Canadian Maritimes.
A calm evening at anchor in west Newfoundland.
We had planned to make landfall in Marys Harbor, southern Labrador. It was not an “official” port of entry for the Canadian border patrol, but it was the shortest distance from Nanortalik, Greenland. Marys Harbor had a police station and we had heard that they can arrange for the customs officials to visit if required. We had tried to cover all our bases by notifying them of our intentions ahead of time, but as with many plans made while sailing, they change.
The strong winds we encountered on our crossing faded at the end, along with the daylight. We diverted to Fox Harbor in a small settlement called St Lewis, close to the entrance of the bay. As we approached the harbor entrance in the dark and the rain, our path was helpfully illuminated by the headlights from two local gentlemen on the harbor wall, who then raced around to the dock to help catch our lines. This simple action totally encapsulates, for me, the whole character of the Canadian people. Generous, friendly and curious. We stood on the dock - after getting everything secure - in the pouring rain, telling them of our adventures.
Back onboard we phoned the Canadian authorities to tell them we had arrived. We hit the jackpot and got a friendly lady who, when we explained why we were tied up in an unauthorized location, declared that safety of the boat and crew were paramount. We could not have agreed more, and were quite relieved, having heard horror stories of fines and threats of boat impounding for similar infractions. We celebrated with the last of our special bottle we had been savoring since leaving Scotland. Thanks Justine and Philip.
The next day we raised the Canadian flag and motored the final 5 nm to Marys Harbor. Here we visited the police station to tell them we were official, and to top up on fuel. The harbormaster, Barry, pulled the heavy fuel hose around to Helacious dangling from the hitch on his truck and while we were waiting, Brian made a new friend with our boat neighbor, fisherman Greg. Later Greg gave us a ride to the grocery store, and back….. so kind. Barry’s cousin, Alton, was filleting some halibut he had caught as a by-catch to the cod. After chatting he generously handed us a couple of pieces.
The following morning we were up even before Greg and the other fishing boats, and we caught the tide to make the passage around the cape and down the Belle Isle Strait to an anchorage where we could stage for the crossing to Newfoundland. We found out later we just missed meeting up with Alistair, a Scottish sailor from the Shetland Isles, who we had met in the Caribbean. He arrived the day we left, sailing down from Greenland and Labrador on his way to leaving his boat for the winter in St John’s.
Unfortunately the days were pretty windless and the distances to travel between safe havens in this area are quite large. It all felt a bit rushed, having to make the jumps when the wind was not against us, but then having to motor as it was too light to sail. We were trying to get south of 47.55° N , the latitude of St John’s, Newfoundland, per our boat insurance contract, by the middle of September. We had already been granted an extension, but the weather was making it challenging. We found a few nice anchorages where we could wait for the right conditions to continue. The fishing was good, Brian caught a dozen mackerel one day, so we smoked some, and froze the rest for good eats later.
We enjoyed the landscape, finally back on human scale, not as large and dramatic as we had seen this summer, the gentle hillsides covered in trees.
The two main attractions along the west coast of Newfoundland are Bonne Bay, with Gros Morne National Park and a little further south is the Bay of Islands, as the name suggests, a large inlet with multiple islands in protected waters.
In Bonne Bay we tied up to the dock at Norris Cove and enjoyed a walk around the coastline. The harbormaster, Hubert, was our new best friend, and upon departure gifted us some homemade blueberry-hot pepper jelly. We also spent a couple of nights off Lomand Cove, enjoying the walk through the woodlands where there were signs of approaching fall.
Moving south, the Bay of Islands was a good place to find a protected spot for a couple of says of strong southerlies, and wait for the wind to help us across the Cabot Strait to Nova Scotia. In the center of the Bay is an island called Woods Island which has an almost perfect 360 protected anchorage in its center. We met fellow OCC cruisers, Nina and Thomas on sv Maribelle from Sweden, who we had been hopping down the coast with, but never got to meet…until now. We enjoyed sundowners one night and went for a walk around the island the following day. We met Holly and Bernard, friendly locals who spend their summer on the island, and watched as Bernard harvested some potatoes for us from his beautiful garden. It is protected by a substantial fence as apparently there are a number of moose on island, which would quickly destroy all his hard work.
The following day we left together, both boats heading for Nova Scotia. The wind was a little stronger than predicted and further south, making for a tight wind angle. After about 6 hours, Maribelle called to tell us they were stopping in Port aux Basques, on the southwestern tip on Newfoundland, and they would attempt the crossing in less uncomfortable conditions. I think our heavier Helacious (18 tons vs. 8T) made the ride marginally more bearable, and we chose to continue through the night, arriving at the tide gate to enter Bras d’Or Lakes within 15 minutes of the tide turning in our favor. Perfect.
Baddeck, Nova Scotia.
We spend a couple of days anchored off Baddeck. It was the first opportunity to reprovision from a well stocked grocery store. The rows of perky leafy greens and other fresh produce was a delight to see. We also took the opportunity to restock the wine cellar – we were down to the last bottle of wine; a mutiny was averted.
We moved on. It was a shame we were in such a rush to cover ground as we missed reconnecting with yet more friends from our previous visit to Bras d’Or Lakes, Iain and Susan on sv Chelsea. We must have been within 5nm from them, but did not realize until we were long gone. Oh well, next time guys!
In Halifax we stopped at The Binnacle chandlery. If you recall we broke two mainsail slides in an accidental gybe on the passage to Greenland, but only had one replacement onboard. Since then we had been forced to sail with 2 reefs in the main, which turned out fine, for the most part, although a little frustrating when the wind was really light. Anyway, five more were ordered and ready for pickup in Halifax. We tied to the dock in Armdale and enjoyed visits from Judy and Håkon from sv Touche, John, the OCC port officer for Halifax and his friend Kim, a wooden boatbuilder.
We were also lucky to reconnect with Eric, who generously loaned us his car for the afternoon. Who knew we needed so much more stuff? Thanks, Eric! Now fully resupplied, it was time to move on and start planning our next long jump.
A cormorant struggling to take off.
The few short day sails down the coast toward our departure point of Shelburne were lovely. The weather was warm, finally pulling out the shorts and sandals. The anchorage just south of Rogues Roost was a perfect example, surrounded by rocky islets we could quietly explore in the dinghy watching the wild life. In this case we watched as a bald eagle stole a fish from an Osprey.
Another favorite stop from our first visit to Nova Scotia, Carters Beach at Port Mouton. The weather was perfect for a walk on the beach.
Finally, our last stop in Nova Scotia was Shelburne. This lovely small town is frequently the first stop for cruising sailors, and it had been our intended destination when we visited in 2023. However at that time Nova Scotia was on fire, and the harbor at Shelburne was closed as the fire fighting planes were scooping up water from the bay. We had to make alternate arrangements. Now there were no fires and we could visit. It was also a good stop as we met up with James and Wijnanda, fellow aluminum boat owners from New York. We had a nice evening together, and hope to meet up again when we return.
And just like that, in less than a month after arriving in Labrador, we were now planning our last passage for a while, the crossing to Maine, USA. Making new friends and reconnecting with old ones; It has been quite a social month, considerably more so than the long weeks of near-isolation in Iceland and Greenland. It would have been nice to enjoy the coastline at a more leisurely pace, but this was not that time. All the more reason to consider revisiting the Canadian maritimes for their own season of exploration. We will see what the future holds.
Welcoming committee off the New England coast. We made it home.
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