Day 36 - Bona Vista, Newfoundland

Day 36.  Elliston and Port Union,

T'was a cold and dreary morning.....but we intrepid travelers put on our rain gear and headed out for Elliston anyway.  Newfoundland weather changes from one minute (literally) to the next.  The old saying, "if you don't like the weather wait five minutes, truly applies in Newfoundland.  Yesterday we were enjoying a beautiful, sunny day, when we heard a clap of thunder, followed by another, a bolt of lightning, and a downpour all within the space of ten minutes. By the time we drove back to the campground a few miles away, the sun was coming out again. Today we were not to be so lucky.  We experienced rain, wind and falling temperatures all day.

Our tour day started with a talk on the Root Cellars of Elliston.  We were told that a properly constructed root cellar maintains a humidity of 75%: to 90%, and a temperature a little above freezing all year long, regardless of the outside temperature.  There are 135 known root cellars in the Elliston area, of which, 42 have been restored.  Many of these root cellars are still in use today.  Root vegetables, such as potatoes, carrots, and turnips are stored for as long as 9 months with little or no deterioration.  We were invited to explore the Elliston root cellars at our leisure.

Elliston lost about half its population after the Cod (fishing) Moratorium in 1992.  Commercial Cod fishing, which was the only major industry on Newfoundland for generations was suspended. The tax base of Elliston became so low the town couldn't pay their public utility bill, and power was shut off to the entire community in the early 2000's.  The remaining citizens got together to determine a strategy for saving their community from abandonment.  They decided tourism, based on their many root cellars and the puffin population on their headlands, could bring much needed income in to the community.  It worked.  This summer the town is projecting 20,000 tourist visits!

After this informative presentation, we went to see the Puffin nesting grounds of Elliston. Puffins breed and nest on a small island in the area during the summer.  The rest of the year the Puffins remain at sea.  We were told they lay only one egg in a mating season, and if that egg or their chick is lost to their major predator, the seagull, they don't breed again until the following year.  According to the locals, if you are quiet and remain still, the puffins will land close by and walk within a few feet of you. We were not so lucky, the size and noise of our group apparently scared them off.  Most of us gave up after about a half hour in the cold, with high wind and driving rain.  After the majority of us left, four hearty souls in our group were able to get a few closeup pictures of these small, colorful birds.  But, at least all of us got to see them a hundred yards or so off on their sanctuary nesting ground.

After the puffins we drove to Port Union and were treated to a fabulous lunch of Cod au Gratin prepared by volunteers from the Port Union foundation. The ladies were kind enough to share their recipe with us.  I plan to prepare this dish out of the cod I caught the day before, once I return home.  The proceeds from the Museum, sponsored lunches, and gift shop go towards the restoration of the fishery buildings of Port Union.

Next, it was on to the museum, housed in the rebuilt factory of William Coaker, a man much revered by Newfoundland fishermen.  William Coaker, at the age of 13, began the Fisherman's Protective Union, which ultimately broke the cycle of physical abuse and poverty the merchant system produced. Wages and the price for fish caught by the fishermen were low, and retail prices for staples were high.  Coaker built his own fishery and ship building business.  He paid a decent wage and over time changed the existing merchant system.  Port Union, in its heyday maintained a population of about 3,500 people.  It too, after the Cod Moratorium began losing population, and now has a population of about 2100.  A new processing plant was built in the late 90's, but was destroyed by Hurricane Igor in 2009 and never rebuilt.  Many of the local families had no choice but to move to the mainland.  Those that remained or returned, are supported by jobs held for part of the year outside of Newfoundland, many of which are in the oilfields of Alberta.  A way of life is being lost along with the fishing industry in this region.  Commercial fishing still goes on in a very limited way, but cod catch quotas are so low, cod fishing can no longer support a family

The day ended with some very cold RVers attending a travel meeting in an open air structure.    Sandy Oeser gave each woman in our Caravan, a beautiful, hand knitted scarf, which we all gratefully put on.  Anyone lucky enough to travel with the Oesers (Gunter and Sandy) are traditionally treated to a brats dinner and a handmade gift by this lovely, generous couple.

Submitted by:  Jodie Smith

Adventure 17