Our Tour Continues
We will now drive to our next destination - Cape Bonavista Lighthouse, sitting six and a half kilometres out the peninsula from town. As I mentioned earlier, we visited the lighthouse in 2017, but it has a different meaning now that we travelled here by water.
Construction of the lighthouse took two years, with the light in operation on September 11, 1843. It is unique in shape, with a square two-storey wooden structure built around the masonry tower. The red and white striping on its exterior is quite visible from a long distance, as of course, also is its light which is now on a single tower and automated.
The shoreline along this coast is extremely rugged with jagged rocks slicing into the surf. Every corner brings another view of just how dangerous this shoreline can be - for the sailor and the hiker.
Nesting puffins brings humour to the seriousness of the landscape. These “sea clowns” swoop and dive, hardly able to fly. We can see their nesting holes in the green and dirt of the little island just offshore. They certainly know how to draw a crowd!
The day is still young and we find the energy to continue back south and east to Spillar’s Cove. The shore is actually more rugged than we saw in Bonavista, yet just a few kilometres away.
The Chimney, or sea stack, along the shore has been photographed thousands of times but not yet by us. We find a parking lot that indicates we are at the “geosite” but there are no other signs except for a narrow, worn path to the shore. The trail takes us across closely matted ground-cover, gnarled spreading roots, sheep laurel, blue flag iris and small tuckamore. (Stunted evergreen trees)
We wander for nearly an hour but do not find any sea stacks. Back at the parking lot I realize it is the Klondike Trail we are looking for which is just the continuation of the road we drove on. (Next time more homework is needed!)
Parts of the movie “Peter Pan and Wendy” was filmed in this area.
We arrive at the end of the trail to find a handful of photographers, the famous “Chimney” and a little population of puffins. Rain is threatening and we still have to get some groceries, so we do not linger long, although, happy we have found Spillar’s Cove and its famous coastline.
This truly exceptional day of exploring ends with two tired sailors, bacon and eggs for supper and a tremendous sky, bringing the promise of another great day tomorrow.
