East Coast 2015 Wrap Up

From Quebec to Nova Scotia to Newfoundland to Labrador and back again, it was a great roadtrip.

I put close to 7700kms on the SRT in the end and managed to see quite a lot of the east side of the country.

Other various pictures from the trip are up in the galleries.

This completes the trip galleries, so I've added it to my travel destinations.

Enjoy!

The loop in the wind and rain

When we arrived back on the main land after our sojourn to Newfoundland, 

we decided to drive the cabot trail around Cape Breton.

We spent the night at a fantastic motel in Cheticamp.

It was on the edge of the water and had spectacular views.

Pictures from Cape Breton are up in the galleries.

Icebergs & Eiders

For our trip to L'Anse aux Meadows, we stayed at a little hotel in St. Anthony.

Right next to the hotel was the whale watching tour dock.

So we gave it a go.

Saw one Minke whale, briefly, and she was camera shy.

Luckily we did see some icebergs and a whole bunch of eider ducks.

Overall, it was a relaxing cruise and quite enjoyable.

Pictures from St. Anthony are up in the galleries.

So Gros

Gros Morne was spectacular.

Sure, it was foggy and rainy on the first morning in the park, but it cleared by evening and we had a couple days of great sunsets.

I would definitely go back when junior is a bit older and can hike.

Pictures from Gros Morne are up in the galleries.

L'Anse aux Meadows

L'Anse aux Meadows, Newfoundland Canada, is the only authenticated site of Norse settlement in North America and is the first cultural site in the world to be inscribed upon the UNESCO World Heritage List.

From this site, the Norse first encountered aboriginal North Americans.

When humans migrated out of Africa, some went East, eventually migrating across Asia and crossing over to North America (via the land bridge between what is now Russia and Alaska, or via water).

Some went west, eventually making it all the way to Europe and then to Iceland.

These Vikings then crossed to L'Anse aux Meadows and were the first people from the west to encounter the people from the east.

Completing the circle.

The L’Anse aux Meadows National Historic Site gallery is up

Hunted until there weren't enough to hunt

During the 16th century, whalers from the Basque Region of Spain and France where making seasonal voyages across the Atlantic to Labrador in pursuit of Right and Bowhead whales for the lucrative European market of whale products, in particular whale oil.

Gran Baya, as it was called by those who founded the station in 1530s, was used as a base for coastal hunting, butchering, rendering of whale fat to produce oil. It became a major source of whale oil which was shipped to Europe where it was used for lighting.

Until they pretty much hunted them all.

Pictures from Red Bay are up in the galleries.

Red Bay Basque Whaling Station

North America's Fortified City

Québec is the only North American city (north of Mexico) to have preserved its ramparts, together with the numerous bastions, gates and defensive works and is one of the best examples of a fortified colonial city.

Being there was like strolling the streets of a medieval European town.

I loved it.

Pictures from Quebec City are up in the galleries.

Historic District of Old Québec

370 Million Year Old Fish

From the Coal Age fossils at Joggins, our travels brought us even further back in time at Parc National du Miguasha.

Here the fossils were from the Age of Fishes (370 million years ago).

Miguasha, like Joggins, is a unique location full of fossils.

Apparently they've found the largest number and best-preserved lobe-finned fish fossils here.

These are the fishes, according to those crazy evolutionists, that gave rise to the first four-legged, air-breathing terrestrial vertebrates, aka the tetrapods.

Of course tetrapod fossils are what can be found at Joggins. Maybe we visited these sites in the wrong order?

Cheirolepis Canadensis

As a ray-finned fish, the descendants of this guy's group make up almost 60% fo the present-day aquatic and terrestrial vertebrate species.

I wonder if that includes us?

Pictures from Miguasha.

PS - we stayed in a hotel in Carleton-sur-Mer, which was a very picturesque town.

Miguasha National Park

Coal Age Galapagos

Located on the Nova Scotia side of the Bay of Fundy, Joggins Fossil Cliffs is the world’s most complete fossil record of life in the Coal Age, about 300 million years ago. 

It was here that Sir William Dawson discovered the first true reptile (hylonomus lyelli), the first animal to live on land and not in the water. 

When it comes to evolution, this little milestone recorded at Joggins remains pivotal to understanding the origins of all vertebrate life on land, including us humans. 

Crazy I know! 

Pictures from Joggins are now up in the galleries.

British were Jerks

A dark period for British rule in the new world. 

 Pictures from Grand Pré.

2008 Road Trip Reflection

Spent some time on the weekend going back through my pictures from my summer road trip out to the east coast.

The following have been updated:
Mammalia
Other
Landmarks & Landscapes
Sculpture Portraits