The Dory! The first night on board was busy, meeting the staff, figuring out in what order the cutlery was used, and finding out what beer was on board, alas, no Quidi Vidi. After dinner, there was some live music in the lounge, stayed for a bit and then headed to bed.
We're up early, a dry landing in Fogo.

Tony Cox serenades us at 7 am, a true wake up call. This becomes a daily event. Up for my usual coffee and toast, only to discover that there's an extensive list on the menu, including poached haddock. It's there every day of the voyage, but never work up the nerve to try it! The wind picks up, and the owner of the wharf in Fogo is concerned that the ship may pull the wharf off of its pilings. The crew heads up the hill to tie the ship off to rings embedded in the shore. The whole town has turned out to greet us. And in what becomes a standard fare, there's a spread of local foods at The Lion's club.

We're off on a tour of the Island, it's an interesting history. It's a theme that's repeated in most communities, but Fogo is a success story. The three communities work together, and the names are interesting: Joe Batt's Arm, Tilting and Fogo. You can read the history here https://www.newfoundlandlabrador.com/top-destinations/fogo-and-change-islands
 Our guide was a retired teacher and had quite a sense of humour, it was his first tour. But I'm more focused on shooting photos, and I'm dying to get off the bus as the shots drift by the window. We stop at Tilting for, you guessed it, more food and music. We try the chowder, and it was great, but we didn't know that was just the start. The next course comes out, we try the cod's tongues, and then I'm out the door. I've got an hour or so to shoot around the harbour. Tilting has strong Irish roots, and many places still fly the Irish flag and the signage is in Celtic, something we see throughout the Province.

I find the Shorefast Project https://shorefast.org/  the most interesting. A brother and sister who made a large amount of money in software have moved back to Fogo. They've funded the rebuilding of many heritage buildings, brought back the traditional wooden dories and are building a massive resort complex, built by local carpenters. As well they've built artisan studios on the Island, and offer them free, as long as the artists live in the nearby community. They've rebuilt the Island's economy, it's an interesting story. Kathy liked the studio we visited, the view from the all-glass front was glorious.

And I can't forget that Fogo is one of the four corners of the earth, according to the Flat Earth Society. Brimstone Head shadows the harbour.
http://theflatearthsociety.org

The winds have picked up, and the captain has called us back to the ship, cutting short our visit. We only have a few minutes at the site of Marconi's radio station. High winds, and we're heading off to the open ocean, should be an interesting night!

The Corner

Photos:

What, another dory - get used to it, there's many more to come-this one  is wooden
Brimstone Head towers over the Fogo Harbour

It's an even earlier rise on Day 3, as the anchor bangs against the hull!
 
  Piped Ashore We have an evening meeting to learn how to board the Zodiacs, it's our first wet landing! Another dinner and the sommelier is uncanny, I don't even have to ask, the beer just appears! The captain proves to be right, and the wind and rain pick up, just in time as we head away from shelter. L'Anse aux Meadows is on the northern tip of Newfoundland.

I wake up to a loud, rhythmic banging. Turns out, so did most of the folks close to the bow, everyone looks a little tired at breakfast. I thought that some hatch had been left loose, turns out it was the anchor banging against the hull!

It's a two-foot swell, windy and raining. So it's rain gear and boots. Our Zodiac is piloted by Dave, the Air Canada Captain. I love his accent, and he's good at keeping the waves from breaking over the bow. As we approach the harbour, the Labrador flag is flying. Dave's grandfather wrote the Provincial anthem, so we get it sung to us. As we come up the wharf, Michaeal OhAlmhain, our very own tin whistle expert is piping us ashore. He's also under the only shelter on the landing!

The history of the site is interesting and worth the reading. It was great to have an archaeologist as a tour guide. Somehow I miss the axe throwing, but the site has many different areas to explore. We head up to the National Park, which is also a Unesco World Heritage Site. The place is amazing, and it's too bad it's raining. Our guide is from the area, so we get many stories about Viking history. If I can, I'm heading back here one day.

Our visit is cut short, the Clipper is starting to slip anchor in the weather, it's a quick call back to the ship. The Zodiac ride back is rough, we're in a boat with Mike, the photographer, as the pilot. His backpack keeps Kathy on her guard, she's stuck behind him. It's a rough wait, and hard to time the swell, and jump at the right time. One of the passengers slips and the crew has to pull her up quickly, what started as a dislocated shoulder ends up as a broken arm.

Once back on board, it doesn't take long to dry off, warm up and head up to the lounge. What, more food! We're heading around the top of the Island, and into the straits of Labrador. We're promised that it'll be rougher, and some folks are already feeling the ship.

It's a night of live music, and I'm hoping that the anchor takes a break tonight.

Last Shuttles Leaving...

Photos:

Michaeal hides out in the shelter, playing the tin whistle as we leave the Zodiacs
The Clipper holding offshore, riding out the storm
 

http://whc.unesco.org/en/list/4
http://www.town.stanthony.nf.ca/indexb.php