head for the hills

Ok, ok, so we were carrying more than just a knife and a water bottle. But we did only have summer tents and the campsites weren’t even open yet, so yeah, we justifiably felt pretty tough camping in Gros Morne in early May!

And by “we”, I mean me. When it comes to camping, I’m pretty hopeless – pitching a tent anywhere outside of a caravan park feels like “roughing it” to me. But travelling with camping aficionados Katie and Aidan, I knew I was in good hands.

Aidan found us a brilliant little spot near Berry Hill, just up from a beautiful rocky beach.

We got the tents pitched and the fire going.

My brand new tent lasted a whole 15 minutes before a rogue ember put a hole in it!

I even fashioned a wine cooler out of sea water and a plastic bag! (It was so cold that we didn’t really need it but I was enjoying the feeling of being somewhat resourceful!)

Makeshift wine cooler. I’m so Bear Grylls.

Warmed by a few wines, a couple of hotdogs and an open fire, I was really getting into this whole camping thing.

Mmmmmm

Unfortunately, sleeping wasn’t quite so fun! Between reassuring myself that I wasn’t, in fact, going to be eaten by a bear in my sleep and trying to  stay warm by cramming my body into what I’m convinced was a child-size sleeping bag, I didn’t sleep a wink that night!

Not my finest hour. Cold, tired and grumpy after my first night.

But thanks to Katie and Aidan (who kept morale up with a constant supply of yummy camp food), I managed to tough it out for a second night. (Although night two was definitely an improvement on night one – more booze probably helped!!).

The 1,805 km² National Park is a UNESCO heritage site and there is heaps to explore (although I’m sure it’s more enjoyable if the weather’s good!). Here’s a selection of what we saw.

It’s Newfoundland, of course there’s a lighthouse!

Berry Hill

Western Brook Pond

If you squint really hard, you can just make out a moose!

Tablelands – rock that was forced up from the earth’s mantle during a plate collision several hundred million years ago.

As for me and camping? Well, let’s just say it’s a fledgling relationship. But I have been stoically carrying around my tent and sleeping bag for a few weeks now so I’m ready for round 2 if the opportunity arises (or I start going broke!).

…Stayed tuned for camping (mis)adventures!