Newfoundland and Labrador

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Applications-office.png This article is a stub. This means that the information available to us is obviously insufficient. In these places little information is available or the description is severely outdated. If you have been there, whether hitchhiking, for travel or as part of an organized tour − be sure to extend this article!


Newfoundland is an eastern Atlantic province of Canada, called the Rock due to its austere geography and location as an island closing the St-Lawrence Bay.

The mainland part of the province is called Labrador and borders Quebec.

It's Capital city, St. John's, is the Eastern starting point of the Transcanadian Highway. and accessible either by air or by ferry from Nova Scotia.

There is also ferry services to the French islands of Saint-Pierre-et-Miquelon.


Labrador

Newfoundland

The Transcanadian Highway is the only main highway on the island, it goes east from west. Although Newfoundlanders can be considered some of the nicest people, hitchhiking can be difficult in this province.

Hitchhiking is legal all across the province, no matter where you are, shoulders are decent for stopping. The only problem is the drivers, and the amount of traffic. One of the only sources of long distance drivers there are are from the ferry from Cape Breton to Port-aux-Basques. If you are not on the highway as the cars come out of that ferry going east (or were unfortunate enough to have not found anyone willing to give you a ride off the ferry, you have limited traffic eastward.

Westward is a different story, as most long distance drivers are heading to the ferry at various times. Early in the morning is the best time to leave, because it takes 10 hours to cross, and the two ferries generally depart to Cape Breton, Nova Scotia at around 7AM and 11PM.

There is also a second ferry in the summer that departs from Argentia, Newfoundland. This ferry costs much more to get on and also takes 8-10 hours longer, and most people heading to it are tourists who don't want to drive across the island to go back.

My only advice to hitchikers in Newfoundland is: "Keep walking backwards me-son!"


St. John's

Getting out: One way of getting out of St. John's is on the Pitts Memorial Drive. It's located within downtown St. John's, towards the west end of Water Street. Try planting on the small traffic island with a sign saying: TCH (Trans Canada Highway). There isn't much pull off room, but there is a stop light before and after the island, allowing for potential rides to have a good look at you.




Provinces and Territories of Canada