Beauty and History
It is much cooler today - a great temperature for our anticipated walks on the Damnable Trails. The fellows from Glovertown leave at 8:00 am, heading home after a couple of more days of fishing.
Sunday calls for blueberry pancakes and having the shore power allows me to use the electric frying pan - best results.
By 9:00 we are heading toward the Net Point Trail, via Doctor’s Pond. As we approach the large sign and trail map, we meet two ladies just returning from their 3km walk. One is a hike leader. She is happy to share the best route with us and reminds us to “ring the bells” when you see them. She also tells us the church is open and the museum is really worth a visit.
The Doctor’s Pond part of the trail takes us behind the little pond shown as Salt Water Pond on the chart. The cruising guide suggests this to be an alternate anchorage but the power line across the entry would keep most sailboats away.
On the shore at Burden’s Point there are two large houses. These are historic and appear in most old photos of Salvage. There used to also be several red outbuildings and stages but these are now gone.
The two houses, sitting on 1.14 acres, have been completely renovated with large, new windows and interiors and fresh siding. According to the listing, the key principal behind the renovations was: “avoidance of conspicuous design gestures in favour of exercised constraint, gently reinterpreting and enhancing original design elements to meet contemporary tastes and domestic comfort.” From the photos in the listing, seems they were successful. Now to find a buyer with a cool $1.2m.
We wander through the first cemetery of five in this community. The greenery is very overgrown but a small footpath has been established and maintained. Some headstones date back to the early 1800s.
As we walk we pass ripening blueberries and the sheep laurel is over a metre high. There are wild roses, too, in full bloom. The scent is magnificent.
Net Point does not disappoint. We have a clear view of the entrance we came through yesterday, the wharf and town and Bishop’s Cove along side to the west. I ring the bell! We watch for whales.
The descent takes us through a loop along the north shore which is very rugged and the trail steep in some places. But there are no bugs and the walk is pleasant. Another cemetery must be visited before we make our way back down to the wharf.
Back at the boat we are wanting to prepare a little lunch but first stop to speak with a couple who are there looking at Seabiscuit. He is a retired fisherman and she used to work in the fish plant. They live in Salvage, along with the other 96 permanent residents. He tells us about a recent serious health concern while in Fort McMurray for their grandson’s graduation. Seems he knows he probably wouldn’t be standing talking with us today if he had had this emergency at home. It takes an hour for the ambulance to come from Glovertown.
We talk about the area, our journey and their life here in this small village. There are no fishing boats out today - it is too windy - but they still have tomorrow to comply with the food fishery regulations.
After our lunch break it is time for another walk - on the hunt for the bells. First we stop at St. Stephen’s Anglican Church, which celebrated its 150th anniversary in 2015. It is still in use but seems the priest must work a 3-point charge. The services were in other small, nearby towns today.
On our way to the museum, which is actually in Bishop’s Harbour, we stop to ask for directions from a fellow working in his workshop. He explains to us that in the days these communities were first settled, they would not communicate with each other. Today there is no differentiation - we just walk from one to the other without even knowing we are in a new community.
Someone is helping this man clean up his workshop by cutting and stacking pieces of wood. He turns to ask him about the museum and we realize the “helper” is the amazing accordion player, Terrance from Cobb’s Arm! We again tell him how much we enjoyed his music and suggest to the friend that maybe he shouldn’t be letting Terrance run the table saw.
Walking further along the main road, we think we have found the road to the museum and wander up past some private driveways. We ask another fellow who is packing his car.
He is Jim Oldford - a local artist with a small studio and handicraft shop in his home. He invites us in but then we get talking about whales and have to leave as the museum will soon be closing. He tells us there are sperm whales in the area.
A long trough of water over 1400 feet deep runs north-south between here and Bonavista. The sperm whales like deep water. They can dive to 5,000 feet. He explains to watch for the blow at a 45’ angle. The healthy males can grow to over 50 feet in length and have no predators. They have the largest brain on Earth and can live up to seventy years of age. I’m not sure we want to see them too close.
The Salvage Fisherman’s Museum, situated in the oldest residence in Salvage. It was built by the Lane family 1859. Upon entering we see a large model of the Crystal Stream, a Salvage based schooner that fished off the Labrador coast from 1944 to 1950. Around the display is old fishing gear and tools used in the fishing trade.
Photo taken from the Salvage Fisherman’s Museum brochure
The other rooms depict the life of families in Salvage. The rooms display furnishings, dishes, tools, clothing and toys. We read about life here in the mid 1800s - as many as 40 schooners sailed from Salvage to the Labrador each summer. This would leave the village with just women and children, plus the older men who no longer fished. Those who stayed, planted and tended the vegetable gardens and took care of the livestock. When the men returned, everyone was expected to help with the drying of the cod on large flakes. It was then loaded back on the schooner and taken to St. John’s for sale.
The Museum Trail is located behind the museum and takes us to a beautiful lookout over the bays. Now it’s Harald’s turn to ring the bell.
Lady’s Glove
Two trails in one day, about 8 kilometres, is enough for us. We have tea and a short nap back at the boat and Harald prepares our gifted cod for supper. Delicious.
