ECT Series: Father Troy Trail

July 6, 2022August 20, 2024 / Maria / Leave a comment

One of the things I find hilarious about hiking in Newfoundland is how quickly and frequently the weather can change. I took a lot of videos on my trip home to compile for reels on Instagram and it’s hard to believe any of the reels were all filmed on the same day. The weather loves to go from sun to fog to wind to rain, sometimes all at the same time! Such was our hike along Father Troy Trail in mid June.

This was my third time hiking Father Troy Trail and I’m always blown away by the scenery on this part of the East Coast Trail. It’s approximately 9km in length and runs from Flatrock to Torbay. Given its proximity to St. John’s and it’s relatively easy rating, it’s a great hike to do when you have limited time – though be cautious because it’s so scenic it’s easy to lose track of time!

Emily was working the whole time I was home, but she went in early so that she could get off at 3pm and we could hike together. Karen and Grant also recently moved home to Newfoundland and I had a brief window in which to see them when I was there in June. We agreed to meet up in Torbay to ferry a second car to Flatrock to do a thru-hike of Father Troy Trail when Emily got off work. We parked Grant’s car on Spray Lane in Torbay (there’s a small parking lot here) and drove Emily’s car to Flatrock to start the hike.

The trail starts right at the public wharf in Flatrock and hikes out along the rock to the point before doubling back on itself. There’s a lovely view of the water and Flatrock from the point, but it’s mostly the same view along the whole point, so we cut across the headland to shorten it a bit on the way in. If it’s your first time on the trail though, I recommend going the whole way to the point!

It’s always windy in Flatrock because the wind blows right up over the rock and this trip was no exception. There are some lovely views looking out towards Silver Mine Head Path and the trail meanders along the bluff in and out of the trees. It’s a sheer rock face on the south side of the headland and people rock climb it from below, so use caution along the bluff.

The trail continues in and out of the trees before eventually heading into a wooded section. We started with clear views, but the fog bank that had been sitting offshore all day was on the move with all the wind and every time we popped out of the trees, less and less of the coastline was visible. Before cutting into the woods we got our first whale sighting of the season and spotted a small minke whale fishing off the cliffside. The seagulls were going nuts in the water as well, so we were encouraged that the caplin had likely made it to the island. Eventually we lost the view entirely and cut into the forest for the longer wooded section of the hike. There are a few shortcuts through the woods, but they’re in rough shape, so I don’t think they’re really any faster than the main trail.

From there the trail continues through the woods along an old road. It doesn’t sound super exciting, but it’s one of my favourite parts of the trail! There’s a really quaint wooden fence and huge fields of wildflowers, behind which you can see the beginnings of Torbay. I believe it’s privately owned farmland, but it’s currently unoccupied, so we frolicked in the flowers for awhile before hitting another parcel of farmland that was occupied by cows. Cows really are some of the sweetest animals, so we stopped for a while to let them stare at us before continuing on.

After you exit the woods, you get to my true favourite part of the trail – the hike along the bluffs that form the edge of Torbay. Again, it’s all meadows and farmland, which make for the most idyllic views on a nice day. We were expecting to have completely lost the view to the fog, but fortunately the wind had changed direction again while we were in the woods and we were treated to bright blue water and sunny skies! It’s an easy hike all along the bluffs and we frequently stopped for photos. It’s a steady downhill to Torbay Beach and then it’s just one more short uphill section back to the parking lot on Spray Lane. We cut off ~1km by skipping the point in Flatrock and ended up finishing the hike in just under 2.5 hours, so it was a great late afternoon/early evening hike for us.

Many sections of the ECT are “one of my favourite trails”, but this definitely still holds true for Father Troy. I’ve hiked it 3 times now and I’d definitely hike it again. At under 3 hours for a thru-hike, you get a lot of amazing scenery! Plus, I loved the opportunity to hike this one with Karen and Grant. A great trail for beginner hikers!

Hiking ECT: Deadman’s Bay Path

May 18, 2022 / Maria / Leave a comment

I haven’t hiked Deadman’s Bay Path since 2019, but it is one of my favourite trail sections on the ECT and I’ve done it 3 times. Most recently I did it with Lien and Brandon when they visited Newfoundland for my wedding, but I’ve also solo hiked it in the past. This section of the trail runs from Fort Amherst to Blackhead and is approximately 10.5km in length. I feel like it has a bit of a bad rep because of the steep climb out of Fort Amherst, but I think it’s unjustified because it’s only a steep climb and the views from the top and along most of the trail are really unparalleled.

