Hike To The Back Of The Land

St. Anthony Area, Newfoundland (52 degrees, chilly, grey skies)

The Visitor Center at Grenfell has a great trail guide. We are in a very  rural area and there are surprising trails tucked in many of the surrounding villages. We were traveling with Jann and Barry and  stumbled across a spectacular overlook while trying to find the Treena's Trail. We got out of the car as the fog was rolling in and out of this harbor. We lingered for quite awhile at this high perch because it was just so beautiful and serene. We still weren't sure if the trail had been found so we wound down the road a little farther to a cute B&B called the Tickle Inn. In the front yard we found this sign and took off on a lovely hike up into the "Back of the Land".

Jann and Barry  (best picnic spot ever)

Fog rolling in and out

Fog lifting 

Within minutes the fog was gone

Someone had gone to great lengths to make this trail very usable. They had put in lots of stairs and cut back evergreens. We climbed and climbed and at the top was a nice bench to sit and view the surrounding area and water from 360 degrees. It was amazing view from the Back of the Land. We saw lots of tiny flowers which are considered arctic-alpine plants. We all agreed this was our best hike so far.

Back of the Land

Picnic table far in the distance

Afterwards we stopped at a unique shop called Taylor's Crafts to see his hand carvings and then headed to an area Barry had heard about called Burnt Cape. There is a very rugged road leading up to a unique limestone barren land which made us feel like we were on the moon. Arctic plants hung on for dear life in the wind and weather. It was an eerie place to visit. There are several plants here which are considered very rare so we carefully walked around due to it being such a very fragile environment. Unfortunately this place recently lost its funding and there are no longer ranger led hikes. We sure would have liked to know more about what we were seeing.

Carving at Taylor's Crafts (four generations of carvers)

"Moonscapes" Burnt Cape

Tomorrow we plan to check out the Grenfell Museum in St. Anthony. It honors a physician who came here from England in the early 20th century and provided much needed care and medical services in this remote area. Stay tuned.