We started the day with an in-RV shower – works really well. After breakfast we emptied tanks and filled up with fresh water. We had to take the nozzle off the water hose to get it to fit into the water filling hole on the Roadtrek, but that left us with no way to turn the water on or off.  Lots of water and once the tank filled up it sprayed everywhere until we kinked the hose. Shower #2 done. The RV park owner asked whether we wanted to get rid of Pepsi.

Next was a visit to the mall in Labrador City for some groceries and gas. A quick drive through town showed a functional but uninspired northern industry town.

Once back on the Trans Labrador Highway we came across a porcupine sniffing the fresh yellow paint from the crew that was painting new lines on the highway. It took quite a bit of coaxing to get him off the road so we could pass.

The first 165 kms were pristine pavement and we had a wonderful ride.

Once the gravel returned things got bumpier again.

We stopped at Churchill Falls for a hike and took some pictures of the massive canyon and the relatively small amount of water now flowing down the falls because of the hydro plant water diversion.

All of a sudden there was a flapping of wings as a mother partridge and her young took off from the ground.

The last 30 kms of highway to the town of Churchill Falls was nearly impassable for our RV. There is road construction here and it was raining so we had slick, deep mud and patches of rough gravel.

The town of Churchill Falls a true example of a company town. Everything except for the gas station, a pub and two convenience stores is owned by Nalcor Energy. Workers at the company receive free electricity and subsidized housing but have to leave Churchill Falls upon retirement. The Town Complex houses the hotel (also owned by the company), a library, school, post office, supermarket, pool, spa, fitness club, etc. The concept was a bit foreign to us. The parking lot here is the only place can stay overnight for RVs, so that’s what we did. They do provide power.

The night was very cold at 7 degrees Celsius so we tried to turn the furnace or heat pump going. There seems to be a loose connection somewhere as it will come on, but then never does again until you cycle power on the unit. Phoned Roadtrek to see what they suggest – wait until you get back to have the dealer look at it.

Phoned town office at 8PM to try and reserve spots on the 9AM hydro plant tour. Tours are offered at 9AM, 1:30PM and 7PM but unfortunately at the moment there is only one guide so the 9AM tour was cancelled. We signed up for the 1:30PM tour so we had the morning to relax. We visited the library at the town centre and they had some books for sale for $1 each so we bought 3. We also discovered that we have one tank dripping water so that will also need to be looked at when we get back.

The hydro generating station tour was amazing. The plant is 1000ft feet underground and solid granite. You take an elevator down and then visit the transformer room, power generating floor where the 11 generators are located and the emergency shelter underground.  There is a tunnel with a bus with a key in the ignition for a quick escape if needed.

   

After the tour ended we drove to Happy Valley-Goose Bay with a stop at the Muskrat Falls which are scheduled to also be developed into a power station.  Work has already begun and brush has been cleared with heavy machinery. The hiking trail was very slick and difficult but all three of us managed to get to the falls and back just before dark. Unfortunately we neglected to take our camera so we were unable to document the falls before they are destroyed during development.

Upon arrival in Happy Valley-Goose Bay we checked into the Goose River Lodge and RV Park.

Today we explored the area around Happy Valley-Goose Bay. Our first stop was North West River which is one of oldest communities in Labrador and is beautifully located at the head of Lake Melville and Grand Lake. Here we visited the Labrador Interpretive Center and the Hudson Bay Company store which is now a museum. The staff at both places were extremely friendly and took their time sharing details and stories of life in Labrador.

 

Next we drove to the town of Happy Valley-Goose Bay in search of craft stores but unfortunately they were already closed for the day.

Back at the campsite we cooked a nice meal and finally caught up with our blog.

  

 

Visited Drumdancer Arts and Crafts and bought Woman of Labrador book, the story of Elizabeth Goudie’s life as a trapper’s wife in the early 1900s. We also sampled toutons with partridgeberry jam. Next was Slippers ‘n Things where Pepsi got a Labrador dog kerchief and then Herb Brown’s Birches Galley to see native art work. Herb has a fine collection of pieces in his home/gallery including some in blue-eyed granite. There was a beautiful 400lb bear there for $35,000 that Herb said he would personally deliver if we bought it.

We left Happy Valley-Goose Bay at around 1PM for a 480 km gravel highway trip to Mary’s Harbour. Most of the highway wasn’t all that bad although it did get progressively worse once past the Cartwright Junction. Along the way we saw two cars that must have been in accidents and had been stripped of everything of value, leaving only the bare frame.

Besides lunch and dinner we also stopped to help a pickup truck driver who had had his second flat of the day in the same tire.

The last 50 kms were so bad that we were only able to move at 30 km/h. We both laughed out loud when we saw the “bump in 100m ahead” sign.  As if it could really get worse.  It did.  The town of Mary’s Harbour has some pretty bad roads and we finally inched into the school parking lot for the night at 11PM.

We left Pepsi and the Roadtrek at the school parking lot and started walking to the Battle Harbour ferry dock and one of the locals stopped and offered us a ride.  At the ferry dock we were told that dogs were permitted on the ferry and Battle Harbour premises and could even spend the night in two of the houses there.  I walked back to the RV and picked Pepsi up, along with some food for her and then walked back to the ferry dock.  The ferry ride was about an hour and Battle Harbour was beautiful.

   

We ate a cod lunch and then did a tour of the site, led by a woman who had grown up there and added some personal history to the tour. At the end of the tour Ruth and I decided we would spend the night there and we stayed in the Isaac Smith house. This house has a kitchen with wood burning stove, three bedrooms and can sleep at least 6 people.

Catherine, the general manager of the site, gave us some pointers of where exactly where the sun would set and we wandered off to take pictures.  At 6:30 we had dinner and then headed out again for some sunset pictures.

There was a large iceberg in the bay.

This was truly a highlight of our trip so far.