Newfoundland: Bike & Hike the Viking Trail
Seven days of big rides and hikes, with a fjord cruise, a whale-watch and iceberg boat trip, all the highlights of Gros Morne National Park, and a visit to L’Anse aux Meadows Viking settlement. One ride is almost 163 miles (263km), but few make it all the way; the van will help you finish!
Optional 3-day Labrador extension.
This is a fabulous trip, well suited to intrepid explorers with lots of energy for the hills, distances, and sheer joy of traveling through such an undeveloped, exciting landscape. Riding with the prevailing wind, through picturesque fishing villages, you will encounter people whose unabashed friendliness is truly extraordinary. You will ride and hike in Gros Morne National Park, where the incomparable landscape and unique natural history have earned it a place on UNESCO's list of World Heritage Sites. You will hike to the top of Gros Morne Mountain and take a boat into a fjord akin to those of Norway. You can visit a 4000 year old burial ground of the now extinct Maritime Archaic Indians at Port au Choix, and see evidence of the also extinct Dorset Eskimos, and you'll see where the Vikings landed and settled, long before Columbus, at L'Anse aux Meadows (another UNESCO World Heritage Site) 1000 years ago. While you enjoy the landscape, the wildlife, the people, and the history, your comfortable support van will always be nearby. This is one of our top favourite trips; we hope you can come to see why.
The Plan:
Day 1: 72km/45 miles (subtract 31km/19miles with optional transfer to Wiltondale)
From Deer Lake, cycle past the Newfoundland insectarium, then the Wiltondale Pioneer Village, enroute to lunch near the entrance to Gros Morne National Park. Afternoon ride on the hilly, exhilarating approach to the shore of Bonne Bay, finishing in the tiny fishing village of Norris Point. LD (Meal inclusions provided for guided trips. Self-guided trips include breakfast only)
Neddie’s Harbour Inn, Neddie’s Harbour, www.theinn.ca; or
Sugar Hill Inn, Norris Point, www.sugarhillinn.nf.ca
Day 2: 40 or 104km/25 or 65 miles, plus hiking or boat trip
Begin the day with a ferry to Woody Point and ride to Trout River for lunch overlooking the Gulf of St. Lawrence. On the way, stop at the Discovery Centre, and take the steep one-hour hike up Partridgeberry Hill along the Lookout Trail. The summit offers some of the best panoramic views in the park, and moose are often sighted along the trail. Enroute to Trout River, you will pass the geological curiosity of the Tablelands, and can choose to explore them by boat or on foot. The afternoon is otherwise spent hiking along the coast on the Green Gardens trail, then returning to Woody Point for your water taxi across Bonne Bay, or taking a van transfer to Norris Point. If you want a long ride instead of hiking, you can ride the thrilling hills around the shore of Bonne Bay. BLD
Same lodging
Day 3: 8-hour hike
Hike to the top of Gros Morne Mountain, where caribou are sometimes seen atop the Long Range Mountains. This is a difficult eight-hour hike, rewarded (weather permitting) by phenomenal views over Ten-Mile Pond, the Long Range Mountains, and the Gulf of St. Lawrence. Return to explore dinner options in Rocky Harbour – a pretty community with gorgeous sunsets! BL
Gros Morne Cabins, Rocky Harbour, www.grosmornecabins.com; or
Wildflowers Inn, Rocky Harbour, www.bbcanada.com/1622.html
Day 4: 88km/55 miles plus boat trip
Morning ride or van transfer north through Gros Morne to take a fascinating boat trip up the fjord at Western Brook Pond (in Newfoundland, even the largest lakes are usually called ponds). There is an optional afternoon hike on Cow Head, where an abundance of fossils provides a record of marine life through the ages, before cycling to Portland Creek. BLD
Entente Cordiale, Portland Creek, www.ententecordiale.com
Day 5: Up to 263km/163 miles (for most participants, this ride is vehicle assisted)
A very long ride today, helped (we hope!) by the prevailing tailwind and the wide flat road, will take you to your cozy log lodge in a fabulous setting, near the Hare Bay Islands Ecological Reserve. This superb retreat is well out of the way. Be prepared to enjoy comfort in the northern wilderness!. BLD
