NS VIA Fan
Conductor
Any other summer......by now I would probably have already posted a couple of Trip Reports here for the Ocean, VIA's Corridor and maybe even an Amtrak Acela trip......but right now I can't even go to Ontario or Quebec except for essential travel and that would involve at least one 14 day isolation if not two!
With Covid numbers so low here....the four Atlantic Provinces: Nova Scotia, New Brunswick. Prince Edward Island and Newfoundland have formed the 'Atlantic Bubble' that allows residents to travel within these provinces without requiring a 14 day isolation when crossing a provincial border. So with that in mind it was time for a Road Trip!!.....and I was off to Newfoundland last week.
(and as @MARC Rider noted in his Road Trip to Maine Report ”Yes, there's some reference to rail here. Just be patient, please”).......and thanks for the inspiration to get out and do a Road Trip so the summer is not a total loss!
I left home late Sunday afternoon for the 2 hour drive to the Marine Atlantic Ferry in North Sydney NS and an overnight crossing to Port-aux-Basques (Port oh Bask) Newfoundland.
Here's my ride....the MV Highlanders docked along-side the Atlantic Vision.....and the crossing was a bit different in these Covid times: Capacity is reduced to half and you have to stay in your assigned space (I had a cabin) and no wandering around the decks. Restaurants and bars are closed so we were given a complementary snack upon boarding consisting of a nice sandwich wrap, fruit, muffin and bottled water. Under normal circumstances I would have been out on deck on this warm, clear evening with every star out but at least my cabin had a window..... and at sunrise the rocky coast of Newfoundland came into view.
Once off the Ferry.......instead of just heading on up the highway we first had to clear 'Newfoundland Customs'......actually it was the Department of Health checking ID's to make sure you are a resident of the Atlantic Provinces and didn't have to be sent into a 14 day isolation.
I was heading for Gros Morne National Park.....about a 4 hour drive north of the ferry along the west coast of the island. The Trans Canada Highway is wide and straight and once the cars and trucks from the ferry clear.....there's little traffic and a real pleasure to drive!
With Covid numbers so low here....the four Atlantic Provinces: Nova Scotia, New Brunswick. Prince Edward Island and Newfoundland have formed the 'Atlantic Bubble' that allows residents to travel within these provinces without requiring a 14 day isolation when crossing a provincial border. So with that in mind it was time for a Road Trip!!.....and I was off to Newfoundland last week.
(and as @MARC Rider noted in his Road Trip to Maine Report ”Yes, there's some reference to rail here. Just be patient, please”).......and thanks for the inspiration to get out and do a Road Trip so the summer is not a total loss!
I left home late Sunday afternoon for the 2 hour drive to the Marine Atlantic Ferry in North Sydney NS and an overnight crossing to Port-aux-Basques (Port oh Bask) Newfoundland.
Here's my ride....the MV Highlanders docked along-side the Atlantic Vision.....and the crossing was a bit different in these Covid times: Capacity is reduced to half and you have to stay in your assigned space (I had a cabin) and no wandering around the decks. Restaurants and bars are closed so we were given a complementary snack upon boarding consisting of a nice sandwich wrap, fruit, muffin and bottled water. Under normal circumstances I would have been out on deck on this warm, clear evening with every star out but at least my cabin had a window..... and at sunrise the rocky coast of Newfoundland came into view.
Once off the Ferry.......instead of just heading on up the highway we first had to clear 'Newfoundland Customs'......actually it was the Department of Health checking ID's to make sure you are a resident of the Atlantic Provinces and didn't have to be sent into a 14 day isolation.
I was heading for Gros Morne National Park.....about a 4 hour drive north of the ferry along the west coast of the island. The Trans Canada Highway is wide and straight and once the cars and trucks from the ferry clear.....there's little traffic and a real pleasure to drive!
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