-Newfoundland (Canada) | Iceberg Alley

Spoken language: English and/or Dutch

Date: June 13-23, 2019

• Iceberg Alley: Icebergs
• Dramatic Coastlines and ancient rocks
• Ecological Reserve Cape St. Mary’s: Northern Gannets
• Other seabirds: Puffins and many others
• Picturesque fishing Communities & Old Lighthouses
• A trip for Landscape & Bird photographers.
• Guided by professional photographer Kristel Schneider
• 12 days

“Newfoundland, a photographer’s paradise known for its dramatic coastlines, untamed wilderness and rich maritime history. Join Kristel on a breathtaking 12 day journey through one of North America’s oldest settlement as you explore and photograph everything from seabirds, quaint fishing villages, to iceberg-laden coastlines.”

Together with Labrador, Newfoundland is part of the easternmost province of Canada, situated in the Atlantic region. A relatively unknown destination to European tourists. Newfoundland offers various types of scenery that will take your breath away. The island of Newfoundland is outlined with a rugged dramatic coastline of ancient rock formation sand steep cliffs. When it comes to viewing icebergs, this is one of the best places in the world. On top of this you will find numerous bays peopled with small communities called “out-ports” towered with old lighthouses.

Although the main focus will be Landscape Photography (wide & intimate) with the chance to view and photograph Icebergs in the Iceberg Alley, people who like wildlife can enjoy the most accessible and spectacular seabird colony in North America with thousands of Northern Gannets, meet the cute-looking Puffins. Flying high above the area, there are about 35 million seabirds, which is why Newfoundland (and Labrador) is named the seabird capital of North America. In addition to this, as Newfoundland also houses the world’s largest migrating population of humpbacks passing by you will undoubtedly have no problem to spot Whales from the shore, and who knows we may also walk into a local Moose or a caribou herd during our trip.

Newfoundland photo tour will bring you to photographic locations along the Iceberg Alley (a vast corridor of ocean that runs down from Greenland) with a small detour to the Avalon area. During the 12 days we will explore the spectacular coastal scenery with ancient rock formations and high cliffs where 10,000-year-old frosty giants from Greenland pass by or make a small stop in the many Island bays next to a ‘outport’ or historical lighthouse.

The tour will provide you with generous photographic possibilities. Along the many rough coastal-lines you will find many opportunities to explore different types of compositions, play with exposures, zoom-in and look for more intimate frames with waves movement and rock details, create stunning wide-angle shots of icebergs during the boat-tour or from shore. If you like bird photography, you will have plenty of opportunities to leisurely view the seabirds and capture them in action or during an intimate moment.

© Kristel Schneider

(for Nordic Vision photo tours – photography travel company )

Informatie in het Nederlands: hier

Start tour : St. John’s Newfoundland
Spoken language: English /and or Dutch

number of participants minimum 5 – maximum 10 (international group is possible, then Language will be English) with 7 or more participants a second guide will join.

• Price for the 12 day tour :  € 3325

Including:
Photography guidance by photographer Kristel Schneider

• all accommodation on full board basis
  The prices are based on two sharing a room. For a one-person room € 550, – extra (if available).
• all local transport on Newfoundland
• Iceberg Zodiac tour
• Photo discussions
• all of the activities as described (unless listed as optional)
• Participants meeting in advance

Not included:

• return flight to St. John’s Newfoundland
• visa eTA (7$) and passport fees
• personal expenses (o. a. drinks)
• Travel and cancellation insurance
• € 15 – guarantee fund contribution GGTO
• Who this trip is for:
  Anyone who is looking to improve his or her photographic skills (all levels) while experiencing some of the most amazing scenery that this Country has to offer!Accommodation
  At arrival and departure we stay close to the airport and stay at the Comfort Inn Hotel located in St. Johns. In St. Bride’s we will stay 3 nights at Hilda’s Capeway Inn, which is situated in the vicinity of Cape St. Mary’s Ecological Reserve.
  Along the Iceberg Allay you will stay 3 nights at Bonavisata’s Historical Harbour Quarters Inn and 3 nights at the Anchor Inn hotel in the little town of Twilligate, close to the water. All rooms are spacious and are en-suite.
  The meals will be mainly served at the hotels or in local restaurants. Lunch or dinner boxes will be served in accordance to our outings.
  

