I took the "stroll" as it was described in the list of excursions today. The tour had two walks. The first was the walk in the Margaret Bowater Park to the stream for which Corner Book is named. This was not a stroll, but a full-blown hike. It was largely uphill. The paved trail that was advertised was actually gravel. One of the guests fell and skinned his knee. I'm sure he'll be very sore tomorrow.
I completed the first walk, but boy I could barely make it. After it was over, the group was to take a second walk downtown. I looked at my sugar level, which was dropping, so I took a glucose tablet to boost the number.
The guides today were a father and son team, and the son was a registered nurse. The father was also diabetic and about my age. We decided it was best if I didn't do the second walk because of my current sugar levels. So, I joined the six people electing not to do the second walk and return to the ship.
The weather today was beautiful. I was extremely warm. Our guides said this weather was very unusual for this time of year.
The captain made an announcement as we exited the port of Corner Brook, Newfoundland. Tomorrow's weather is not expected to be so good in Greenland. In fact, he said the expected rough seas may prevent our visit to Qaqortoq, Greenland. This is a small tender port, and only one tender can unload at a time. I think he was preparing us for some disappointment with regard to our next port of call.
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| The Nieuw Statendam is one of the newest and largest ships in the HAL fleet. I prefer the smaller ships, and this one is bigger than I like. Everything is new and shiny though, |
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| A stop along the highway to take advantage of an observation point. |
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| The hike begins in Margaret Bowarer Park. |
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| After a very strenuous hike, here's the view from the observation deck. It was hard to see the stream below because of the vegetation. |
This part of Canada has a boreal forests or Taiga. It is an arctic forest that exists in the northern-most parts of Canada, Alaska, Russia:
"Boreal forests or taiga, are the Earth’s northernmost forests, covering vast tracts of land across Alaska, Canada, northern Europe, and Russia. They are among the world’s leading purveyors of ecosystem services, including carbon storage and clean water, and they harbor globally significant wildlife populations. The conifers spruce, fir, pine and larch dominate boreal forests along with birch and aspen. Boreal forests are flammable, and large fires which renew forest health and regulate their value as wildlife habitat are common."
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| The Neiuw Statendam is one of the newest classes of HAL ships. |
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| A look at Corner Brook from an observation point on the way to the park. |
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| The beginning of the trail in Margaret Bowater Park. |
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| After a very rigorous hike, it was kind of a letdown. It was hard to see the brook from above. |
