Gros Morne is a spectacular, UNESCO-listed national park on the west coast of Newfoundland. We based ourselves in Rocky Harbour, which is more-or-less in the middle, but it’s such an expansive park (over 1800 sq. km) that we were still an hour’s drive away from the Shallow Bay area at the northern end of the park, and another hour’s drive away from Trout River on the southern end. Even with four days, we didn’t really scratch the surface — not to mention that some of the most impressive trails are far too ambitious to undertake with a 5 year old. But we still hit a lot of highlights: glorious sunsets in Rocky Harbour, a wonderful boat ride up the long, majestic Western Brook Pond fjord, wandering around the Lobster Cove Head lighthouse, and a guided hike through the Tablelands so splendid it deserves its own post.

Unlike the Great Northern Peninsula, Gros Morne is relatively accessible — just 45 minutes from Deer Lake airport, with daily direct flights to Toronto. So, while we left the park with lots of sights unseen, we feel much more confident we’ll be back with bigger, stronger boys to conquer the mountain and everything else along the way.