Corner Brook, Newfoundland, Canada

A novel mode of transport into town

Corner Brook, population about 20,000, has the distinction of being the most northerly city in Atlantic Canada. It was our lot to stop by there for a few hours last August before launching east toward Greenland. 

What excitement!

The fifth largest city in the province of Newfoundland and Labrador, Corner Brook is located at the mouth of the river Humber on the west side of the island. Fairly typical of small towns all across North America, it really offers nothing much for the typical cruise ship tourist beyond a bus ride into town, a stroll around the limited shopping and then back again. 

Most exciting sight was anchor
maintenance on the big boat

After the first modern survey by Captain James Cook in 1767 the area had only grown to about 100 inhabitants a century later but was eventually propelled into being by the arrival of the anchor for the present city, the Corner Brook Pulp & Paper Mill, a major employer in the region. The city now boasts the largest regional hospital in western Newfoundland, is home to a few federal and provincial government offices asa well as the Grenfell Campus, Memorial University


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Portree, Isle of Skye, Scotland

Last summer we paid a brief visit to the capital of the Isle of Skye, Portree, in the inner Hebrides of Scotland. Contrary to expectations, Portree is not an ancient hamlet with thousands of years of history but was created as a fishing village a scant 200 years ago. 
It is situated on the east side of the Isle of Skye and overlooks a sheltered bay boasting a pier designed by Thomas Telford, a notable Scottish Civil Engineer. Portee's population of about 2,500 souls, is largely supported by tourism. Click here for slideshow.