To Botwood, NLAug 15, 2006
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To Botwood, NL - 59 miles - August 15, 2006
Our agenda today was to arrive quickly as we had a 11:30 appointment with the "Bumpy Blue Bus". Our site for tonight is the parking apron of the old Botwood Seaplane Base. Botwood was the site for the first scheduled commercial trans-atlantic flights in the "Flying Boats" - the old Boeing Clippers and the Catalenas which started in 1939. Concept test flights were actually made in 1937. Botwood has a Seaplane & Flying Boat fly-in scheduled next August to celebrate the 70th anniversary of the event. Botwood was a thriving city during WW II as 10,000 service men were stationed here for defense and to support the aerial traffic to Europe. The advent of rubber tired aircraft and the runway at Gander spelled the end of Botwoods promanence as an aerial hub.
We have a dry camp (no hookups) but the georgous spot is worth it. The old maintenance building is now - what else- a Gift Shop and "Tourist Depository" (Museum). They kept it open late in our honor. Just like when the Circus is in town, it seemed most of the town drove down sometime during the day, or evening to see us.
Our Bumpy Blue Bus arrival was pushed back to 12 to give the ladies more time in the Gift Shop. Our driver, Reg, was also the tour guide, bus owner, and owner of the destination restaurant and Mussel Farm Tour operation. It was a loooong bumpy ride out to Fortune Bay. It took at least an hour as we passed through Northern Arm, where Reg is the owner of a Bed & Breakfast (probably the Mayor too I would guess), traveled through miles and miles of remote NL, and stopped at Cottrells Cove for a photo op of the fishing village before arriving at Fortune Harbour. Reg expounded on local history and told Newfie tales and jokes during most of the ride out.,
Once dependent on the weekly boat for everything - supplies, mail, and people, Fortune Harbour now enjoys road (if narrow, crooked, and bumpy) access, electrical power, and 352 channels via satellite. It's still remote though. It also enjoys one of the few sustainable economic operations in a region built on "extraction". Everything of value has been "extracted" which leaves the future bleak for most of NL. Fortune Harbour, however, has developed a reputation for growing the finest Mussels available. A carefully scheduled process grows Mussels to harvest size in 3 years. Other Maritime Provence areas, PEI in particular, also have Mussel farms and are able to harvest sooner due to warmer water, but Fortune Bay has skillfully marketed theirs as "best".
We took a boat tour of the harbour and the Mussel farm and were treated to a plate of freshly harvested Mussels cooked right on the boat. Well, that's what we were told, but the ones we were served were polished clean while those we pulled from the water to look at had the normal long thread-like strands all over them. They have a process on shore that cleans them so ours had at least visited the shore before the pot. One could forgive the sleight of hand for the flavor of their Mussels. Served straight from the pot with no condiments or seasoning they were as good as any I have tasted
After our boat tour we were served hot tea & coffee and entertained in the Restaurant by a local "kitchen musician" (that's where they do most of their playing). He was actually better than most "kitchen" players and had recorded a couple of CD's. He also introduced us to Newfie customs, the Newfie Ugly Stick, and spoons. He then conducted a "Screetch In" ceremony to make us official Newfies. Afterward he brought his beautiful Newfie Dog, Tara. down for us to see. She is small at 115 pounds. He previously had a 190 pound male.
Our supper this evening was provided by the Saint John the Baptist Catholic Church ladies. To keep peace in the community by spreading the few hundred dollars Adventure Caravans spends here among different non-profit organizations a different group provides the supper at this stop for each of the half-dozen caravans that stop here each summer. While it is a relatively small sum of money, it is absolutely essential for these groups to continue to operate in the austere economic environment. Even non-profits are dependent on the very short "tourist harvest" period.
