish and chips.  Unsure whether to get the pan or deep fried we ordered one of each and swapped.  I was surprised, but I liked the pan fried whereas Justin prefered the deep fried.  They offered a wine tour and tasting so we did that and then grabbed a few bottle of wines!  It will be a great thing to share with friends and family back home.  Again, so many cute names for their wine (12 gauge, Jellybean row (has the typical multicolored houses of St. John's on its label), moose joose, crooked cod, 3 sheets to the wind etc...)  Time to head back to the campsite.  On our way back we see 3 caribou running through a field along the Hwy.  We make a stop at the grocery store to pick up a ready made chicken. James is sleeping so Gaby and I head on in to pick it up.  I stop in at the camping office to ask where we could watch the fireworks.  The attendant has tons of Canada day stuff she is trying to get rid of.  I grab a bunch of Maple leaf tattoos.  Gaby has a blast with those.  We all put on tattoos and then we have a mini photo shoot!

 

 At around 9 we decide to head to the park for the fireworks.  When we get close to the park, we are amazed at the great spot we got to park.  We walk up a hill and are at the park. Joke is on us.  We could have parked way closer but for us this was like parking at the civic.  We find a nice spot on the hill and wait for the fireworks.  James falls asleep right before the start.  He doesn't move at all once they start.  We are spoiled as the fireworks are amazing.  They are really nice and it lasted a long time!  Miss Gaby is like Justin and really enjoys the show!  All in all, today was a great day as we did our best to forget our misfortune.

Moose count = 19 caribou = 9 whales= 2 Black Bears =  2