Woulda, Coulda, Shoulda.

Hindsight is 20-20. It can also be a bit annoying. I’m hoping my decision to not climb Gros Morne Mountain today doesn’t come back to haunt me.

When I went to bed last night I knew the forecast was calling for scattered thunderstorms today. I don’t know about the thunder part but we definitely got rain – both late last night and early this morning. As I laid in my tent this morning, listening to the rain hitting my tent, I remained undecided on what I should do. Every time the rain would stop I’d think this was my chance. In the end, I decided to wait it out.

The rain continued on and off throughout the morning but had pretty much stopped by 11:00. Unfortunately, the climb to the top of Gros Morne Mountain is a 6-8 hour commitment so starting at noon wasn’t an option – plus I’m a 30 minute bike ride away from the trailhead. The clouds remained, but the sun managed to peek out a couple of times. Today was quickly turning into a “do nothing” day – which I guess is okay; however, it also limits my blog material. So in an attempt to find something to write about (and to take advantage of the now somewhat sunny day) I biked into Rocky Harbour (a whole 1.8km away) to look around some more.

I stopped in at the two small grocery stores to see if they had any snack-like food (in the event I’ll get to do the climb tomorrow) but I was uninspired by their selection. Sigh. I then went into “Treasure Box”, a restaurant/souvenir shop. It had been recommended and the menu had some good options for some local fare. I also liked that they a sign in the store posting the number of fish cakes they had sold so far this year. It was a little over 2,100. As I didn’t think I was quite ready for fish cakes, I moved on. Maybe tomorrow. After the climb.

I headed down the road to the other end of town (South Main St.) where there was another scenic view – complete with cemetery. This ended up being more relevant than I first thought – more on that later. Looking the other way there was a clear view of the lighthouse at Lobster Cove. A quick ride out to the end of the wharf revealed a great view of Rocky Harbour. As usual, I took some photos of the area and, realizing I hadn’t eaten yet today, headed a few blocks over and stopped in at Earle’s for lunch (also recommended to me).

With the day shaping up to be one of little excitement I decided to have a moose burger. And a beer. You know it’s a slow news day when “a moose burger and a beer” is the big story! Well, this may not be the most exciting update but the burger and beer were very good. Although, had I not known I was eating moose I would’ve assumed it was cow.

For dessert I went over to the grocery store across the street in search of a chocolate popsicle. This has been a struggle to find in Newfoundland. There has been pineapple, orange, cherry, but no chocolate. How is that even possible? I had an orange popsicle for dessert. Sigh.

Upon leaving the store I noticed an unusual amount of traffic passing by. More than unusual actually. It seemed like everyone in town was passing by. That’s when I tweaked into a conversation I only slightly overheard earlier in the store. It would seem one of the locals died in a car accident and the funeral was today. This was obviously the funeral procession to the cemetery I had seen earlier. I think some shops were actually closed so they could attend. And suddenly perspective is added to my uneventful day.

I returned to my campsite to ponder the rest of my day, week, and beyond. A thorough look at the map revealed a whole lot of options – all of them very hilly by the way.

Despite just having eaten (2 hours earlier), I decided it was time to crack open the jar of bakeapple jam that I bought on the way back from L’Anse aux Meadows. Yes, I know. The excitement of the day has no limits. But I have to say I rather enjoyed the jam (which again was technically “spread”, not “jam”). And the peanut butter didn’t seem to mind it either. Given the amount of jam/spread that I tend to use at a time, I expect to have an empty jar soon.

Ok, side note time again. I really wish I could get a picture of my current situation. I’ve been typing this up in the sheltered kitchen area of the campground. I had the place to myself for a while but then an “Adventure Caravan” group moved in. It’s a group of RV campers travelling together. They started with their review of upcoming plans but now they’re playing Bingo. I think they want me to leave but I find the whole thing very amusing. At times I’m struggling not to laugh. Some people take their Bingo pretty seriously. Others seemed puzzled by the “Four Corners” concept. I’d say I’m embarrassed that I know about the “Four Corners” concept but seriously, it’s Bingo. It’s pretty straightforward. Did I mention I REALLY wish I could get a covert picture of this? Oh, we just had a Bingo. Verification in progress. Confirmed. It’s a Bingo!