+91-8929175340
This gentle expedition was recognized as one of the world’s best adventure in 2009 by National Geographic. The rich Labrador coastline is home to orcas. Join Wildland Tours for a photographic and historic expedition through northern Newfoundland and southern Labrador. Relive the arctic history of Battle Harbour, Labrador. Contribute to our efforts at studying and cataloguing the region’s humpbacks, orcas, and other whales. Travel through time viewing fossils, remnants of the earliest life on earth, and some of the new world’s earliest archaeological sites. The area is incredibly rich with wildlife but is one of North America’s least studied marine areas. Enjoy comfortable nights, wild days, and some of our planet’s most dramatic landscapes as we count humpbacks and continue to pioneer the study of eastern North America’s orcas.Transportation to and/or from Newfoundland
Day 1 : Welcome and Orientation
Arrive Deer Lake, Newfoundland (YDF). We meet you at the airport and we provide an overview of the adventure while you travel the dramatic route to Gros Morne for the evening.
Day 2 : Journey to Labrador
Journey to L’Anse au Clair, Labrador with a stop at Port aux Choix, Newfoundland to look at ancient orca carvings. The ferry to Labrador is famous for pelagic seabird watching. Whales and seals are also frequent highlights on this 90-minute crossing.
Day 3 : Red Bay & Arctic Outpost Battle Harbour
If time allows, we visit the 1540s World Whaling Capital, Red Bay, where we learn the story of the bowhead and right whales who once called these productive waters home. Fifty years after Columbus there were thousands of Basques hunting whales off this coast. Legend has it that Basque captains wrote Columbus complaining that he had revealed their secret (of North America’s existence) to the world. The new world’s earliest documents are associated with the epic voyages together with the lives and ships that were lost during this early oil boom. In 2013 Red Bay, Labrador’s significance in world history was recognized by UNESCO who declared this 16th century world whaling capital to be a World Heritage Site.
Today’s travel route showcases the region’s dramatic salmon rivers and provides beautiful photographic opportunities. These same rivers may serve to make this coast especially attractive to orcas - and we have documented what appears to be “salmon fishing” behaviour among orcas here in the past. We travel through old growth Labrador forest along the new Labrador Highway to Mary’s Harbour where we meet the Battle Harbour ferry. Watch for the black bears and other wildlife along the route and around Mary’s Harbour. Overnight in the beautifully restored, historic premises of Battle Harbour. From here Peary declared, “The Pole is ours.” Today the area has been restored to the glory it enjoyed when it was the Capital of Labrador. We use generators for electricity and enjoy comfortable rooms and the local food.
Day 4 : Orca Adventures and Coastal Exploration
Today features coastal boat trips searching for humpbacks, orcas, and other whales. We also explore Battle Harbour and the abandoned communities of the Labrador coast. This region is not well studied and we expect to gather some of the region’s first humpback tail photographs. Our hope is that we can continue our orca dorsal fin photography and perhaps use hydrophones to listen in on the underwater vocalizations of orcas and dolphins. We have a small catalogue of orcas we recognize and we will be attempting to broaden our knowledge of these individuals and their biology. The region’s dramatic coast and recently abandoned fishing communities contribute a poignant and unforgettable human adventure to the expedition experience. We enjoy the coast’s whales, abundant seabirds, and seals by day while soaking up the historic atmosphere of Battle Harbour by night. We review the story of Peary and Bartlett and their trip to the Pole. We also revisit the time the world came to Battle Harbour to hear the stories of the first successful journey to the Pole. Our time here is always an expedition highlight.
Day 5 : Orca Adventures and Coastal Exploration
The south coast of Labrador is rich with seabirds, seals, and whales. Today one of our stops will likely be Cape Charles - truly the most easterly point in North America. While Cape Spear near St. John’s, Newfoundland promotes itself as the continent’s most easterly point, Newfoundland is an island. One cannot walk from Cape Spear to British Columbia but one can make the journey starting at Cape Charles, the true eastern edge of North America. We explore other coastal communities during our expedition boat trips searching for humpbacks, orcas, and other whales. We also take the time to explore Battle Harbour’s trails and history. Few people can truly claim to have stood on the absolute eastern edge of North America; however, all of the participants in our Southern Labrador Adventures (formerly called the Northern Whale Study Expedition) share this special priviledge and distinction.
