Exploring Bonavista

Breakfast was partridgeberry pancakes with a side of fried bologna.

If Newfoundlanders love two things other than cod and screech, those two things are berries and bologna. Berries grow wild almost everywhere here, and there is a history of foraging – probably due to the economic history and gumption of the folk that live here. Partridgeberries, cloudberries, wild strawberries and raspberries, bakeapples (they are berries, not apples), blueberries… I am sure I missed a few. On the way in from the TCH (Trans-Canada Highway) I saw many cars and pick-up trucks parked on the shoulder, and off in the fields people carrying white five-gallon buckets. It’s cloudberry season at the moment, and the market price is good.

So, what’s with the bologna? Before commercial fisheries developed the lobster smack, a specially designed boat with wells to keep the lobster alive and fresh in the hold, lobster was relegated to the “poor folk”. In fact, some 19th Century employment contracts for domestic servants specified that lobster could not be served to employees more than two times per week! At this point in Newfoundland history bologna was seen as a luxury food, and to this day it remains a part of the diet. You tend to see fried bologna more frequently on breakfast menus than bacon… and I have to admit when it is cut thick and fried to nice crispy crust it is quite tasty!

After breakfast,bo we walked around town. Outside of St. John’s, Bonavista is by far the largest community we have visited. It has a well-defined “downtown”, but with the spread-out smattering of ship-lapped wee homes that have become so familiar to us during our trip. It is a gorgeous town, gently embracing a busy harbour full of fishing boats, dories, and a replica of Giovanni Cabotto’s “Matthew”, the caravel that brought him to the “New World” in 1497.

A huge boat shed dominates the harbour with doors several stories tall. Inside is housed the permanent exhibit documenting the arrival of Giovanni (I still don't understand why we insist on teaching our children about John Cabot), and while we were here the replica boat was dry-docked inside for repairs (it is also kept in the shed over winter). It was a very informative exhibit, and admission includes access to the boat. It really gave us insight into what it must have been like for the crew to head off from Europe into the “unknown” on this relatively little wooden boat.

We also visited the Mockbeggar Plantation, the home of a wealthy local family which has been very carefully maintained and decorated according to the history of the place. The house was built in the 1870's, and the last family to occupy the property was the Bradley’s who moved into the home in 1939.  Gordon Bradley, a local businessman and politician, was a fervent supporter of Confederation. He went on to become a cabinet minister and senator. This site is definitely worth the visit and has a ton of information on Newfoundland history.

We didn't bother to go in, but rather enjoyed the grounds of the Ryan Premises which is also on the harbour – a cluster of large white buildings with red trim and cedar shake roofs. This is a National Historic Site and a perfectly preserved example of an 18th-century large-scale outport merchant operation. The company bought and sold salt cod, as well as supplies to the cod fisherman until 1957, and continued as a general store until 1978.

Lunch was a real treat! If you ever find yourself in Bonavista, you must look up “Neil’s Yard”. The restaurant and gallery is housed in a heritage building that is part of the Ryan Premises. I believe it used to a store of some sort, based on the windows – but I don't know the exact history.

Neil serves up the best cup of coffee (that we could find) outside St. John’s, and delicious French crepes with an ethnic twist. We shared one Thai inspiration, and another that was a twist on butter chicken… yum! And he has someone growing lettuce just for him – a bit of a luxury if you have ever lived or travelled in NL!

We found ourselves back at Cape Bonavista, and the beautiful lighthouse painted in broad stripes of red and white and made famous in countless works of art. We took a tour and learned the history of the place. Being a lighthouse keeper was a good job back in the day. 

We walked the edge of the cliffs – well, any of my friends reading this will know that I was probably at least 10 feet back from the edge – and looked out to the ocean searching for the telltale wispy columns of seawater mingled with breath marking the spot where a whale has surfaced to breathe out where the water turns dark below the horizon.

Andrea and I have both wondered aloud if it is possible to ever lose the excitement that comes with spotting the spout of a surfacing whale.

A tail appears and is held aloft by some hidden giant. The tail slowly waves back and forth in the air, back and forth, it's bottom white against the background of blue. It is a Humpback. One, two, then three. Right. There.

Did you know that Humpbacks have been known to come to the rescue of seals and smaller whales being pursued by Orcas? Amazing. Beautiful. These huge, graceful creatures. We humans almost slaughtered them out of existence. Just like we did to the young Newfoundlanders at Beaumont-Hammel in 1916. Sometimes it’s what we do best.

We stop in at Walkham’s Gate Pub for a pint before dinner. One of Quidi Vidi British IPA, and a Quidi Vidi 1892. Our bartender is a bearded gent named ??. Kind. Gentle. Softspoken. We talk about Newfoundland, his childhood, and the community of Bonavista. When he’s not tending bar he is writing poetry. 

We have dinner at the Boreal Diner, a rather new and quirky restaurant owned by a young wife and husband (he runs the café “Fixed” in downtown St. John’s) with a passion for farm-to-table. We shared our dinner, as usual, at a window table for two upstairs. Scallop appetizer. Rice noodle chicken bowl with sesame miso. Sweet and spicy cod served with rice and steamed bok choy. Dessert was a homemade Boston cream donut and chocolate cake. Delicious. Recommended.