People often ask me when is the best time to come to Newfoundland.
To which I always respond – “Right Now!”.
And I’m not joking.
‘Right Now’ is an especially exciting season in Newfoundland. The crab fishery started on Monday and while a late winter squall kept the the crews ashore on opening day, the pots went out the minute the water turned “civil”. A slight aggravation for our harvesters but it made for quite the showcase for any visiting “Storm Watchers”. Snowmobiling and back country skiing will continue for another month in the Long Range Mountains. Memorial University students will soon be set free for the summer so George Street will start bouncing this weekend. The sea trout are running in the brooks and we’ve had icebergs since January this year – which isn’t normal. But then again, neither am I!
No matter what time of year you visit Newfoundland – every guest will experience a unique and diverse history. The people will charm you, the arts will enchant you, the language amazes and the geology will put place and space in perspective.
McCarthy’s Party offers tours from the early part of June through the end of September. By world’s weather standards – this is the most civilized season you can find on the island of Newfoundland and from these dates you can choose a trip that best caters to your personal interests and desire.
So, if your passion is icebergs you’d best book your trip in June. Though we often see icebergs from May through August on our 12 day tours (which take you well north and even onto the mainland portion of the province, Labrador), June is pretty much the closest we can offer to an iceberg guarantee. Of course, this year we’ve had ice in Bonavista since January and three years ago the only ice we saw didn’t arrive until September. As the Newfoundland ads remind us – “This is Newfoundland, not Disney Land!”
For bird watchers and anyone with a fixation on whales, you need to visit us in July. Each year, twenty-two species of whales and a multitude of sea birds congregate in our cold, clear Atlantic waters to feed, nest and care for their young. This is indeed a spectacular window from which wildlife viewing is beyond compare. The birds start arriving in May, as will many whales, but there’s nothing quite like the last 2 weeks of June through the first two weeks of August if you want to see their best performance.
With that said, I would have sworn I saw a whale off Signal Hill this past January and when I looked it up on the internet, sure enough discovered that we actually have winter whales here as well. Indeed, we can see them at any time of year and are quite likely to see a much wider variety of whales, seals, and even schools of porpoises chasing the herring all along the island’s west coast in August / September; most often on the boat tour in Bonne Bay or the ferry crossing to Labrador.
I love touring in August and September when the weather falls into those perfect temperate patterns.
This is when ‘Gannets’ start pounding the waters off Cape Spear – the most eastern point of land in Newfoundland and arguably, North America.. Moose hunting also starts in early September so you’re likely to get invited in for a taste of the wild game cooking on a stage stove. A ‘Food Fishery’ opens for a second feed of cod in the early fall and of course – this is when berry season begins. Every step on every trail invites you to sample an abundance of wild blueberries, raspberries and partridge berries growing on the coastal heads, highlands and plains. You’ll never taste a fruit so perfectly pure. Nor will you breathe such clean air or feel so spiritually renewed.
Fall colours start with fall flowers and fortunately for our guests, they require no showers. Before the autumn equinox Newfoundland’s ‘water maples’ flare their leaves into brilliant reds while the low lying bushes settle into a complementary carpet of autumn hues.
Newfoundlanders often say September is our compensation for May but I believe its just like any other month – yet another wonderful time to spend in Newfoundland!