Day 1 – 7
The photo-tour starts in St. John’s, the capital city of Newfoundland.
On arrival you will spend the first night in a comfortable hotel (Comfort Inn) situated close to the airport, a hotel shuttle bus can pick you up, this way you can relax and recover from the flight – depending on your arrival, dinner will be served in the hotel’s restaurant.

After the first night in St. Johns , we start traveling to the area of St. Bride’s to visit Cape St. Mary’s Ecological Reserve, ‘a must see’, even for non bird lovers, the scenery is magnificent.

The Cape is a lovely place to view seabirds – amongst which gulls, razorbills, common murres, black-legged kittiwakes, northern gannets, double-crested and great cormorants who nest there. You can explore the edge of rugged cliffs and spend hours watching the daily lives of some of the world’s most interesting seabirds.

Looking down 150m from above the waves, you may often spot wales looking for ‘Capelin’; just scan the sea for little fountains and a seabird gatherings then you are sure that the whale will pop-up.The Bird Rock is the most accessible seabird rookery in North America and one of largest nesting site of northern gannets in North America. We will spend two full days there so that you have enough time to explore the rugged cliffs and watch the daily activities of the seabirds.

After St. Bride’s we will head off to the Iceberg Alley. The first stop is Bonavista, where we will spend 3 nights at The Harbour Quarters Inn, situated in a historical building, run by the Swyers family, traditionally a fishing family. During our stay we will visit Cape Bonavista’s dramatic coastline with ancient rock formationsand steep cliffs overlooked by the spectacular Bonavisata lighthouse. Hopefully we will spot our first Icebergs and cute looking Puffins. In the Dungeon Provincial Park we will explore more rugged coastal sceneries with sea stacks. During rougher sea weather or even during tide changes, the waves will provide a spectacular show on the rocks.
Halfway the road is The dungeon itself, two sea caves eroded by the pounding seas, so much that the top caved in and created a large sinkhole that looks like a giant skull. The hole has two sea arches connecting to the ocean, a nice photographic subject to dive into.

Close to Bonavista is our next seabird location, Elliston, a very small fishing village where we will visit the breading place of the the official bird of Newfoundland : The Puffin.The site is just 5 min walk from the roadside. You will see them on the breeding rock, but you will definitely be able to see them even closer when you leave them enough space to land on the cliff.

Day 8-12
After Bonavisata we drive further down the Iceberg Alley, to Twillingate, an island connected to Newfoundland by a series of bridges and causeways and known as the Iceberg Capital of the world.

© Kristel Schneider

Twillingate is one of Newfoundland’s best locations for admiring these giants of nature that break off the ice cap in Baffin Island, Greenland. Depending on the weather, the Icebergs can been seen very close to the land. But no worries (if weather allows us) we will take an evening tour on a boat. This way you will be able to photograph them from very close. Be sure to take your wide-angle lens to get the whole of these old very impressive frosty giants in your composition.

Every year the amount of icebergs changes as well as their sizes and shapes so even for the locals the Iceberg season stays an exciting and fantastic experience. Altought the Icebergs are the main subject in this area, their are plenty other photographic subjects we will explore, like seastacks and with nice weather fantastic sunset views. And of course we will visit the picturesque outport.

© Kristel Schneider

After our 3-night stay at the Anchor Inn we will have to say goodbye to this beautiful area and drive back to St. John’s.

Driving on a Newfoundland highway is not a punishment, you will have plenty of beautiful views and you can sit back, relax and already rollback to the scenery you have seen during this tour.

Arriving in St. John’s we will have one last night at the Comfort Inn close to the airport
before we say goodbye.

As you fly home it will be with many delightful memories and photos of hopefully a great photography experience in Newfoundland that will be recalled for years to come.

Informatie in het Nederlands: hier