St. John’s, Newfoundland, Canada

Posted on by Lea Ann Reynolds
Puffin- isn’t it cute!?!

St. John’s, Newfoundland and Labrador, located in Canada is a charming city with history dating back to the 16th century. This makes it one of the oldest continuously inhabited European settlements in North America. 

Our welcome sign

We had a short walk in the rain to catch our bus to our experience of the day: a trip out in a boat to see the Puffins! As we walked the cobblestone streets mostly uphill we experienced some very colorful buildings and unique Canadian culture.

The scenery was beautiful

Before diving into our St. John’s adventure, let’s talk a bit about Canada as a whole. This diverse country is home to over 38 million people, representing a variety of ethnic groups. 

They stay out to sea about 8 months a year. The other four months are watching over their nests and raising their chicks. They also can dive into the water to 200 feet in search of fish

While English and French are the dominant languages, there are significant populations of people of Scottish, Irish, German, Italian, and Chinese descent. Additionally, Canada has a growing indigenous population, with over 1.8 million people identifying as Indigenous. This represents approximately 5% of the country’s total population.

An eagles on the left and Common Mures that look like penguins on the right

Now to the highlight of our day: a boat trip to Witless Bay, a UNESCO World Heritage Site. This bay is famous for its abundance of wildlife, particularly puffins. As we sailed out into the Atlantic, we were treated to stunning coastal scenery and the opportunity to see these adorable seabirds up close.

This one has some fish to take home to the kiddos

Puffins, also known as “clown of the sea,” are small, colorful seabirds with distinctive black and white plumage and bright red beaks. They are perfectly adapted to life at sea, with webbed feet for swimming and strong wings for flying. These birds are known for their unique feeding habits, diving underwater to catch fish and transporting them back to their nests in their beaks. They carry about half a dozen little fish in their beaks.

A colony of puffins

Our boat trip to Witless Bay was a memorable experience, allowing us to appreciate the natural beauty of St. John’s and the fascinating world of puffins.

The “state” dog- a Newfoundland. He was beautiful and oh so sweet!

Our next stop is an unexpected stop, due to us missing Nuuk, Greenland where a bad storm prevented us from docking.

May God bless you always!

Chuck and Lea Ann

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