Newfoundland

In September, I went on a solo retreat with Moratorium Retreats to Northeast Crouse & Conche NL and it was a remarkable experience. Remote, quiet, and deeply restorative, it was exactly the kind of solitude and reflection I needed. I left Newfoundland with a sense of peace, an appreciation for the people who live there, and a strong desire to return.

Newfoundland is an island in northeast Canada and is part of the province of Newfoundland & Labrador. It’s about 42K square miles and has a population around 470K people. Newfoundland has an interesting history and I recommend reading both Cod by Mark Kurlansky and Don’t Tell the Newfoundlanders by Greg Malone. And if you’re in or near Conche you have to visit The French Shore Interpretation Centre and view the French Shore Tapestry.

At one point, Newfoundland was the cod fishing capital of the world. However, in the early 1990’s the cod stocks were depleted and Canada imposed a moratorium on cod fishing. As one could imagine, this had a significant impact on the people and economy of Newfoundland including Conche.

Toni Kearney, the owner of Moratorium Retreats, is from Conche and her company focuses on what I would call “intentional tourism”. She connect people to the land, history, and community in a meaningful and sustainable way.

I was drawn to Moratorium Retreats after the death of my husband. I wanted a place to unplug, meditate, read, walk, and be in nature. I spent 3 nights in the Chaytor’s cabin and it was exactly what I needed. The only sounds were the wind, the birds, and the water. I spent the last 2 nights in Conche. I got a tour of the town and the remains of a WW2 bomber that crashed landed in 1942 from Austin. Joan gave me an incredible tour of the +200 foot tapestry and gave me an embroidery lesson.

Toni and several women from Conche prepared food my food and it was amazing. The highlights for me were the partridge berry crumble, the soups (I had the spicy tomato soup for breakfast), and the cod and scallops on the last night.

This part of the world is special, if you’re looking to unplug in nature, get in touch with Toni. Newfoundland’s rugged beauty has a way of reminding you what really matters.

I’ll leave you with this quote which is in the opening of Cod

The question of questions for mankind – the problem which underlines all others, and is more deeply interesting than any other – is the ascertainment of the place which man occupies in nature and of his relations to the universe of things

H. Thomas Henry Huxley
Man’s Place in Nature