Day 8: St. Anthony and L'Anse Aux Meadows

People go to this region to see icebergs and whales and there are boat trips to do just that. We booked on one such company, Northland Discovery Boat Tours, and drove to St. Anthony.

It was pretty chilly but warm enough inside the cabin. A very large iceberg had been in the bay for quite a few weeks, the bigger ones can get grounded in the shallower water. We travelled out to see this monster. They were going to be sorry when it disappeared as they didn't have to do any chasing. We could see it easily in the distance and it was leaving a trail of ice pieces carried off by the current. They said it was about 200 feet high with a lot of it below the water line.

This one was over 200 feet high

It was pretty rugged outside

The melting iceberg leaves a trail of ice pieces carried on the current

A local boat collecting ice chips for sale in St. Anthony

This one won't last much longer

We travelled back to port looking for whales (no luck) but we did see some seals and plenty of sea birds. After lunch we went to L'Anse Aux Meadows. This is a UNESCO World Heritage site and a National Historic Site. There are a collection of mounds which are the excavated foundations where the Vikings had a settlement over 1,000 years ago. There is also a reconstructed sod and timber building. Inside there are a number of costumed interpreters and a nice warm fire. It was still pretty chilly.

The reconstructed sod and timber building

Inside the building

You are encouraged to dress the part

One of the interpreters

We left for the Tickle Inn for another lovely dinner and as we drove along the coast there were plenty of icebergs visible.