Raised anchor in fog this morning, and followed a course inside an array of islets and skerries that protected us from swells coming in from the Denmark Strait, but that also grounded a number of large bergs of astounding shapes. We arrived in Nanortalik, a small town of 1500. Its name means place of polar bears in Greenlandic, so called because large numbers of seals would ride the ice of the West Greenland current; the ice would get grounded at its harbour, and the bears and the Greenlanders would both be hunting the seals. Another spectacular scene, surrounded by giant jagged peaks and sparkling bays (another sunny day!) with huge stranded bergs, one with a perfect open arch. The town itself has a frontier, high latitude feel to it. Locals not particularly outgoing but helpful if asked. We topped up our fuel tanks and our provisions, checked in with customs (which turned out to be a postal clerk who just said it was ok for us to be here), and were given a personalized tour of the local museum. Turns out there were significant archaeological finds at the Viking settlement by last nights anchorage, including clothing buried 5-600 years ago but preserved by the permafrost. At 6pm we tried to get dinner at the only hotel but were told we needed to have called before 1pm so the cook could go shopping. Returned to boat, had dinner, got latest advice from our route advisor, and decided to leave tomorrow morning for Newfoundland. Might take a bit longer than the last leg which was 5 days and 1 hour, and well be required once in Canadian waters to report to St. Johns our position and ice observations every 6 hours, like were doing here. Evidently a similar number of bergs there as here. Grocery store was fully stocked with fresh fruit and vegetables, and freshly made bread, plus clothing, fishing gear, rifles. One item caught my attention-- 28 different frozen meals prepped and ready to cook, all in a large box.

After the rough seas and motion overnight and into the morning, making sleep and any tasks difficult, now we have clear sky, no clouds anywhere, rich blue ocean to the horizon in every direction, seas flattening with just an occasional swell making us roll 10 degrees each way, wind diminishing to under 5 knots, flocks of fulmars and I think skuas Still only 9 degrees Celsius, but sun makes everything seem warmer. Another big sit-down dinner tonight, a repeat of Bills bangers and mash. No ice seen yet . Flat sea (so minimal clutter on radar) and horizon-to-horizon visibility are a good combination, now that we are in the Labrador Current. No general fog means any local fog may help indicate some bergs about. Nearly full moon will be bright, but probably obscure the Perseus meteor shower. Forecast is for benign weather for the next days as we close on the coast. One challenge to work out is timing of the tidal current in the Strait; from what we read it can run 3 knots, with the direction a function of juxtaposition of high and low pressure systemsand sometimes not even reverse its direction. Now Saturday evening, it appears well get to Belle Isle Monday morning. Though wed have liked to visit ports on the east and south coasts of Newfoundland, the Belle Isle Strait route is shorter, and I hope easier wind-wise than going east around against the prevailing southwesterlies.

This is the live link to his position. 
https://forecast.predictwind.com/tracking/display/SV_UncommonLoon/

A long night of watchfulness, but no bergs. Set full main and staysail at midnight. A foggy dawn, and gradually decreasing wind moving from south to east and by days end, north. Early afternoon we could see land for certain to the west. One ship went by unseen except on AIS (a system whereby ships and we transmit our positions). Entered the traffic separation lanes of the Strait of Belle Isle, but no traffic. (Also no icebergs.). Crossed over south toward Cooks Harbour, and spotted its navigational marks. Made our way in. Saw man in a pickup truck on the wharf watching us a good sign who then advised where best to tie up. Our cell phones came alive. I called the Canadian Border Security 800 number for incoming yachts. After being on hold for an hour, the person I got said she had no idea where we are and go to next official entry point. Asked where that would be, she said she didnt know and go look it up on their website. So a rather vague official welcome. Maybe by the time we get to an official entry port well have consumed any excess alcohol aboard beyond the personal allowance. (Last count we had 6 bottles of wine, 21 cans of beer, and various half empty bottles of whiskey and gin.) Cooks Harbour is a small village, population 123, reasonably prosperous. Not a tree in sight. Our greeter on the wharf said they get a lot of snow. Near us at the wharf three small (about 20 feet) fishing boats came in loaded with big halibut, caught on longlines not far outside the harbour. Most fish were 50 lbs or morea very good day, given the prices for halibut. After several hours of gutting and cleaning and packing in ice, the wharf is stacked high with containers awaiting a truck to get them to marketeach fish tagged with ID so its knowable who caught it and where. We asked about a restaurant, and learned they have one but was closed tonight. However the grocery store was sufficiently stocked for our purposes and it was good to walk around. After all that activity on the wharf now it is dead quiet. Weve switched to Newfoundland time. Expecting to be off at 6 am to pass through the Strait and onward south. Stats for this leg: 5.3 days, 687 miles, average speed 5.4 knots.

