Stay in Twillingate

The hike to the Natural Arch in Little Harbour, a 4 km drive out of Twillingate on Route 340. Watch for the sign on the left pointing to Little Harbour. The photos on this page were taken by TA Loeffler on a summer hike to the Arch – a walk along an old overgrown road, past a resettled community, scattered root cellar,  through fields of wild raspberries and blueberries.

Hamburgers, Hotdogs, Chips

View from the Natural Arch

On the Bench.

Along the path.

A Gull at Sunset.

At the Arch

Fence at Sunset.

Beach Treasure

Abandoned home.

Looking through the Arch.

Keefe's Root Cellar

Tags: hike, things to do

Panoramic view of French Beach.

The hike to French Beach opens onto a long, quiet pebble beach surrounded by rocks.  The beach overlooks Durrell’s Arm with Durrell Museum looking back at you from the across the ocean.

Take Twillingate’s Main Street in the direction of Durrell and eventually the road stops at the trail that leads to French Beach and French Head (a bit more than 5 kms from the T-intersection of Route 340 and Main Street).  Four-wheel-drive vehicles can continue on the trail, closer to the beach.  However, there are a few parking spots at the entrance to the trail.

Sign pointing to Cobra Rock

The walk to the beach is about 15 – 20 minutes.  From there the trail continues to French Head and over the Spillar’s (also spelled Spiller’s) Cove beach and Codjack’s Cove if you’re interested in a longer coastal hike. (See hiking map)

In summer wild flowers such as buttercups, irises, chickweed, crackerberries and fireweed create endless carpets of colour along the trail.
 

Keith and Heather Nicol in conjunction with the Central Newfoundland Destination Marketing Organization, created these informative short videos showing the trails that lead from French Beach to Spiller’s Cove and on to Codjack’s Cove.

Tags: day trip, hiking, things to do

Entrance to Top of Twillingate Hike

The hike to the Top of Twillingate delivers the most rewarding views along the way and at the end of this 40 minute hike to the final lookout point.

In total between an hour to hour and a half, this easy to moderate hike follows along a wooded trail with 3 lookout stations before reaching the peak of Twillingate island at 327 ft above sea level, with its 18 ft lookout tower.

This hike starts in the community called Bayview, previously known as Gillard’s Cove. To get to the starting point, drive as if leaving Twillingate onto Route 340. Take the first exit to the right, called Rink Road. Stay on this road until you see the sign at the start of the trail on your right.  There is parking at the start of the hike.

A Hiker Enjoys the View from Lookout 1 on Top of Twillingate trail.

It is a dry trail with some uphill areas and a few hand rails and stretches of board walk to help out. An option is to do the additional loop to the trail on a board walk around Low Mist Pond.

The trail is marked very well and there are washroom facilities at the start of the trail near the trail cabin. In summer a canteen operates at the trail cabin, staffed by students. The area has a few picnic tables and along the trail there is bench seating.

Don’t forget to sign the guest book that is kept at the lookout tower at the peak of the trail.  And why not end the trail off back in Twillingate with fresh fish and chips at JJ’s Fish Market on the deck?

Things to bring:

• Day pack
• Water
• Protection against black flies
• A hat
• A camera

Tags: day trip, hike, things to do

Day Trip

“Hip yer partner Sally Thibeau
Hip yer partner Sally Brown
Fogo Twillingate Moreton’s Harbour
All around the circle…”

Twillingate to Moreton’s Harbour via Carter’s Cove

The lyrics of the Newfoundland folk tune, I’se the b’y has made a legend of this Twillingate / New World Island touring route.  The first part,  Twillingate – Moreton’s Harbour is a lovely half-day trip.

View Day Trip:Twillingate Moreton’s Harbour in a larger map
Starting out from Twillingate, a twenty-minute drive towards Lewisporte on Route 340 will bring you to the turn-off to Route 345: Carter’s Cove-Moreton’s Harbour-Tizzards Harbour.

Boats in Carter's Cove

Drive through scenic Carter’s Cove and consider hiking the Brownies Cove Trail before continuing to Moreton’s Harbour. The Moreton’s Harbour Museum is managed by the local community and in summer there is a tea room where a “hot mug” and local baked good may be found. The Moreton’s Harbour W.I. Community Museum contains a wide array of wartime artifacts from both world wars, including wedding dresses and telegraph equipment, plus a tribute to the local fishing legacy.

As a protected harbour Moreton’s Harbour is also the perfect choice for the small crafts harbour that is the hub of the local fishing industry.

Moreton’s Harbour to Tizzard’s Harbour

From Moreton’s Harbour, follow the road signs to Tizzard’s Harbour – make sure you keep your camera close by. Then it is time to turn the car back towards Twillingate.

Lobsters at Hillgrade

Freshly cooked lobster and touton.

On route 340 you’ll pass through Hillgrade.  Watch out for the sign that says Sansome and Sons, Lobster Pool… you have found a good spot to pick up lunch or supper.

Pick your live lobster from the pool and have it cooked on site.  You have a choice of taking your catch home with you or to dine on the deck with a beautiful ocean view.

Dildo Run Provincial Park on the way home to Twillingate is another option for a picnic of fresh lobster and fresh air.

Tags: day trips, things to do

Much is written about icebergs and the icebergs of Twillingate but nothing can prepare you for the first time you encounter one of these enormous bergs up close and personal.  2009 had a bumper crop of icebergs while 2010 delivered only a few.  Here are a few photographs we took on a boat tour at dusk in 2009.

Iceberg at Dusk in Twillingate

The candy stripes in this iceberg is from melted iceberg water that freezes in cracks in the iceberg.

A lone seal looks on from its iceberg perch as a tour boat floats by at dusk.

Tags: boat tour, icebergs, things to do

Reservations are coming in from visitors planning their 2011 summer vacation. With Christmas almost a month behind us (how did that happen?) iceberg season will be upon us soon enough!

Fish Fun and Folk Festival

The annual Fish Fun and Folk Festival is traditionally in the third week of July every year.  It is a time when Twillingaters from everywhere come home to visit and where visitors from all over the world come to Twillingate to enjoy great summer weather and a week of festivities and events that ends traditionally in a spectacular fireworks display.  This year the festival dates are 25 to 31 July 2011.

Wine Tour

Auk Island Winery and gift shop is open year round. Wine tours provide a demonstration of how the Auk Island wines are made with a blend of local berries and iceberg water.  The gift shop is a lovely spot to find a local gift or simply browse around.

Live Performances

We are waiting to hear about performances of local group the Split Peas, gospel singers Irene Bridger and Karren Churchill,  the All Around the Circle dinner theatre in Crow Head and drama production in Cameron Hall this summer.  Check back for more information.

Kayaks outside Above The Tickle

Kayaking

Last summer guests of ours arrived with their kayaks and launched at the Tickle Bridge and kayaked around to Durrell.  They had the most awesome time.

A recent honeymoon couple drove all the way from Maryland to Amber Retreat for a week’s vacation with their kayak and judged by their photos, they had an exhilarating time exploring the coastline around Twillingate.  If you’d like to try kayaking and want to go out with a group or rent a kayak, you may want to contact Lindy Rideout of Seaknife Kayaks a call.  It is way safer than it looks!

Tags: 2011, events, things to do, what's happening