You can hike the trail in either direction, but I’ve always done it from Fort Amherst to Blackhead. If you try to logic that the other direction will avoid the steep climb, you’ll just have to do it out of Freshwater Bay instead, so either option is basically the same. I definitely recommend 2 vehicles for this trail since you won’t want to have to turn around and go back the entire trail, but given the proximity to St. John’s, it’s easy to get dropped off or picked up on one end. If you’re looking for a shorter day, you could also exit at Freshwater Bay or just turn around at Freshwater Bay and only do half the trail. I haven’t done the Freshwater Bay access trail in years, but I believe it’s about a 45 minute walk.

If you start in Fort Amherst, you can visit the lighthouse and get the climb out of the way early. It only takes me about 15 minutes to climb up to the top of the bluff and once there, you’ll have an amazing view of Signal Hill and downtown St. John’s. One time I started the trail around noon and ate my lunch once I reached the top so I could enjoy the view a bit longer. If you don’t want to do the whole trail and are just looking for an hour long walk to get some exercise, I suggest doing the climb up to the top and just enjoying the view before turning around. It’s a great workout and will help build up your stamina.

After that, the trail meanders along the top of the cliff without too much up or down. It goes in and out of the trees and past a few water holes, all with fantastic views of the coastline. Right around the 4.5km mark you start the downhill section into Freshwater Bay (which is the worst uphill part if you go the opposite direction). Freshwater Bay is another lovely short hike on it’s own if you want to park off Blackhead Road on the way to Signal Hill and hike in. It’s marked by the long strip of beach that separates Freshwater Bay Pond from Freshwater Bay – I’ve never swam in the pond myself, but Emily has and it makes for a good cool down on a nice day.

I had a minor breakdown at Freshwater Bay when I hiked it with Lien and Brandon because I forgot sunscreen and was petrified of getting a sunburn or awful tan lines before the wedding, but fortunately a kind stranger happened upon us at the exact right moment and lent me some! Freshwater Bay is located at ~5.5km, so it makes for a good halfway point to stop and have lunch if you’re doing the whole trail.

After crossing the beach, you head back up into the woods and traverse along the edge of the bay. The trail comes out of the woods at the end and I recommend following the trail out to the viewpoint on Small Point for amazing views back to St. John’s and out to Cape Spear. After Small Point the views are more about Cape Spear than St. John’s and the trail winds it’s way around Deadman’s Bay before finally heading into Blackhead. The trail is pretty exposed walking into Blackhead, so gets pretty windy and you can get hit with ocean spray on a particularly blustery day.

If you’re feeling particularly adventurous, you can continue for another 4-5km to Cape Spear on Blackhead Path. I did this once when I was hiking solo and I was ahead of schedule for when my Dad was going to pick me up. It’s not a difficult trail, but it will significantly lengthen the hike, so most often I just end at Blackhead. I’m about 60% through the East Coast Trail to date, but Deadman’s Bay Path remains one of my favourite trails, and given it’s proximity to the city, I definitely recommend!

ECT Series: Silver Mine Head Path

May 4, 2022April 25, 2022 / Maria / Leave a comment

This is going to be a short post for a short trail. Silver Mine Head Path runs from Middle Cove Beach to Motion Drive on the edge of Torbay. If you want to take 2 cars, it’s approximately 2km one way, but given the short distance, it’s still only 4km to walk there and back, which is what I did.

Silver Mine Head Path was never really a priority for me because it was so short (funny how that happens), but it was the only section of trail I hadn’t done on between St. John’s and St. Francis, so I decided to fit it in one morning when I was home in August 2021. I parked at Middle Cove Beach and walked towards Torbay – it only took me an hour and a half and it was a gorgeous sunny day, so I finished it off with a dip in the ocean! Not something I normally do, but I’ve been getting more into cold water swimming in the last few years. I always thought North Atlantic Ocean was the coldest place to swim, but it turns out in the middle of the summer, the glacier fed lakes in BC are a fair bit colder!

For such a short walk, Silver Mine Head Path gives you a really good bang for your buck. It starts with a short climb up to the top of the bluff and then you continue along the scenic coast all the way to Torbay and back. There’s not too much going on since it’s a short trail, but there aren’t many trees either, so I enjoyed the beautiful ocean views. Plus I really liked the grassy meadows on the Torbay side of the hike – I imagine it would be a great place for lupins at the right time of year (or at the very least, fireweed).

So in conclusion, this is the hike to do if you’re looking for a short walk after work or on a Sunday morning. Along with hiking out to Torbay Point and back (on Cobbler’s Path), I think both trails make for great evening walks when you only have an hour or two and are craving that fresh salty air. I’ve always gone to Signal Hill, but I’ll be hitting up these trails instead in the future!