Disclaimer:
This itinerary is subject to change. You may choose to take less or more time to get to/from the Newfoundland ferry. Also, if the weather turns bad, all bets on return time/day are off. It is winter, after all.
Notes:
- The driving times/locations assume you are joining the group at the early rendezvous point at Portsmouth, NH, on Thursday, February 14. However, you may opt to not meet up until as late as the ferry.
- Due to the extreme prevalence of moose, the itinerary attempts to minimize driving at night in the Cape Breton Highlands and in rural Newfoundland. Local sunrise and sunset times are listed. At 47 degrees latitude, twilight generally exists for 35 minutes beyond daylight.
- No matter what, if you want to go on the trip, you need to get to the North Sydney Ferry Terminal by 10:30pm AT on Friday . That's 9:30pm ET. For safety, give yourself some extra slack time in case of unexpected delays. Miss the boat and you'll... miss the boat. If you arrive a few hours early, you can always hit the casino in Sydney (25 min drive around Sydney ring road from terminal).
Features:
- Friday and Monday overnight ferry crossings. Ferry arrives around 7:15am local time in each direction. On the return trip, this is after sunrise.
- Kick-off road rally on the twisting streets of Port Aux Basques
- Free Saturday Night on-the-town in St. John's.
- Full day to tour St. John's and/or the Avalon Peninsula. Cape Spear sunrise, Signal Hill, road rallies in Avalon Peninsula villages (a la TARGA).
- Daytime ferry side-trip to Little Bay Islands (an offshore fishing outport). To make it happen, this will require coordination with ferry operators (we'll need our own ferry trip, given the number of vehicles). Alternative: 2 hours free time in Terra Nova National Park, or taking a charter plane up from Gander.
- Optional: Scenic extra trips to one or more of: Cabot Trail/Cape Breton Highlands NP, Confederation Bridge/PEI, Bay of Fundy tides, Fundy National Park.
| Day / Time | Start | Finish | Distance (miles) | Driving Time (hours) |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Thursday (Feb 14) |
Portsmouth, NH (43n04, 70w49) |
Calais, ME (45n11, 67w17) |
275 | 5 |
| 13:00 ET | Rendezvous in Portsmouth, NH | |||
| 16:00 | Bangor, ME | |||
| 16:57 | Sundown | |||
| 18:00 | Arrive in Calais, ME. Dinner. Gas Up Tonight. . | |||
| 19:30 | Leave Dinner, check in.Lodging: Calais Motor Inn | |||
Friday (Feb 15) |
Calais, ME (45n11, 67w17) |
North Sydney, NS (46n13, 60w15) |
460 | 7.5 |
| 06:32 | Sunrise. | |||
| 07:00 | Breakfast. | |||
| 08:00 | Depart motel, head for St. Stephen, NB border crossing | |||
| 9:30 AT | Clear Canada Customs / Duty Free Shop (see crossing the border in the FAQ page). Clocks forward 1 hour. NB and NS use Atlantic Time (AT: UTC-4). | |||
| 10:30 | Arrive Saint John, NB. View Reversing Falls. | |||
| 12:15 | View Cape Enrage, NB | |||
| 12:45 | Arrive, Hopewell Rocks, NB. | |||
| 13:45 | Depart, Hopewell Rocks, NB | |||
| 14:30 | Arrive, Moncton, NB. Lunch at the Pumphouse Brewery. Or somewhere Italian. Gas Up. | |||
| 15:30 | Depart, Moncton, NB | |||
| 17:45 | Sundown (~New Glasgow, NS) | |||
| 19:00 | Arrive in Port Hawkesbury, NS. Gas Up. Dinner. Maybe somewhere really Italian. | |||
| 20:30 | Depart Hawkesbury, NS | |||
| 22:15 | Arrive at ferry check-in, North Sydney, NS. Ferry loading began around 21:30 | |||
| 22:45 NT | Clocks forward 30 minutes. Onboard, the ferry operates on Newfoundland Time (NT: UTC-3.5). | |||
| 23:30 | Crossing Time Betting Pool in the Placentia Bar Lounge aboard the MV Smallwood. |
|||
| 24:00 | Ferry departs for 7-hour trip to NL at 23:30 AT, or 24:00 NT. Lodging: ferry cabin | |||
Saturday (Feb 16) |
Port-aux-Basques, NL (47n34, 59w09) |
St. John's, NL (47n34, 52w43) |
550 | 9.5 |
| 06:30 | Breakfast in the onboard Cafeteria. | |||
