Greenland Passage

The union church in Red Bay Not long after Columbus discovered Caribbean resorts Basque seaman established themselves along the south Labrador coast in search of whales. Red Bay, which we visited Wednesday, was one of the largest of their seasonal whaling stations. Today it's a national historic site, including the bottom of the bay where one of their whaling boats has been excavated after centuries of preservation in the bottom's silt. The bay, which gets its name from the color of the local rocks, provided a safe haven from storms and suitable land for "frying" blubber to produce oil, which was then shipped back to Europe for use as lamp fuel and the manufacture of paint, varnish and soap. The same rich marine life which attracts whales to the area -- herring, mackerel, capelin and other schooling food fish -- provided sustenance for the whalers, along with whale meat and the then abundance of cod. Parks Canada's interpretative center at Red Bank i...

Built on an economy fueled by the seemingly unlimited supply of cod, Battle Harbour became Labrador's economic and social powerhouse. But when the cod ran out, so did Battle Harbour's golden era. So quickly did the salt cod industry come to an end all the onshore facilities -- salt stores, drying racks, gutting shacks -- remain standing in good condition today, the result of both salt-infused timbers and historic preservation efforts. Today, beyond its importance as a historic site, you can get away from it all and rent a cottage for the summer season or stay at the Battle Harbour Inn. And should you need a pedicure or spa treatment, that's available too. Until season's end in September. I've seen preserved fishery villages and museums in Norway (Ålesund, and the village of Å in the Lofoten islands), and while I thought the others more informative about the industry, the sheer number of preserved structures, and tales told in thick Newfoundlander accents (think ...

Imagine a frontier town set by the sea. That's Rigolet and the other isolated communities found along the coast of the Labrador Sea, whether in Greenland on the east or its namesake lands to the west. None of the Labrador villages we have visited so far have road access to the rest of Canada: sea and air are the only means of ingress and egress. Small towns and villages make for tight-knit communities, and proud ones. Maybe Rigolet's boardwalk isn't the world's longest, but the people of this northern town are as proud of theirs as any Atlantic City booster. Some photos of the town:

Rigolet's boardwalk was filled with tourists yesterday, but no salt water taffy could be found. Rigolet, the southernmost Inuit community in the world, built an 5.2 mile (8.4 km) boardwalk over the course of six years, claiming it's the world's longest. (Though at only a meter and a half wide, much less wood was required than Atlantic City's wide boardwalk, and the combined AC-Ventor boards beat it.) I didn't walk the full length, but at one spot along the route one local resident demonstrated how the grasses along the shore could be used for basket-weaving. A little further along, a couple offered local baked goods to taste, including potato biscuits. The gathering at the school the community organized for us in the afternoon was to feature other foods, including seal, but they weren't able to catch one. In the old days, that would have been a disaster. Yesterday, a supply ship was preparing to leave the harbor when we arrived, and the local store was fi...

Sunset near Hopewell, Labrador The MV Fram arrived in Hopedale, Labrador, about 4:30 p.m. where the temperature was a balmy 51ºF. Time for a cigar on deck awaiting Canadian customers clearance, which happened in record time. The customs crew, flown into Hopedale to meet the ship, only sampled the passports collected by Hurtigruten when we boarded on Copenhagen flight. The Polar Cirkle boat crews are busy tendering passengers to the village of nearly 600 people, but based on the description of the town, I'll pass. Not that it's without interest, since it's one of the communities along the coast where 18th and 19th century Moravian missionaries managed to convert nearly all of Inuit in Labrador to their particular brand of Christianity. I'm saving my walking for tomorrow at Makkovit which sounded more interesting. Another reason to skip the walk through Hopedale: it's dark outside. Correction: an earlier version of this entry misidentified the town as Hopewell...