Newfoundland in review for other cyclists — Safari Arie
Newfoundland is an amazing province. I can’t recommend enough for everyone and anyone to go there; especially by bike.
I am not convinced that I would necessarily recommend Newfoundland when I went — in November but I did have an amazing time. If you are looking for challenge and the potential for bad weather November is a great time and still very beautiful.
I got plenty wet most days and almost every day was cold. I feel the wet weather really keeps you from exploring Newfoundland and all its possibilities in the fall. I pedaled a total of 963 km’s in Newfoundland but other than St John’s stuck to the TransCanada (903 km’s across). Newfoundland is so much more than just the TransCanada Highway. So undoubtedly I missed a lot.
A couple of observations from my limited 21 days in Newfoundland.
1) St John’s is one of the most amazing cities in North America and as a long haul truck driver for 6 1/2 years (1.2 million km’s) I would know.
2) Restocking of food is fairly spread out. Most gas stations carry chips, pop, chocolate bars and beef jerky. That is pretty much it. Not even a box of granola bars at the convenience stores.
3) Most towns are not right off the TransCanada Highway. They maybe 20+ km’s off the TransCanada down on or to the coast.
4) I ended up needing to cook 3 meals crossing Newfoundland due to no available restaurants. That being said most local restaurants are pretty good value for the meal.
5) TransCanada shoulder is about typical sidewalk width and the first 100 km’s of shoulder in the western part (leaving/entering Port aux Basques) can have some pretty rough spots. All the rest was good. I traveled west bound.
6) Traffic is busiest between Gander and St John’s.
7) The entire province is hilly to mountainous. A few small areas flatten out a bit but not often and not for long. Gander to St John’s seems to be the most hilly/mountainous. Corner Brook and 100 km’s west is also very hilly.
Two good hills leaving/entering Port aux Basque.
8) If you are starting your bike tour in Newfoundland then prepare to have your ass kicked. If you are finishing your bike tour in Newfoundland (crossing Canada west to east) or are in good shape on the bike then you will be just fine.
9) Newfoundland is known for its wind and Corner Brook can get a lot of snow. I had nights where my tent shook 8 hours straight through the night.
10) A surprising amount of towns have a park with a covered gazebo if you need to get out of the rain.
11) I never had a bad experience with anyone in Newfoundland. Often camping right out in the open.
12) They speak funny here.
I would have loved to have spent more time in Newfoundland and would go back in a heartbeat. Everyone should go to Newfoundland as soon as possible.
Originally published at https://safariarie.ca on December 9, 2019.