Tuckamore Lodge, Main Brook, www.tuckamorelodge.com
Day 6: 87km/54miles
First to St. Anthony for a whale and iceberg watching boat trip and lunch at the Lightkeepers Kitchen. Afterwards, ride to the profoundly stirring L'Anse aux Meadows, where Vikings landed 1000 years ago. Believed to be Lief Eriksson's Vinland of the Norse sagas, this is the site of the birth of the first European descendant in the New World: "Snorri". You will be able to visit the site at its best this afternoon and evening, and can imagine the Vikings landing here over a millennium ago. Tonight, you will be “screeched in” – an honour reserved for those who have had a real Newfoundland experience. BD
Valhalla Lodge, L’Anse aux Meadows, www.valhalla-lodge.com; or
Viking Village Inn, L’Anse aux Meadows, www.vikingvillage.ca
Day 7:
A five hour van transfer arrives back in Deer Lake by mid-afternoon (Labrador extension starts half-way along this drive). There are late afternoon flights from St. Anthony airport to St. John’s, as an oft-preferred alternative to taking the van back to Deer Lake. B
Optional Labrador Extension, easy walking/hiking
Day 7:
Catch the 13:00 ferry to Labrador from St. Barbe. Transfer to Red Bay, with stops to hike to the stunning waterfall at Overfall Brook, and to the shipwreck sites on the Raleigh Trail. BD
Oceanview Resort, West Ste. Modeste, www.oceanviewresort.ca or B&B alternatives
Day 8:
Transfer to Red Bay Whaling Station National Historic Site. Basque fishermen used this site to supply the lucrative European market with oil in the 16th century. Continue to Mary’s Harbour to catch the 11:00 ferry to Battle Harbour. Once the bustling economic center for the Labrador coast, it is now an amazingly beautiful and calm place. Revived as an historic salt fish station, all transport is on tracks and boardwalks, and the whole place takes you back in time to the peaceful, pre-combustion-engine era. It makes for excellent exploring on foot, and is reminiscent of Harrington Harbour, the setting for the hilarious movie Seducing Doctor Lewis. BLD
Lodging in restored buildings at Battle Harbour
Day 9:
Spend the day on foot enjoying the solitude and ambience of Battle Harbour, then catch the 16:00 ferry back to Mary’s Harbour for your transfer to Red Bay. BD
Oceanview Resort, West Ste. Modeste, www.oceanviewresort.ca or B&B alternatives
Day 10:
Catch the 10:30 ferry back to Newfoundland, and transfer to Deer Lake for a finish by 16:00
The Details:.
| Start: | Deer Lake Motel 09:00 day one. This is one mile from the tiny Deer Lake airport. |
| Finish: | Deer Lake Motel, Deer Lake, 16:00 day seven. Optional finish at St. Anthony with flights to Deer Lake or St. John’s. |
| Guided Cost: | $2395 (per person, includes 7 days, 6 nights, 6 breakfasts, 5 lunches, 5 dinners, one fjord boat trip and one whale-watch and iceberg boat trip, luggage handling, van and guide support, maps and route notes). Labrador extension add $1455 |
| Self-Guided: | $2195 (per person, includes 7 nights, 7 breakfasts, luggage transfers, pick up on the long day, and 350 km transfer on the final day, maps and route notes). Labrador extension not available self-guided. |
| Single Occupancy: | $490 (Labrador extension add $175) |
| Bicycle Rental: | Hybrid: $145; Racing: $195. |
| 2010 Guided Dates: | Aug 29-Sep 4. Call 800-672-0775 for guaranteed departure, updates or to add a new departure. |
| 2011 Guided Dates: | Jul 3-9; Jul 17-23; Jul 31-Aug 6; Aug 14-20; Aug 28-Sep 3. Call 800-672-0775 for guaranteed departure, updates or to add a new departure. |
| Self Guided Dates: | You choose! Best months are June (spring flowers, icebergs abundant), July (warm weather, icebergs, maybe whales), August (warm weather, whales, and maybe icebergs), September (cooler; quiet). |
| Similar Trips: | Newfoundland: Avalon, Alberta: Waterton to Banff; Yukon: Multisport |
All details and pricing are subject to change without notice. 15% sales tax applies, but a 50% refund will be applied for non-Canadians.
