A Fishy Day

Thursday, July 22—Day 25

We get up early and have our last "Thelma" breakfast at the Viking's Nest B&B. Thelma is a wonderful hostess and her husband is a pleasure to talk with, as well. He is a fisherman and all the mornings we have been at the B&B he has come in from his fishing about the time we're sitting down to eat breakfast. Marshal has enjoyed visiting with him and learning more about the fishing in Newfoundland.

After breakfast we bid Thelma and her husband farewell, load the car and head down Route 436 for the last time. We have become strangely attached to L'anse aux Meadows in the three days we've been here. Something about the land and the people who live here welcomes and embraces you. We will miss this little corner of the world.

Today we are heading back to Rocky Harbour in Gros Morne National Park and we decide to take Route 432, the Grenfell Drive, along the French Shore of the northern peninsula. There are very few towns along this 116 km route, but we are looking forward to new scenery rather than following Route 430 along the Strait of Belle Isle.

We turn south on Route 432 when we reach the St. Anthony airport. It isn't long until we notice a change in the trees and plants. Although we are passing along the edge of Hare Bay, which opens to the Atlantic, we are far enough inland that the winds are not as severe as they are long the coast. As a result the foliage is able to grow more quickly and to greater heights. We see a mx of deciduous and hardwood trees—fir, spruce, birch and maple.

As a diversion and a break from the car ride we decide to stop near the town of Roddickton to see the underground salmon pool. We turn southeast on Route 433 toward Roddickton and go about 8 km to the turnoff to the salmon pools. To reach the trailhead we drive 4 km on a well-maintained gravel road. From the parking area we pick up the trail to the salmon pools. The trail is beautifully maintained and we are impressed at the work that someone has clearly put into building the trail. Beautiful wildflowers line the gravel path. The roundtrip distance to the salmon pools is about 4 km. We are in moose and black bear territory, so we pay careful attention as we walk along. It is estimated that there are 3 moose per square kilometer in this area. There are many limestone caves in the area, which attract the black bears. As we walk down the path we see many piles of moose scat.

When we reach the salmon pools on the Beaver River we see that they are limestone caves that the river runs through. As the salmon swim upstream to spawn they swim through the limestone caves. It is not spawning time, so we don't see any salmon swimming upriver, but it is interesting to see the water coming out of the low-ceilinged cave. We walk further up river and see the upstream entrance to the caves. Logs are backed up at the entrance to the cave. It appears that during the winter storms trees fall into the river and are washed downstream.

We begin our hike back down the trail and about 100 meters down the trail we come across bear scat. It is clearly fresh—most likely from earlier this morning. We pick up our speed along the trail. I lead the way and Marshal brings up the rear and both of us keep a careful lookout for bears.

Back at the parking lot we load into the car and proceed to Roddickton to have lunch. The placemats at our table explain the importance of allowing female cod to mature so they can lay eggs. Female cod live about 20 years. At age 6 a female cod is about 1' 10" long and has laid up to 1 million eggs. By age 16 the female cod is about 3' 8" long and has laid 25 million eggs. By age 20 the she is about 4' 1" long and has laid 50 million eggs. In other words, the female cod's most productive egg-laying years are from age 16 to 20 so it is important not to keep the female cod that are caught, especially as they get larger. The placemats are clearly aimed at the local population, but we found them very informative.

Traveling through Newfoundland has given us a much greater appreciation for the ills of the fishing industry and the struggle that the people here face when trying to make a living. Many of the towns that we are staying in are having "Coming Home" weeks where former residents who have moved elsewhere (usually to find employment) come home for a town reunion. I have never heard of such a thing in the U.S., but it might occur in some parts of the country.

After lunch we return to Route 432 and resume our trek to Rocky Harbour. We turn south on Route 430 just north of Brig Bay and drive down the familiar road we traveled going to L'anse aux Meadows.

In Hawke Bay we stop at the Torrent River fishway where a fish ladder has been built to allow Atlantic salmon to swim upriver to spawn. This salmon enhancement program is the most successful in Newfoundland and Labrador. Before 1965 only a small population of Atlantic salmon lived in the Torrent River and they populated only the lower section of the river. A 10-meter high waterfall near the mouth of the river prevented the salmon migration into the larger spawning areas further upstream. Logging on the river had all but destroyed the spawning area for the salmon downstream, so extensive cleanup and habitat reconstruction was necessary.

Providing access beyond the falls has boosted the salmon population, thus improving recreational fishing on the Torrent River. The fishway has 34 gradually elevated pools to allow the salmon to swim upstream. From 1972 to 1976 the Canadian government stocked adult salmon upstream from the fishway. The Salmon born above the falls in Torrent River returned and healthy salmon population was created. The number of salmon swimming upriver to spawn has increased from around 100 to well over 38,000 this year (and the counting hasn't finished for this year).

After visiting the interpretive center we go to the viewing area for the fishway. Salmon are swimming up the fishway. We notice that many of them are scraped and have wounds on their sides. The interpreter explains that the salmon have to jump over a rock barrier at the mouth of the Torrent River before they get to the fishway. The rocks are quite sharp and the fish often injure themselves. The wounds don't seem to bother the fish and the interpreter points out several fish that have healed wounds and scars on their sides.

After seeing the salmon we walk outside and follow the fishway down the hill. It is enclosed to keep poachers out. At the bottom of the fishway we look back upriver and see the 10 meter falls. We can see why the fish need a fishway because the water is raging over the falls and the rocks are daunting.

We leave the fishway and continue south, stopping at Arches Provincial Park to see the three arches created by erosion from the ocean waves. Hilary builds an inukshuk with the flat rocks on the

beach. The inukshuk is the arctic people's symbol for habitation and was also used to indicate that food (caribou, berries) were accessible. We stay only a short time because it is getting late and then we finish our trip to Rocky Harbour, arriving about 8:00 p.m. It's late enough that we just order pizza and eat at our cabin before getting the kids through the shower. By 10:00 p.m. all of us drop in bed. Tomorrow we have a long drive to Grand Falls-Windsor.