By Mike Buhler
Newfoundland’s highway map makes exploring easy by highlighting scenic loops around the island. One of my favourites is the Bacallieu Trail, and I’m lucky enough to live on Trinity Bay, which forms one side of it.
This loop follows Trinity Bay on one side of the northwest Avalon and Conception Bay North on the other. The short loop is a little over 100 km, but there are plenty of ways to extend it, with the longest being a little over 300 km. A short ride from St. John’s, it’s a popular route for motorcyclists.
You can add plenty of out-and-back sections to visit more tiny towns. At the northern end of the peninsula is Old Perlican, where you take Highway 70 down Conception Bay or 80 down Trinity Bay. If you keep going out 80 you’ll head towards Bay de Verde, home to the largest snow crab plant in the world, or you can dodge off on the way to Red Head Cove or Grates Cove. If you’re on an adventure bike or like rougher dirt roads you can take the old road from Grates Cove through Daniel’s Cove into Old Perlican.
Grates Cove has some interesting history, boasting many old rock walls from the distant past. You’ll notice there are no trees. It’s easy to imagine how brutal it is when the weather comes in!
As I turn right out of my driveway and head south on 80, one of the first towns is Hant’s Harbour, a pretty little town with a lovely lighthouse that’s just a short hike off the road. A little further and you’ll reach Winterton, one of the bigger communities on the route that’s worth a visit. The Wooden Boat museum is an excellent stop with a lot of interesting history. Jerome Canning is an old-school boat builder, who still teaches boat building classes. Maybe you want to stay for awhile?
While in Winterton you’ll want to stop by Green’s Seafood. We highly recommend the frozen scallops or mussels, along with their flavoured mussels and crab. The prices are very reasonable and the product is exceptional.
Newfoundland’s history goes back a long ways. Salt cod from these shores fed much of Europe and the West Indies for half a millennium, resulting in the coastline being peppered with small fishing communities. In 1992 the government imposed a moratorium that shut down the cod fishery, the effects of this which are still felt today. The town I live in is less than 100 people, but photos from the 1970s show it was at least three times that size. When the fishery closed many people had to move away for work, leaving behind empty houses and empty towns.
Another chapter our of history came in 1866 when the first successful transatlantic cable was laid from Foilhommerum, Ireland to Heart’s Content on Trinity Bay. Why Heart’s Content? It’s because this bay is so deep. Just off my town the water is 587 fathoms deep, according to the nautical chart on my wall, more than 3500 feet! That depth also explains why sperm whales like to spend time here. Visitors will want to check out the Heart’s Content Cable Station Museum.
In Heart’s Content, we hang a right and stay on Route 80, continuing up the shore. Along the way, we see the sign for Dildo and take a side road to go into the town. Jimmy Kimmel got all excited about this town a few years ago, leading to a boom in tourism. They even made him an honorary mayor! The Dildo Brewery is a great place to stop for lunch. No surprise, it’s a pretty little town.
Soon after, we rolled into Whitbourne, where travellers heading to Argentia would turn off for the ferry. Here, we jump on the Trans-Canada Highway east for about 20 km before taking Exit 31 onto Route 70. Stay on Route 70, and it brings you back to the old road along the shore.
Stay on Route 70, and you will come into Clarke’s Beach, home of the Newfoundland Distillery, which is another good place to stop for lunch. Keep going up the road, and you’ll come into Bay Roberts, a larger community with all the amenities you’ll need. On the back end of town, as you go, you’ll see Baccalieu Trail Brewery for a decent pint.
Along this stretch, side roads lead to tiny towns worth exploring. Staying on the main road brings you to Harbour Grace, where YellowBelly Brewery is transforming the town’s impressive stone cathedral into an exciting new space.
The next larger community you’ll come across is Carbonear. Take Water Street to The Stone Jug, a beautiful, renovated stone building that serves a good lunch, too. If you need coffee, Dark Star is just down the street. Continue along Water Street into Freshwater before reconnecting with the main road into Victoria.
In Victoria, turn right and stay on Route 70. Next up is Salmon Cove, home to a beautiful black sand beach that’s worth a stop. You can continue over the hill through Perry’s Cove before joining the main road again.
This stretch is especially nice. The Small Point General Store has amazing tea buns, and there’s a pretty little sea arch near Burnt Point, if you know where to look.
Before you know it, you’ll be back in Old Perlican. Turn left onto Route 80 and head south along Trinity Bay. You’ll pass a stretch of barrens and a few more tiny towns, one of which is home to the best-known surf break on the island.
The full loop clocks in at around 300 km according to Google Maps, offering riders miles upon miles of beautiful coastal scenery. Riding it counter-clockwise, as we did, keeps you on the ocean side of the road for the best views.
Come out, enjoy the ride!
