Airstream Time

Saturday, August 31, 2019

Frenchman’s Cove Barechois

Garnish harbor

Our plan was to visit the museum in Burin, go to Marysville to grocery shop, come home for lunch, then hike Long Ridge Trail. The glitch was that Burin and the surrounding bays were so spectacular, we might have explored it all day.

After some searching, we found the Burin Museum housed in an old bank. Our tour guide, Jean, did a great job of showing us the history of Burin. There have been some tragedies, one being a very unusual Tsunami in 1929 that did tremendous damage. It was a bustling village in its heyday, with shops and shipping all over the world. Times changed, and it is a quiet, relatively undiscovered area. 

We went to an overlook of the bay and town for a great view. We looked for Cook’s Lookout trail, but never could find it. It was past lunchtime and we were a bit grumpy. We stopped at Extreme Pita for a nice lunch. Two young ladies were working hard in a labor-intensive restaurant, cooking, taking orders and payments and working the drive-through. I gave the truck a quick wash after lunch and filled with gas for tomorrows move.

After grocery shopping at Sobey’s in Marysville, we went into the liquor store next door. Trudy Humphries asked us if we needed help. In Newfoundland, the liquor stores are very nice, and they have a rover to help people make decisions. Trudy was very cool and knowledgeable. Martha asked about beers, so Trudy told her about Iceberg beer, made with water harvest from icebergs. Well, we had to try that. Then Martha asked about Seaweed Gin she liked at a restaurant in Trinity. That led to the iconic square bottle they use and all the quite different flavors, like rhubarb vodka, which I tried, and a mushroom rum. Then Trudy said “Don’t get me started on wine. That’s my specialty.” I was so tempted, but we had already bought more than we came for.

We returned to Frenchman’s Cove, put everything away and drove to nearby Garnish to hike their Long Ridge Trail. There was little information about it and nothing on the sign about how far it was. It starts by a cemetery and runs along a ridge above the town. The first part was a bit unkept, but got better as we went along. there are steps and boardwalks in muddy areas. Blueberries are in full form now, so we picked a half sandwich bag full. There were plenty to pick all along the trail. 

There are great views at the tops of several hills. On one side is Garnish, with its Garnish River running through it. On the other is Frenchman’s Cove with its beautiful barachois, or a coastal lagoon separated from the sea by a sandbar. To the north is a lush, green valley. Four days is just enough time to learn something about a place, but there are always things left unexplored.

Back at camp we cooked Salmon on the fire and beets. 

The guys working this provincial park have been so nice. I have been paying an entry fee every day for every park we have been in. The guys here called their headquarters, got me a refund for this park’s entry fee and got me a seasonal pass. You might say this is what they should do, but I would argue it is exceptional. Anyone else along the way could have done the same, but they didn’t. I am taking the boys a bottle of wine on my way out.