Day 6 : Across the Straits to Northern Newfoundland
We call this vacation program an expedition because of the remote and exotic location of Battle Harbour which means that many modern conveniences like television and WiFi connections are absent. The rich coast and landscape make this our most talked about vacation program but we do feel it more appropriate to call this a comfortable and “gentle expedition” rather than a traditional group tour. The region’s dramatic coast and recently abandoned fishing communities contribute a poignant and unforgettable human adventure to the expedition experience. We enjoy the coast’s whales, abundant seabirds, and seals by day while soaking up the historic atmosphere of Battle Harbour by night. Guests always remember their time at Battle Harbour as one of their life’s highlights. The atmosphere and setting are magical. Today we say farewell to Battle Harbour and the Labrador coast as we travel by two ferries back to the Island of Newfoundland. The ferry trip between mainland Labrador and the Island of Newfoundland provides prime whale and seabird watching opportunities for us again. This is the land of the Vikings and we ponder the region’s rich human history while looking for shorebirds, seabirds, and whales.
Day 7 : Viking Trails and Dolphin Tales
We enjoy the magic of the Labrador coast in the distance (across the rich Labrador Straits) as we explore the ancient Norse trading site at Vinland - occupied over ten centuries ago by Lief Erickson and his crew. This UNESCO World Heritage Site at L’Anse aux Meadows tells this ancient seafaring story which incorporated an indepth but superstition-laden knowledge of the whales and wildlife of the north. The sea with its rich variety of marine life is never far from our view except for a few areas of in-land forest famous for moose sightings. We take a part day to explore the UNESCO site and coastal communities plus weather permitting we head to sea with our friends at Northland Discovery Tours. We hope to encounter the same humpbacks and dolphins that - to date - have reliably come to this area year-after-year to feed on late summer herring. The headland of St. Anthony is a famous whale watching lookout and today we expect to watch dolphins and whales from the land and by sea.
Day 8 : Leif Ericson's Home and Homepback Tails
Depending on the sea conditions and local reports, we will explore the dolphin and humpback-rich areas around St. Anthony and the Grey Islands on a local tour boat or zodiac. Every season several recognizable orcas show up, including individuals we know from past visits to the Battle Harbour region. Our study colleagues in the area also have resident humpbacks that they recognize and can tell us about. This is our last day for heading out in search of humpback tails and orca dorsal fins to photograph. We also take more time to explore the region’s subarctic history which features tales of the region’s first peoples and the interactions they had with the local whales and visiting polar bears.
Day 9 : Mountains, Moose, and Cairbou
The last day of our expedition will likely see more moose and caribou than whales as we leave northern Newfoundland for the charming Glynmill Inn in Corner Brook. Here we enjoy a sumptuous farewell supper.
Day 10 : Farewell
Depart from Deer Lake airport.
Payment Terms & Methods :
* Some Advance Percentage of total booking amount
* Airfare/Transport fare to be paid full at one time in advance.
Cancellation & Refund Policy :
* Upon cancellation, refund will be made after deducting the Retention Amount.
* Retention Amount varies as per the number of days left before your package start date.
Adventure Newfoundland View Profile
0 / 5
About Adventure Newfoundland
Adventure Newfoundland
0 /5New Delhi - Varanasi - Bodhgaya - Rajgir - Nalanda - Patna - Vaishali - Kushinagar ..
08048772512
Get QuoteParis - Zurich - Lucerne - Interlaken - Vaduz - Innsbruck - Venice - Florence - Rome
Chandigarh City - Shimla - Kinnaur - Kaza - Digboi
08048026916
Get QuoteKovalam - Munnar - Alleppey - Madurai - Kochi - Kumarakom Thekkady
08049671478
Get Quote