St. John's. The oldest city in North America. Hundreds of years of history have conspired to produce a city with one of the most distinctive characters of any city in the world. The influence of dozens of countries have given it diversity, yet the sound of the average townie's voice still reminds one of Southern England or Ireland. A city clinging to the edge of the sea, thrust far out into the North Atlantic, it grew from a vital port for European fishing ships into a modern, well-developed city, which still centres around the harbour that brought people here so many centuries ago. To detail the history of this city would take an entire site in itself, so all I can do is direct you to the web-site for the City of St. John's. The remainder of this page will be devoted to pictures of this fine city, a perfect start to a virtual tour of Newfoundland.
Moving away from the water, but as always still focused on it, the next two pictures are of the fog rolling in through the Narrows and Quidi Vidi Gut, respectively. The first is taken from in front of Confederation building, the location of the House of Assembly, while the other is taken from Newfoundland Drive, a significant thoroughfare in the east end of the city. On some days it seems as though the incoming fog is pouring between the coastal ridges, like milk pouring from a pitcher.
The third picture at the start of this page was taken from Cabot Tower, built to commemorate the 400th anniversary of Cabot's discovery of Newfoundland and the Diamond Jubilee of Queen Victoria's reign. This is most likely the best known landmark in St. John's, and is found in Signal Hill National Historic Park, the site of other such historic events as the first ever transatlantic wireless message by Marconi, ushering the modern era of telecommunications, and the last battle of the Seven Years War between Britain and France. In fact, when Charles Lindberg made his historic flight across the Atlantic, the last piece of North America he saw was Cabot Tower as he flew out the narrows. Another interesting facet of the park is Gibbet Hill, a prominent rock outcropping with a commanding view of the city, where hanged criminals where left swinging in the breeze as a deterrent to others. Cabot Tower is shown in the first picture below, the black and white just makes it seem a little more historic. The second picture is of the rather interesting signpost near the foot of the tower - try to read the name written on the arrow shown. The third picture below is of a sunset over St. John's Harbour. This picture has always been a personal favourite of mine, although it loses something in the scanning process. The third picture in this set looks east to Cape Spear, most easterly point in North America. More pictures from Cape Spear can be found on the Southern Shore tour. The final picture looks across the narrows to Fort Amherst, site of the first lighthouse in Newfoundland. To find out more about lighthouses such as those at Fort Amherst and Cape Spear, check out Historic Lighthouses of Newfoundland & Labrador.
Fort Amherst, shown in the fourth picture above, is an extremely interesting place to visit. Besides being the location of the first lighthouse in Newfoundland, it also has an extensive set of WWII bunkers and gun emplacements, the last in a line of gun batteries built here over the years. These installations are shown in the first two pictures below, and give some idea of the dilapidated condition of these once impressive structures. In addition to the gun emplacements, it was near Fort Amherst where a chain net was strung across the Narrows to prevent German U-Boats from entering the harbour undetected. This was coupled with further defensive installations on the opposite side of the Narrows, at the area commonly known as the Battery. The conditions which the servicemen must have endured were understandably unpleasant, but at least they had the beautiful view shown in the third picture below.
Quidi Vidi Village and the Battery. Both of these areas of St. John's seem to be tiny outport communities nestled into the heart of St. John's itself. Their narrow winding streets and hoses seemingly perched on the sides of cliffs give them a character all their own. The Battery, a collection of houses that seem to cling impossibly to the base of Signal Hill and the Narrows themselves, is shown in the first picture below. The narrow streets are more like scenes from a tiny European village, but are indeed located right in the heart of St. John's.