| 07:15 | Ferry arrives Port aux Basques, NL. Disembark. | |||
| 07:30 | Sunrise. Meet at Irving Big Stop in Port aux Baques for in-town road rally. | |||
| 08:00 | Rally completed. Depart Port-aux-Basques | |||
| 10:00 | Pass Corner Brook | |||
| 10:45 | Pass Deer Lake, the turn off for the Viking Trail | |||
| 12:00 | Pass near Springdale, northernmost point on our route (49n30, 56w04) | |||
| 12:30 | Lunch in Badger, NL (centre of Nfld) | |||
| 13:30 | Depart Badger | |||
| 15:30 | Pass through Terra Nova National Park | |||
| 17:30 | Sundown (~junction with road to Dildo, NL) | |||
| 18:30 | Arrive St. John's. Check into Abba Inn | |||
| 19:30 | Dinner | |||
| 21:00 | Saturday Night on the town. Maybe we'll show The Italian Job too. Lodging: Abba Inn | |||
Sunday (Feb 17) |
St. John's |
St. John's | - | - |
| All Day | Rest Day. Activities TBD. | |||
| 07:00 | Sunrise. For the early risers, daybreak at Cape Spear (easternmost point in North America) is highly recommended. | |||
| 17:30 | Sundown. Lodging: Abba Inn | |||
Monday (Feb 18) |
St. John's | Port-aux-Basques | 600 | 10.5 |
| 07:00 | Sunrise. Breakfast. | |||
| 08:00 | Check out of Abba Inn. Leave St. John's. | |||
| 12:00 | Lunch in Gander | |||
| 13:00 | Lunch over. Tour Gander and/or Grand Falls - Windsor | |||
| 14:00 | Depart Gander | Alternative activities: 2 hours in Terra Nova NP, explore other towns | ||
| 17:58 | Sundown. Watch for moose in the twilight. They can be seen as often as every couple of minutes at this time of day. | |||
| 18:00 | Dinner in Corner Brook | |||
| 19:30 | Leave Corner Brook. Night Driving: Use extreme caution. | |||
| 22:00 | Arrive Port aux Basques, NL. MV Caribou will start boarding. | |||
| 22:45 | Reservation cutoff time. | |||
| 23:45 | Ferry departs for 7-hour trip to NS. Lodging: ferry cabin | |||
| Tuesday (Feb 19) (Direct or Scenic Return) |
North Sydney, NS | depends | depends | depends |
| 07:00 | Breakfast on MV Caribou. Last meal before the Breaking of the Fellowship. | |||
| 7:25 | Sunrise. | |||
| 7:15 AT | Ferry arrives North Sydney, NS. Clocks backward 30 minutes. Disembark. | |||
| People returning directly vs. taking the scenic extra day go their separate ways. | ||||
| Direct Return Option (NO extra day required) | ||||
| Tuesday (Feb 19) Direct Return (retrace Friday's map) |
North Sydney, NS | New York, NY | 1000 | 16.5 |
| end of day | Direct return to Boston, MA about 10pm, NYC at about 1:30am ET, including 2.5 hours of stops for meals, border, etc.. Clocks backward 1 hour at NB/ME border. | |||
| Scenic Return Option (extra day required) | ||||
Tuesday (Feb 19) |
North Sydney, NS | PEI, or Fundy NP, NB | 550 | 9 |
| 08:00 | Enter Cabot Trail (scenic Highlands drive) | |||
| 09:00 | Enter Cape Breton Highlands National Park, western side. | |||
| 10:30 | Arrive eastern side of park | |||
| 11:30 | Exit Park. Lunch in Cheticamp, NS | |||
| 12:30 | Leave Cheticamp | |||
| 17:45 | Cross Confederation Bridge to PEI at Sunset (world's longest single bridge, over ice) | |||
| 18:15 | Dinner in PEI | |||
| 19:30 | Cross Confederation Bridge at night | |||
| 21:30 | Arrive Fundy National Park area (known for world's highest tides). Lodging: TBD | |||
Wednesday (Feb 20) |
PEI or Fundy NP, NB | New York, NY | 700 | 11 |
| 07:15 | Sunrise | |||
| 07:30 | Breakfast | |||
| 08:30 | 3 hours to explore the tides of Fundy | |||
| 11:30 | Depart Fundy National Park | |||
| 13:00 | Lunch in Saint John, NB | |||
| 14:00 | Leave Saint John, NB | |||
| 15:00 | Arrive, St. Stephen - Calais border crossing | |||
| 15:00 ET | Clear US Customs / Duty Free Shop (see crossing the border in the FAQ page). Clocks backward 1 hour. | |||
| 20:00 | Dinner near Boston, MA | |||
| 21:00 | Depart Dinner | |||
| end of day | Arrive New York, NY, about 00:30. | |||