Guides
Questions that come up before you've picked a drive.
Before you go
- Doing these drives electricEvery measured route against NL Hydro's fast chargers: which sit on the way, and the longest stretch without one.
- Driving here on your home licenceWhat a visiting driver legally needs in Newfoundland (mostly your own licence), the ATV and snowmobile exemption the province's pages don't mention, and the two clocks that decide when a long stay changes the rules.
- Flying yourself in: the island's small strips and seaplane basesFor recreational pilots: the mapped aerodromes, airstrips and water bases within reach of Gander and Deer Lake, each one cited. For status, check the CFS.
- Landing at Gander or Deer LakeCentral Newfoundland has two arrival airports, 308 km apart by road. Which one you want depends on where you are going next.
- Renting a car at the airportsWho rents cars at Gander, Deer Lake and St. John's airports, what to do when they are sold out, and what rental terms say about gravel roads.
- Talk like you've been here beforeThe Newfoundland sayings our weather widget uses, what they mean, and where they come from, each traceable to the Dictionary of Newfoundland English.
- What to wear and carry on this coastLayers, the ten essentials, cold water and fog: what the safety authorities tell you to bring for hiking, paddling and shorelines in Newfoundland, quoted and linked.
- When the boat doesn't sailThree island ferries near Gander leave from wharves with almost nothing at them. Where you actually go when a crossing is cancelled, measured.
Places
- Change IslandsA quiet outport island reached by ferry from Farewell — the pony sanctuary, the museum, and how to tell whether a day trip is possible.
- The Baie Verte PeninsulaA long road north with the region's best-known hiking trail on the way. What's up there, how far, and why it's a Deer Lake trip, not a Gander one.
- TwillingateThe iceberg town you reach entirely by road. What's there, and why having no ferry is part of the appeal.
- Where to base yourself for icebergs and FogoWe measured every plausible base against both headline draws. The nearest one has almost nowhere to stay, and the obvious one comes third.
- Where to see icebergs near GanderThe province names Twillingate, Fogo Island and Change Islands among its more popular iceberg viewing spots. Here is how far each one is from the airport.
Parks and sights
- Camping in the national parksThe Parks Canada campgrounds in Gros Morne and Terra Nova, each on a measured drive from Deer Lake or Gander, with how far they are off the ferry.
- Easier access in Gros MorneStep-free and easier-access places in Gros Morne National Park, from Parks Canada's own accessibility page: Western Brook Pond's trail, Shallow Bay's beach mats, the visitor centres.
- Harbours from the airports and ferriesEvery named marina and harbour the open map holds on the island, with the drive from each airport and ferry and the straight-line water distance to its neighbours. The map holds few, so the list is short.
- Stargazing from the airportsThe province's only Dark-Sky Preserve is 78 km from Gander. Its four designated observing sites, how dark every destination on this site is, and what the sky does by month.
- The four UNESCO sites, and the drive to eachNewfoundland and Labrador's four World Heritage sites, Gros Morne, L'Anse aux Meadows, Mistaken Point and Red Bay, with the drive from every airport and ferry.
- The provincial parks, measuredSeventeen ParksNL parks, from Jonathan's Pond just up the road from Gander airport to Cheeseman's plover beach at the Port aux Basques ferry terminal, each on a drive this site has measured.
Outdoor sports
- Fishing here: the licences, the rivers, the rulesWhat a visiting angler legally needs in Newfoundland: the licences, the guide requirement on salmon rivers, and the trout rule most people get backwards. Linked to the regulations and the people who enforce them.
- Hunting as a non-resident: the lawBig game in Newfoundland requires a licensed guide by law, and non-resident licences are sold only through outfitters. The rules a visiting hunter needs before booking, quoted from the regulations and linked to the province.
- Snowmobiling: the railbed runs past both airportsThe T'Railway, the old trans-island railbed, is mapped as a snowmobile trail and passes within a few kilometres of both Gander and Deer Lake airports.