Leaving The Battery and heading north, a short drive leads to Quidi Vidi Village, a unique name for a unique place. The first picture shows the legacy of the fishing industry, unfortunately a way of life that is rapidly disappearing. These fishing stages where once a common sight in every town in coastal Newfoundland and Labrador, but now most have fallen into disuse and disrepair, in some cases, they have collapsed into the sea, signifying the tragic loss of a traditional way of life. The next picture is taken from the wharf of the Quidi Vidi Brewing Company. This cottage brewery opened up a few years back, and now produces several fine products, such as 1892, Northern Light and Hibernia. This also shows the former Flake house restaurant, the large white building to the left. Both of these help illustrate the ways in which hard working Newfoundlanders are attempting to diversify the economy, and put people back to work. Unfortunately, in the case of the Flake House, labour unrest caused it to shut down, resulting in the loss of what was then one of the finest restaurants in the city. Web pages for other fine restaurants can be found by searching the Restaurant Guide for St. John's. Nearby to the village is Quidi Vid lake, the site of the Royal St. John's Regatta, the oldest continuing sporting even in North America. Check out the official web-site for more info.
Our next stop along the way is the Marine Sciences Laboratory in Logy Bay (incidentally Logy Bay is my home town). The MSL is part of Memorial University of Newfoundland, and is devoted to marine biology and other such fishy subjects (sorry, couldn't resist). The cliffs on the left of the picture form the area known as Red Cliff, site of a U.S. radar installation in World War II. Foundations and ruins can still be found, and local rumours exist of extensive tunnel networks underneath. Beyond the towering cliffs to the north lies Outer Cove, originally a fishing village but now more of a rural suburb of St. John's. The second picture is of Outer Cove itself, looking towards the south from Marine Drive. The third picture is of the cliffs stretching out from the beach.
Moving further up the shore, the first picture below was taken along Marine Drive near Middle Cove. I included this picture simply because I find this particular cliff rather interesting. I guess it illustrates just how rugged the coast of Newfoundland and Labrador can be. The second picture looks North from the cliffs near middle Cove towards Torbay. During a good Northeasterly gale, there are always a few cars parked along this stretch of road watching the surf. There's something awe inspiring about watching massive waves relentlessly pounding the shore - it makes you feel somewhat humble. The third picture shows Middle Cove itself, a very peaceful place to while away a few hours combing the cobblestone beach or watching the surf. Middle Cove has one of the finest examples of a cobblestone beach in Newfoundland, shown in the fourth and final picture. Of course, nearly all the beaches are cobblestone beaches, but that's not the point.
Beyond Middle Cove lies the town of Torbay, again a fishing community that has become more of a rural suburb. The first picture is of the town itself, looking towards the west. The second is of Torbay Gulch, a deep, narrow valley stretching to the edge of the water, and site of the old fish plant.
North of Torbay are the communities of Flatrock and Pouch Cove. The first picture is of Flatrock itself, looking north. The second picture is of Flatrock's claim to fame - the Our Lady of Lourdes Grotto. This was the site of a visit from Pope John Paul II in the mid 80's, where he blessed the fishing fleet from the surrounding communities. Following the road beyond the grotto, the community of Pouch Cove clings to the edge of one of the most inaccessible harbours I've ever seen. The rocky shore in the centre of the third picture is where fisherman pull up their boats. A dicey proposition if you ask me! Just to prove my point, the fourth picture is of a plaque commemorating the wreck of the Waterwitch, and the heroic rescue of her passengers by Alfred Moores, a local resident. Click the thumbnail below to read about this piece of Newfoundland history.
Driving past Pouch Cove on a winding, rocky and barely passable road, one comes to Cape St. Francis, located at the very tip of the Northeast Avalon, this rocky cape juts far out into the North Atlantic. The first picture is of the rocks lying just off the Cape, which also guard a windswept harbour from the full brunt of northeasterly gales. The second is of the "lighthouse" that now occupies the Cape. Prior to the current structure this site was occupied by a larger lighthouse and keeper's residence. A very isolated place to live I would think.
Cape St. Francis also marks the north-east end of Conception Bay, and as such marks the end of this section. From here the coast continues into Conception Bay, with miles of rugged coastline separating Cape St. Francis from the town of Bauline, the first town on the north-east side. Click the link below to continue on the tour into Conception Bay.