Theres a lot of Newfoundland, so its taking us 3-4 days to go along its west coast, as the Strait of Belle Isle becomes the Esqiman Channel and then the Gulf of St. Lawrence. After making port late last night, we planned on a late start todaybut before 7 am the sun was too motivating to not get out and see where we were. Bill covered most of the town and I followed, but the most important intel was where to find the showers mentioned in the governments Sailing Directions! They turned out to be right adjacent to our wharf in the Harbour Authority buildingwith washroom, showers and laundry facilities for crews of the many seiners, trawlers, long liners, etc. visiting the port (and any rare visiting yacht). That could have been the high point of our day, but it had competition. We cast off around 9:30, quickly moving from town sunshine into sea fog. As usual the fog diminished, and the day already warm despite a north wind got even warmer. Heading directly downwind we got the genoa out and with whisker pole on the genoa and a makeshift telescoping pole (bought in Norway for pushing ice floes away) on the main sail, we were wing and wing and dispensed with the engine. Tried fishing a few times but again no luck. More whale sightings. The coast mountains grew in height. A stunning sunset. Now abreast of Gros Morne National Park, were aiming for a dawn arrival at the Bay of Islands. Another 5 hours after will get us to the yacht club/marina near Corner Brook where whatever adventures in Canadian officialdom await. Its a very dark night, no stars, no moon. Gunnar says No northern lights if there were a time to see them it could be now that we have actual darkness again at night. And a note re Gros Morne: from what I recall when we visited a year ago, the Tablelands 2300 ft plateau now next to us unseen in the dark is one of maybe five places on earth where the earths mantle has surfaced rock that 1.5 billion years ago was at the earths molten core. It has such a toxic ph that plants cant grow on it. (Btw, showers still ended up as the high point of the day.)

A very quiet night and a warm morning. Little Port is at the end of the road and a natural place for locals and visitors to look at the view or check on their boats. We naturally were a curiosity, so had the opportunity to experience Newfoundland friendliness in lots of conversations. After a big breakfast and accepting an offer of a ride to the Lark Harbour grocery store, Bill and I followed a steep hiking trail to the Little Port navigation beacon perched midway up the near-sheer south wall of the harbour entrance. A great view for miles north toward Gros Morne, and south toward equally high mountains, with successive promontories projecting into the sea. Wed planned to wait out the north flowing tide and depart around 9pm, but the view from the light enticed us to leave immediately. After some hours of contrary wind and tide, the forecast is for winds from west and even northwest through Sunday. We should arrive at Dingwall in Cape Breton before dawn Sunday morning

After a restorative deep sleep, a sparkling sunny warm day in Dingwall Nova Scotia has many scenic ports and Dingwall should be near the top of any list. For Gunnar to have time to see relatives in New Brunswick before his return to Norway, we arranged a shuttle bus to get him to Sydneys bus terminal, but midway through a breakfast of crepes Hams friends Sheila and Chris offered to get him to Port Hawkesbury where a relative could meet up and drive him the rest of the way to Frederickton. Ham, Bill and I visited Dingwalls excellent little museum, including its St. Pauls Island south lighthouse, originally built in 1915, dismantled in 1982, left in a scrapyard in Dartmouth for years, and reconstructed here at the museum. After some minor maintenance tasks and boat cleaning, a hike along the shoreline to Hams swimming hole in a tidal creek, followed by showers and treated to a remarkable dinner at the Markland Resort nearby. A look at the tides timing at the Great Bras Dor Channel led us to decide on a 0130 departure to take advantage of its strong current into the lake.