Signal Hill

The last Sunday in May we had lovely weather, so we went hiking at Signal Hill, a very popular hike on the East Coast Trail. Our son and dog came along too. This is the North Head at the entrance to the harbor. We started out at “The Cabot”, a historic building at about 12 a.m. at 8 degrees, which to us is lovely (can you believe it?) with hardly any wind. It took us about 2 hours to do 3, 6 k’s, allowing for photos and sightseeing. The climb is about 500 ‘ with a gradient of about 45 degrees, with lots of steps, so it is strenuous. There was an iceberg far out on the horizon, we were lucky that it was a clear day. The cliffs are straight up, so you can’t go there if you have a fear of heights. The harbor and city looks lovely from up there. The hike goes through “The Battery”; a quaint and colorful fishing village with narrow streets complete with washing lines. Can you imagine living there with tourists walking past your front door all day?

There are lovely Alpine plants, Heaths and Heather. There are many old cannons and some teenagers were practicing for the Tattoo, which takes place daily in summer. It was so clear we could clearly see the well-known lighthouse across the “Narrows” as well as Cape Spear, which is much further from where we were.