Cape St. Mary is on highway 100, about 2 1/2 hours from St. John's.  It's a ecological reserve where tens of thousands of gannets and other birds come to court and have their chick.  After driving on this little winding road you finally make it to this amazing place!


The first thing you see is a welcome center and a little store of course!  The first thing you smell is the ocean.  The first thing you feel is freezing cold!  It was 7 degrees with a blustering wind - brrr!  We put on our sweatshirts and jackets!  The first thing you hear are
thousands and thousands of birds - that are a mile (literally) away!


It's a nice hike to see the birds.  It's one mile there and obviously a mile back.  The view is spectacular!  On the way, I kept seeing these "patties" and wondered what they could be from... caribou maybe?  The mystery was soon solved when we turned a corner and what what standing there?  Sheep!  Sophie had to take 10 000 pics of them!  Thank goodness as I didn't have one to share with you =)

That's the goal.

We continue on to see what we came all this way for... the gannets.  All I can say is OMG!!! It's truly unbelievable!  You only see this on tv documentaries - and I have seen this exact spot on docs!  There are so many birds it makes you dizzy!  They fly in and out with their beaks full of "stuff" for the nest and for the babies.  You are standing 10 meters away!  Enjoy the pictures...

birds 10 meters away

Gannet

coming back with lots of goodies!

The babies are quite ugly!

That's how close to the edge I am!

When one came back, they would rub their beaks together as if they were kissing!

The view

humpback whale we saw from shore!