Hiking the Motion Path on the ECT : Petty Harbour to Little Bald Head

Hiking the Motion Path on the ECT

East Coast Trail Thru-Hike

After a longish day of hiking yesterday, and a very peaceful night on our clifftop campsite, we slept in until 7:30 am.  After enjoying a breakfast of raisin bread and coffee, we set off along the Motion Path once again.  It was a pleasant morning, walking among the glacial erratic, past clifftop lakes, and through fields of spring flowers and heath/heather. At times the narrow footpath, which was sunk ankle-deep into the ground cover, wound very close to the edges of the cliffs, offering multiple opportunities to plummet into the sea below.  While this was a little nerve-wracking, overall it was an enjoyable trek.

 

When we reached Motion Point on the East Coast Trail, the feature for which the trail is named, we paused to enjoy the unique wave action, which had a somewhat mesmerizing effect.  The unusual patterns seemed to be caused by waves playing around exposed rocks near shore, and wind gusts going offshore at the same time.   

 
While watching the wave action we spotted our third whale of the trip!

After this, the trail gradually descended down a series of geological steps – while relatively easy to navigate the slow descent over stones and boulders made for a tiring period.  This was followed by an equally tiring climb up to Hartes Point Ridge, but the views from the top were fantastic!

At one point we met a friendly couple on the beach watching the birds and enjoying each other's company who had lots of advice about great rock formations and the beauty of the Spout, a natural jet of water we were heading towards.  When we asked them how far the Spout was, their answer was 2 - 2.5 hours.  Every time we've asked anyone how far something is on this trail, that always seems to be their answer: 2-2.5 hours.  This does not necessarily reflect our reality, but I'm sure it is always well meant.

By early afternoon we reached Miner's Campsite, which was a very well-established and attractive spot to camp - sheltered, but with great views, several platforms and a toilet.  We were tempted to stay at Miner's and just relax for the afternoon, but with predictions of poor weather for the coming few days, we decided to continue on and enjoy as much as we could while it was nice.

As we continued on we were suddenly assaulted by an adult Spotted Sandpiper, in a classic display to lead us away from a nest or young.  We stopped and very carefully looked around, and a couple seconds later spotted a tiny chick, hunkered down on the edge of the trail a foot from where we were standing.  As we saw it, it popped up and ran into the bushes like an adorable little pompom on legs.  So cute!

 

So the trail brought us to a newly constructed wooden platform, looking out over the ocean, with an abandoned cabin behind it in the woods.  The cabin freaked us out a little, so we hurriedly continued up the track behind it, which led back to the trail.  Although we didn't exactly get lost here, the trail wasn't too well marked in this section.  

After regaining the trail, we soon passed by Raymond's Gulch, which had two massive waterfalls pouring off the cliff face into the ocean below.  It was in this stretch that we finished Motion Path and began our trek along the Spout section of the ECT. Spout is considered to be a challenging path as it is the longest part of the East Coast Trail system.

By 4pm our energy and legs were almost exhausted and so coming across a semi-established campsite we decided to relax for a bit and figure out whether it was advisable to continue onward.  In the end, we made coffee and apple crisp, dried out our laundered clothes from yesterday and took a ½ hour break.  After this, we had regained enough energy for the final push to the Spout.

On our way, we passed a couple who were hiking from Cappahaden to St. John's with their two husky dogs.  After chatting for a few minutes, we parted ways and continued to Long Point, a spit of land which sticks ways out into the ocean.  At this point, we also passed through a large spray of salt water that was soaking the path as waves crashed into the cliffs below and were tossed over the top by the wind.

By mid-afternoon we reached a river crossing beside the famous Spout.  The river was running really high from all the rain, and it was quite a challenge to make the crossing while being continually sprayed by the Spout.  It was quite a lot of fun though.  The Spout, which is a renowned feature of the East Coast Trail, is a place where the wave action regularly forces a large plume of water into the air.  It is both beautiful and mesmerizing to watch.

Little Bald Head Campsite

After spending some time at the Spout, we continued for just over half a kilometre to Little Bald Head campsite.  This is our first official ECTA site, and it is complete with wooden platforms on which to pitch tents, and it has a toilet nearby. 

 We decided to try pitching our tent on a platform, which is something we have never done before.  It seemed to go okay, and after last night, we will be glad of the flat ground.  As we finished setting up we were joined by a very large, very happy-sounding family group.

After a dinner of Mountain Chili, along with cups of tea, we were just washing up when it began to pour.  We took this as our cue to disappear into the dry warmth of our tent for the remainder of the evening.

If the weather predictions for the next two days hold we are due to get 20-30mm of rain tomorrow.  If that is the case then we may decide to stay put on our camp platform with river and toilet, or we may decide to take it easy and only go 5 km to the next established site.  We will see what tomorrow on the Trans Canada Trail / Great Trail brings.

 

See you on the trail!

Remember to follow our entire adventure here: www.comewalkwithus.online

_______________________________________________________________________________
Practical Information:
Paths: Motion Path, Spout Path

Distance Hiked: Trail = 15.6 km

Max Temp: 23.3 °C

Min Temp: 12.8 °C