Battle Harbour, Day One
As seems the norm, we wait again for some fog to lift before weighing anchor and heading back out through the narrows to the open Labrador Sea. We don’t have far to go today, just 9 nautical miles, straight south to Battle Harbour. This is a stop we have been looking forward to since we started planning this journey began in 2020.
Without cell or internet service in Petty Harbour, we turn to the InReach to get the marine forecast. Unfortunately, it seems we are still not on a designated body of water to get the forecast. (This has become a real frustration as you have to actually be on the SEA or OCEAN to obtain the forecast; when we really need it is from the safety of a harbour before we set out.)
So with a two day old weather report, we head out to find 3 foot swells, on the nose and 25 knot winds. In a nutshell, the attempt to sail turns into a few moments of struggle as we try to furl in the foresail. I’m steering and managing two jib sheets while Harald manages the furling line to roll up the sail. Things aren’t happening fast enough and our 37 year old foresail tears at the leech line, leaving a shred of fabric flapping in the wind until it’s rolled safely back on the forestay. We are now grateful for the second foresail we have carried with us, under our bed, for the last two summers. It is much larger but can be reefed in stronger wind.
This is truly a special place: part living museum, yet home to some locals. Battle Harbour’s recorded history began in 1770. From the story boards throughout the wharf I read: “John Slade and Company of Poole, England established premises here to prosecute the seal, cod, salmon and herring fisheries. Some Slade workers remained here year-round. These British-born employees married local Inuit women and became the island’s first, permanent residents of European origin. By 1820, migratory fishermen from Newfoundland made annual voyages to harvest Labrador waters. Soon, thousands of people were coming through here each year. The Battle Islands stand as a gateway to the Labrador Sea and were a recognized navigational landmark. In time, Battle Harbour earned a reputation as the unofficial capital of Labrador.”
The fishing premises were sold in 1871 and then again in 1955 when The Earle Freighting Service Limited took over. They continued to buy and export salt fish, salmon and seals. In 1991, the Earle family donated the merchant properties to the Battle Harbour Historic Trust.
For seven years, Battle Harbour was the focus of a monumental revitalization project with twenty heritage buildings salvaged and carefully restored. The wharf, decking, walkways and fish flake were reconstructed to near-original specifications.
The day is sunny and dry so we decide we should take in the Marconi Trail while we can. As promised, the views are spectacular as we make our way around the east and northern shores of the island. The trail is marked only by the occasional white post and the footprints of many who have explored before us. The footing is spongy moss, lichen and ripening berries. The geological history is 1500 million years old: we walk on green Amazonite, black hornblende, pink microcline, red garnet and white quartz. (Thoughts of our budding rock hound grandson!)
We pass the site of the original Grenfell mission hospital which opened its doors in 1893, only to be destroyed by fire in 1930. We stop to read the plaque at the remains of the wireless station erected in 1904 by the Canadian Marconi Wireless Company: all messages destined north or south were transmitted via this wireless service.
There is also reference to the international attention in 1909 when American polar explorer Robert E. Peary transmitted the first exclusive and detailed account of his Arctic expedition from the Battle Harbour Marconi station to the senior copy editor of the New York Times.
We pause at the memorial for the three killed in a seaplane crash here in 1976 after taking off from the harbour in foggy conditions, their wing catching on a rocky escarpment. There is still debris sitting where it was found the following day.
We visit two cemeteries and St. James the Apostle Anglican Church constructed from 1852 to 1857. Now a Registered Heritage Structure it was restored in 1991 and is used today by the island residents.
Two minke whales are spotted offshore - easy to see their spouts in the calm water between the islands.
Our leg muscles are sore from the uneven terrain as we arrive back at the boat with time to freshen up before our dinner “out”. We are told dinner is sharp at 6:00, the menu a surprise. The first to arrive, we are greeted by Peter, the director of the Battle Harbour Historic Trust. Soon we are joined by the other eleven guests, including a couple we had met earlier in the day from Meaford, Ontario. They noted “Wiarton” on the transom of our boat and asked if we had sailed it here from Georgian Bay. They sit beside us and we continue our conversation. The other couple at our table are also from Ontario but were married here at the Anglican Church five years ago. Her family are from Battle Harbour and he is from Croque, where we hope to visit on our trip down the Northern Peninsula.
Our server, Mackenzie is delightful, only 18 years old and clearly a hard worker. We chat more with her when we return for breakfast “out” the following morning. She is looking forward to three days back home, leaving this morning on the ferry back to Mary’s Harbour.
Following our dinner of glazed chicken, sweet potato strips and roasted cauliflower, we all reassemble in “The Loft”, the lounge or gathering place open all day for wifi usage and at 7:00pm for cocktails, board games and conversation.
For the difficult passage, the lengthy hike and a long but memorable day, we are rewarded by a spectacular sunset over Great Caribou Island from the tickle between here and there.
