Newfoundland "A Wicked Cool Place"

The moose hunting season in Newfoundland opens mid September and closes mid December. A tour group from the Elder Hostel chats with the neighbor about his successful hunt.

Only a chosen few individuals have witnessed the collapse or break-up of an iceberg. The event itself causes a mini tsunami so it's best to keep a safe distance when viewing bergs from fishing or touring boats.

In the 'good old days' in outport Newfoundland, transportation in the winter was limited. Then came the Bombardier Snowmobile.

Small boat outport sealers unloading their pelts at Gargamelle Cove in mid April. It's their first fishery of the season, their first new money for the year.

The Cod are not as big as they use to be

Canadian ice-breaker at the mouth of Port Au Choix harbour helping local shrimp draggers stuck in ice.

A few of the local boys relaxing in Uncle Mike's fish store after spending a long day on the water.

Hundreds of icebergs of all shapes and sizes pass by the northern shores of the Viking Trail in May, June and July. 90% of this berg is below water. Imagine that!

Numbered lobster fishing outboard boats, the little white fleet, and the larger shrimp boat fleet sit idle on a Sunday morning in Port Au Choix harbour. Meanwhile at the entrance to the harbour in the far distance, a Canadian icebreaker has run aground on a shoal.

Point Riche lighthouse stands on guard overlooking the Gulf of St. Lawrence at Port Au Choix National Historic Park.

Studio Gargamelle had a booth 4 years in a row at the Christmas "One of a Kind" show in Toronto. The show runs for 11 consecutive days with an attendance of 150,000 qualified shoppers. Approximately 750 booths.

Lingering packs of heavy northern ice play havoc when it drifts into the coves and bays. During early lobster fishing season it destroys traps and gear. Aerial Shot over Gargamelle Bay.

Typical 35-foot longliner tied up in port awaiting the opening of the lobster and crab fisheries. The local ice hockey rink is in the background.

Gargamelle Cove in early May. Tied on lobster traps are piled just above high tide mark awaiting their trip to the lobster fishing grounds. The season is short, 5-6 weeks at the best.

Why do Newfoundlanders paint their houses so bright? An elder lady from around the bay answered this question from a tourist by saying:
"It's an outward expression of the brightness we feel inside"

Woodland caribou trot in front of Uncle Mike's camp on St. John's Island in early spring. Caribou sightings are common all along the Viking Trail.

Firewood consisting of birch, spruce and fir is cut and hauled by ski doo and stacked by the nearest roadside. It will later be sawed up and carried home by truck. "Tee-Pee" style stacked firewood along the Viking Trail always attracts the attention of summer tourists.
What is it? Who owns it? Why doesn't anyone steal it?
In Newfoundland you might steal another man's wife, but you never steal another man's firewood.

Typical 65-foot shrimp dragger fishing out of the main port at Port Au Choix

Sunset over Noel's Harbour. Once the end of a long cod fishing day, but no more

A traditional Folk/Rock band, The Fables, on stage at the waterfront in downtown Port Au Choix during the Viking 1000 celebrations.

Western Brook Fjord in Gros Morne National Park as viewed from Route 430, The Viking Trail.

Winter Carnival celebrations on Port Au Choix Harbour.

The SHARKS gentlemen hockey team back at Ben's Studio for a few beers, a few songs, and a lot of squid rings after winning the cup.

Myself and Brian Tobin back in '93, the day he commissioned me to do 6 pieces of moratorium folk art for the Department of Fisheries And Oceans in Ottawa.